That night, Declan was ready to go to bed before the sun had even set completely, so his room was awash in a deep orange glow as I tucked him in.
“You have a good day?” I asked.
He nodded sleepily. “I like getting to see Gram and Grampi.”
“I know, bud. They really like getting to hang out with you, too.”
“I told them about Miss Allie.”
“Oh, yeah?”
“Yeah. How she lives next to us and she’s my teacher. No one else in school has a teacher who lives next to them, you know.”
“That is pretty special.”
His eyelids drooped closed, so I leaned over and gave him a kiss on the forehead. “Sleep tight,” I said. “I’ll check on you a little later.”
I quietly walked out of the room, pulling the door shut behind me. I went down to the kitchen to clean up from dinner; chances were good that Ben would be stopping by, probably with several cans of high test beer.
I was out in the backyard when I heard him come in through the side door. I hurried back inside to tell him to be quiet so he wouldn’t wake up Declan.
“Shit, sorry,” he said. I could tell he’d already had a few beers, probably after he’d finished up at the shop.
We sat out on the deck, and he cracked one of the beers open for me.
“You know, it’s going to be a really long summer if I have to keep coming over here and seeing that neighbor of yours, especially if she starts laying out in a bikini or something,” Ben said.
“I’m sorry it didn’t work out for you when you went over there and propositioned her.”
He sighed. “She doesn’t seem like she’s interested in any guy.”
I snorted. “Just because she turned you down doesn’t mean she’s not interested in anyone.”
“Oh yeah? You think you can get with her?”
I thought back to the day I did her pap smear, the way her thighs had trembled slightly when I touched her, the way her nipples had hardened when I pressed my fingers against her.
“Yeah,” I said. “I do.”
He grinned. “Cocky Cole. A friendly gentleman’s bet, then?”
“Gentleman’s bet? With you?”
“I know, I know, I ain’t no gentleman. Just a regular old bet, then.”
“What on earth could you possibly have to bet that I would want?”
Ben scrunched his face up. “You have a point,” he said. “I might not have anything you want, except maybe... free time.”
I had to give him that. “True. You sure as hell have a lot more free time than I have.”
“So if you win, then I’ll watch Declan for you. I’ll watch him once a week, you can pick when, so long as I’m not working.”
“Seriously?”
“Seriously.”
“Should I even trust you with him?”