Clean Start

by S. M. Shade

  Laughing, she steps back. “You want me to tell Bailey about sex? I hate to break it to you, buddy, but she probably already knows. By her age, her friends have spread the word.”

  Groaning, I sit back down. “Maybe, but she needs to know everything. I’m sure she has questions. I was hoping my sister would step in, but Bailey doesn’t trust her the way she does you.”

  “Of course I’ll talk to her. So, should I start with blow jobs or lube or—”

  “Stop!” I cover my ears and put my head down. Her laughter makes me smile, and when I look up again, Bailey is walking toward us.

  “Why were you covering your ears?”

  “Because he’s a big baby who can’t stand hearing about woman things like epithelial linings,” Veronica says, and they both break into laughter.

  “Very funny. Is Aiden finished eating?” Definitely time to change the subject.

  “Yeah, but he’s falling asleep. I thought you might not want him to.”

  Veronica is on her feet. “Oh hell no. If he takes a nap this late, he’ll never sleep tonight.”

  Bailey grins at me. “Can I go outside and ride my bike in the parking lot? I’m bored.”

  “Sure, no need to get salty, brah, I’ll sit out with you.” I get the usual eye roll from Bailey, but I hear Veronica giggle from the next room.

  By the time Veronica has dragged a whiny Aiden outside, I’ve pulled the kids bikes off the rear rack of my car and Bailey is happily circling the lot. Aiden perks up when he sees his, and Veronica barely has time to strap the helmet on his head before he’s off, following Bailey.

  Veronica grabs two folding chairs from her trunk and we sit down under the tree to watch them. “He’s ready for the training wheels to come off,” I observe, watching the way he controls the bike.

  “Yeah, I just haven’t made the time to teach him yet.”

  “I can show him this week.”

  Veronica smiles, watching the kids play. “That’d be great. He won’t whine as much when he gets hurt if you teach him. He has to keep up the tough guy act, you know.”

  “It’s not an act. Males are tougher. It’s just a fact,” I tease.

  “Says the man who was going to take his daughter to the emergency room for a period.”

  Grinning at her, I shake my head. “Touche.”

  “We should take a cooler with some drinks and sandwiches with us tomorrow. We need to keep the kids out of her house. I have a bag cooler that will work.”

  “Does she have running water? A working bathroom?”

  “Yeah, but they’d be better off pissing in the woods.”

  Christ. “That bad, huh?”

  “You’ll see,” she sighs.

  It’s not that I don’t believe her, but everyone is a bit embarrassed of their parents and where they come from. It’s probably not as bad as she makes it sound.

  # # #

  It’s worse.

  Oh god, so much worse.

  As soon as we pull into the driveway of Veronica’s mother’s house, I know this isn’t going to be any quick job. It’s a good thing George loaned me his mower because no normal riding mower would have made it through this.

  Not to mention, I’d have to keep getting off to move stuff, like the two toilets sitting in the field, surrounded by rotting wooden pallets.

  “Listen, guys,” Veronica says to the kids, before they can climb out of the back seat. “I know I already explained once, but I want to make sure you remember. If she asks if you’d like something to drink or eat, the answer is no. I have food in the cooler. I don’t care what it is, it could make you sick. She never checks expiration dates. We’re just going to say hi, and let Neal get started, then I’ll take you into the woods to play in the creek.”

  “I want to try to build a dam,” Bailey says, helping Aiden out of the car.

  “You can’t say that!” His mouth drops open. “Neal! She’s cursing!”

  “Ade, don’t be a tattletale. And she’s talking about a big wall that holds back water. That kind of dam isn’t cursing,” Veronica admonishes.

  Aiden stops in his tracks. “So, I can say it?” A grin spreads across his face and he whispers. “Dam.”

  Bailey giggles as he continues.

  “We can build a dam. Dam dam, we’ll build a dam dam.” He dances around, singing his dam song, and Veronica turns away to hide a grin.

