Chapter 386: Bobbi-Lee's Cottage

Monday, February 2nd, Evening

The sun never stayed up in the sky as it did in New York, Bobbi-Lee Burke reflected as she walked out towards her street-side mailbox. It was still early, and it was also getting dark a winter thing. She missed that summer in New York, where it stayed light until almost nine o'clock in the evening. It at first took some getting used to, but it became something she enjoyed and helped explain why and how her dad kept the hours he did.

At her mailbox, Bobbi-Lee looked around and took in the sights of her neighborhood. Oddly for this day and age, a few of the kids were hanging out on the streets, several having bikes. Bobbi-Lee was surprised that kids still even rode bikes.

Bobbi-Lee shrugged it off; it's a different world from when she was raised on the Murphy Land. She smiled and chuckled about how she learned to ride a bike on a mountain bike in the woods. Collecting her mail, she shook her head and headed back to her cottage. Today, as a promise of most of the week, Bobbi-Lee had to work from Beaulieu Manor to help with the up-and-coming shows. Bobbi-Lee enjoyed working from home, her own line, Banríon, from her loft in the cottage.

As she walked towards her cottage, checking her mail. Every so often, Bobbi-Lee would stop and stretch out her neck and shoulder muscles. Shaking her head, she finally reached her cottage, and once inside, she put her mail on a side table. Sighing, Bobbi-Lee went upstairs to her bedroom; she needed to work out her body from the day's stress. Bobbi-Lee sighed again, and stripped off her work clothes, and hung up the outerwear. She pulled on a black sports bra and black bike shorts. Bobbi-Lee needed to do yoga to de-stress and stretch out her sore, tired muscles.

She headed down to her great room, collecting her mat, and rolled it out. Bobbi-Lee made sure her sneakers were nearby. Stepping onto the mat, she took a few deep breaths; she pulled her ginger red hair back and held it back in a ponytail by a hair tie. After a few deep breathes, she started her routine.

The routine helped, and she could feel the stress leave her body. Bobbi-Lee enjoyed yoga; it was something she took up when she took her sabbatical to the southwest eleven years ago. It helped clear her mind out and often would help Bobbi-Lee solve problems.

Bobbi-Lee wore a very low-cut sports bra, and her bike shorts were rather tight. It made her comfortable and didn't affect her stretching. Finally, she looked up at one of her windows. Bobbi-Lee's eyes focused on the small face in the window. The shaggy black hair was a dead giveaway. Bobbi-Lee stopped what she was doing, grabbed her sneakers, and pulled them on.

Quickly, she burst through the door and started to cross the lawn. The person running across the yard is a short child. Bobbi-Lee had nine inches and several years on this boy, so she caught him handily before reaching his bike. Bobbi-Lee held him tight.

"What are you doing, Sammy?" Bobbi-Lee asked.

"Nothing, Ms. Burke," Sammy Blevins, a neighbor boy, said.

"From what it looked like to me, it was pepping," Bobbi-Lee said.

"That's not it," Sammy said.

"Explain that to your momma," Bobbi-Lee said and tightened her grip. She marched him off her lot and down the street. The Blevins lived on the other side of Mrs. Ivanova.

Bobbi-Lee nodded and looked at all the nearby cottages. They were all built about the same time, to a similar floor plan. That was how Sammy knew which window to peek in. Finally, they reached the Blevins' front door, to which Bobbi-Lee rang the doorbell.

Eventually, the door opened, and a young short black-haired boy stood in the doorway. Bobbi-Lee looked at the young boy, who was around her niece Fiona's age.

"Dakota, is your momma home?" Bobbi-Lee asked.

The small boy looked over his shoulder. "Momma, Ms. Burke is here with Sammy," Dakota yelled.

"What did your brother do now?" a voice echoed down from the second-floor loft.

"I don't know," Dakota yelled back.

Bobbi-Lee heard a sigh. "Have Ms. Burke bring Sammy upstairs," the voice said.

