Honeysuckle Summer (The Sweet Magnolias #7)(27)

Carter cleared the break with Gayle, then drove to Serenity. Since it was close to lunchtime, most of the parking spaces in front of Wharton’s were occupied, so he parked over on Azalea near the radio station. As he passed the studio with its view of the town green, he waved at Sarah, who was still on the air. She gave him a thumbs-up. A couple of other people he recognized gave him knowing looks, as if they were in on some secret he wasn’t yet privy to.

When he walked into Wharton’s, the men sitting with the mayor immediately got up, shook his hand as Howard introduced him, then moved to another table.

“You didn’t invite me over here for a casual chat, did you?” he asked Howard, who had a discernible glint in his eyes.

“Nope. I did tell you it was important, didn’t I?”

That part had slipped Carter’s mind. Maybe he’d just mistakenly assumed that everything was important to Howard. “What’s going on?”

“Haven’t seen you at any of our town meetings, so I’m guessing you don’t pay a lot of attention to local politics, is that right?” Howard asked.

“I’ve read the local paper, but that’s about it. The move over here came up pretty quickly. I’ve been busy settling into my job and getting my sisters settled in school. I wanted to be sure they met some kids their own age before school let out for the summer.”

“As it should be,” Howard said. “You may not know just how much this town has grown recently. Development in the county’s taken off, too.”

“Now, that I do know,” Carter said. “I was just patrolling out at the Oak Haven and Willow Creek developments. Once those houses sell, it wouldn’t surprise me if the county doesn’t need another new elementary school at least.”

“Already being discussed,” Howard confirmed. “And here in town, we’ve been talking about wanting to start our own police department. The sheriff’s going to have his hands full with all the outlying areas, and we want a department that’s accountable to the folks right here in town.”

“Makes sense,” Carter said. He knew firsthand that the sheriff’s department was stretched thin trying to cover an increasingly populated region. So far, there’d been no local tax dollars allocated to add new deputies. His own job had been created because the county had gotten federal stimulus money to add an extra deputy.

“What would you think about taking on the job of chief and building the police department here from the ground up?” Howard asked.

Carter sat back in shock. “You’re considering me for the job? Why? I barely know my way around the region.”

Howard leaned forward. “Here’s the way I see it. You’re young. You’re energetic. And you’re sensitive. I liked what I saw and what I heard about the incident with Tommy Price. You didn’t just go through the motions. You cared about what happened to that boy.”

“And I also jumped to conclusions and misjudged Raylene,” Carter reminded him.

“The way I hear it, you’ve apologized. I admire a man who can admit his mistakes, who doesn’t pretend to be perfect. It’s a good quality to have in a leader. You’ll listen, and I’ll bet you won’t be leaping to any more conclusions.”

“You really think I’m the right man for this job?” Carter asked, still incredulous that a relative stranger would be the town’s choice.

“I do,” Howard said emphatically. “And I’m not alone. The sheriff and I have talked and he backs up my thoughts about this. So do most of the council. Tom McDonald’s our town manager and you’d be reporting to him, so the two of you need to talk some more. You should spend some time thinking about how you’d see a police force being created, what kind of staff you’d need, the kind of equipment. Tom has a rough idea of our budget. You two can sit down and compare notes, hash out the details. That is, if you’re interested.”

Carter didn’t have to think about it for long. “I’m interested,” he said at once.

Starting a department would be a challenge. While it would probably entail a lot more paperwork than he’d prefer, it might also give him more regular hours, which would give him more time with Carrie and Mandy. As safe as the area was, he still hadn’t been looking forward to leaving them at home alone when he had the night-shift rotation.

Howard nodded with satisfaction, then looked Carter directly in the eye. “One thing you should know. We’re going to want a decent commitment from you. If you have any reason to think you’re going to want to leave for a bigger police force anytime soon, then we should call this off now.”

“I understand. And I’m sure you’re aware that I left a bigger police force to come here. I have no desire to go back. My younger sister won’t graduate for another four years, and I intend for it to be from Serenity High School.”

“Good to know. I’ll tell Tom to expect your call. I’ll get him working on the details of an offer, and we’ll see if we can’t move this along. Council will have to approve your deal and a budget for the department before we can go forward, but I don’t anticipate any problems. The sheriff will work with us on a timetable.”

“Thank you for thinking of me, Mayor Lewis.”

“Call me Howard. I’m looking forward to working with you, son.”