The Good Neighbor (5 page)

We sat on the porch for another hour or so
before Jenson came back. We watched in silence again as he made his
way out of the car and into the house.

“I’m dying to know what he’s doing,” Andy
said in frustration. “We need to keep track of what days he does
this, see if we can figure out a pattern or a schedule.” He stood
to leave. “And, hey, think about what I said before about us
following him once. I’m starting to lose sleep wondering what’s
going on.”

“I’m sure it’s nothing.”

“Yeah, that’s what Dahmer’s neighbors thought
too.”

Andy wasn’t going to let this rest until we
knew what Jenson was doing. As I realized this, I sighed deeply and
went in to mark the calendar that hung in the kitchen. I simply put
the letter j on today’s square. I wondered how long I’d have to do
this, how many j’s would be on this calendar before a pattern
emerged. What if a pattern never emerged? What if it was all
random? Well, I knew the answer to that. Andy would make me follow
Jenson one day. I shuddered at the thought of stalking an old
man.

After grabbing a soda from the refrigerator,
I returned to the porch, where I quickly saw I wasn’t alone.

“Were you two watching Mr. Jenson?” she
asked, occupying the seat Andy had just vacated.

Blushing slightly, I said, “Sort of.”

“Why?” she crossed her right leg over her
left in a swift motion and I tried not to notice.

Taking my seat, I said, “He’s sort of a
mystery to us. It’s killing Andy.” I popped the top on my soda and
offered it to her. She declined.

“What kind of mystery?” asked Carla.

I considered the reasons why I shouldn’t tell
her, but couldn’t think of a single one. I told her about the heavy
bags. She listened intently as I described how he never had
visitors and wasn’t social with anyone on the street. When I said
it had been this way since he’d moved in two years earlier, her
eyebrows drew together in suspicion.

“Why are you looking like that?” I asked
her.

“I was just thinking.”

When she hesitated, I asked, “About
what?”

“Well, it seems like a lot of things have
happened here in the last two years.” She looked down at her wrist,
fiddling with her bracelet. I could tell by the way she bit her
lower lip she was concentrating.

I didn’t say anything. I just watched her. It
was cooler out today, so she’d traded in her shorts and sandals for
jeans, a long-sleeved shirt, and athletic shoes. Her hair fell down
around her shoulders, framing her face. I wouldn’t have thought it
was possible, but I found her even more beautiful today than
yesterday. Yesterday, she’d been beautiful. Today, she was
mesmerizing.

“Didn’t you say Mr. Jenson moved in a couple
years ago?” she asked, still twisting her bracelet around her
wrist.

“Yeah,” I said, unable to take my eyes off
her. “Uh, I think he moved in...two and a half years ago, I guess
it was.” I thought back, trying to pinpoint when exactly he’d come
to Hewitt Street.

“And didn’t you say the old couple passed
away last January?”

“Yeah,” I said, watching her connect the
dots. I didn’t know what the picture would be, but the line was
leading to Jenson. The line always led to Jenson.

“And my Aunt Elaine was last February...” she
said, trailing off at the end.

“So you think Jenson...what – killed them?” I
asked.

“I’m not saying that. I’m just saying that a
lot of things have happened since he moved in. I don’t know if he
had anything to do with any of it, but it is odd.” She rested her
head against the back of the chair and turned her face toward me.
Quietly, she said, “I shouldn’t have come here.”

I set my soda on the table and turned to her.
I held her left hand firmly between both of mine and looked at her
with more intensity than was probably necessary.

“Listen, Carla. You and your kids will be
fine here. I’ll personally make sure nothing happens to any of you.
Whether or not it’s all a coincidence, you will be safe here.
Please don’t think you shouldn’t have come.” I smiled to assure
her. “I’m glad you came.” I couldn’t tell her that her moving here
had led to a pivotal moment in my life. If she hadn’t come, I might
not have decided to put Holly behind me where she belonged.

“I just don’t want to put my kids in harm’s
way. If anything were to happen to either of them...”

I didn’t give her time to ponder the horrible
things she was surely about to consider. “Look, I have nothing else
to do. I’ll watch your place, if you want. I kind of do that
anyway,” I admitted.