  “I think that’s enough,” she says, as a woman opens the front door of the house and steps onto the porch. Well, she walks through the narrow path carved out between piles of junk and down the steps. Veronica must take after her absent father, because there’s not much resemblance, other than the red hair.

  “I didn’t know you were bringing company,” she says, watching us like we might make off with some of the crap piled around us. Are those toasters? Who needs four toasters and why are they on the edge of the porch in a rusting heap?

  “Mom, this is my friend, Neal, and his daughter, Bailey. Neal is going to cut the grass while I take the kids back to play in the creek.” She turns to us. “This is my mother, Patty.”

  “It’s nice to meet you, Patty,” Neal says.

  “I’m going to build a dam!” Aiden announces. “It’ll be the best damn dam that ever…dammed!”

  “Aiden!” Veronica snaps. “Enough!”

  “Well, come on in and cool down before you get started. It’s hot out here.”

  “Thanks, but Neal needs to get started. We have some other stuff to do this evening,” she lies. “I have a picnic lunch packed if you’d like to join us at the creek.”

  “In this heat? You must be soft headed. You guys go on and do your thing. I’m going to check on Marvin. Let him know what’s going on.”

  With that said, she hurries down the steps and across the drive toward the dilapidated trailer on the far side of the driveway. She must go back and forth a lot, because there’s a path between them.

  “Nice seeing you,” Veronica mumbles. She forces a smile and turns to the kids. “Okay, let me show Neal where the shed is, and we’ll go play. Stay on the path. With the grass this high, there could be a snake and you don’t want to step on it.”

  As we make our way behind the house to a surprisingly new and shiny shed, Bailey starts teaching Aiden about snakes. “There are a lot of species who live in our area and most are harmless, but we do have copperheads and if we’re close to water, probably cottonmouths.”

  “They have cotton in their mouths?” I look behind us to see he’s taken her hand.

  “No, they’re called that because the inside of their mouths are white, like cotton.”

  “Oh.” It’s cute and funny the way he responds to her. Anything out of Bailey’s mouth is gospel.

  Veronica pulls open the shed to reveal a riding mower, weed eater, and an assortment of tools and trimmers. “Whatever you need, I’m sure they have five of them,” she says. “And there’s gasoline in those cans.” She points to a few gas cans in the corner.

  The air in the shed is too hot to breathe for more than a minute or two. This is crazy. “You can’t store gas like that! It could explode and set the whole place on fire.”

  She lets out a humorless laugh. “They have set the woods on fire twice…in the last year. This is a compromise because the last time I visited, there were gas and kerosene cans in the house. Better to blow up the shed.”

  That is insane.

  She turns to me. “It’s not too late to change your mind. I told you it’d be terrible.”

  And let her do it? Yeah, that’ll happen. “No way. I’ve got this.”

  “Okay, well, only do the front yard and along the edge of the road. That’s what the county is complaining about. The fields are so full of trash you’d tear up any mower you tried to use anyway.”

  “How much land do they have?”

  Veronica gestures to the tree line. “Almost two hundred acres. This place was a working farm back in it’s day, and the back field was an apple orchard. The trees st
ill bear occasionally, but it’s so trashed and overgrown, they just fall and rot with the other garbage.” She points to a narrow path in the woods. “That path leads down to the creek. It’s only about a quarter of a mile. If you come looking for us.”

  The kids start down the path, and Bailey stops by a tree where we can still see them.

  Veronica hesitates and shifts the backpack cooler she’s wearing. “I hate this. This isn’t your job. I should at least be helping.”

  “Psh. This is one of those manly jobs. You need my masculine muscles and strength. Now, you go make sure the kids don’t drown, and I’ll get all nice and sweaty for you.”

  “Yeah, man stink really turns me on. You know me so well.”

  “It’s a gift.”

  “Uh-huh.” She smiles up at me. “Trust me, swamp ass will not make up for your stellar pelvic acumen.”

  “Come on, Mom!” Aiden yells. “Dam!”

  We both break into laughter, and she shakes her head. “Okay, call me when you’re done or come find us.”

