“Go on,” she urges me with a smile when she takes a seat on the top step farther away from me. “Keep going. It’s been a minute since I’ve seen a man doing something around here. After Nora’s father, I mean.”
I suddenly have so many questions.Who was the last man around here?
“Oh, it was Jake,” she says as if reading my mind. But then realization that I must have asked it out loud, dawns on me. “A very nice fella, but very misunderstood. Very.”
“Who was he?” I can’t help but ask.
“Oh, he used to rent the house you bought. He came to help out sometimes around the house. A very nice fella indeed.”
“Good.” Even though I’m feeling anything but. “Was he Nora’s friend?” I ask, trying not to put too much interest into my tone.
“Yes! A very nice fella.”
If she calls him a nice fella one more time, I’ll put this hammer through the fucking wall.
“And why did that nice fella leave if everything was so great?”
“He got arrested I think.” She waves me off, making me choke on my words.Nice neighbors you have, Moon. Including me.
“What for?”
Her tone turns conspiratorial. “He’s an undercover cop, you see. I always knew, but before he left, he told me. Aha.”She nods to herself, rubbing her chin. “To think of it, he still calls Nora from time to time.”
This is where the damn hammer misses the nail for real, hitting my finger in the process. Like a fucking noob.
“Oops, are you okay there, Steve?”
Steve.If she remembers that Jake fella’s name just fine, he must have left quite an impression.
“Yes,” I grind through gritted teeth.
“Didn’t mean to upset you or anything.” Her amusement is plain as day; this little old lady is more cunning than she looks. I’m beginning to understand why Nora was so jittery when she came to collect her grandma from my porch. I might have to start addressing her as Ms. Moon.
“I’m fine.”
“You sure, Steve? ’Cause you don’t look fine, honey.” Her words are pure comedy, with not an ounce of worry behind them. “Want some ice?” Her voice is rich with humor, and I’m pretty sure she’s having a good time testing my patience.
“I’m fine,” I say again, forcing more certainty into my voice even though my finger is swelling like a balloon.
“Good. Good.” She nods a few times. “Because you remind me a bit of Dick, and I might have overreacted a bit.” There’s a suggestive edge to her words as she giggles.
Remind her of Dick? Who the hell is Dick?
“Dick?” I can’t stop my mouth from speaking before my mind catches up to it.
“Oh, yes. Nora’s boyfriend.”
The hammer lands on the same fucking finger for the second time. A mistake I haven’t made in many years. “Shit,” I hiss under my breath, scared to use the word ‘fuck’ around her again. The old lady’s got me right where she wants me.
“Well,” she laughs again. “Ex-boyfriend.”
Thank fuck because my poor digit can’t survive a third hit.
“They broke up a long time ago.”
Noticing the shift in her voice, I turn to her. Her brows are drawn together, and her features turn angry.
“I suppose you’ll find out since you’ll be living here, and everyone knows about it. Might as well learn it from me.” She takes a deep breath before continuing. “That little weasel dumped my Nora right when they were talking about the wedding.”
