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“And we didn’t even burn the house down,” Ash adds.
Moira laughs. “So, you made cereal?”
“Cap’n Crunch is the supper of champions,” Colton contributes.
Getting out of the truck, Moira pulls her sons in for a hug. “You know the rule, cereal for supper only once a month. You don’t get to do that again for a while.” She sounds like she’s trying to be stern, but I definitely hear relief in her tone.
The dog walks over to me and immediately nudges my hand to pet her. When I comply, Wyatt says, “That’s Juno. If you start petting her, she’ll never let you stop.”
I give him a mock frightened face and say, “Too late.”
He makes atsking sound. “You’re gonna regret that.”
Ash picks up a baseball bat off the grass. “Wanna play, Wyatt?”
“Yup,” he tells him. “I’ll spot you two five points each on account of me being a way better player.”
With that, the three boys take off to the far side of the yard. Juno runs after them, clearly eager to join in the fun. Colton calls to his mom, “Can you take her inside?”
“Come on, Juno, let’s go,” Moira calls before turning to me. “She likes to steal the ball, and if she gets it, she chews it until the hide’s off.”
Juno follows us up the steps to the house.
“Have you eaten yet?” Moira asks.
“No. But I should let you know, Cap’n Crunch is a favorite of mine as well,” I tell her with a grin.
“I should have offered to feed you at the diner.” She shakes her head.
Following her through the screen door to her house, I say, “But I haven’t had my cereal for dinner yet this month.”
“Me neither.”
She giggles while leading the way into her kitchen. Moira’s house is obviously well cared for, but even so, the furniture is a bit shabby and worn. The paint on the walls looks faded, and a couple of the pictures are hanging crooked.
An older woman walks around the corner. She’s dressed in a bright orange pantsuit that looks like it’s vintage 1970 (and hasn’t fit well in a while). Her hair is halfway down her back and is being held back by a purple handkerchief. I’m pretty sure I love her already. “Ah, that’s better. My back teeth were floating,” she announces before noticing who she’s talking to. She stops walking and looks at me. “I’m Edna, the neighbor. You’re that woman from that show about crooked politicians.”
I can’t help but laugh at her introduction. I hold out my hand to her. “Harper. It’s lovely to meet you, Edna.”
“You too,” she says, adjusting her glasses on her nose. “If you don’t mind me saying—”
Moira cuts her off before she can finish that sentence. “Edna looks after the boys for me every morning before school and whenever we need her during the summer. She’s a huge help.”
Edna grins at me. “That’s true. I watch the boys, but I don’t cook, and I don’t clean. Because the truth is, if you take your eyes off the three of them for even a minute, they’ll either start a fight or blow something up.” Seeming to realize she’s lost track of her charges, she knits her eyebrows together. “Where did they get off to, anyway?”
I tuck my lips between my teeth to stop myself from laughing while Moira answers her. “Outside playing ball.”
“Oh, good,” Edna says with an approving nod. “I’d best be getting home then. Ed will be starting supper soon and I hate to miss watching him cook.”
“Ed’s her husband,” Moira explains.
“So Edna and Ed?” I ask.
With a twinkle in her eyes, she says, “It was meant to be.” Picking up a massive macramé bag that I can only assume is her purse, she adds, “Same name, two halves of the same heart.”
“Thanks for watching the boys,” Moira tells her as she heads to the door.
“Anytime, sweetie,” she answers. Turning to me, she adds, “It was lovely to meet you. If you don’t mind me saying—”