  What the hell have I gotten myself into? I intended to cut the yard and at least the front field, but a quick walk through it shows me Veronica was right. I can’t go five steps without running into a hunk of rusted metal, or an old garden hose, or…is that a vehicle transmission? It’s like the saying, everything but the kitchen sink. No, there’s a sink, lying on its side, full of stagnant water, a cloud of bugs swarming above it. I’m glad we thought to spray ourselves down with bug repellent before we came.

  I settle for running the massive field and brush mower through the front yard, along the edges of the road, and making a clear path to the mailbox, shed, and driveway. Even with the super powered mower, it takes me nearly three hours. My sweat slickened skin is covered with bits of cut grass, pollen, and god knows what else.

  By the time I’m finished, that creek sounds pretty good.

  The hike is easy, and I can hear the kids before I see them. As I step through the trees, Veronica comes into view. She’s reclining on a large boulder at the edge of the creek, leaning back on her hands, her feet dangling in the fast running water. The sun slants through the trees, turning her hair to fire and making her pale skin glisten.

  “Hey!” she calls, finally noticing that I’m staring at her like a lovestruck idiot. “Are you done?”

  “Yeah, it’s the best I can do under the circumstances.” I think we need to get out here and try to clean some of this up for her mother. She obviously isn’t able and a few weekends with the right equipment, and a couple of dumpsters would make a world of difference.

  I wade into the creek, find a spot deep enough to submerge myself completely, and wash off the sweat and grit. Her gaze is locked on me when I look up and the hungry look in her eyes makes me want to strip her right here.

  Damn kids.

  “Hungry?” she asks, offering me a sandwich from the cooler bag.

  “Starving.” She scoots over a bit, and as I sit beside her, taking the sandwich. “How long has the property been like this?”

  “As long as I can remember. It gets steadily worse as they buy more and more crap just to eventually add it to the pile.”

  “We should help. I could get a couple of guys out here, and it wouldn’t take too long.”

  Sighing, she shakes her head, kicking her feet in the cool water. “She’d never let you. She’s a hoarder. You haven’t seen the worst of it.”

  “If we just removed the trash in the yard and fields, they could be cut—”

  She puts a hand on my arm. “You don’t understand. To her and Marvin, none of it is trash. Nothing is trash. If you brought a dumpster out here, she’d call the police and have you removed.”

  She can’t be serious.

  “Even the toilets? The pile of rotting pallets? There’s an old vacuum cleaner lying in the field.”

  “Believe me, Neal, I’ve tried. About five years ago, she spent a few days visiting relatives, and I took the opportunity to try to clean up. When she got home, she lost her shit, screaming and cursing, because I threw away her ‘stuff’. Trash service wasn’t scheduled to pick up until the next day so she spent the night digging through the cans, returning everything to where it was. And adding to her collections.”

  Aiden screeches, and Bailey giggles as they try to catch a frog, and we get hit with a mist of water from their splashing around.

  “Collections?”

  “Her house and every outbuilding on this property are stuffed full. Of trash. She has one whole building full of empty potato chip cans and tissue boxes. And trust me, if the place was on fire, she’d save those before any of us. I appreciate that you want to help, but you’ve done what you can do.”

  Her voice is getting tense, and I get it. I’d be embarrassed too, if this is how I grew up. “Okay, then.” I polish off the sandwich. “Ready to go?”

  The kids complain about leaving, but it’s clear on the hike back that they’re getting tired. Veronica’s mother sticks her head out the door and shouts a thank you as we get ready to leave, then retreats back inside.

  My heart goes out to Veronica and Aiden. Anytime I visit my parents, they can’t get enough of Bailey, and I feel bad that they don’t see her enough. Yet, here is one of Aiden’s grandparents who lives so close and has no interest. Doesn’t even come out to give him a hug or anything. It pisses me off.

  Considering Aiden’s father has nothing to do with him, Veronica and Aiden only have each other.

  After we get back to the hotel, the kids get cleaned up and rest for a bit in their room. Veronica comes up behind me and snakes her arms around my waist. “Mike keeps a grill out back. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind if we used it.”

