Welcome to #WednesdayWords where I share a snippet of a story using yesterday's word from the New York game, WORDLE. Yesterday's WORDLE was YOUNG.
Watching Jamie peel off his shirt sent me into an emotional tailspin. Harrison mimicked Jamie and the two of them turned when they heard our approach, and watched us with their legs shoulder-width apart and their hands on their hips. Bear stood like a soggy sentinel between them.
They looked so much like a matched set, Daphne laughed. “That’s something that might want to make you reconsider moving back to L.A.”
She had so much love and affection written across her face, I felt like I was eavesdropping on an intimate conversation just looking at her. She pulled up beside Jamie’s truck and jumped out.
I had to school my emotions before following her because what was written across my face might not be appropriate for YOUNG children.
Jamie grabbed a towel off the porch and wiped his hair with it. “Where you two been?”
Daphne breezed past him, scooped up Harrison, and climbed the porch steps. “Wouldn’t you like to know.” Her tone was teasing, but I saw a flicker of annoyance in Jamie’s eyes.
He flashed me a quick glance. “It’s rude to speak English around Mabel.”
“Then why are you?” Daphne quipped back without glancing at him.
“Shouldn’t you be lying down and healing?” Jamie asked in Spanish.
“If you must know, I’ve never felt better.” Daphne collapsed onto the porch swing as if exhausted, but her eyes sparkled, and she had that look of someone who had been on an adventure.
Harrison snuggled against her, soaking her shirt. "Mommy! We gave Bear a bath, and Uncle Jamie got all wet and muddy."
“So did you,” Jamie muttered.
Daphne ruffled her son's hair. "I bet you were a big help."
“He couldn’t have done it without me,” Harrison announced.
“Hey, hairball.” Jamie tossed his towel at Harrison’s head and it smacked Daphne in the face.
She flinched, but her grin didn’t fade.
Jamie dropped onto the rocking chair across from Daphne and Harrison. “I’ll have you know, I’ve been washing dogs since before you were born.”
I stood on the edge of the porch, feeling like an interloper.
Harmon leaned against the porch railing. “How you feeling, Daffy?” His voice carried concern. “Should I heat up some of that chili your mom brought by?”
Harrison perked up. “With cornbread muffins?”
“Those are all gone, sport,” Harmon said.
Daphne shifted Jamie’s towel off her face. “Can we go into town?”
Harmon’s forehead wrinkled with worry. “Babe,” he said slowly.
“Don’t call me that.” Daphne sat up and threw the towel at her husband.
He easily caught it and twisted it in his hands.
“I’m tired of being babied.” Daphne planted her feet on the floor. “I want to go to the Close Encounters.”
Jamie and Harmon exchanged glances.
“But we already ate,” I said.
Jamie slid me a glance. “We can always share a dessert.”
Daphne gently set Harrison on his feet and eased off the swing. “I’m going to change. You got me all wet. I can’t get the Out of This World Special if my shirt is wet and clingy.”
Harrison giggled and darted inside. “I’m going to change, too.” He came to an abrupt halt and whirled around as if noticing Jamie for the first time. “But what about Uncle Jamie? He needs some dry clothes, too.”
Harmon pulled away from the wall. “I’ll lend you a shirt.”
The Hernandez family trooped to their respective bedrooms, leaving Jamie and me looking at each other. I tried not to stare at his impressive chest. Silence fell.
Jamie broke the moment by shrugging and following the family inside.
I trailed after him and glanced around the living room, my gaze landing on the slightly damp carpet. "It looks like you guys had a water fight in here."
"Well, you know how these things go with a four-year-old and a big dog." Jamie studied me. "So, where were you two?”
I hesitated for a moment and tried to feign excitement for my news. "I got a job as a housekeeper for Mrs. Taggart. Can you believe it? I’m going to be working in that Victorian mansion up the road."
Jamie raised an eyebrow. "Mrs. Taggart's place? That's quite the gig."
Harrison, halfway into his shirt, came trotting back into the room. "Who's Mrs. Taggart?"
Daphne, now clothed in a Foo Fighters T-shirt, explained, "Mrs. Taggart is an elderly lady who lives not far from here."
Harmon tossed a T-shirt at Jamie. "It's like a living museum. And according to the rumors, she’s a wild hare."
Jamie caught the T-shirt with one hand before slipping it on.
It hugged him in all the right places, showing off his broad chest and strong biceps. It barely covered his torso and didn’t quite reach his jeans’ waistband. He tugged on it, but wasn’t able to cover his exposed strip of skin.
Daphne turned to her husband. “Do you have any idea where Faith is?”
“Haven’t seen her in years,” Harmon said. “Why?”
“I just feel badly for her grandmother. She worships her. I’m sure she misses her.”
“Faith has always been gonzo.” Harmon collected his keys from a rack near the door and flipped them in his hand.
“What’s a gonzo?” Harrison followed his dad. “Is that like a Gumby? My friend Carter brought a Gumby doll to school.”
Daphne rested her hand on the top of Harrison’s head. “Gonzo means crazy. Gumbys are stretchy–not necessarily crazy.”
“Too bad,” Harrison said. “I would have liked to see a Gumby person.”
“Me,too,” Jamie said.
“Me, three,” Daphne answered.
“You guys up for a dessert?” Harmon asked as if Jamie and I had come together and would naturally leave together.
Jamie sent me a silent invitation.
I shrugged. “Sure, why not?”
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