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He knows my name? He must recognize me from school, too. I’m surprised that he remembers me.
For a moment, I’m too stunned to say anything.
We stand there for a moment, the silence stretching between us, and I realize I have no idea what to say next.
“Auden, the towel,” he says clearing his throat, and I glance down sharply.
“Shit!” I gasped, spinning around to tighten the knot that was starting to split.
“You should get dressed,” he says, his voice rough and sending goosebumps racing across my skin.
“You should go,” I counter, and he frowns, then gives me one terse nod before he turns and stalks back across the lawn to his own house.
He doesn’t look back, and I can’t help but wonder what he’s been up to since high school.
With a sigh, I close the door and lean against it, my mind racing with a thousand questions. I head back to the bathroom and take a big gulp of my wine before I slip into the water.
I try to relax, but all I can think about is my grumpy new neighbor… and my misplaced attraction to him.
TWO
Wade
“Well, that didn’t go well,”I mutter to myself as I close the front door behind me.
I stare around at all of the cardboard boxes scattered all over the worn hardwood floor of the living room. I stand there, surveying the chaos that is my new home. Or at least, it will be for the next few months until I can fix it up and flip it. The place is a bit of a mess, but it’s my mess now, and there’s something satisfying about that, about all of the possibilities that I can see for this place.
The house is an old Victorian, the kind you’d see in a storybook, a fairytale with a happy ending. It has a wide front porch, tall, narrow windows, and a steeply pitched roof.
Or at least, it would look like something out of a storybook if it wasn’t so run down. The paint is peeling, the roof needs work, and the yard is overgrown with weeds. The previous owners were old and couldn’t keep up with the place. They’ve been living in Florida for the last few months, and the house has fallen into disrepair.
I can see the potential, though, and with a little, make that a lot of work, this place could be something special. I hope so anyway so that I can make a decent profit when I sell it.
I never thought I’d own a place like this, not when I was a kid bouncing around from one foster home to another, always feeling like I was living on borrowed time before I got shuttled off to the next house. I never quite fit in at any of the homes. Hell, I never felt like I quite fit in anywhere. I was too guarded and moody at the foster homes, too quiet and reserved at school, and too young on the construction sites I used to work at. I’ve never really belonged anywhere.
Back when I was a kid, the idea of owning a home was about as realistic as winning the damn lottery. I was too busy trying to survive, to think about things like mortgages, remodeling, and property values, but here I am, standing in my very own house.
I run a hand through my hair, feeling the weight of the day start to settle on my shoulders. It’s been a long one, starting before sunrise with a three-hour drive, then unloading the truck, getting the utilities turned on, and dealing with a few unexpected surprises, like the raccoon that’s apparently made its home in the attic. I have a long list of things to do around here, like unpack, but all of that can wait until tomorrow. Right now, I just want to find my bed, or at least the mattress I threw down on the bedroom floor, and get some sleep. I have another job starting tomorrow morning, and I need to be ready for work then.
My mind flashes back to Auden and that disastrous first encounter. I think that the image of her wrapped in that towel is going to be burned into my brain forever. Not that I’m complaining.
I’ve been in love with Auden forever. Like literally forever. I met her when I moved to Lilac Harbor in the fifth grade, and as soon as I locked eyes on her, I was a goner. She had her darkbrown hair up in pigtails then, the ends brushing against her shoulders.
I can remember everything about that day and Auden. The way her green eyes sparkled. How she carried herself, so confident even at an early age. I remember the overalls that she was wearing. They were clearly her favorite because she wore them at least once a week for that whole year.
Tonight was the first time that I ever saw her in a towel, though. I wince as I remember our interaction. I didn’t make a great first impression, not that I’m surprised. I never seem to make a good impression with people. It’s probably because I don’t really know how to interact with them. I know that I come across as gruff and aloof, but I can’t seem to find a way to fix that. My size doesn’t help much either. I tower over everyone that I meet, and I know that can come across as intimidating. Normally I don’t mind, but with Auden, it sucks because she’s my dream girl.
She’s the only girl that I’ve ever been interested in, the only girl that I’ve ever wanted or dreamed about, or longed for. It’s always been her, but I never worked up the nerve to talk to her and ask her out in high school and then she left town for college. I kind of figured that I’d never see her again, but she moved back here last year. I’ve seen her from afar a few times since then, but our paths have never really crossed.
Not until now.
Now we’re neighbors.
Maybe now is my chance with her.
I always figured that Auden would never be interested in a guy like me. I mean, I’m a grumpy loner who grew up on the wrong side of the tracks. Even my own parents didn’t want me, so why would she?
Do you always answer the door dressed like that?
