“I’m sweating off the sadness.”
“Great. Is it working yet?”
“Some. I have plenty of sweating left to do, though.” Wow, it was nice to sit here, talking about whatever I wanted without tiptoeing around the sensitive stuff. “We’re cleaning my brother’s room.”
“We?”
“Grant. Do you remember him?”
“Sure. He used to hang out with Kimberley. There was also the other girl with him at Sean’s party.”
“Camarin.”
“Were they dating?”
“I don’t think Grant dates.”
“Not interested?”
“Too busy.”
“With what?”
“Helping me with my brother’s room.” This felt so good and normal-ish. A conversation between two acquaintances as we tried to figure out if we could be friends. “Okay, your turn. Any news?”
He brushed at some grass clippings on his pants. “I’ve made a bid on a landscaping project. I might hear back from them today.”
“That’s great.”
“I hope so. The clients want us to use conservation gardening techniques as much as possible. I’ve wanted to offer more sustainable landscaping for a while, so when this project went up for bid, I asked Dad if we could give it a shot. It’s a risk for us, but he agreed to let me try.”
“Would it be anything like that project we designed in environmental science?”
“Much bigger scale, but yeah. That’s the project that got me hooked. After Monica’s grandmother heard me talking about it, she let me practice on the small courtyard in front of her condo. I kept it simple—just native plants, porous spacers, and solar lanterns. Mrs. Morales loves it. The project I’ve bid on is much more complex than that. Do you know the B&B on the road to New Bern?”
“Yeah. The Miltons own it.”
He nodded. “They have a lot of acreage. Their goal is to turn their property into a venue that could be rented out for parties. The project will have several parts. Walking trails. New flower beds. Water features. If we win the bid, Dad’ll be the architect, and I’ll be in charge of everything else.”
“Do you have a timeline?”
“It depends on when they make a decision. Since they don’t plan to schedule any events until September, I’ve asked for a full six weeks. That’ll allow me to complete it in stages. Installation in the summer isn’t ideal, but we’re also not starting from scratch. The Miltons have been experimenting with sustainable landscaping on their own for the past couple of years. I’d build off of that.”
“Sounds like it’s more than just a summer job for you.”
“Landscaping is what I want to do for a living.”
“Are you going to college?”
He stiffened, his eyes narrowing to slits. “Is that what you ask other people? Or do you ask themwhere?”
“Depends on the person.” Was he implying that I was a snob? He didn’t know me well enough to make that leap. I kept my tone deceptively mild. “You don’t seem like someone who needs college to live your dreams.”
“Do you?”
“I’m hoping it’s the place where I discover mine.” I crossed my arms and seethed at the lawn. “Scott, don’t go hunting for people to look down on you. You will find them.”
The tense silence was interrupted by the buzzing of his phone. He drew it out and stood. “I gotta go. Thanks for the water.”
