Spring was beginning to heat into summer now as the weeks went by. The grass and leaves were deepening into richer greens, the blooming flowers were hosting butterflies and honeybees, and the air was light and lazy.
Leah was adjusting to her new Texas life better than she thought she would. She was growing very fond of all of her neighbors. She would often have coffee or brunch with Peggy, Nancy, and Minh, and occasionally Luanne if her schedule as a hair stylist and mother of a toddler allowed it. Sometimes Leah would stop by and chat with the guys in the alley while they drank their beer. Boomhauer would even talk to her a little more now, though it was usually only a word or two.
She missed her family dearly, and tried to catch up with them often via phone call or text. Her father seemed to be doing about the same as he always was anymore, which could be worse, but used to be so much better.
One early evening, after dinnertime, the Hills had invited the neighbors over to hang out with drinks in the backyard. They had a lovely patio furniture set, which sat under an awning that Peggy had hung string lights underneath.
When Boomhauer passed the fence and into Hank's backyard, he wasn't sure why he was surprised to see Leah sitting there on the outdoor loveseat; he knew she had been invited, and she always came around to these neighborly things. Maybe he was still awed by how beautiful she was...
She was wearing a pale yellow sundress, the sunny, bright color of which brought out the healthy glow of her suntanned skin. Her golden blonde hair was braided to the side again, and she was smiling her usual dazzling smile. Of course, she was smiling down at Ladybird, Hank's bloodhound, who had rested her muzzle on Leah's knees.
Hank and Peggy were sitting on the outdoor couch adjacent to her, leaving only one space left to sit.
"Hi," Leah said brightly as Boomhauer sat beside her.
He nodded hello to her, and to Hank and Peggy.
"Glad you could make it, Boomhauer," Peggy said, "The others should be here any minute now."
Hank stretched back and rested his arm along the back of the couch. "I just love this time of year. What's better than sitting outside on a couch on a warm summer evening?"
"And with our neighbors, of course," Peggy added. "Did you have nice neighbors like this in Oklahoma, Leah?"
"My neighbors were nice, but it wasn't really a street where everyone got together often like here."
Hank nodded as if he had suspected as much. "Arlen sure is special like that."
Nancy and Dale emerged through the space in the fence, and Peggy hopped up to greet them.
"I'll be right back. No, Leah, don't get up. Ladybird looks so relaxed there."
"Let me grab some beers," Hank decided, "Do you want one, Leah?"
"No, thank you. I think I'll wait for the wine Nancy brought."
Hank got up and left to open the beer-packed fridge in his garage.
Leah and Boomhauer now sat alone. Boomhauer didn't know what to say, wondering if he should say anything at all.
"Ladybird is so sweet," Leah soothed, stroking the dog's head.
"Yep."
"Do you like dogs?"
"Sure."
The silence that followed, save for the laughter of Dale and Nancy out in the yard, made Boomhauer realize he should probably put in more of an effort with her.
"Do you?" he asked.
No shit, he chided himself.
"Oh, yes. Growing up, we always had dogs. My parents liked spaniels."
"Hmm."
It was difficult not to notice how delicately things hung off of her, like the braid swept over her shoulder, or the soft fabric of her dress laying across her legs, or the thin gold chain dangling around her ankle.
He broke from his thoughts when Hank returned with his beer.
"So, what do you do?" she asked him, after Hank turned away to give Dale his beer.
"Huh?"
She smiled at him. "I don't know much about you other than you used to be an electrician…and that you like dogs."
"I, uh-"
"Leah, hi!"
Bill dropped down on the couch with a wild look in his eye. Boomhauer knew Bill was probably irritated to see him sitting beside Leah.
"Hi, Bill," Leah said cheerfully.
Hank sat on the other end of the couch, leaving a large space in between himself and Bill.
Dale pranced to where they all were sitting, and squeezed himself unceremoniously beside Boomhauer, which bumped him closer against Leah. The sudden disruption disturbed Ladybird, who grunted and slowly trotted off to lay in the grass.
