“Roscoe!” Ellis’s voice cuts through my thoughts, and then there’s a knock on the fence. “Roscoe?”
My sweet puppy, who is getting better trained by the day, runs over to the fence and scratches at it, eager to get to the sweet girl on the other side.
“Ellis…” Rhonan warns.
“Roscoe wants to come play, Daddy. Can he come over? Pleeeease?”
Knowing I can’t avoid him forever, I walk over to the fence and pop my head over the wooden slats. I’m met with those blue eyes that I remember dancing all over my body during the shower incident. “Hey there, neighbor.”
The corner of Rhonan’s mouth lifts, but it’s back to flat in a flash. “Hey. Ellis wants—”
“I know. I heard, and I’m fine with it if you are. I sort of needed to talk to you about something anyway, so that will be a good distraction for her.”
His brows draw together. “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah, it’s probably nothing. Just something weird that happened at school today.”
“Daddy, can Roscoe come over now?”
Rhonan turns to look down at Ellis, whom I can’t see over the fence, but can hear. “Yeah, sweetie. Actually, Ms. Lewis is gonna come over too so I can talk to her.”
Ellis claps. “Yay!”
Rhonan swings his head toward the gate at the front of his property. “Why don’t you two come through there?”
“All right. Come on, Roscoe.” I snap my fingers and my sweet puppy follows obediently. He really is doing better with his training, even if it’s only been a few weeks.
I’ve only been in Blossom Peak for a little over three weeks, but somehow it feels much longer. Maybe because this place is really starting to feel like home, or at least somewhere I could see myself living for a while. Or maybe it’s because I have connections forming that I wasn’t expecting, like the one with my neighbor.
Roscoe waits at the gate, scratching at the wood. Rhonan opens it and Roscoe barrels through, running right into Ellis’s outstretched arms, licking her in the face. Her laughter is truly one of the best sounds in the world.
“I’m impressed.”
“With what?” My eyes lift to find Rhonan watching my dog and his daughter.
“The dog. He hasn’t been digging under the fence.”
“Guess the threat of electrocution worked.”
Rhonan shrugs. “If he understands English, then yes, that was probably it.” With a wave, he motions for me to follow him. “So, is this a conversation that requires us to sit?”
“I mean, sure.”
Rhonan heads up the steps to the deck where I see a beautiful wrought-iron patio set over to the right near the sliding door that leads inside the house. To the left is a covered grill and potted plants frame the space.
“This is a nice little setup you have here,” I say as I take a seat in one of the chairs, thankful for the cushion to create a barrier between me and the iron.
“Thanks. So, what happened today? Did Ellis try to take over the class?”
My laughter is soft. “No, nothing like that. Honestly, Rhonan, she’s one of the most well-behaved kids in my class. And I’m not just saying that.”
He meets my eyes as he takes a seat next to me. “I appreciate that.”
“But, where do I start? I guess it started with the rocks.”
Rhonan shakes his head. “This kid and her damn rocks.”
“Yeah, care to explain?”
