it’s gonna be Death of a Saleswoman—at the Anti-Festival this fall. You would make a great Wilhelmina Loman.”
“You mean like Death of a Salesman where it’s all grinding poverty and family dysfunction and he kills himself at the end?”
“That’s the one!” Maya trilled. “Except with a she instead of a he. And I can totally see you in it.”
Nora didn’t know how to say that there was no way on God’s green earth she was going to star in Death of a Salesman. Or -woman. But she didn’t have to answer because Maya presented her with another option. “I don’t suppose there’s any chance you’re into English Premier League football?”
“You mean like soccer?” Nora asked.
“Yeah. I got into it when I was doing a semester abroad in the UK. It turns out to be very dramatic. The rivalries, the arc of the season. You want to watch the next game with me? My team is Crystal Palace.”
“Back off, everyone.” Sawyer turned to her. “They’re just trying to make you feel welcome, but you don’t need to sign up now for a season of softball playing or soccer watching. What about a boat ride? A group of us heads out on the lake a couple of times a month on Law’s pontoon.”
“That sounds perfect.”
Chapter Seven
The next Friday afternoon, Jake was working on Nora’s fence when she got home. They had argued about him working on her place—inside and out—but he’d won her over with a promise to charge her market rates for it all and with the assurance that he would fit her in between existing jobs. He did not intend to keep his promise about billing her, but he was fitting her in between other jobs, which meant he worked in little stretches, often at odd times. That, plus the fact that she was putting in long hours at the clinic getting ready to open, meant he hadn’t actually seen much of her. They’d overlapped once and shared another pizza, but that had been it.
“Jake,” she said when she appeared from around front. “I’m glad you’re here.”
Mick, who had been sleeping in the sun, got up at the sound of her voice and started wiggling his butt.
“I hope you don’t mind that I let Mick out for some…Well, I was going to say exercise, but that’s not really his thing, is it?” She’d given him a key to the house so he could scope out repairs that needed doing inside, and he’d taken to letting the dog out to keep him company while he worked on the fence.
She laughed. “Of course I don’t mind. The sun and the grass are good for him. Probably a shock for an old city dog.” She glanced over her shoulder. “I have a semiawkward favor to ask.”
“Shoot.”
“My grandma’s here for a visit. She’s recovering from a bout with cancer, and she’s pretty frail. My sister and I—my sister’s here, too—have been driving her around and showing her the sights, and we took her for lunch in Bayshore. But she wants to see my house before they hit the road. I thought we’d be able to help her up the steps to the porch, but she’s in worse shape than I expected. I saw your truck in the driveway, and I was wondering if you could, like, hoist her up.”
“Of course.” He wiped his sweaty hands on his jeans and went hunting for his discarded T-shirt. “Let me just make myself presentable.”
“She would probably appreciate it more if you didn’t put that back on,” Nora said, smiling as he pulled his shirt over his head.
“Yeah?” he said, not quite sure how to respond.
“Let’s just say she’s not your typical little old lady. She’s been known to appreciate a hunky man-god from time to time.”
“Did you just call me a hunky man-god?”
“I didn’t call you a hunky man-god. I just said my grandmother would say you’re a hunky man-god.” She rolled her eyes, but she was smiling. “Sheesh. Don’t get a big head.”
To his great surprise, Jake found he didn’t mind Nora teasing him.
Or thinking of him as a hunky man-god, for that matter.
He followed her around the house, whistling for Mick, who came up to trot happily alongside him. The two women out front were clearly related to Nora. The sister was a carbon copy of her—except her hair was more of a strawberry blond—and the grandmother, though she had darker coloring, had the same small, almost elfin features as her granddaughters.