“What?” she asked, unsure what emotion she
should feel about my little revelation.

I quickly added, “Not in the creepy stalker
kind of way, but in the good neighbor way. Besides, I have to make
sure Bernie isn’t trying to move in with you.”

She laughed. “I owe you then.”

“No, you owe me nothing. I’m happy to do
it.”

She stood up and came over, stopping in front
of me. How far could she get with me still holding her hand?
Feeling a little silly, I stood and reluctantly let go of her soft
hand.

“I don’t want you to think I do this with
every guy I meet,” she said shyly. “But you seem like a great guy,
and you’ve been so helpful.”

Before I could prepare for it, she stretched
up and planted a kiss on my cheek. I was aware of a lot of things
at once. The way her soft lips felt against my cheek, the light
touch of her hands as they held onto my arms, and the feel of her
breasts as they grazed my chest ever so lightly. I fought myself to
not turn and kiss her.

“That’s me thanking you for watching out for
us. And to thank you further, I’d like you to come to dinner
tonight.”

I breathlessly accepted her invitation, but
assured her again that she didn’t need to thank me. I really was
more than happy to keep her safe. Whether it was from murderers or
perverts, I wanted to protect her.

As I watched her walk down the street, I had
a rush of emotions I hadn’t had in years. I was excited, nervous,
happy, and scared to death all at the same time. I didn’t know if
getting involved with her was a good idea, but I knew that it was
going to happen. If she didn’t want it to happen, she wouldn’t be
so inviting with me. I noticed she wasn’t inviting other neighbors
over for dinner. And if I didn’t want it to happen, I wouldn’t be
accepting her invitations. I wasn’t having dinner with other
neighbors, either. The signs were clearly there.

The day seemed to drag by after that.

As I walked to Carla’s that evening, I
thought about what she’d said. There really had been a lot of
things happen since Jenson had moved in. It was one hell of a
coincidence. And Jenson was odd. I wasn’t the only one who thought
he was odd. I knew Andy and Jill thought so. Hazel would never say
a bad word about anyone. Louis was never home. Bernie was too
wrapped up in finding himself a woman. I supposed it was just Andy,
Jill, Carla, and me that noticed.

Such a quiet neighborhood for so much
bloodshed. Maybe Carla should move. Maybe we all should.

I shooed the neighborhood dog to go away
while waiting for Carla to open the door. Instead of leaving, he
walked a circle and lay down in the corner of the porch next to
Bernie’s house, under the porch swing. Before I could insist
further that he leave, Carla opened the door.

“Whose is he?” she asked.

“He kind of belongs to us all. He’s a stray
that roams around here. He’s a good dog, though. No one minds.” The
dog licked his lips, as if to confirm.

“What’s his name?”

“Oscar.”

Saying nothing, she turned and disappeared
into the house. I wasn’t sure if I should follow, so I stayed where
I was, debating. Seconds later, she came back, carrying a hamburger
patty.

“Here you go, Oscar,” she said, bending down
and giving him the patty. Oscar’s tail thumped against the porch as
he happily ate the warm meat. Turning to me, she said, “Shall we go
in and eat?”

“You know, you just made a friend for life
there. Friendly face, warm food, cozy porch. He may never leave,” I
said to Carla as she walked past me and into the house. I looked at
Oscar, who returned my gaze. I swear I detected a smirk on his
face. Maybe I was just assuming he was smirking. That’s what Andy
would’ve done.

Carla laughed.

We ate the burgers over great conversation.
The kids were telling me stories about friends they had in Dallas.
Carla watched, smiling and occasionally giggling.

I could see the unfathomable amount of love
and devotion in her eyes as she looked at her kids. I watched her
watching them and couldn’t help but wonder if she had so much love
for everyone she allowed into her life. Had she loved their father
as much as she loved them? Would she ever love me with as much
enthusiasm and passion as she loved them? I certainly hoped I’d
have a chance to find out.

