“But you haven’t been able to find a gallery.”
He met her gaze. “Right.”
“It’s a pickle.”
He took a bite and after a moment said, “No, this is darn fine spaghetti.”
“You could find another babysitter.”
“That would be a much cheaper option, of course.”
“Does Mrs. Hancock want to go to Riverside?”
“No. She’s moving in with her daughter’s family and her relationship with her son-in-law is difficult. Seems he doesn’t change his underwear very often.”
“Goodness! How would she know that?”
Ethan grinned. “I don’t really want to know—do you? Besides, I’m sure the underwear is a small thing compared to his unemployment and gambling.”
“Poor Mrs. Hancock. Is there another apartment in town she can afford?”
“You know how tight the housing around here is. I’ve been wondering about the basement of this place.”
“The basement?” Zoe echoed.
“Yeah. Could it be converted into an apartment?”
“Do you think Mrs. Hancock wants to live in our basement?”
“Why not? It’s a big space. It wouldn’t take much to convert it into an apartment.” Ethan finished eating and pushed his plate away. “You said you know the owner. What do you think she’d say?”
“Hmm... I don’t know.”
“You want to peek in the windows with me?”
Zoe set down her fork. “I can do better than that. I have a key.”
“Really? Why would you have a key and not me?”
Now would be the perfect time to tell him that her grandmother was his landlord, and yet, she hesitated.Why?
“I guess because she knows me better than you.” Zoe stood, collected the plates, and nodded at the food on the table. “Should we leave this out for Hannah?”
“For a bit.”
“She’s settled down.” Zoe listened for Hannah, but the sound of crying had been replaced by some top-forty boy band.
“Come on,” Ethan said. “I’m excited.”
She followed him through the kitchen and into the mudroom where the stairs led up or down. “How much would it cost?”
“Probably less than her condo.” He paused in the center of the mudroom. “Don’t you need to get the keys?”
“Yes.” She headed down the stairs.
He tromped after her, clearly confused. She answered his unspoken question when she unscrewed a light sconce on the wall and extracted a key.
“Huh,” he said.