"What are you doing?" Boomhauer growled, annoyed. Dale made a big show of squirming around to get comfortable.
"I prefer the loveseat. Nice and cozy."
Bill looked irritated as he saw Boomhauer was pressed against Leah, their legs touching. Leah looked amused, repressing a shy smile. Boomhauer remained impassive and stony-faced like always.
"Leah, you can sit over here by me, so you can have more room," Bill said hopefully.
"It's okay, I'm going to go visit with Peggy and Nancy, anyway."
She said goodbye to them and stood up, brushing against Boomhauer's arm, and swept away to the yard where Peggy and Nancy stood talking together.
Boomhauer's right side suddenly felt cold and empty after her sudden departure.
"Dale, you ruin everything," grumbled Bill.
"What? What did I do?"
"You scared her off."
"She could have moved to sit next to you. She just didn't want to."
"I guess she didn't want to sit next to Boomhauer, either, then." He gave Boomhauer a smug look. Boomhauer ignored it.
Hank sighed. "Dale, you knew what you were doing. Why can't you just leave things be?"
Dale chuckled and drank his beer. Then he smacked his lips and said, "You know you love me."
Boomhauer could feel a smoldering where Leah was pressed against his leg, and where she brushed against his arm. He also felt an emptiness, both where she had been sitting beside him and in his chest. He should have said something more to her. He should have answered her better, should have asked her things…
Now that the mornings were becoming much warmer, Leah had taken to practicing Tai Chi and yoga outside, surrounded by her flowering garden and beside the rippling pool water.
Every Saturday morning, Peggy, Nancy, and Minh would join Leah in her backyard where she would guide them through one of her sessions.
One such morning in early summer, they had all completed their final stretches after a very relaxing and spiritually cleansing yoga workout.
"I always feel like a million bucks after this," Nancy sighed serenely, rolling up her yoga mat.
"It always clears my mind," agreed Peggy, "I am so much more productive on Saturdays now."
Minh nodded. "You must feel like this all the time, huh? Because you meditate all the time?" she asked Leah.
"I wouldn't say I feel like this all the time, but the discipline helps to keep me grounded when I need it."
They all chatted happily and relaxed as they gathered their things, and floated out in a group to the alley. Leah went with them, as they had all planned on having brunch together at Nancy's.
Out in the alley, as usual, stood Hank, Dale, Bill, and Boomhauer, drinking beer before it was even lunchtime. Kahn had joined them today as well, something he only did occasionally.
"I love Saturdays," Dale stated airily as the women approached.
"Why's that, Shug?" Nancy asked.
Dale wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her against him. "Because I get to see you in that tight Spandex," he purred. Nancy giggled.
"I concur," Kahn grinned as he looked Minh up and down.
Peggy stood patiently in front of Hank, waiting for his response. He cleared his throat nervously and shuffled his feet while trying not to look at her.
Peggy crossed her arms, waiting for it.
Hank sighed.
"You uh, you look nice in your outfit, Peggy," he blushed.
"Thank you, Hank." She drew up proudly and smiled with satisfaction.
Leah waited at the fringes of the group while the wives flirted with their husbands. Bill watched her surreptitiously, trying to look casual, but when he saw her glance at Boomhauer out of the corner of her eye, he spoke up.
"You look nice too, Leah."
"Oh...thank you." She gave a modest smile.
"Okay, mimosa time!" Minh declared, clasping her hands together with a clap.
The women left for Nancy's house, anticipating their drinks and the vegan coffee cake Nancy had baked.
"I can't believe you still haven't landed that," Kahn tisked in disbelief as he looked behind Leah.
"Boomhauer prefers her as strictly a neighbor and nothing more," Hank asserted, in a tone that sounded like he was reminding Boomhauer of that. Hank must have noticed him checking Leah out as she was leaving. He was getting sloppy...
Khan began, "Those hippie chicks know all that Kama Sutra stuff. Maybe you might want to rethink-"
"No, Bill likes Leah," Hank said firmly.
"And you haven't asked her out yet?" Kahn asked Bill incredulously, "She's been here for months now!"
