Smart Girls Think Twice by Cathie Linz Page B

for the town, well it has a new Thai restaurant, which I’m thrilled about,” Skye continued.
    “Their spring rolls are awesome,” Emma agreed. “And their pad thai is also great.”
    “We’ve got several new businesses all along Barwell Street. When I first opened the theater, there were a lot of vacant storefronts in town. Lots of FOR RENT signs. But you already know that. I mean, this is your hometown after all.”
    “I haven’t had a chance to come home much for the past few years. Not since my parents moved down to Florida. I visited them down there for holidays.”
    “So what do you hope to prove with this study of yours?”
    “I don’t know that I’ll prove anything. I want to try and discover what triggered the rejuvenation here. See if it’s unique to this town or if it could be utilized in other towns facing similar challenges.” Emma went on to talk with Skye some more about Rock Creek before wrapping things up.
    “Who else are you interviewing?” Skye asked.
    “The mayor of Rock Creek and the mayor of Serenity Falls.”
    “The Serenity Falls mayor? Why do you want to interview him? I thought your study was about Rock Creek.”
    “It is but I can’t ignore the fact that the town right next door was selected as one of America’s Best Small Towns, yet that good fortune didn’t spread here.”
    “Have you met Walt Whitman?”
    “When I was a teenager.” Emma had won second place in an essay contest the town had held for Memorial Day and the mayor had given her a certificate.
    “Then you should know how obsessive he is. He’s not that thrilled with what’s going on here.”
    “Why not? I would think he’d like the improvements.”
    “He doesn’t consider them to be improvements. He’s not that fond of change for one thing.
    Or of creativity. He’s definitely a by-the-book kind of guy.”
    “I heard your husband, the sheriff, was a by-the-book kind of guy.”
    “ Was being the operative word there. I’ve wooed Nathan over to the dark side of chaos and creativity. Not that he’d admit that. You know how men are.”
    Not really. Sure Emma had studied male and female behavior in various classes she’d taken.
    And yes, she had some personal observations from her life at the university. But observations were different than experience. She definitely lacked experience. She had some, but it was limited to nerdy guys who were a subspecies all on their own.
    She had no experience with a man like Jake. Someone who got to her on some basic “wham”
    kind of level. Not exactly a scientific description of her reaction to him and his Cheeto-laced kiss.
    Maybe it was just the junk food that had done it to her. And him licking and nibbling on her lips afterward had nothing to do with it.
    Yeah, right.
    “Mommy!” A little girl came skipping into the theater, wearing a pink GO GREEN top, shorts, and red cowboy boots. “Guess what we did in class today? We drew dragons.”
    “This is my daughter Toni,” Skye said.
    Looking at the cute little girl, Emma wondered what her niece or nephew would look like at six.
    Wow, in a few months she was going to be an aunt. She still had a hard time digesting that fact.
    “Hi.”
    “I have a cat named Gravity.”
    “I, uh, that’s nice.” Emma’s experience with little kids was somewhat limited. Which is why she fell back on that old standard question, “What do you want to be when you grow up?”
    “Korean.”
    Emma blinked. She wasn’t expecting that response. But then she hadn’t expected most of what had happened to her since she’d returned home.
    “Toni’s best friend in kindergarten is Korean,” Skye explained.
    “Who are you?” Toni asked Emma.
    “I’m Emma.”
    “What do you want to be when you grow up?”
    “Smarter than I am now,” Emma said. “About a lot of things.” Especially men who drove her crazy with just one kiss.
    “Why are we meeting at the Dairy Queen to discuss your wedding plans?” Emma asked Sue Ellen later