  “Sounds good to me.”

  “I’ll run over to the grocery store while you fire it up.” She steps back and turns to call for Aiden, but I plant a quick kiss on her lips. “Leave him here. He’s fine.”

  “Okay.”

  The grill is in pretty good shape, and there’s charcoal handy as well, so I drag the setup around to the front and light the coals. While it burns down, I take a seat in one of the two chairs under the tree and Aiden wanders over to join me.

  “Hey, buddy. Where is Bailey?”

  “Watching some stupid girly cartoon with ponies.” He plops down in the dirt and starts digging around with a stick. “Why is the dirt in little piles?”

  “Because groundhogs have been here. They build tunnels underground.”

  “Oh, cool.” He’s quiet for a moment before asking the last question I expected and one I’m not equipped to deal with. “Neal? Where do women get babies from? Bailey won’t tell me. She said to ask you.”

  Thank you, Bailey. I just asked Veronica to have this talk with her, and there’s no way I’m explaining this to a five year old. I don’t know what to tell a kid this age. The stork? Birds and bees? Panicking, I blurt. “From underground.”

  He looks up at me, his eyes wide and his nose crinkled up. “Underground? Like the groundhogs?”

  Sure. Why not. Sounds as plausible as a stork. “Yeah, you have to catch a baby groundhog, bring it inside to live with you, and feed it people food.”

  “And it turns into a baby,” he says, nodding with a grin.

  Something tells me I’m going to be in trouble for this one. “A, do you want to learn to ride your bike without the training wheels?” I ask.

  The distraction works, and he jumps to his feet. “Yes! Mom won’t let me take them off.”

  “She won’t mind. Bring your bike over here.”

  When Veronica returns, she and Bailey sit under the tree, watching as Aiden tries, falls, and gets back on, so determined. Finally, he makes it a few wobbly yards before crashing into the grassy embankment. “I did it!” he cries, running to me. I grab him and swing him up into a hug. “Yes, you did!” He peeks over my shoulder. “Mom! Did you see?”

  Veronica beams at him, but I swear she looks like she could cry. “I saw. You did awesome!” He rushes over
to get a high five from Bailey.

  I return to the grill that’s now ready to use and get dinner started. Veronica sits under the tree, watching the kids run and play.

  I save this moment, like a snapshot in time, because for some reason, it feels so right. I realize what I’m feeling isn’t just happiness, but contentment. I’m right where I want to be with the people I want to be with.

  It doesn’t get better than this.

  My thoughts are interrupted when Veronica walks up, a smirk on her face. “Neal, why is my kid trying to find a baby groundhog to feed?”

  Shrugging, I hand her the plate of chicken. “He wants a brother.”

  Chapter Eleven

  Neal

  It’s Veronica’s last night at the hotel. Though I went back to work a few days ago, I’ve still been staying with her at night. Bailey was happy to stay at the hotel instead of being dragged to the car wash with me. Once we live right across the street, she’ll be able to stay home alone while I work, and I know she’s looking forward to that.

  The last two weeks have flown by. We’ve spent a lot of time with the kids, playing, swimming, and enjoying the summer weather. Since it’s our last night, we’ve done our best to exhaust the kids today in hopes they won’t interrupt us tonight. It seems to have worked because they’re both sound asleep early, and I quietly latch the lock on the door between our rooms. We always unlock it after, before heading to separate beds so they don’t see us together in the morning.

  I’ve been working Veronica up all day by saying dirty things to her whenever I had the chance. I can’t help myself. I love how turned on she gets from it. I’ve also been teasing her about talking dirty to me. It’s not really that I’m all that into it, but I want her to relax and not be embarrassed to talk to me that way.

  She comes out of the bathroom wearing only panties and a camisole, and my body instantly responds. “What?” she says, grabbing a brush and running it through her hair. She’s so innocent in some ways. Any other woman, I’d think they were playing coy, but she really has no idea how beautiful she is or what the sight of her does to me.