He looked startled when I let go. “What was that for?”
“You’re a good man, Theo Lafontaine. Let’s give the dog a chance to poop.”
We wandered into the untouched, weedy lot behind the building. Foxy pulled us farther and farther into the wilds, happily sniffing everything in nose range, in no apparent rush to “get busy.” Mimsy came trotting over to see what we were up to and gave me a vocal complaint I interpreted as“Why do you never come roaming out here with me? What does that furry mutt have that I don’t?”before disappearing back into the underbrush.
Theo glanced around as we meandered across the property. “I never came back here before. Didn’t even realize the venue and empty lot went together until the will was read. I’m surprised Grand-mère didn’t have it all paved over. This would be way too messy for her. I guess it was a cost thing. Maybe an investment.”
“How much of this belongs to you?” I didn’t figure anyone would care if we let our dog poop on their weeds, but I was curious. The nearest other building was an old house way off across an abandoned field.
“About five acres.”
“How the fuck much is an acre?”
“A bit less than a football field.”
“Oh. That’s a lot of space.”A lot!
“It’ll give Arthur room to expand if he needs to.” Theo said that casually, like five football fields of California real estate wasn’t worth a fuckton of money.
I coughed and tried to sound as blasé as he had. “Maybe Arthur can raise pigs for extra cash. Bet your grandmother would love that.”
Theo choked a laugh. “No doubt. Although I don’t know about zoning.”
“Wouldn’t work anyhow,” I realized. “You have to kill pigs and eat them to make money off them. Arthur probably wouldn’t like that. No pigs.”
“What a pity.” Theo grinned at me. I grinned back and bumped our shoulders together. The dog finally decided to squat and take a dump in front of us. It was so romantic.
I dug a hole in the sandy soil with my shoe, nudged the turds in, and covered them with the dirt.
“Baggies,” Theo said. “And trash pickup. I’ll get things restarted.”
Living on the streets, I’d seen a lot worse than dog poop under a bush, but I guess it wouldn’t hurt me to learn some middle-class responsibility. “Sure. Might do that.”
We wandered back through the golden afternoon light. The wine place loomed dark against the lowering sun, the unlit block windows like a row of closed eyes.
“And power,” Theo said. “I’ll call tomorrow to get it turned on.”
“I won’t say no.” I’d tell myself it was for Foxy’s sake, which it was, because no way I wanted her delivering puppies in the dark. Although… “Is there blood when dogs have puppies? That’s really not my thing.” Maybe darkness would be better.
“You’re asking me?” Theo pulled out his phone and began tapping.
“Are you seriously Googling dogs giving birth?”
“Well, you asked.” He paused. “Eww…” He angled the phone toward me, but I shielded my eyes.
“Not looking at anything that makes you go ‘Eww.’”
“Probably smart.” He watched a moment longer, then tucked the phone away. “It’s not really like someone bleeding, but it’s messy. Maybe call me when she starts, and I can come catch you if you faint.”
“Fuck you. I don’t faint.” I thought about it as I pulled the door wide. “I just get very pale and sway a lot.”
I treasured hearing that gurgle of laughter from Theo as we stepped into this building he hated. He turned my way and I leaned in to kiss him, there in that dim hallway, with Foxy tugging on the leash to go back outside.
When we paused for breath, he looked up at me. “What was that for?”
“For luck,” I lied. “Come on, let’s put a chain on the bathroom door so this bitch doesn’t keep trying to drag me after Mimsy.”
“And then maybe I can bring back takeout,” Theo offered. “If that’s okay? I could bring Foxy a plain burger, just for a treat.”
