I think through everything I saw. The bathrooms, the basement, the yard. “The upstairs bathrooms have not been renovated,” I tell her, “but they have been well maintained. Eventually, they’ll need some work.”
Taylor nods, a shadow covering her bright expression. “True, but that’s why the house is in your price range,” she says. “If the upstairs bathrooms had been updated…” She makes a whooshing sound with her lips. “That would up the purchase price by a bunch.”
I know she’s telling the truth, so I decide to be honest with her as well. “I’d like to see the other houses on the list before I make any decisions.”
“Oh my gosh, yes,” she says, holding the screen door open for me. “We’ll see as many houses as you need. Buying a house is a lot like finding the perfect wedding dress. More often than not, the first one is usually it. But you need to see what else is out there to be sure. This is a big decision, and you need to be certain.”
I’ve never bought a wedding dress. Never even shopped for one. My high school best friend and I had a major falling-out right before her wedding. That was right around the time that everything went down with my mom. I’m ashamed to admit it, but I backed out of being in her wedding, and we haven’t spoken since.
“I wouldn’t know about the wedding dress,” I say quietly. “But I know what you mean.”
As we walk down the concrete driveway, my heart rate picks up when Vito lowers his face from looking up at the roof to face me. I’m saying the words before I can even stop them. “I’d like to hear what Vito thought, too.”
“Absolutely,” Taylor says. But then she looks a little confused. “But it will be just you and the little one? You’ll be making the purchase alone, correct?”
I nod in answer to her question, but I pick up the pace when Vito grins and waves me over. When Junie and I reach him, Vito jerks a thumb toward Robert.
“So,” Vito says, tugging the sunglasses from his face. “Robert worked at the same mill as my pops. But he was management and Pops was on the floor, so they didn’t overlap much.” Vito turns to the homeowner and claps his new friend on the shoulder. “Good people,” he says warmly. “And this house?” Vito looks me right in the eye and nods. “Passed my inspection. How about yours?”
Just as I’m about to answer, the worst stench wafts up, and I wrinkle my nose. “Oh no,” I say. “I think I need to change a diaper.” I look from the homeowner to Taylor. “Thank you for showing me the house. If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to take this mess to my truck.”
Vito fishes my keys out of his pocket. “Want help?” he asks. “I’ll be right behind you.” He turns and extends a hand to the homeowner, whose face is contorted in a grimace.
“You’re going to do that where?” Robert asks. “In the car?”
I nod and shrug. “I have hand sanitizer in my bag, and we’ll toss the mess in a trash bin someplace. I’m used to this.”
He shakes his head. “But where do you lay the baby?”
“I keep a changing pad in this bag. It’s not a problem.”
Robert frowns as he looks at Vito. For a second, I feel a little defensive that he’s talking to him instead of me, but when I hear what he says, my heart melts a little. “Would it be better to change the baby inside? Any reason she couldn’t do it in the upstairs bathroom? I don’t mind if you use the towels.” He swallows, and a shimmer of tears seems to redden his eyes. “That sink could probably use somebody running the water.”
Vito turns to me and lifts his brows. “Eden? Want to use the upstairs bathroom?” He tips his chin a bit and then adds, “I wouldn’t mind chatting with Robert a few more minutes.”
To be honest, I’ve changed Junie’s diapers on my lap, in the grocery store, on park benches. Taking care of business in the car is no big deal at all, but something about the kind offer from Robert and Vito’s encouragement makes it impossible to say no. I’ll take a sink and a fluffy bathmat over the changing pad and the back seat any day.
“I’ll go with you.” Taylor looks like never in all her days of real estate agenting has something like this happened, so I reassure her it’ll just take a second.
Junie starts to whine and squirm, so I follow Taylor inside. I kick off my shoes, and Taylor pulls out her phone. “Go on up,” she tells me. “I’m going to check my email.”
I pad upstairs with Junie and, for a moment, let myself imagine this is my house. We walk into the bathroom, close the door behind us, and make quick work of changing her diaper. I’m a pro at it after thousands of dirty ones.
Since the door is closed, I let Junie crawl on the floor while I wash my hands and dry them on the hand towel.
When we make it back downstairs, Taylor’s smile is bright, and she looks surprised. “That was quick. See you at the next house? It’s only about a half mile away, so it shouldn’t take long to get there.”
I nod and head back down the driveway. “All set,” I call out. “Robert, I used the hand towel upstairs, but everything else should be exactly as I found it.”
The garage is open, and Robert points to a pristine-looking black plastic bin. He grimaces. “Please,” he says. “Toss it in there.”
I shake my head. “Oh no. You don’t want this hanging around until your next trash pickup. We’ll dispose of it along the way. No problem.”
Robert shakes his head again. “Please. I insist.” He looks at Vito and smiles a little. “The garage is very well insulated. I haven’t smelled my trash in thirty-two years in this house. I don’t expect one little diaper to change that.”
Vito lifts his brows. “All due respect, but I’ve got a nephew about her age. There ain’t nothing quite like the smell of baby shit.”
The homeowner laughs and actually puts a hand on Vito’s shoulders. “I’ll take your word for it. But go on. I don’t mind.”