"I did, a while ago. She wasn't looking for a relationship then. But maybe enough time has passed and I can try again."
Kahn burst out a laugh. "Good luck, fat redneck."
Bill sneered but ignored him, and sipped his beer.
Boomhauer thought about the point Kahn had made. She had been here for months now…
In the grand scheme of things, that wasn't a big amount of time. But for him it was a long time to keep a single, attractive woman at a distance. And the more he was around her, getting to know her, watching the way she smiled and how her eyes would brighten when she was amused… He was beginning to think of her as more than a mere conquest.
And he didn't want that.
…
Right?
Leah, Nancy, Peggy, and Minh sat in Nancy's sunny kitchen at the table, each with a slice of vegan coffee cake and a glass of orange juice mixed with champagne.
"This tradition of ours...mmm!" Peggy said as she finished another bite of cake.
"All that yoga makes all this alcohol and dessert okay," Minh reasoned.
"This coffee cake is wonderful, Nancy," Leah complimented, "Thank you for going out of your way to make it special for me."
"Oh, it was nothing, Shug. I had all of the ingredients in the pantry already."
Minh took another pleasing bite. "So, Leah," she pointed her fork towards Leah, smiling suggestively, "Have you met any cute guys around here yet?"
Peggy and Nancy awaited her answer with interest and rapt attention.
At the words "cute guy," Leah's mind immediately flashed an image of somebody tall and lean, with angular cheekbones, a strong jawline, and eyes that were calming, yet mysterious.
"Not yet."
"What about Bill?" asked Peggy.
Minh scoffed. "Uh… what about him?"
"Well, he's… nice. And loyal. And friendly."
"So is a dog."
Peggy ignored her. "What do you think of him, Leah?"
She agreed Bill was nice and friendly. He did seem like a decent person. But, as bad as she felt for thinking it, he wasn't her type.
How could she say that nicely?
"He is nice. But um…"
"It's alright, Shug," Nancy assured her with a pat on the wrist.
Peggy sighed. "I figured as much. But it would be nice for him to finally meet a nice girl."
Nancy's eyes suddenly widened as an idea dawned on her.
"I have the perfect guy for you," she gasped in excitement at Leah, "John Redcorn!"
"What?"
"Really?"
Peggy and Minh looked at her in shock for suggesting whoever this guy was.
Nancy nodded fervently. "Think about it. He's into meditation and all that spiritual business. And he's hot, obviously. He takes good care of himself like she does."
Peggy blinked in bemusement.
"But isn't John Redcorn, uh… yours?"
Nancy waved it away.
"Not anymore. Dale is the only one for me now. Besides, I'd rather see him get with someone I know is a nice fit for him."
Minh had been scrutinizing Leah since Nancy made her suggestion, and began to nod. "You know, I agree with you. I think they would look good together." She quickly gave Nancy a sheepish look, "But not as good as you looked with him, though."
Nancy squealed in excitement. "Great! I'll call him right now!" She pulled out her cellphone and made to dial.
"Wait!" Leah held out her hand to stop Nancy. "I don't want to date anybody. Not for a while, at least."
"Come on… Pretty young thing like you, single in a new city? You're at the peak of your life!"
Leah shrugged indifferently. "I'm really not interested in seeing anybody right now."
"Oh, please," Minh shook her head, not buying it. "You can't tell me you're not interested in at least seeing that tight body of Boomhauer's."
Leah was afraid her hesitation might give her away, so she said quickly, "Doesn't he have a girlfriend?"
The other three burst out laughing. Leah sat in bewilderment, wondering if she just asked something stupid.
"He's not really the 'girlfriend' type," Peggy explained, noticing the confusion on Leah's face. "He's more of a…"
"He takes free samples without buying any product," Minh said simply.
"So he sleeps around?"
Peggy tried thinking of a better term for it, but resigned with a shrug. "Basically, yes. Although I have to say, I've noticed lately he hasn't had as many women around like he used to."
"Maybe he's finally getting tired of it," Nancy wondered.
