Laura pulled a small oscillating fan out onto the patio, then turned it on to high. It was a warm day, reminding her that April had flipped over to May a week ago. Soon they would no longer be able to enjoy breakfast out here, which she would miss. She sat back and twisted the cap off the bottle of beer she’d snagged from the fridge. Her mother was napping in her recliner—a daily occurrence. She took a swallow of the cold beer—one she’d stashed in the freezer for a few minutes—and gave an audible “ahhh” as she swallowed. The flowers were vibrant; hummingbirds buzzed around them and butterflies flitted about. The bird feeders seemed to have more customers every day and she enjoyed sitting and watching the activity. It cleared her mind. It was peaceful. She had hoped that all of that would carry over to her writing…but no, she still hadn’t come up with anything worthy of being published.
She heard a splash in the pool next door and felt a stab of envy. Oh, how refreshing it would be to dive into a pool of cool water. Although, despite the afternoon heat, she imagined the water was still a little on the cold side. But they’d been using the pool for a while now. Maybe it was heated, like her mother suggested.
She took another swallow of her beer, listening. There were no voices, only the occasional splash of water. Laura had half a mind to run upstairs to see who was in the pool, but she’d told herself she needed to stop spying on the neighbor. For one thing, it was extremely rude and, well…a little creepy. Besides, she didn’t really care what was going on next door. She was simply thankful the yard guys hadn’t come at seven yesterday morning. She frowned. In fact, they hadn’t come all week.
She looked across the expanse of their own yard…lush green and trimmed to perfection. Thursday was mowing day for her. Friday was when she used the weed trimmer around the trees and fence, the sidewalk, and flowerbeds. The yard looked nice. Very nice, in fact. Her mother was thrilled by the transformation she’d made already. Everything looked nice. Except the house. Next week’s chore was to get quotes from painters. She’d already picked up paint samples and she and her mother had been arguing over colors ever since.
She smiled. Playfully arguing. She knew in the end, her mother would be the one to decide on the color. It was her house, after all. Laura was just…what? Maid? Cook? Caretaker?
Daughter.
She was content, though. Surprisingly so. She’d been keeping up with her friends sporadically through Facebook and the occasional phone call and text. Several had invited her to dinner, but so far she had no desire to head back to the Metroplex. She thought she’d miss the city more than she did. She only had two grocery stores to choose from here, but they were both as large and well-stocked as those in Dallas. Since she’d been cooking their meals, she hadn’t really missed going out. And since she had her bedroom—and her writing room—set up the way she wanted it, she certainly didn’t miss her overly expensive apartment.
All in all, this move had turned out so much better than she’d imagined. Now, that’s not to say that in a few months, during the heat of summer, she wouldn’t miss being in Dallas and at her fancy apartment that had not two, but three swimming pools.
She flicked her gaze to the fence. Shame she didn’t get along better with Cassidy Anderson. If she did, she might be inclined to ask if she could use the pool during the week.
She heard a loud splash and wondered if someone had jumped off the diving board. That was nice. You didn’t find many pools with diving boards anymore. Again, she felt a twinge of envy. Yes, it was a shame she and the new neighbor had gotten off to a rough start.
She called me a bitch, she reminded herself. Then she smiled. Well, she kinda was being one, wasn’t she? But still…
“Hey…are you out there?”
She frowned, then looked at the fence. “Are you talking to me?”
A laugh. “Yeah.”
Laura leaned forward in her chair. “What do you want?”
Another laugh. “Well, I’ve got a proposition.”
Laura’s eyebrows shot up. “Okay…no. Really not interested,” she said to the fence.
“You don’t even know what it is.”
Laura stood up and walked over to the fence. “What do you want?” she asked again.
She heard Cassidy walk closer too. “My yard guys quit on me.”
“They didn’t like the change from seven to ten?”
“That…and I wanted flowers and stuff. We kinda had a mutual parting of the ways.”
“And you want me to recommend someone?”
“I want you to do it.”
“Me?”
“It pays well.” Then she coughed. “Not that I’m trying to throw money around or anything.”
Laura smiled, then wiped it from her face. “I don’t know the first thing about being a yard girl.”
