I watched as people took tinfoil off the trays of meat and potatoes, the vegetables. “Um,” I said, leaning back on one foot, Lucy pressed against me, her head low. Shit, I wanted to go, but I was a little nervous. “I’m not really a crowd person.”
“Ah, come on,” he pushed. “Just an hour. Get to know them, they’re good people. And they love dogs. Families are here, kids, everyone. We’ll have fun.”
I looked back to the street again, hearing the laughter fill the air, the chatter. It did look nice, and it was a beautiful night.
I chewed on the inside of my cheek. “Can Lucy be off leash?” I asked, turning back to him. “She loves kids, but she’s going to be wary of adults,” I explained, gesturing to my face.
Wade nodded. “Of course. People here respect the warning growls of all animals. Come on, it’ll be fun. Fireworks will start soon, just small ones at first, the big ones will be later. Does Lucy have any issues with loud sounds?”
I glanced her way, studying her. “Um…” She had done fine when Everett and I fired our guns in the house. “Maybe?” I answered nervously. “I’m not quite sure.”
“Well, we’ll keep an eye on her then,” he smiled. “Are you ready? I can finally introduce you to everyone.”
I glanced down at my bare feet. I certainly wasn’t going out like this. “Just let me put my shoes on and I’ll be out.”
“Alrighty,” he nodded and headed back down the porch.
I studied the street for another few seconds before stepping back into the house and closing the door. “Okay then,” I released a breath, finding her eyes. “We need to meet our neighbors.” It would be fun. I would have fun. Besides, it was rude of me not to have introduced myself to them yet, and if I was going to keep living here, then I had to make friends.
She folded one ear back and sat down, clearly unhappy.
“There are more Baily’s out there,” I told her.
Her ears immediately perked at the name, and I couldn’t help but smile. I should invite them over tomorrow, it would do everyone some good, I was sure.
My heart skipped a beat. Not tomorrow, but definitely the next day. After Everett had his way with me, then I would invite Stella and Baily over for some lemonade and maybe a good lunch.
I put on some white tennis shoes and grabbed the thigh holster Evelyn had left for me on my table before she left.
I had worn it all day two days ago, getting used to the feeling of it, practicing drawing my gun from it. I wasn’t great yet, but I was getting better. Tonight would be the perfect night to test it out in the wild, not that I expected anything to happen on a street filled with older people and children, but nobody ever knew, right?
Once the gun was strapped in tight, I grabbed the near invisible headphone they left for me to use if I ever wanted to talk without carrying my phone around, and slid it in. I couldn’t call out with it, but if they called me, I could answer and talk to them. Evelyn had taken advantage of it just a day ago, talkingto me about the clothes I had decided to wear and how jealous of Everett she really was while she did whatever it was she had been doing. Stalking someone, it had sounded like, but I didn’t ask too many questions.
At this point, I was sure she didn’t mean anything by all the flirting, but it was a nice boost to my ego that someone as beautiful as her thought of me in the same light.
I finally fixed my dress and put a collar on Lucy, before heading out, running my fingers through my hair as I walked down the porch.
I hoped I wouldn’t scare the children with my scars. I hoped nobody asked too many questions. I hoped Lucy would be okay. Tonight could be a really good start to actually having a life out here if I did it right.
Even so, Lucy stuck to me like glue as we made our way down the sidewalk, people everywhere, talking, laughing, having fun. Everyone knew everyone else here. It was strange. In the city, you could disappear in a crowd without a problem. Here, if you were a stranger, you were the odd man out.
“Hey!” I heard Wade call, causing me to freeze.
He was waving at me from half a block away. “Olivia! Everyone, this is Olivia,” he introduced, pushing his way towards me. “She lives in the Lancaster’s old place.”
Many people looked over, smiling, waving.
I lifted a nervous hand just as a few kids finally noticed Lucy, gasping at her presence.
Lucy lifted her head, ears perked before lowering it, showing them that she wasn’t a threat, her tail wagging.
A whole gaggle ran up on her, eyes wide in joy. “Can wepleasepet your dog?” a little girl asked, barely offering me a glance.
I nodded, returning a soft smile as I ran a hand over Lucy’s head. “Sure, just be careful, it’s her first Fourth in the suburbs.”
They hesitantly walked up to her, letting her sniff their handsbefore they started petting her, growing more relaxed as the seconds ticked by. “Whoa,” they all said, cooing and humming at her. “What’s her name?” a little boy asked.
I crouched down, Lucy glancing my way, her eyes saying so much. She had always loved kids. “Lucy,” I answered, scratching behind her ear. “She loves kids.” She deserved some kids of her own. Someone to look after besides me.