"No way." Minh shook her head. "He's a tom cat."
Nancy must have agreed. "You should get right on that." She nudged Leah playfully on the arm.
Leah chuckled it off. "I don't know if I'd want to just be a friend-with-benefits to somebody..."
"Nothing wrong with having a friend." Nancy smiled slyly behind her mimosa glass.
In the past, Leah had had a few casual hookups here and there. She also had had her share of serious relationships. Everything had their pros and cons. Flings were fun and exciting, long term relationships had stability.
But after being with Dan for over two years, she wasn't sure what she wanted anymore.
It had been easy for her to write off men entirely, but she knew that wasn't fair or reasonable. She knew there were men out there who wouldn't try to control her, or cut her off from her friends and family, or grip her arm down to the bone when she tried to walk away…
"Are you okay, Leah?"
Peggy looked concerned at Leah's spacey expression. Leah shook her head to snap back into the present.
"Sorry, I guess I just zoned out."
"Thinking about Boomhauer?" Nancy smirked.
"No-"
"Shug, you don't have to hide it from us. You blushed when we mentioned him."
Leah could feel herself blushing now that Nancy pointed it out. "I don't know anything about him."
"What do you need to know? He's hot, isn't he?"
Yes.
Nancy continued on. "And when you get bored with him, I can set you up with John Redcorn."
"Sure, Nancy, but I think I'm a ways off from getting involved with anybody."
Nancy shrugged. "If you say so."
Thankfully the subject changed and Leah was no longer feeling on the spot. They finished the rest of their brunch and made plans for another yoga-and-mimosa session for next Saturday.
Nancy stayed home to finish up housework, and Leah left for home with Peggy and Minh.
The guys were all still in the alley to the surprise of no one. As the three women approached them, Minh nudged Leah and harshly whispered, "There's your man!"
Leah wondered if Minh had had one mimosa too many.
She also wondered if Boomhauer had heard; it wasn't exactly subtle.
They joined the lineup, with Peggy standing beside Hank and Minh next to Kahn. Leah hovered near Boomhauer, as he was at the end of the group and nearest to her house. She didn't want to stand too close to him, though, in case Minh or Peggy got some crazy idea.
"Today was a lot of fun," Leah said brightly to Minh and Peggy, "But now I'm going to head home for a while."
"Nonsense, stay and hang out for a few minutes!" Peggy implored.
Minh patted Kahn's cheek. "We know how much you boys like it when we girls crash your alley party," she teased.
"We were just discussing whether we would rather fight one horse-sized duck, or one hundred duck-sized horses," Dale told them. He turned to Leah, giving her a look behind his sunglasses. "I suppose it's not the most vegan of questions."
Leah rolled her eyes. "I can answer a hypothetical."
"I say the horse-sized duck," explained Kahn, "I could just jump on it's back and strangle it from behind."
"It's neck would be as thick as a tree trunk," Dale dismissed.
"I could dig into the pressure points."
"But with the duck-sized horses, you could just punt them all like little footballs."
"Think of all those tiny hooves stomping at you, though..."
Everyone had broken into their own argument or counter argument. Boomhauer and Leah were the only ones staying quiet, preferring to watch the others debate. At some point they caught each other's eye, shared an amused smile, and quickly looked away.
Dale asked loudly over everyone else's conversations, "What about you, Boomhauer?"
"I wouldn't want to fight any animal," he shrugged.
Dale scoffed. "Oh, please. You're just trying to sound good to Leah."
Boomhauer nonchalantly sipped his beer.
"He already sounds good to Leah," Minh giggled.
Leah's eyes widened in alarm at her, but quickly pulled her expression back to something more neutral.
Peggy chimed in quickly in an attempt to smooth it over. "Yes, yes… Boomhauer is a hit with the ladies." She waved it off flippantly.
Minh slyly pointd out, "So is John Redcorn."
"What about John Redcorn?" asked Dale.
Minh giggled again. "Leah might be getting a migraine sometime soon."
