“You should be. Mrs. Lipsky got lightly sloshed, and—”
“Sang an inappropriate limerick with Captain Ahab?”
I grin. “Guess you’ve heard it before.”
She smiles back. “She swears Ahab taught it to her, but I don’t believe her.”
“Anything else I should brace for with Mrs. Lipsky?”
“As far as drunk and disorderly goes, the dirty ditties are the worst of it.”
“Thanks for the insider info.” I like Sami’s vibe. She holds her own space like she’s comfortable with it. “You done for the night?” I ask. I can’t decide if I want her to stay so we can talk more or leave so I can work out and not worry about making weird faces.
“Yeah. I’m going to head home and crash with Netflix.”
“Sounds like a good plan.”
“It’d be better with a scandalous parrot, but that’s life.”
I laugh. “What happens if Ahab outlives Mrs. Lipsky?”
She gives me a concerned look. “No one told you?”
“No one told me what?”
“Whoever lives in unit twenty-two at the time of Mrs. Lipsky’s passing takes possession of the devil bird. That’s you.”
“I must have missed that in the paperwork.”
“Congratulations,” she says. “Ahab is the highest-maintenance resident in the Grove. And remember where I work? I know about high-maintenance residents.”
She’s funny and she’s fast. I like it. Friendly but not flirty. She has the vibe of someone who likes good company and will be good company. Maybe that’s why I say, “Want to tell me about Ahab over dinner sometime? Maybe tomorrow?”
She opens her mouth, and I’m almost positive she’s going to say no, but she pauses. “Sure,” she says instead. “I’d be down for that.”
“Seven o’clock okay?” It’s the absolute earliest I can leave my office without walking into an avalanche of work the next morning.
“That’s fine. You know where to find me.”
She waves and walks out of the weight room, giving me a glimpse of a small but bright green butterfly tattoo on her shoulder blade. The door closes behind her, leaving me and a woman about my mom’s age working on the rowing machine. I didn’t think she was paying any attention, but she glances up and catches my eye, then gives me a brief nod, likewell done.
Maybe. Sami seems pretty cool, but there’s something about her—an aloofness—I can’t put my finger on. She’s funny enough to make me want to spend a little more time figuring it out, and that’s more interested than I’ve been in anyone in months. But even though I’m often a patient guy, my life isn’t built for me to spend time unraveling mysteries, even when the packaging is cute.
I flash back to her leggings and revise. Sexy. The packaging is sexy.
I’ll see how tomorrow goes. Maybe there’s something. Maybe that something will be friendship. Maybe we’re meant to be neighbors and nothing more. That’s fine. Bernice and I have a good thing going. Sometimes another woman only messes things up.
Chapter Six
Sami
“Presentyourselfforinspection,”Ava calls up to my room.
I roll my eyes in my closet mirror, but I head down the stairs to where the girls are lounging in the living room. All three heads turn toward me when I hit the bottom step.
“You pass,” Madi announces.
Josh and I hadn’t exchanged numbers, but he had stopped by this morning after I’d already gone to work and left a message with Ruby that he was thinking we could walk down Lynn Street and get some dinner.