"Yes, Momma," Dakota said.

"Is she in her studio?" Bobbi-Lee asked.

Dakota nodded, "Yes, Ms. Burke," he said.

"Thank you, Dakota," Bobbi-Lee said and dragged Sammy upstairs to the lofted area of the second floor. In Bobbi-Lee's cottage, this space was set up as her design studio. In the Blevins', this was Mrs. Blevins' home painting studio.

Bobbi-Lee noted the two easels, both with stretched canvas on them. One of the canvases showed the work of a less skilled painter, where the one in front of Mrs. Blevins showed one of a much more experienced and skilled painter.

Mrs. Blevins was a woman about eight years Bobbi-Lee's senior. The two women were about the same height; Bobbi-Lee maybe had an inch or two on her. Where Bobbi-Lee had maybe shoulder-length ginger red hair, Mrs. Blevins had waist-length black hair and a fringe. There was anger and frustration in Mrs. Blevins' green eyes.

"So, Bobbi, what did Sammy do, now?" Mrs. Blevins asked.

"Hi Delilah, I caught him peeping on me doing yoga," Bobbi-Lee said.

Delilah nodded, grabbed a rag, wiped her hands, and put the rag down. Delilah moved, slowly; as she removed her painter's apron. Hanging up the apron, Delilah turned to face Bobbi-Lee and Sammy.

"Sammy," Delilah said.

"Yes, Momma," Sammy said.

"Go into my room, and I mean my bedroom, and sit on my bed. Close the door behind you," Delilah said.

"But, Momma," Sammy said.

"No buts, in my room, now, Mister," Delilah said.

"Yes, Ma'am," Sammy said, Bobbi-Lee let go of him, and he walked a few feet to Delilah's bedroom. Once the door closed, Delilah's body relaxed, and she looked at Bobbi-Lee.

"Bobbi, I'm sorry about that; I'll handle this," Delilah said.

"Thank you, Delilah," Bobbi-Lee said.

"You know, it's been hard since his dad passed," Delilah said.

"I can feel for him, growing up without my mom," Bobbi-Lee said.

Delilah nodded, "Well, he's getting to that age where there are things a man should teach him," Delilah said.

"I understand," Bobbi-Lee said.

"How did your dad deal when you came of age?" Delilah asked.

"He had a friend teach me," Bobbi-Lee said.

Delilah nodded, "Yeah, that's a good idea," she said.

"I'll bring his bike back later," Bobbi-Lee said.

"Take your time; he won't be needing it for a while," Delilah said.

"Okay," Bobbi-Lee said.

"So, they're selling Mrs. Ivanova's house," Delilah said.

Bobbi-Lee nodded, "Yes, they are putting it on the market. Mrs. Ivanova is now in a home," she said.

Delilah nodded, "That's so sad; Mrs. Ivanova was always so independent and capable," she said, "I'd never expected her not to be living on her own."

"I guess her family doesn't want to risk her unsupervised," Bobbi-Lee said.

"I guess," Delilah said, "I wonder what the new neighbor is going to be like."

"I don't know, but I'd reign, Sammy, in once they move in," Bobbi-Lee said.

"I'll take care of him, Bobbi," Delilah said.

"Okay," Bobbi-Lee said.

"Trust me, I'll do it," Delilah said.

"I believe you, and I have to head back home," Bobbi-Lee said.

"What were you doing when Sammy spied on you?" Delilah asked.

"I thought I told you," Bobbi-Lee said.

"In my rage, I probably didn't hear," Delilah said.

"Why do you ask anyway?" Bobbi-Lee asked.

"The way you're dressed," Delilah said.

Bobbi-Lee looked down and looked up, a bit of color coming to her cheeks. "Oh, yeah, well, I was doing yoga," she said.

Delilah giggled, "Okay," she said.

"Alright, well, I'm off," Bobbi-Lee said.

"You're leaving too?" Delilah asked.

"Yeah, that too," Bobbi-Lee said and headed out of the house and back to her home.