Crain's Landing (5 page)

I turned onto my street and noticed the houses were a bit larger, but also nicely kept. I smiled when I pulled into the drive, thankful the leasing office had sent the garage door opener and keys with my father. I stopped the car and for the first time in a long while, I felt like things were going to be all right, as if I belonged here. After pulling into the garage, I removed my sweaty, sleeping baby out of her car seat. The motion caused her to open her eyes and a huge smile broke across her face.

“Well, hello, my love.” I kissed her rosy cheek as she began to rub the sleep from her eyes. I shut the car door and slid the new key into the locked door and led into the kitchen. The property manager had explained the owners had purchased this house at a bank auction and then remodeled it. She’d sent me several photos of the home, but none of them had done it justice. I’d really lucked out when the agent told me it came fully furnished and decorated if I wanted.

I ran my hand over the polished, granite countertops in the eat-in kitchen. The house smelled of new wood and fresh paint. The kitchen looked as if it were ready to be photographed for a magazine, instead of the spot where Peyton would decorate it with her spaghetti. I walked out of the kitchen and into what, I assumed, would be my new formal dining room. It was simple, yet decorated nicely with neutral accents. The next room was the living room, where the high ceilings and skylights made the room bright and inviting. The fireplace sat clean and ready for a roaring fire. Although, with the heat and humidity currently present outside, I doubted it would get much use. Down the hall I found a bathroom that was decorated in beige and white. It was classic and elegant. The next two rooms were empty and smaller. I decided one would be Peyton’s room and the other a playroom. I had gotten rid of her crib as I had plans of getting her a bed she could grow with. I had found one in a catalog that would be perfect and, according to the tracking site, it should arrive tomorrow. So for tonight, she would sleep in her playpen. The next room I was certain had been designed to be a den, but the owners had made it into an office. I loved how it looked out into the backyard. It was then that Peyton noticed the large play area out there.

She pointed at the swing and shouted, “Me!” I relished in her joy and agreed with her, it would be hers while we lived here.

The next room blew me away. It was my bedroom, decorated to look so sophisticated the massive size of it was quite impressive. The king-sized platform bed was the focal point and set against the far wall. The dark wood of the bedroom furniture only highlighted the blues and grays in the bedding and draperies. The head of the bed was covered in a mountain of pillows. I looked to Peyton as I walked hurriedly over to the bed. We both laughed as I flung us onto the mattress and into the pillows. I turned her on her back and began to tickle her and blow raspberries on her belly. After we’d roughed up the bed, enjoying the playfulness of tickling and singing her favorite songs, I glanced out the window noticing that daylight had drifted into dusk; the purple and gold hues biding the last remains of the day goodbye.

I pulled Peyton from the bed and walked back into the kitchen. The Tupperware container Peggy had sent over held the makings for a large turkey and cheese sandwich, chips, cookies, and two juice boxes. The rhubarb pie would have to wait for another day. The thought of heating up that oven and in turn this house, was out of the question. As we sat at the kitchen island and shared the food, I couldn’t help but think that a slice of turkey had never tasted so good.

After I cleaned up our mess and unloaded the car, the exhaustion of the day finally found me. I filled up the large tub in my bathroom that came complete with jets. I sat Peyton in the warm water amidst the mountain of bubbles, her toys joining her in the fun. She giggled and splashed before beginning to rub her sleepy eyes. I drained the tub, then dressed her in her pajamas. I lay beside her in my bed as she took a strand of my hair and quietly played with it. It was calming for not only her, but for me as well. Once she was snoring softly, I placed her in her playpen so I could go in and take a hot bath.

I kept the jets off and the door open in case Peyton woke. There were candles around the tub, so I lit them and leaned back, enjoying the silence of the house. Tomorrow I would need to hit the grocery store and see if I could find a discount store. I also needed to go visit the daycare center where I had enrolled Peyton. But most of all, I was dying to walk into that library.

The next morning, bright sunlight streamed in through the blinds that I had completely forgotten to close last night. Peyton was still sleeping soundly in her playpen and I was shocked she had been able to sleep so much. I guessed the traveling was exhausting for her too.

I decided to jump in the shower since I had a lot of things I needed to do today. I wanted to kiss the person who had decided the waterfall and side-spraying shower nozzles were a good idea, as I enjoyed possibly the best shower I’d ever had. Ready for my day, I found my sweet baby girl babbling away to her puppy my dad had given her. Once she saw me standing in the doorway, her arms went up and she smiled her famous happy smile at me. I quickly pulled her from her playpen and showered her with kisses.

Peyton loved Pop-Tarts and I allowed her to have them only once in a while and usually in a pinch. With the grocery situation as it was, today would be one of those days. I had just finished cleaning her up and had my keys in hand to head out when my doorbell rang. I rolled my eyes as I thought it might be Peggy making an early morning visit.

The heavy wooden door had the most beautiful cut lead glass inserts, causing the light coming in to be distorted. The two long windows on either side matched the glass. I opened the door, not to find a waiting Peggy, but the tallest blonde woman I had ever seen. She stood at my door looking like she was ready to walk the catwalk. Her clothes were a bit risqué for my taste, as her shirt barely held in her ample breasts. Her midriff was on full display and her short skirt…well, I was certain Peyton could have worn it and it might have even been small on her.

