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When we saw the building Kristy found, Mary Anne and Stacey looked at Kristy like she was crazy. It was a run down old convenience store, full of broken shelves and dust. But I got what she was thinking. If we gutted the place it was two big rooms, an office and a bathroom. It had a small lot around it, for some outdoor space, and the neighborhood it was in was quiet, but not far from the highway, so it would be convenient for parents who worked in Stamford.
It didn't look like much, but we convinced Mary Anne and Stacey to have some faith in me to make it work. So the day after we signed the lease, I left Zee with Stacey and walked down there to make some plans.
I let myself in and pulled out my sketch pad, and got tons of ideas. The front room would be bright, I'd paint the walls with a sun and trees and flowers. We'd put down new linoleum on the floor, so that we could wipe up spills from snacks or crafts. I loved the morning light from the front windows, but I thought we should put a board over the bottom of them to give the kids some privacy. But I'd paint the boards, both sides, so it would be exciting to see from the street.
The back room had been the store room, so there wasn't as much light. We decided that it would be for quiet time, nap time and reading. I wanted to put some carpet on the floor, so it was a little softer, and paint the room a light blue. Calm, but still cheerful. I liked the idea of a pillow pile, kids could use them for naps or to curl up with a book. The little office was back here too, and instead of a desk, I thought was should have a little dinner table, so all four of us could discuss things and set up computers if we needed to. We'd put a fridge and microwave, and a toaster oven back there for snacks for the kids.
Once I had a bunch of ideas to show Mary Anne I headed outside to get some fresh air, because it was dusty in there. It was a cool fall day, and I was wearing jeans and a white tank top with a big purple and green flannel shirt as a jacket. I had one of Mary Anne's scarves, purple hyacinths with green leaves, wrapped around my hair to keep it back from my face. I was wishing for a pair of purple high tops that morning, bonus if I had green laces, but all I had were black sneakers.
I walked around to the side where the play yard would be, and there was a man sitting on the steps that lead out the side door of the building. Not just any man. A really good looking man with a sketch pad.
There was a truck parked out front, that said “Green Leaf Landscaping” on the side. Since the guy was looking at the lot on the side, I had a guess that Kristy had called him about doing the yard.
Now, I take notice of guys with sketch pads, but this guy wasn't the sort I usually went for. My past boyfriends were all skinny, alternative looking artists and musicians. Even sitting hunched over, I could tell this man was built like a football player. I guess he did a lot of lifting and digging, because he had muscles like one too. His shirt was a little tight, so you could see it was his whole torso that was cut like that, like a statue of a Greek god or something.
He was clean cut, with short red hair and an honest looking face. Even if he wasn't my type, he was a handsome guy and I sure wouldn't mind watching him fix up the lot here. Plus, he had a sketch pad, which gave me a little hope that he might be date material. I never tried dating a Greek statue before, but I sure would give it a shot.
He saw me, and grinned as he stood up. He even had a dimple, and clear blue eyes, and he was really tall, well over six foot. I think he stepped off of a romance novel cover, or something. He walked over to me, still grinning.
“Hey there. Kristy asked me to come by and get some ideas, and give her an estimate. Wow, it's been ages, Claudia.”
He knew me? I was sure I didn't know him. I knew exactly zero guys who looked like this. I must have looked really confused, because he laughed a little.
“Don't recognize me?”
When he laughed, he did seem a little familiar. But I couldn't place him at all. So I just shook my head, still confused.
“Jack. Jack Rodowsky.”
I put my hand over my mouth, and gasped. All of a sudden everything I had just been thinking seemed way way WAY creepy. Jackie Rodowsky was a little kid, not an unbelievably hot guy. That was not how the universe worked.
He smiled again, with those eyes and those dimples, and held out his arms for a hug. I gave the most awkward hug of my whole life, and pulled away fast. I finally got back the ability to talk “Jackie! I mean, Jack. My lord, you got big.”
“Yeah, in high school. I played football for a while. Almost got a scholarship, too. You look great.”
“Thanks. I, um, I just came here to do some sketches of, um. . .” I was trying to do math in my head. He was seven when I was thirteen, and I was twenty eight, so he would be. . . I hate math. “So, how old are you?”
“Twenty two.”
That made me feel slightly less creepy. I was not a pedophile, Jackie, or Jack or whoever, was a twenty two year old man. He could drink. He would almost be out of college, even. “So, you do this part time?”
He blushed a little, “Nope. This is it. It's my business, I do yard maintenance and landscaping. I have seven guys working for me.”
“Really? That's great!” I said, impressed.
“Yeah, I started back in middle school mowing lawns and stuff. I was going to go to college, but. . .” He trailed off, almost apologetic. “Well, after high school I talked to some of my clients, and taught myself a bunch about plants, and eventually I hired some guys to do the mowing and weeding. I supervise, and design the spaces.”
“Wow. . . that's what the sketch pad is for right? Kristy asked you to do our yard?”
“Yup. I love kids, so this is an awesome job. Do you want to see some of the ideas I had?” He grinned, and my heart skipped a beat before I firmly told myself to cut this out.
“Yeah, I'd love to.”
We were standing on the side of the building. There was a side door with the cement steps he had been sitting on leading down into a decent sized lot on the side and back of the building.
“Well, of course we'll fence in the back and this side. Got to keep the kids safe. Then, I was thinking about taking out those steps and building a little deck, maybe 6' by 10', just 6 inches from the ground. Like a really big step. You could set up tables on it on nice days, but with it being so low it wouldn't need a rail, so you could use it as a stage.”