“Not true. I’ve seen your yard. And flowers. I want mine to look like that.”
Laura hesitated, then shook her head. “Look, you should probably hire professionals. You’ve got a lot of land. I’m not sure I could keep up with it and our yard too.”
“It’s less than you have. Most of it is wooded. It’s only in the front and back here by the pool. The other side I left natural.”
Laura hesitated again, wondering how much Cassidy would pay her. It would be nice to have some extra cash. Her savings was dwindling at a rapid pace and she had no intention of touching her investments. Even though she didn’t have any living expenses here, she still needed some kind of income. Cassidy must have sensed her indecision.
“Listen, why don’t you come over and take a look? Then you can decide.”
Oh, hell…she was curious to see the house up close, after all. She’d only seen it through the fence in the front…and her binoculars, of course. “How did you know I was out here?”
“I saw you when I went off the board.” A pause. “You coming over?”
“All right.”
“The gate is locked. I’ll meet you out there.”
Laura stared at the fence for several seconds, aware that Cassidy had already left. Why am I doing this?
“Because your writing career is at a standstill,” she reminded herself.
She walked through the grass, along the fence line. By the time she’d reached the front, she heard the gate opening next door. She went around the fence that separated the two properties and out onto the road. The gate wasn’t in the center of Cassidy’s property but much closer to the side by their house. Laura found her waiting under the oak tree, casually leaning against it. A T-shirt covered what appeared to be a one-piece swimsuit and, like her, Cassidy was wearing flip-flops. Her hair was damp from the pool, her skin tan. Laura had to admit—tall, dark, and handsome—she was even more attractive up close and personal.
“Ah, you like beer,” Cassidy said with a smile. “Come on in. I was about to get one.”
It was only then that Laura realized she was still holding the beer bottle. Geez, she’s going to think you’re a lush. She shrugged. Did she care what Cassidy Anderson thought?
As they walked up the driveway, Cassidy motioned to the yard. “See? Not a whole lot to mow. There’s even less in the back.”
Because of the woods, the yard was actually much smaller than their own. And of course, she knew what the backyard looked like. She had a perfect view of it from her writing room.
“I’m glad you left the woods.” At Cassidy’s raised eyebrows, she explained, “I used to play in them when I was a kid.”
“Oh. So you grew up here.”
“I was three when we moved here.”
“I never had the opportunity to come out here. I wish I had.”
Laura followed her around the house and to the back. “What do you mean?”
“The property here. My father bought it about thirty-five years ago. Thought when he retired that they would build out here.” Cassidy smiled, showing off perfect white teeth. “My mother had a different idea, though.”
“So you got it?”
“My brother had no interest in it. He’s a city boy.” She walked over to the outdoor kitchen area and opened up a full-sized, stainless steel fridge. “Another beer?”
“Sure. Thanks.” She went to the sink and poured out what was left in her bottle and handed the empty to Cassidy. “This is pretty awesome,” she said, pointing at the outdoor kitchen.
“Yeah…I haven’t gotten to use it as much as I’d like to. I’ve got some friends coming later today, so I’m going to try my hand at some teriyaki beef kabobs.”
Laura nodded, thinking that sounded good. Instead of commenting, she glanced out to the yard. “So…your yard guys left you, huh?”
“Well, like I said, it was mutual. They don’t do flowers.” She handed Laura a beer that she’d first slipped into a koozie. “I like what you’ve done over there.” Cassidy walked toward the pool and sat down at one of the tables. “I was paying these guys four hundred dollars a month. They mowed the lawn, trimmed the grass, edged along the sidewalks…that sort of thing. If you’d do all that plus add some flowers—and take care of them—I’d pay you four-fifty. And of course, I’d pay for the flowers and whatnot.” She raised her eyebrows. “Interested?”
Four-fifty? Laura tried to estimate how long it would take her. Using the riding mower, she figured she could have the lawn done in about an hour, front and back. The trees were mature, so trimming the grass around them wouldn’t be much of a chore. Planting and tending to flowers would be more pleasure than work. Was she interested?
“Yes. I’ll do it.”
“Great! I only have one rule.” Cassidy showed her smile off again. “Have it finished by noon on Fridays.”