Off Limits Neighbor

Looking around, memories flow over me, both good and bad. Some of my best days were spent here in the summer, playing ball on the asphalt and tag in the rain. Bad memories too, like the day my father walked away and decided that he wasn’t coming back.

This neighborhood is a minefield of bittersweet memories. I’ve honestly been avoiding it for a long time until I saw the car and decided to investigate. But now that I’m here…it’s not all bad. Maybe Klara being here is a sign that it’s an okay time to face some of the things that happened here and relive some of the best.

As I walk down the sidewalk, back toward my own neighborhood, I find myself hoping that Klara is going to spend a lot more time here after all.

3

Klara

Thankfully the bedrooms are in halfway decent shape and I brought my own sheets and comforter. The creaking of the house isn’t remotely comforting, especially with the wind coming in off the open plain of desert nearby.

This neighborhood is on the very edge of Affliction Creek, and because of that, it’s one of the first things that people pass on their way into the town. Especially if you’re coming from the bigger cities down south. I’m not exactly surprised that the town is eager to clean it up in order to make a good impression.

But Reynard’s words from yesterday echo in my mind.

They gave you an impossible task, and that’s really unfair to you.

Is it an impossible task? All the materials for the renovations are already purchased, and what little budget there is could be used for hiring workers to come and help me. But first I actually need to see the depth of the problem. In the morning, I’ll go through each house and make notes about what needs to be fixed and what I need to do in the interiors and exteriors.

It will take time, but one of the things I’ve learned in the years of building my design career is that taking the time to organize and plan ahead saves you much more time in the end.

I tossed and turned most of the night, unfamiliar sounds jerking me from sleep along with dreams of heat and lips that had me sweating. Every time I closed my eyes and tried to fade back into sleep, I told myself that the man in my dreams wasn’t Reynard. It was just a faceless, attractive man, and I’ve been in a dry spell for far too long.

But now in the light of day, I know better.

I’ve never been fully able to let go of the idea of Rey, and now that he’s crashed back into my life, I’m not able to ignore it. My body wants him. The way he stepped into my space and stared at me like I was the only thing in the world worth having was something that I’ve always wanted.

No wonder I’m having dreams of his lips on my skin, and his mouth settling between my legs.

Since I’m planning on being here for a while, I brought my vibrator with me. With those thoughts in my head, I settle and try to wring pleasure from my own body so I can focus on the task in front of me.

But no matter how hard I try, it seems just out of reach, and I’m left sweating and cranky and too turned on for my own good. Perfect. Just the way I want to start what is likely going to be a very frustrating day.

I don’t bother taking a shower. There’s going to be enough sweat today that it doesn’t matter whether I take one now. Instead, I dig in my bag for some cut-off leggings and a tank top. It’s summer in Texas, and it’s boiling hot already. At least it’s dry.

Then I grab my clipboard and my pen. This, at least, is familiar. In the five years I’ve been gone from Affliction Creek, I’ve followed the one dream I really had, and that was to be an interior designer. Now I’ve got a job at one of the best firms in Austin, and I’m just starting to get my own contracts. Which is why I’m hoping this project won’t take too long. I’m eager to get back to my work and the life that I’ve carved out for myself. Even if the city life is a little lonelier than I’d like.

I’ll start where it’s easiest, I guess. This house. I walk from room to room and do an inspection, making a note of any structural things that need to be fixed, utilities, and my own notes for decor once these are finished. It’s not the most exciting prospect, designing homes that will be rented to vacationers, but it’s simple. You have to keep a sense of universality. A style that almost anyone will find comfortable and homey.