apartment buildings, but also homes like these, for people who want the convenience of the city in the suburbs—transportation, restaurants, and everything else right where they live. The homes on Long Island have more space and the schools are better, but the property taxes are much higher. So it’s a trade-off.”
“Yeah, I get that.”
The car stopped in front of a Tudor-style home with a winding cement path to the front door. They trooped out of the car, and Jake held Stacey’s hand.
“Would you mind holding the leash, since I have so much stuff?”
“You don’t have to come up with an excuse to ask for help. I’m happy to do it.”
Strains of laughter and music reached out from the backyard, and Jake beckoned to him. “This way. There’s a gate.”
As they approached, Shea smelled food cooking and heard Britney Spears’s song “Toxic” playing. Jake rapped on the gate, and after a moment, a woman opened it. She had close-cropped hair and was wearing a flowered one-piece bathing suit with a bright-red, flowing cover-up knotted around her slim waist.
“Jake. Finally. And there’s my baby doll.” The woman hugged and kissed Stacey. “Carli and Sean have been waiting for you. Come on in.” She faced Shea. “Um, who is this?”
Shea removed his hat. “Howdy, ma’am. I’m Shea. A friend of Jake’s. He said it would be fine if I tagged along.”
“Well, it sure is, Shea. I’m Melissa, Oliver’s wife. So happy Jake decided to bring a special someone.” She slid her sunglasses to the top of her head and gave him a huge, delighted smile. Beautiful deep-brown eyes glowed as she held out her hand. “Come on inside. We’ll set you all up with some food and drinks, and then we can have a nice talk.”
He caught Jake shaking his head and grinned to himself. Immediately comfortable in Melissa’s warm presence, Shea held on to Kiss’s leash a little tighter and followed her into the backyard, where he saw Oliver, Jake’s friend, holding a beer and giving Stacey a hug. Several other people lay sunning themselves in lounge chairs, and children paddled and splashed in the huge above-ground pool.
“Shea, nice to see you again. What do you think of New York so far? Have you done anything fun and exciting?”
Kiss nosed around Oliver’s feet and flopped in a shady patch. Shea unclipped her leash.
“I had no idea houses like this existed in New York City. It’s really nice.”
“Well, not as much space as your ranch, but we like it. Come on and sit down.”
He joined Jake on the lounge chairs and sat next to him, while Jake took Stacey’s backpack and unzipped it.
“What’re you looking for?” Shea asked.
“Her floaties. She’s been staring at that pool since we walked inside.” Jake found the plastic floaties and began to inflate them.
Two children, who looked to be around twelve years old, jumped out of the pool and ran over to them. “Hi, Uncle Jake. Can we take Stacey to the pool? We promise to watch her every second.”
Jake sprayed Stacey with sunscreen. “Do you want to go with Carli and Sean in the pool, honey? I’ll be sitting right here the whole time.”
Her nod seemed more definite, Shea noticed, and having finished inflating the floaties, Jake slid them on her arms, then gave her a kiss on the head. Carli took hold of one of Stacey’s hands and Sean the other, and the two led her to the pool. Oliver had created a deck area around it, so you could sit and dangle your feet in the water, and Stacey sat there for a moment before sliding into the pink rubber tube Sean brought over. Shea thought she looked like a little colorful flower bouncing up and down in the water.
“You want a beer, Shea?” Oliver handed him a cold bottle.
“Thank you kindly. It’s hotter than Hades.” He took a long pull and gave a gusty sigh. “That’s good.”
“So, tell us. What’ve you two been doing?”
Shea glanced over to Jake, who rolled his eyes and said, “Subtle, Meliss. Shea is a model, as well as a cowboy on the ranch Ollie and I went to a few weeks ago. He had a shoot here in the city this weekend, and since it’s his first time in New York, I figured I’d show him around.”
“Mmhmm. And meet Stacey.”
“I met that little ray of sunshine yesterday. We went out for ice cream.”
“Did you, now?” Melissa’s smile beamed brighter than the overhead sun. “And here you are again today.