Molly gave Amanda a pointed look.

“Well, of course. For the betterment of the town.”

“And we all know that, and appreciate it so much,” Samantha said.

“Then we’re good with the mention in the brochure?” Carter asked.

“I suppose.” Mavis looked defeated. And irritated.

“What’s the timeline for completion, Carter?” Chelsea asked, then gave a grin in Molly and Carter’s direction.

“Should be about a month to six weeks to finish up.”

“So we should be on track to wind around the new town square for the holiday parade,” Mavis said.

Carter nodded. “Hopefully, if there are no delays.”

“Fabulous. And Molly, you’ll still be in town for the holidays, won’t you?”

Molly gave Mavis a blank stare. “I have no idea.”

“I’m penciling you in to judge the holiday parade.”

“Um. Sure.”

Carter gave her a horrified look and a quick shake of his head.

But apparently, it was too late, since she’d already agreed.

They went through some financial stuff, and a few items of new business. Molly went over the marketing plan for the project, then they wrapped up.

All in all, not too bad.

“I hope you and I have a chance to reconnect,” Samantha said. “It’s been a long time since high school.”

“I know. I’m sorry I didn’t stay in touch. I move around a lot.”

“That’s what your mom said. Maybe we could have lunch or dinner sometime?”

“I’d like that.”

They traded numbers and Samantha told her she’d call to set something up.

“Ready to go?” Carter asked.

“Okay. Sure.”

He led her out the door.

“Have you got a hot date?”

“No. I’m trying to save you from volunteering to be on some other committee. It’s bad enough you agreed to judge the holiday parade.”

She stopped in the middle of the parking lot. “I saw that look you gave me. What was so bad about that?”

“You don’t even wanna know.”

“Well, now I do.”

“Come on. Let’s go get a drink at Bash’s bar and I’ll tell you about it.”

“I really should go home.”

“Is your dad there?”

“Yes.”

“Then you can have a drink with me. I’ll take you home after. Just call your dad and tell him you’ll be a little late.”

She felt ridiculous that at thirty years old she had to check in with her parents—one of the drawbacks of living at home again. She hadn’t had to answer to anyone for years. But she called her dad, who said her mom was asleep, everything was fine, and to go out and enjoy herself.

Not that she was going out—like on a date, going out. She was just going for a drink. With Carter.

Which didn’t mean anything.

After a short drive, Carter pulled into the No Hope At All bar.

“Cute,” she said after they got out of the car.

“That’s Bash’s sense of humor.”

“So he owns the bar?”

“Yeah. He bought it out from one of his dad’s best friends who was retiring, and renamed it. It’s a pretty popular place.”

“I can tell. The parking lot is pretty full for a weeknight.”

“He shows sports on big-screen TVs, and has a couple of pool tables, so there’s a lot more to do than just drink.”

“And you come here a lot.”

He shrugged. “When I don’t have anything else to do. Tonight is a night for a drink.”

Molly wondered what the “anything else to do” meant. When he had a girlfriend, or a hot date? For all she knew, he might already have a girlfriend.

Not that it mattered to her if he did or didn’t, since she wasn’t interested in him that way.

The bar was great on the inside, with multiple televisions showing sports of all kinds, tables spread around for ample seating, a pool table at either end, and a beautifully weathered bar top.

“Do you know Bash?” Carter asked.

“Just from the wedding.” She smiled at the quite attractive bartender, who grinned as they took a seat at the bar.

Bash arched a brow. “You both look like you need a shot or a double.”

“Committee meeting tonight,” Carter said.

Bash nodded. “No wonder. What’ll it be?”

“I’ll have a Grey Goose and cranberry juice,” Molly said.

“Crown on the rocks for me.”

“Coming right up.”

Molly swiveled on the barstool. “So how often do you come here?” she asked Carter.

“Not often enough.”

She laughed. “Life couldn’t possibly be that bad, could it?”

“Actually, it’s not. I just had a rough day. But the meeting tonight wasn’t as awful as I thought it would be.”

Bash slid their drinks across the bar top toward them.

“Thanks,” Molly said, then took a sip, her eyes widening. “Wow. There’s a decent amount of vodka in here.”

“Bash makes good drinks. He doesn’t half-ass anything.”

“I can tell.” She took another sip. It tasted good. “So you were going to fill me in on the holiday parade.”

“Oh yeah.” Carter took a long swallow of his drink, then sat the glass on the bar. “You need to steer clear of Mavis.”