All heads jerked to Leah, their faces in shock, except for Peggy, who was seething at Minh, and Dale, who looked blissfully unaware of anybody's reactions around him.
"Minh, what are you talking about?" Leah puzzled, nervously looking at the stunned expressions.
"John Redcorn treats people for migraines," Dale explained, "He healed my Nancy very well."
Leah felt the sudden stiffness in the air, and saw the awkward shuffling.
Peggy spoke in a level tone. "Minh's just joking, Leah. She thinks she's being funny."
"Migraines are no joke," Dale said seriously. "Nancy had them regularly for fourteen years."
Leah still had no idea what was going on.
"I'm sorry, Leah," apologized Minh, "I just wanted to see these boys thrown off a little."
"So it isn't true, then?" Bill asked desperately.
Firmly, Peggy answered, "No, it's not."
Dale lit a cigarette and put it to his mouth. "But if you were to get a migraine, Nancy can certainly vouch for John Redcorn's healing powers."
Dale puffed on his cigarette obliviously.
"Well," Leah said slowly, "I think I'm going to go home now."
"Let me walk you," Peggy insisted.
Leah said goodbye to the alley as Peggy joined beside her. Once they had gotten to Leah's back door, Peggy decided it was safe enough to talk.
"I'm sorry about Minh. She wasn't trying to upset you, she was just trying to get a reaction out of everybody else. She just threw you under the bus in the process."
"Why was everybody acting funny?"
"It's a delicate topic," Peggy began to explain, "And it really can't reach Dale. Okay?"
Leah nodded.
Peggy drew in a breath. "Well, Nancy cheated on Dale with John Redcorn for fourteen years. Um, you may have noticed Joseph doesn't look like Dale…"
"Oh...yeah."
Leah had noticed Joseph's darker skin and hair, and his distinctive facial features. However, she just assumed Joseph was born from a previous relationship of Nancy's.
"John Redcorn is a healer, mostly massage therapy. Nancy would tell Dale she had migraines and needed to see John Redcorn to heal her. But um, well…"
"Right, I get it."
"Dale doesn't know, though. And he thinks Joseph is his. So just-"
"Don't worry, I won't say anything." She smiled. "Thanks for telling me."
"Of course. But, John Redcorn really is a nice guy. I do think you and he would get along."
Leah shrugged dismissively.
Peggy understood what Leah was thinking. "I think you and Boomhauer would get along, too."
"Maybe. I really don't know anything about him. He doesn't talk to me, much."
"Oh, that's just how he is. He's very quiet. But also very romantic."
"I'm sure he is. I appreciate you guys trying to set me up with somebody, but really, I like being on my own for now. I was trapped for so long...it's good to feel free...you know?"
Peggy gave a sad smile. "I know. I'm glad you're free."
They hugged each other goodbye, and Leah went inside.
The sunlight streaming through the windows felt warm and inviting in her bright living space, reaching her tall green potted plants and reflecting rainbows onto the floor through her crystals on the windowsill. She felt calm and at peace, comforted by the time she spent with her friends. She really did feel free, more than she had been in years.
And then her phone buzzed with a text message.
Boomhauer watched as Peggy came back to the alley. Minh and Kahn had left already, leaving behind Hank, Dale, Bill, and himself.
"That Minh," Peggy sighed, shaking her head.
"Is Leah alright?" Hank asked.
"Yes, she's fine. But you all didn't have to gape at her at the mention of John Redcorn."
"Has Leah met John Redcorn, then?"
"No, but Nancy thinks the two of them would hit it off, and even offered to set them up together."
Bill whined anxiously. "I need to ask her out again before she ever meets him..."
"She's already met Boomhauer," Dale pointed out.
"Leah doesn't want to date anyone right now," Peggy told them, raising her voice over Bill's protest, "She's enjoying her time being single."
Sounds like me, Boomhauer thought. He sipped his beer.
As he finished the last drops from the can, he thought about that moment he and Leah shared, when they caught each other's eye and smiled. He could have sworn he felt something there, as if they connected in some way, on some spiritual level.
