Page 46 of Brewing Up My Fresh Start (Twin Waves #2)

The answer hits me with the clarity of morning coffee after a sleepless night. “The grants aren’t complications. They’re protection against exactly the kind of predatory development that destroys communities instead of building them up.”

“Now you’re thinking like a man who’s found something worth fighting for.”

“Set up the meeting. I’ll be there.”

“What are you going to tell them?”

“That Michelle Lawson’s preservation funding is exactly what makes this project worth building. And if they can’t see that, they can find another developer.”

I hang up and find Amanda standing in the doorway with a travel mug of coffee.

“Sounds like your thinking time is over,” she observes.

“The investors want me to choose between Michelle and my career. David Norris is positioning himself as the solution to their concerns about community complications.”

“And what do you want?”

I look at my motorcycle, then back at my sister who’s been waiting patiently for me to stop running from the most important decision of my adult life.

“I want to fight for her. For us. For the idea that building something beautiful together is worth more than building something profitable alone.”

Amanda hands me the coffee with a smile that suggests she’s been waiting for this moment since I arrived.

“Then stop making decisions about what Michelle can handle and start asking what she wants to handle together.”

“What if she won’t forgive me for running when she needed me?”

“Then you’ll have to prove that you’re worth forgiving. But Grayson?” Amanda’s expression turns serious. “You better not come back here without her. Because if you mess this up again, Tyler’s going to be very disappointed in his Uncle Grayson.”

T he motorcycle ride from Charlotte to Twin Waves has never felt longer. Every mile stretches like construction delays caused by weather—frustrating, unavoidable, and completely at odds with the urgency clawing at my chest.

My phone buzzes with texts I can’t read while driving, but I catch glimpses at red lights:

Jessica: Michelle’s doing the Channel 7 interview at five. David showed up at the coffee shop this morning.

Mrs. Hensley: That snake is asking questions about federal compliance. Emergency book club meeting tonight.

Jessica: Get yourself back here. Michelle needs you.

By the time I reach Twin Waves, the afternoon sun is already casting long shadows across the boardwalk. The town looks exactly the same, but something feels different—like storm clouds gathering just beyond the horizon.

I pull up to Twin Waves Brewing Co. expecting to find Michelle preparing for her interview. Instead, the coffee shop is closed, dark windows reflecting my own growing panic and a hastily written sign that reads: Closed for important business matters. Back tomorrow.

Jessica’s car sits in the parking lot. I knock on the glass door, and she appears like she’s been waiting for this exact moment.

“About time,” she says, unlocking the door. “Michelle’s at home getting ready. David has been here twice today, pressuring her about compliance issues and partnership opportunities.”

“Is she buying it?”

“She’s terrified he’s going to destroy everything she’s built. Again.” Jessica studies my face with prosecutorial intensity. “The question is: are you here to help her fight, or are you here to create more problems with your emotional unavailability?”

“I’m here to fix my mistakes.”

“Good. Because we have a plan, and you’re part of it whether you like it or not.”

Jessica leads me to the back office, where Mrs. Hensley sits surrounded by manila folders and legal documents like a general planning a military campaign.

“Grayson Reed,” Mrs. Hensley announces without looking up. “You look like a man who’s been running away from his problems instead of solving them.”

“Close enough.”

“Well, you can solve them now or watch David destroy the woman you love. Your choice.”

She spreads documents across the table.

“Turns out our Mr. Norris has left a trail of destroyed partnerships across three states. Small business owners who trusted him, community leaders who believed his promises, development projects that somehow benefited his companies while leaving local investors broke.”

“How did you find all this?”

“The Bookaholics Anonymous network extends far beyond Twin Waves,” Mrs. Hensley says with satisfaction. “Book clubs are excellent sources of local business intelligence. We made some calls.”

Jessica opens her laptop, revealing what appears to be a comprehensive investigation into David Norris’s business practices.

“Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina—same pattern everywhere. He targets successful community leaders, offers partnership opportunities, gains access to their business plans and community connections, then disappears with everything valuable.”

“And no one’s stopped him?”

“Individual victims don’t have enough resources to pursue legal action,” Jessica explains. “But a coordinated effort from multiple communities? That’s different.”

Mrs. Hensley’s smile turns fierce. “We’re not just protecting Michelle. We’re taking down a predator who’s been using small towns as his personal hunting ground.”

“What do you need from me?”

“We need you to convince Michelle to trust the plan instead of trying to handle Norris alone. And we need you to figure out what you’re doing with your investors.”

The reminder of my deadline hits like cold water. “The investors are meeting this evening to decide whether to keep Reed Development Corp. on the project. David’s been positioning himself as a consultant who can solve their community complications.”

“By replacing you with a person who promises fewer relationship dramas,” Jessica finishes. “Michelle told us about David’s calls to your investors.”

“How did she?—”

“Small towns have excellent communication networks,” Mrs. Hensley observes. “The question is: what are you going to tell them?”

I look at the documents spread across the table, evidence of David’s systematic destruction of communities just like Twin Waves.

Evidence that Michelle’s grants aren’t complications—they’re protection against exactly the kind of predatory development that destroys places instead of building them up.

“I’m going to tell them that Michelle Lawson’s preservation funding is exactly what makes this project worth building. And if they can’t see that, they can find another developer.”

Mrs. Hensley’s smile could power municipal lighting. “Good answer. Now let’s go convince Michelle to let us save her business and her love life simultaneously.”

“Does she know I’m here?”

“She knows you left her a voicemail promising to explain everything. She also knows you’ve been gone for two days without explaining anything.

” Jessica’s expression turns serious. “Grayson, she’s holding herself together through sheer stubbornness, but she’s terrified.

Of David, of losing everything again, of trusting you and getting her heart broken. ”

“What if she won’t listen?”

“Then you better find words that matter more than your fears,” Mrs. Hensley says, already gathering her intelligence files. “Because in one hour, Channel 7 is going to ask Michelle about federal grant compliance, and she’s planning to face those questions alone.”

“Not anymore,” I say, finally understanding what I should have realized two days ago. “She’s not facing anything alone ever again.”