Page 37 of Second Chances

She sent an emoji of red lips and champagne glasses.

“Night,” he replied.

“Goodnight.”

The weekend went by in a blur. He worked on clearing out the rest of the rooms in the house, which included hauling out a few pieces of furniture that were old or outdated and ordering a couple small items from a local store.

He ran into Rowan a few more times at the hardware store, and the two of them seemed to hit it off pretty well. Rowan invited him over for Sunday brunch and the game. He almost declined due to Ethan or Javan having to tag along but decided that his life couldn’t stop because there was a possibility of someone out to get him. Besides, after the first text message, he hadn’t gotten any more.

Then again, no strange messages had been sent to any of his other team members prior to their murders. His CO was sure the message was a fluke, since they had tracked the burner cell it had come from somewhere in Georgia.

When Sunday rolled around, he had not only finished clearing and cleaning out all the rooms upstairs, but he’d ordered the new carpet that was to be installed in less than a week and had started replacing the old wood flooring on the stairs.

It was a process, but when he was done, instead of run-down carpet on the two sets of stairs, there would be dark maple hardwood and new maple railings leading all the way up to the top floor. He planned to sand and restain the hardwood on the main floor to match it.

He really liked the rustic look of the place and wanted to carry that atmosphere throughout the entire house, not just the main floor.

He stopped in town to grab a case of beer and headed to the address Rowan had given him.

Rowan’s house was big and had a classic appearance, just like the two-story homes surrounding it. It was painted a soft beige with crisp white trim and had bright blue shutters. The yard was well maintained with bright flowers on each step leading up to the double stained-glass doors.

If Todd had to describe the house in one word, it would have been cheerful.

The last thing he expected after ringing the doorbell was to have Olivia answer the door, holding a bald-headed baby decked out in the smallest Maine Sea Dog’s uniform he’d ever seen.

“Hi,” she said with a smile. “Rowan told me he’d invited you.” She swung the door open wide. “We’re all in the back.” She nodded for him to enter.

“Who is this?” he asked, brushing a finger down the little boy’s chubby cheek.

“This is Emylia,” she answered as she bounced the baby on her hip.

Little girl, he mentally corrected.

“Her daddy gets to dress her on game days.” Olivia rolled her eyes and then leaned closer. “I think Adam secretly wished for another son.”

He chuckled. “Girls can play sports too.”

“Oh, I know it.” She chuckled. “I’m way better at softball than Adam, but don’t tell him I told you.” She shut the front door as he stepped inside. “Fragile male ego and all.” She shifted the kid on her hip and started walking back through the house. They passed through a very tidy living room and kitchen and then stepped out into what he could only describe as the most perfect backyard patio he’d ever seen.

There was a large-screen television hanging behind a large bar area that easily sat ten people. A circular patio table sat in the shade from umbrellas and the massive trees that shadowed the entire area.

A tall firepit table sat directly in the middle of the patio next to a large L-shaped sofa where several women with kids sat talking. Kids ran around the neatly trimmed grassy areas and played on a wooden swing set. A couple of boys played soccer, and most of the men were gathered around the bar area, either grilling or sipping beers and watching the game.

“Wow,” he said softly.

Olivia chuckled. “Yeah, they fixed the backyard up a few years ago. I can only dream of having a yard as awesome as this one day.” She walked over to hand the baby to Lilly, Adam’s wife.

“Want a beer?” she asked.

He held up the case. “I brought some, but if there’s some that are cold…”

She waved him over, and he followed her to the bar area.

“Todd’s here,” she called out.

“Todd!” several of the men cheered, causing him to laugh.

“Sorry.” Olivia rolled her eyes. “They think they’re in an episode of Cheers.” She motioned him behind the bar and showed him where a large double-wide beer fridge was. He grabbed a cold beer of his liking and stacked his beer in an empty spot in the fridge so it would get cold.