“We could put on plays for the parents.” I said, smiling and looking forward to it.
“Exactly. I was thinking about the things you guys used to do with us. Boy, was that fun.” he said, smiling at me.
Yes, it was fun. Back when he was a little kid, and I was a responsible person who was supposed to be taking care of him, I reminded myself.
He went on, “So then, I was thinking the side yard here ought to be pretty clear. Just put down some mulch, so the kids don't pack it down too hard when they run around. Over there I was thinking a sand box. I can stick something on the fence behind it where you can hang the lid, and in that corner I wanted something for kids to climb on. I was thinking something out of tires, it's a little safer then wood or metal.”
I smiled and said, “You'd know all about that, wouldn't you?”
Oh God, why did I say that? Why not just come out and say you know we used to call you the walking disaster, and groan every time your mom called for a babysitter?
He laughed, “You know I've had over a hundred stitches in my life?”
I laughed too, because I had to. Because I was nervous talking to Jack, and he seemed nicer by the minute, and this was not right.
“So, in terms of plants out here I wasn't going to do much, maybe some trees for shade. Crepe myrtles would be nice, they flower up high enough that the kids won't pick them bare, but they'll add some color. But in the back. . . that's what I was sketching. I'm really proud of it.”
Jackie took my hand, and lead me towards the back of the building, “Come here. Careful of the mud.”
There was a big muddy spot by the corner, but we carefully avoided it, and wound up looking at the back lot of the building. It was bare dirt. “So, what's your plan here?”
“Take a look.” He said, handing me the pad. I looked at the page he was working on, it was a picture of an area enclosed with a high wooden fence on the side and back, and the wall of the building on the other side. Along the front ran a little picket fence with a gate in it. Behind that was a yard with grass and flowers, and a little playhouse.
“That's so cute!” I said. “But, how are you going to grow flowers in the lawn? Won't the kids trample them?”
“That's my favorite part. I wanted some flowers around here that kids could pick, you know? But with a whole daycare full of kids, almost anything is going to die. Then it came to me, the toughest thing to kill, dandelions. Kids can walk on them, pick them, and they'll still be around.”
“I love it.”
“Me too. You know, I spend all day trying to get rid of dandelions for other people, but I think they might be my favorite flower. I can't wait to plant a yard with them.” He said. Then he casually wrapped his arm around me and leaned in to point at the pad. “That gate can be locked, when you want to keep kids in the side yard. If there's just one of you out here I didn't want kids being able to sneak back here and get in trouble.”
I wasn't listening. His arm was around me. And it felt nice, and strong, and. . . I had to go. I turned and started heading back around front, fast, saying over my shoulder, “This all looks great! I'm sure-”
“Claudia! Be careful!” He called, following me. I had forgotten the mud. I started to slip, but he grabbed my arm.
Of course, that didn't help when he slipped. He still had my arm, so we both fell.
“Oh no. I'm so sorry.” He said, blushing.
“No, no, it was my fault. I forgot about. . .” I gestured to the mud, which now covered my jeans and was splashed across my flannel shirt, and probably my face and hair. Jack was covered in it, too. Apparently some things hadn't changed.
He carefully got up, and offered me his hand. I hesitated a moment, and took it. He managed to help me up without falling again.
“Is there anything inside we could use to clean up?” He said.
I nodded, “I think there are some paper towels in the bathroom. Come on.”
We made our way to the side door, and I used my key to get in. Once we were inside, I handed him a handful of paper towels. I took some and cleaned off my face and hands, then took off my flannel shirt and tried to wipe the mud off.
“So what's going on with you? No one's heard from you in years.” He said.
“Not much. I was in New York for a while, now I'm back here and working on this with Mary Anne.”
“Are you married?”
I looked up. He looked calm and casual.
“No,” I answered. “But I have a son. His name is Zee.”
He smiled, “How old is he?”
“He's three. His father and I aren't together.”
Jack nodded, and I took a breath, “What about you? Are you married?”
“Nope. Haven't found the right girl yet.”
“Oh. Well, she'll come along.” I said. I went back to my jacket to keep from thinking about that.
After a minute of silence, he said, “Nice tattoos. Where did you get them done?”
“A guy in London did them. I designed them myself.”
He smiled, “I should have guessed. I've been wanting to get one. A tree or a leaf or something. Would you design it for me?”
“Sure. . .” I said. There was no harm in that, right?
“Great. You can come over to my place sometime and we'll talk about it.”
I froze. I must have nodded a little, because he grinned and dug out a business card, “Here's my number. Call me when you've got the time.”
“Okay. . .” I said, feeling my heart beating. I really wanted to go hang out with him at his place, and design a gorgeous tattoo for that gorgeous body. But that was all kinds of wrong, and exactly why I definitely should not be going to his place. Or maybe it didn't matter, he was nice and creative and more grown up then me, really. I had no idea, at this point.
“I've got to get going. I have to go check on my guys. I'll be calling Kristy tonight with an estimate, I'm sure she'll get it to you.”
He smiled and waved, looking over his should as he walked out. He nearly missed the step, but he caught himself in time.
I waited until the truck pulled away before I got out my phone. As soon as Stacey said hello, I gasped out “I am coming right over. I'm covered in mud. I met- I mean, you should see- Stacey, you are not going to believe this!”