AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Let’s eat on the patio,” she suggests and leads me out back.
I have to blink. It’s beautiful out here. There’s a swing and several chairs situated around a gas fireplace, and with the click of a button, screens come down, closing us in.
“I had the screens put in last summer,” she tells me, “because I hate it when I’m eating and all the flies, bees, and mosquitos decide to join me.”
She flips on an overhead fan, and we take our seats next to each other, digging into containers full of food that smell like heaven.
“I haven’t been to Ciao yet,” she says, choosing lasagna. She adds a piece of bread to her plate and sits back to dig in. After one bite, she closes her eyes and tips her head back, as if in ecstasy. “Oh, my God, I didn’t know what I was missing.”
That groan hits me right in the dick. She moaned like that when I was inside of her and when I was licking her, and it all comes back in vivid detail.
But I take a sip of wine and sit back with some bowtie pasta with Alfredo sauce and a piece of bread of my own.
“So, what drew you to this particular house?” I ask her, trying to keep my libido in check.
“I wanted the project.” She rolls her eyes. “Someone should have shaken some sense into me. I thought it sounded fun, but who has the time? My brother helps out a lot. He did the closet and this patio for me.”
I can tell where she spends all her time in this house. Out here and in her closet.
Those are the areas she’s poured love into. The rest is clean, but an afterthought.
“I like the location,” she continues and reaches for her Caesar salad. “And I like the neighborhood. Summer used to live just two blocks over, and we’d hang out at each other’s houses in the evening with a glass of wine, chatting. It was nice. I know the neighbors to the left of me. Larry and Denise. They’re super sweet people, and they have two teenage boys, Jeremy and Zach. Zach mows my lawn. In the winter, they take care of the snow. They’re good kids.”
“And the other neighbors?”
“I don’t know them as well,” she admits and wipes her mouth with a napkin. “They throw block parties in the summer and stuff, but I’m usually at the shop.”
“Don’t look now, but I think you’re a bit of a workaholic, Polly.”
She smirks and nods. “Yeah. Guilty. But I love it, so why not? Besides, you’re a workaholic, too.”
“Totally.” I don’t even try to deny it. “For the same reasons. I enjoy what I do, and I’m good at it. I’ve slowed down just a bit since Jake came into the picture and since I’ve moved back home permanently. But I still work long hours.”
“So, what does slowing down look like for you?”
“Well, instead of working twenty-hour days, I’d say I put in twelve or so. Much to Arthur’s dismay.”
“Who’s Arthur?”
“My assistant. He’s a taskmaster.”
Her lips tip up into a grin, and then she sets the last of her food aside and sits back, patting her stomach. “I’m so full. That was delicious, thank you.”
Her eyes are droopy as she smiles softly over at me.
“I’m going to kick myself out of here,” I tell her and begin gathering what remains of our meal. “I’m glad your fridge works so you can keep the leftovers.”
“You should take them home to Jake.”
“He’s having dinner with Rem, Erin, and the kids. Rem had an issue with a horse that he wanted Jake to look at, so Jake is hanging out there for the evening.”
“He must be really good with the animals.”
“He’s excellent,” I confirm, pride filling my chest. “He’s looking into vet school after he graduates in a couple of years. He wants to be a large animal doctor.”
“That’s amazing,” she says. “He’s a far cry from the angry kid that was hanging out with those brats who stole from me last year.”
“He’s finding his way,” I agree, and we walk inside, where Polly stows the food away and then walks with me to the door.