“Oh, hello, darlin’.” Her husky voice made it clear she was a heavy smoker. Her long, red nails, most likely acrylic, wound around a strand of her over-processed and backcombed hair. “I’m Janice, I live across the street.” I watched as she motioned to the house directly across from mine. It looked like the rest of the houses on the street, except for the white Mercedes parked in the driveway. “Is your husband home?”

I shook my head no, “No, no husband.” I showed her the lack of a wedding ring on my left hand. I once considered getting a cheap ring, placing it on that significant finger to avoid the looks I got from time to time. But that would have meant I was ashamed of being single and having Peyton and that certainly was not the truth.

“Oh? Pity, we could use some more men around this neighborhood.” She looked at Peyton, who sat on my right hip. Her facial expressions told me more than her words ever could; the lack of a husband might not have been a big deal in the bigger city, but as my father said, this was a different world down here. “Well, with such a pretty little girl, there must be a boyfriend or baby daddy around. Is he available?”

Ladies and gentleman, we had ourselves a bona fide cougar. I had seen my fair share of women like this one. She preferred the younger men, regardless of who they belonged to. However, she kept a few older ones around to suit her needs as well. I was certain that her Mercedes was one of those “needs” some poor soul had bought for her.

“I’m sorry, Janice, I don’t mean to be rude or anything, but I have a busy day and I can assure you I don’t have a man of any sort or fashion in my home.” She looked me up and down and scowled.

“Well, honey, if you don’t mind me saying, you’ve got all the equipment, you just need the right touches and we could fix your man situation. I mean despite being as pretty as you are, your clothes are screaming old librarian.”

I was certain she was trying to be nice. I took it as a compliment since I
was
indeed a librarian. “
Well
, Janice,” I used her emphasis on that word back against her, “I don’t really want any of that type of attention, if you get my meaning. I’m allergic to penicillin and don’t want to worry about any new diseases that are out there.”

She placed her hand on her hip, pointed her acrylic nail at me, and smiled. “I like you. If you change your mind, I’m right across the street.”

With that, she turned and began sashaying back toward her house, her skirt not quite covering her ass cheeks. Her five-inch hooker heels clicked away as she swayed her hips. I watched as she waved to several balding gentlemen who were working on catching flies with their mouths hanging open. The house next to hers had an older couple sitting on their porch and I watched as the old man held up his hand to wave at her, only to have his wife slap it down.

One thing was certain; this was going to be an interesting place to live.

AFTER MY INTERESTING RUN-IN WITH
my new neighbor, Janice, I finally made it out the door and to the market. I picked up just a few essentials, since I was in a hurry, and approached the checkout. I stood there and watched as the slutty-looking cashier talked into her cell phone and flicked old nail polish from her fingernails. I cleared my throat, but she ignored me and continued to talk, her ass firmly parked on the conveyer belt.

"Excuse me." I glared pointedly at the back of her head. She continued to ignore me. I decided the best approach would be to leave the grocery shopping to last and hope for a shift change. That way I could hopefully check out with someone who actually had a brain, and my milk, meat, and ice cream would still be good when I returned home. With that in mind, I left my armful of groceries sitting there and headed off toward Peyton's daycare. So much for Southern hospitality. I hoped by the time stupid checker hung up and looked on the counter behind her, the juicy package of hamburger I'd left sitting there would have leaked nasty blood onto the counter and soaked the ass of her white, too-tight jeans.

Southern Darlin’s Play School was located directly behind the library. I walked through the front doors to find the next set of doors locked. There was a keypad on the left side of the door and an intercom button. I pressed the button and waited patiently. Less than a minute passed before I received a response. What surprised me was that the television monitor illuminated and a beautiful blonde lady appeared on the screen.

"Hello, how can I help you?" Her voice was very calm and pleasant and she was even prettier than my neighbor Janice.

"Hello, yes, my name is Natalie Reid..." Before I could even finish, the door buzzed and she spoke rapidly as she instructed me to enter.

"I've been waiting so long to finally meet you!" I was promptly grabbed into a tight hug. "I'm Lily Crain, the owner around here. Mayor Marshall has told me so much about this little beauty." She picked up Peyton's hand and stroked her tiny fingers. It surprised me when Peyton reached for her. "Oh, my goodness, we're going to have so much fun aren't we, sweetness."

Peyton began babbling and then handed her stuffed puppy to Lily. Lily answered her back as if they were having a conversation and she was interested in everything Peyton was saying. "Ms. Peyton, how about we take your momma on a tour and then I'm going to steal you away for a few hours so she can get acquainted with our town."

Lily's smile was electric, and Peyton was quite taken with her. I felt a lot better about leaving her here. I followed them down a long hall, the smell of bubble gum and sugar was in the air. We passed several doors made of glass allowing you to see the children playing inside. Every room was brightly decorated and looked fairly clean considering the children actively playing inside. Lily pointed out several safety measures they had, including direct lines to the hospital and fire department. She also told me they had several high school girls come in the afternoon to watch children for their community service requirement for graduation. I asked her about the program and she explained the school system here required every senior to complete at least twenty hours of community service in order to graduate. Most of the seniors wanted more hours as it looked really good on college applications. That information gave me a huge idea. Lily asked me if I would allow Peyton to play with the other children for a few hours today so she would slowly get used to being here. I thought it was a wonderful idea, so I agreed.