A thin hand waved at me and I laughed as I barely spotted tiny Helen in the crowd. On the shorter side, she was still super cute and didn't have a problem pushing her way through crowds. I made my way over to her and we found a small table big enough for just us two. We ordered beers and when they arrived, Helen began jabberingaway.
She was nice,but boy could she talk. I could have sworn people who knew her said she was an introvert, but I wasn't seeing it right now. Helen mentioned her husband's ability to landscape and it piqued my interest. I invited them over a few days from now to check my yard out. I'd never had landscaping but it seemed like a goodaddition.
We said goodbye a few hours later and I headed home, thankful it was late enough for Martin to be gone. We were existing in this quiet state of weirdness. He only spoke to me when he needed to run out for supplies or if there were any delays, and even those conversations wereminimal.
When I mentioned my landscaping to him the next day, he perked up a little bit. "Oh yeah? Who's doingit?"
When I rattled off Hank's name, Martin grinned from ear to ear. "He's the best! A little grumpy, but he's talented enough to pull itoff."
"They'll be here for dinnertomorrow."
Martin nodded and went back topainting.
So...conversation over, I guessed. I sighed infrustration.
Helen breezedinto my house carrying a covered dish and a bottle of wine, and her giant of a husband lumbered behind her. He was handsome. Even though he was massive. But he didn't speak a lot, contenting himself to some grunts of acknowledgment and a quick introduction to me. Helen looked at him like he hung the moon, and when I looked a little bit closer, I could see Hank thought the same of her. They were cute. In a weird, odd couple sort of way. When we finished dinner, Hank stood up and asked to see my yard. Martin came out of the sunroom covered in splotches of paint and grinned when he saw thecouple.
"Hank!"
"Martin?" A grin spread over the big man's face. "Long time, nosee."
"I've been working on this project for a long time," he toldhim.
A curious expression flickered over Hank's face before Martin's smile dropped off. "Anyway," he continued, "it's wrapping up nicely. I should be finished in the next fewweeks."
"Uh huh," Hank said, sounding not very convinced aboutsomething.
"Anyway," Martin drawled. "I'd be happy to show him around outside if you ladies want to stayinside."
Helen and I looked at each other and shrugged. "Be my guest," Isaid.
Martin and Hank walked outside together and I marveled at both of their behinds as they steppedoutside.
"Nice," Helensaid.
"Right?" I said on asigh.
14
Martin
"So,"Hank said as soon as we'd stepped outside, "how long have you been working on thishouse?"
I shoved my hands in my pocket and walked down the steps. "Don't even start on me,Hank."
I couldn't see him, but I felt the grin stretching across his face. "What's your normal turnover time on a project likethis?"
"Drop it," Igrowled.
"You like her," Hank said, awe in his voice. "Hot damn. I've never seen you likeanyone."
I sat at the bottom of the steps and tore a stalk of grass out of theground.
"It's not the grasses' fault," Hank admonished as he sat down beside me. "Why don't you tell me what's really goingon?"
"I'm working on her house," Irepeated.
"You're working on her house at the speed of a marijuana addicted turtle," Hankreplied.
