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Themore time she spent with him, the less she remembered the end of their sophomore year at school.Althoughshe would never forget his attempt to degrade her, she no longer hated him.Instead, she’d fallen in love with him.Karmawas a cruel bitch.
“Excuseme, how much is this?”
Thequestion dragged her back to reality and the yard sale.Alliestared at the 16” x 20” framed ocean painting that a woman was holding up and rattled off the first number that came to mind. “Twodollars.”
Thewoman’s eyes widened at the lowball price, and she immediately said, “I’lltake it.”
Whenshe handed over the money,Alliestuck it in the back pocket of her jeans.
Sadiehad offered to help her today, butAlliehad told her not to bother coming over.TwoofAuntEmily’sneighbors had decided to combine forces with her, bringing their own things to sell.Allthe heavy furniture from her aunt’s house had either been donated or sold on eBay andFacebookMarketplace, except for the spare bedroom set, the kitchen table, and a few pieces in the living room soAlliecould sit and watchTV.Boxeswere being used as end tables for lamps, and an oldArmytrunk that’d belonged to the uncle she’d never known served as a coffee table.SadieandPetewould sell the remaining furniture and anything elseAllieleft behind if she decided to stay inDenver, which was a given now.Therewas no wayWestwould forgive her when he found out she was lying to him, and the only way to avoid that was to remain inColorado.
Thatmorning, it’d been easy to set up everything because what she wanted to sell had been stored in boxes and piled in the garage where she could easily drag it out.She’ddisplayed smaller items atop several folding tables on the driveway and a few old clean sheets laid out on the lawn.Mrs.MarcusandMrs.Kimhad brought over more tables and sheets for their own things, along with folding chairs they’d placed in the shade of a big tree where they could keep an eye on everything.Alliewas thankful they decided to join her because she hadn’t thought of needing some time for bathroom breaks.Afew dishonest people would probably have taken advantage of that and stolen some things.
Itwas a little before noon, and she’d already sold about three hundred dollars worth of stuff, and there was still plenty more to get rid of.Peoplecame and went, some making quick passes to see what she had, while others lingered, inspecting each item before selecting the ones they wanted to haggle over.
Sittingon a lawn chair inside the open overhead garage door,Alliewas surprised when she recognizedWest’sdark gray pickup truck parking next to the curb.Shehad a moment of panic.Itwas highly unlikely for anyone, including the neighbors, to use her real surname in front of him, so she should be safe about that.Buther mind raced through each room of the house, trying to recall if any family photos with her in them had been left out, especially those from her youth.Shecouldn’t riskWestseeing them and recognizing her.Reliefran through her when she remembered they were all packed up in the boxes she needed to ship toDenver, along with other mementos and heirlooms she wanted to keep.
Talland handsome, wearing worn jeans, sneakers, a snug grayT-shirt, and aNewYorkYankeescap,Westgarnered appreciative stares from several women and at least two men as he strode up the driveway, heading straight for her.Hewas carrying a brown paper bag in the crook of his arm.Althoughthe sun was shining, he brightened her day even more.
Athought hit her.Whileshe’d told him she was having the yard sale today, she’d never mentioned her aunt’s last name or where the house was, so how had he known how to find her?Whenthey’d exchanged phone numbers a few weeks ago, she’d given him the one from herGoogleVoiceaccount, which forwarded calls and texts to her cell phone.Itwas another precaution she’d learned about while working for theDEA, and it often came in handy when she didn’t want to give someone her real number.
Weststopped in front of her, leaned down, and gave her a chaste kiss on the lips that promised something steamier when they were alone. “Didyou know there are at least fifteen yard sales inHoldentoday?Ifound that out because yours is the fifteenth oneI’vestopped at.Itried calling you earlier to see if you needed help, but it went to voicemail.”
Groaning, she smacked her forehead. “I’msorry.Iforgot to charge it last night and plugged it in earlier beforeIpulled everything out of the garage.It’sstill sitting on the kitchen counter.”
“Noworries.”Heheld up the bag. “Ifound you just in time for lunch if you’re hungry.Istopped at a deli and gotItalianheroes, soda, and chips.”
Herstomach picked that moment to growl. “Actually,I’mstarving.Thelast thingIate was some oatmeal around seven this morning.Whenyou pulled up,I’dbeen thinking about going inside to grab a couple of granola bars, but a hero sounds so much better.Thankyou.”
“Mypleasure.”
“Canyou watch my money till for a minute?”Shepointed at the old cigar box she was using.They’dfound it in her aunt’s bedroom filled with costume jewelry. “Ineed to use the bathroom.Ihave most of the cash on me, so there’s only about twenty dollars in change in there.”
“Sure.Ifanyone wants to buy something,I’lltell them to wait for you.”
Shewaved her hand. “Mostof the stuff has price tags, andI’vebeen letting people haggle.Iwant to get rid of as much of it as possible.Whateverthey offer that sounds reasonable, take it.I’llgrab some napkins, cups with ice, and my damn phone.Dowe need anything else?”
“Nope.Infact, we don’t need the napkins.Thereare some in the bag.”
“Great.I’llbe right back.”
Alliehurried inside, used the bathroom, then quickly double-checked the entire house to ensure no pictures of her and nothing with her real name on it was in view.Relievednothing would give away her secret, she hid a large portion of the cash in a kitchen cabinet, grabbed her phone from the counter, filled two red plastic cups with ice, and brought them back outside.
Westhad found another lawn chair and put it next to hers, then added an empty box between them as a makeshift dining table.Thesoda bottles and still-wrapped food were on top of it as he waited for her to return.Herstomach growled as if thrilled it would be getting something more substantial than granola.
Whileeating, they were interrupted several times by people wanting to buy something, and each timeAlliegot up from her chair,Westfollowed suit.Hehelped out when he could while swatting away the occasional bees and flies from their food until they could finish it.
Asthe afternoon progressed,Alliesold more than she’d expected to—close to eight hundred dollars’ worth of items.Westmade some sales while she’d been busy with other customers and had carried bulky or heavy things to a few people’s vehicles.Bythe time four-thirty rolled around,Alliehad very little left to put back into the garage.Mrs.MarcusandMrs.Kimhad done well, too, andWesthelped them return their remaining things to their homes.
Itwas a little after five when everything was cleaned up, andAllieinvitedWestinside. “There’snot much to eat here, andI’mtoo tired to go out, but we can order a pizza.Ihave a six-pack ofBudweiserand some wine in the fridge.”Athome, she wasn’t a big drinker but liked to have an occasional beer or a glass of chardonnay with her dinners.
“Soundsgood.”
“Ineed to shower first.”Aftereverything she'd done that day, she was sweaty, dusty, and dirty.
Westleered at her. “Thatsounds even better.Wantsome company?”
Insteadof giving him a verbal reply, she started stripping as she walked backward toward the bathroom with a come-hither stare.Westkicked off his sneakers and followed her, removing his own clothing as he stalked closer.Whenhe picked up his pace, she squealed and dashed down the hall with him hot on her heels.Sheonly got one foot on the bathroom tile before he caught her around the waist, spun her around, and pressed her against the counter, ravaging her mouth with his own.Asmuch as she wanted to wash away the day’s dirt and grime, she wantedWesteven more.
