“How could I say no to that?” She took a seat in the empty Adirondack chair next to him. “I see Harry’s made himself comfortable.” She laughed.
“He came right over,” Noah said, handing her the bottle. “Smart little dude. A little skittish, though.”
“Yeah, he has a love-hate relationship with bangs and booms or any disturbance for that matter.” She took a sip of the craft beer and looked at the label. “Hmm, that’s good.”
“Yeah, it’s from the brewery on Shelter Island.”
“Nice, I’ll have to check it out.” Dahlia pressed the bottle to her lips and took another sip. “Sorry he wandered over. He’s a roamer but always comes home, so I never worry. I think that’s why he got returned to the shelter so many times.” Dahlia got quiet. She didn’t know Harry’s entire story, but he was very badly neglected and malnourished when he arrived at the shelter the first time.
“Lucky you found him, then,” he said.
“I think it’s the opposite. I was lucky he found me,” she mumbled, looking at Harry with a tender smile.
“I love dogs. I had a black lab for sixteen years.” He cleared his throat again. “Nemo.”
Babies, dogs, and grandparents. You can always tell a person’s heart by how they treat any of the three. That’s what Lil would say, anyway.
Noah gave him a good scratch. “So, Harry, huh? Solid name.”
“Yeah, it’s after Harry Styles—you know, the singer? Dais … I mean, I adore him.” He didn’t need to know she had an adult daughter. Right now, she just wanted to be Dahlia. “So, how was your night away?”
“Eh, it was okay. Same shit, different day,” he said, making a fist.
“Oh.” She raised her eyebrows.Someone did a number on him, she thought.
“The garden is looking better. You got to it today?”
“Thanks. How did you—”
“I passed it on my way in.”
“Right. The irrigation system was on this past month, thank goodness. Otherwise, the plants would be all wilted by now.” Dahlia shook her head. “I have to thank Hank.”
“Hank?”
“My aunt’s handyman.” She paused. “He had a heart attack recently and will be laid up for the next few months. In case you were wondering why the house is in disarray.”
“I wasn’t. I just noticed the house needs some work.” He took a long sip of his beer. “Oh, and I was the one who turned on the irrigation system.”
“You did?” Her insides tickled. One small act from a stranger, and she was giddy inside. She supposed Harry wasn’t the only one who’d been neglected. “Thank you. You have no idea how much that means to me.” Her eyes pooled with tears, and she looked away, trying to hide her oscillating emotions. She wipedher nose with her sleeve and laughed. “Sorry, it’s been a rough few days.” And she missed Lil terribly. “If you can believe it, we were greeted by a squirrel inside the house when we first arrived.”
“No way.” His words lingered in astonishment.
“Yes, way, and she terrorized the place.” Her neck stiffened. “To top it off, the appliances aren’t working, and so many things need fixing.”
“See? You need me,” he said with a smooth grin.
Her cheeks were warm. Maybe she did.
“You probably have a hole in your chimney cap; that’s how the critter got in.”
“You think? I did notice the flue was open.” Dahlia took a sip. It was one more thing that needed fixing.
“Pretty sure. My stepdad owns a construction company. I am a wealth of random house facts.” He got up and threw another log onto the fire. “Plus, the last few years of fixing up houses have made me somewhat of an expert,” he said, avoiding any mention of a reality television show. Dahlia so wanted to ask more, like how he’d gotten into it, how long he’d been doing it, and if he was still filming—just to be sure. But she didn’t. She was too preoccupied by the Fire God who was making her body feel things she hadn’t in a very long time.
“Listen, I need to make furniture this summer. If I don’t, well, let’s say it won’t be fun living next door to me.” He frowned.
“Well, we wouldn’t want that.” Dahlia tried to be playful.
