The rugs went on the floor and immediately made a big difference in how empty the rooms felt. The table was slowly (and with a little cussing) put together and set in a corner of the living area. The air conditioner went into a window in the living area. As she cranked it to the highest setting, Savannah breathed a huge sigh of relief. In a house so tiny, that single AC unit should cool things in no time.
Still feeling anxious, Savannah grabbed her cleaning supplies. She opened the door to the attic and started with the stairs. With meticulous detail, Savannah cleaned and polished the stairs until they shined.
Exhausted but still anxious, Savannah dusted the finished part of the attic. As she was thinking she needed a hammer to finish the attic, Savannah uncovered one next to a plastic container of nails. Savannah nailed down a dozen long pieces of wood before the sun started peaking over the horizon. Knowing she could finally fall asleep, Savannah stripped off her dirty clothes and fell into bed without showering.
* * * * *
“So, what’re you going to do with a whole weekend to yourself?” Jay asked his best friend as they relaxed on the couch on Friday evening.
Gabriel shrugged. “I don’t know. Sleep, more than likely. I’m telling you, kids turn you into an old man.”
Jay laughed. “Does that mean you don’t plan on having any more?”
Gabriel snorted. “With what woman? My imaginary girlfriend?”
“I’m sure Savannah would assist.” Jay joked, knowing how uncomfortable that specific topic made Gabriel. It made Gabriel even more uncomfortable lately, thanks to one too many inappropriate dreams.
“Oh, c’mon man, that’s your sister.” Gabriel shook his head and winced.
“Yeah, I know. But she’s not your sister. I’ve been thinking about it.” Jay said nonchalantly.
“Thinking about me having sex with your sister? Because that’s disgusting.”
“No, idiot.” Jay slapped Gabriel in the back of the head. Gabriel slapped him back. They never had grown up. “All I'm saying is I’ve been thinking about the two of you. You know? Never thought I’d say it, but you might want to go for it. Savannah’s grown and you’re single.” Jay paused. “But I don’t mean sex. You’re not allowed to do that. But you can, you know, date or get married or whatever.”
Gabriel laughed. “So you’re telling me you want me to marry your sister but never have sex with her?”
Jay nodded. “Exactly.”
“Dude, that’s not how that works.” Gabriel stopped laughing and looked at his friend seriously. “But where the hell did that come from? Like, dude, you’ve always made it clear I had to keep my hands off, even when making it clear was far from necessary.”
Jay shrugged. “I don’t know. I feel bad for both of you, and now Sav is all grown up, I realize I’ll have to deal with a brother-in-law at some point. Figure if it’s you, I could deal with it. But what if she marries some rich idiot my parents approve of? Ugh, I couldn’t stand it.”
Gabriel shook his head. “So you want to arrange a marriage instead?” He snorted. “Besides, do you think Savannah would ever come close to marrying a rich idiot?” Gabriel grimaced. “Besides, I know your parents wouldn’t approve of me as a son-in-law.”
Jay glanced over. “Why? They like you as much as they like anybody else.”
“Yes, but I’m sure Meridian’s don’t marry poor Mexicans from Lock Street.” Gabriel mimicked Jay’s mother, turning his nose upward, and his friend about died laughing.
“Probably not. But I bet that makes you even more attractive to Sav.” Jay paused. “Seriously, you think she still likes you?”
“Seriously don’t know, and seriously wondering why you’re so fixated on this right now.” Gabriel was starting to feel uncomfortable. Especially now his thoughts had strayed back to Savannah and those awkward yet amazing dreams from a few nights ago.
Jay shrugged. “It's on my mind, that's all. She needs somebody who's gonna take care of her, and I worry. I wouldn’t worry about her if she was with you, y’ know?”
“I don’t think Savannah would like hearing you think she needs someone to ‘take care of her,’ bro,” Gabriel said.
Jay snorted. “It’s the truth. Nothing against her, but everyone needs someone to take care of them. You know? Life’s been hard on Sav, so she needs it more than most.”
Gabriel only shrugged. Jay telling him to date his sister was weird, but what was even weirder was that Gabriel had considered it.
Chapter 4
Savannah closed her laptop. She’d mentioned starting her own digital marketing agency to her freelance clients. Most had taken the bait. One said they’d find a different freelancer. Now Savannah needed to find someone who could handle the graphic design part of the business. She could do the marketing and writing but wanted to offer the full package. She wasn’t confident enough in her graphic design abilities to do it herself. If she got enough work, she’d hire another writer, too.
Savannah decided it was time for a break. She’d woken up early, before the sun rose, to get her work finished for the day. Now, it was one in the afternoon and Savannah was famished. She thought about heating up some food, but it was the weekend and Jay was likely home.
Savannah decided to walk the block to her brother’s house to ask if he wanted to walk downtown for food. The fresh air would help clear her mind for a few more hours today to get a head start on tomorrow’s workload.
Savannah took her time walking to her brother’s house, enjoying the way the light breeze and warm sun combined on her skin. Even taking it slow, however, it didn’t take her long to reach her destination. She squeezed through the gate and was immediately greeted by Molly and Nanny.
After giving each dog a few pats on their heads, Savannah walked up to the front porch. Only the screen door was shut, so Savannah walked in and announced herself. “Hello? Jay?”
Jay came from the back of the house. “Hey, Sav, what’s up?”
Savannah shrugged. “I wanted to get out of the house for a while. I was wondering if maybe you wanted to walk downtown and grab a bite to eat or something?”
Jay shrugged. “Sure. I’m not doing anything better.” He yelled over his shoulder, “Hey Gabriel, you want to grab food, too?” If it’d been anyone else, Savannah would have gotten upset Jay hadn’t asked if another person could join. But where Jay went, Gabriel went, and Savannah never minded. Gabriel was always welcome.
Savannah heard Gabriel yell from the back of the house but she couldn’t quite make out what he said. Jay smiled. “Gabe’s gonna come, too. We’ll be ready in a second.”
“Okay,” Savannah nodded. She was about to sit on the couch when she decided to go to the front porch instead. Savannah sat on the edge of the porch with her feet resting on the top step. Nanny laid her old, bony head on Savannah’s lap and she wondered again how old the dog was.
Gabriel walked outside then, wearing a pair of jeans and a plain white tee-shirt. His hair was pulled back into a low, loose ponytail. “Hey, how old is Nanny now?” Savannah finally voiced her question.