With the kids asleep, Carla and I sat on the
porch swing. Oscar lay sleeping beneath us. We talked about nothing
in particular. Things we liked, things we didn’t like. Books we’d
read and movies we’d watched. As it turned out, we had quite a lot
of things in common.

Time went a little too quickly when I was
with her. Before I knew it, Andy was driving past us on his way to
work.

I glanced at my watch. “Wow. It’s late. I
should go.” I didn’t want to leave. Not now, not anytime soon. I
wanted to stay by her side and continue getting to know her.

She looked disappointed that I had to leave.
“I’ll walk you home,” she offered. It seemed she was just as eager
as I was to make the evening last a little longer. This revelation
excited me. It appeared she was feeling the same way about me that
I was feeling about her.

“But if you walk me home, I’ll have to walk
you back home.”

Laughing, she said, “I’m a big girl. I can
make my way back by myself.”

“If you insist.” We walked very slowly down
the street toward my house, both of us trying to wring every
possible drop out of the evening.

Standing at the end of my driveway, I noticed
she was hesitant. This was the first awkward pause between us.
Neither of us spoke. I patiently waited for her to figure out
whatever she was trying to decide.

“Well, Owen, I guess I’d better get back.
Thanks for coming to dinner. You can come by any time you want.”
She had her hands in her back pockets. Very sexy.

“I can’t bother you for dinner every
night.”

“I don’t just mean dinner.” I sensed a sexual
undertone, but I didn’t want to react to it, just in case I was
wrong. That would be humiliating for both of us. So I waited,
unsure of what to say now. Finally, she added, “If you ever want to
stop by to talk or visit or anything, you’re more than welcome. And
it doesn’t have to be just dinner, you know. You could eat lunch at
my place. Or breakfast.”

I don’t consider myself a ladies’ man,
although Andy was always telling me that I easily could be.
According to him, I had the charm and the looks, which made for a
lethal combination. I, however, had always been a one woman kind of
guy, literally having been with only one woman.

Even with my inexperience with women, I
couldn’t argue that she was hitting on me. I hadn’t failed to
notice she said I could eat breakfast at her place. She hadn’t said
I could stop by for breakfast, which made me think she was hinting
that I’d already be there for the first meal of the day. Of course,
I could be completely wrong. I would’ve naturally assumed that I
was wrong, if not for the way she said it or the look on her face
when she said it.

Just in case I was completely wrong, I
decided to take the middle road.

“Maybe I’ll take you up on that
sometime.”

“I hope you do,” she said sweetly. She leaned
up and kissed me, just like earlier. This time, however, I noticed
she left her lips on my cheek a little longer. This meant her hands
rested on my arms a little long, and her breasts were lightly
pressed against my chest a little longer. And I didn’t hate it.

She walked away, leaving me standing there at
the end of my driveway staring after her. I watched until she went
inside her house and shut the door. I felt the stupid look on my
face, but I couldn’t do anything about it. I tried to force my
muscles to relax, but they disobeyed me. I even wiped my hand
across my face, trying to wipe the smile away, but it was
there.

It remained there until I was in bed, staring
at the ceiling, imagining what it would be like to lie next to her.
The damn thing was even there the next morning, waiting for me.

I didn’t want to wish it away. It had been a
long time since I’d felt much more than a frown on my face. I
enjoyed the feeling that came with the smile. The feeling of
warmth. The feeling of knowing someone was thinking about me. The
feeling that I had something to look forward to every day, a reason
to wake up.

I felt Owen’s eyes on me until I was in my
house with the door closed. I was glad he couldn’t see my face,
couldn’t see the goofy smile that seemed to be painted there.

The last thing I’d expected to happen when I
moved here was exactly what was happening. I met someone, a
wonderful man, who made me feel good about myself. Unlike my
ex-husband, he was easy to be around. I felt safe with him. And I
felt like I could trust him with anything.

I didn’t think I was falling in love with
him. That would be crazy. We barely knew each other. But I believed
that given a little time, it would happen. I could feel it.

I lay in bed thinking about him. His muscular
build, his tall frame, and his slightly shaggy, dark hair were all
enough to make me dream of him. But it was the way he looked at me
that made my heart beat faster.