Henry Dale made a scoffing noise, but he didn’t offer further argument. The ride home passed quietly with Eli trying to decide how long he planned to stay. Three months might be long enough to wrap up the sale of Gamma’s house. Keshonda had sent him an update, detailing how many calls she’d gotten and how many showings she’d set up. So far, no offers, but the market was a bit sluggish. Once the house sold, he’d play it by ear. He couldn’t—in good conscience—move on until he was sure Iris had everything under control and could make ends meet.
Since he had the main bedroom, he was currently contributing most to her financial stability, and he couldn’t just walk away. But maybe he could say he was traveling to check out properties or something while continuing to pay rent? It probably wasn’t the best idea to stay for ages, as that would create deeper connections under false pretenses.
Damn, why is this so complicated? This was just him paying it forward, no hidden motives. But it probably wouldn’t scan that way to anyone else.
“Back it in,” Henry Dale said suddenly, interrupting his thoughts.
Without realizing it, Eli had driven all the way home.
He complied without asking why. It seemed pretty clear that Henry Dale intended to use the truck bed as the staging point for the porch repair. At least the weather was right for it, not so cold that working outside was difficult, not so hot that they’d sweat themselves sick. Together, they fetched necessary supplies from the shed, including a miter saw, a sawhorse, and various other tools. As the older man arranged things to his satisfaction, Eli got started tearing out the bad boards. Fortunately, this wasn’t a complete overhaul; it was only two bad steps and a small section in the middle that needed to be replaced.
“How long do you think this will take?” Eli asked.
Henry Dale shrugged. “Hard telling. But I think we can do it before the end of the day. Just the construction, mind. We’ll still need to sand everything, apply waterproofing, and then paint or stain, depending on what Iris prefers.”
Frankly, the whole house needed to be painted, but that would be a massive undertaking. Iris probably couldn’t even afford the cost of all the supplies that would be required, let alone manpower. Gamma had white siding on her house, so Eli had no experience with exterior work. He assumed it would require a fair amount of specialized equipment as well.
As Eli carefully pried up the rotten boards, Henry Dale checked the rest of the porch and found two more trouble areas. Fortunately, they had plenty of lumber for repairs. The older man got busy taking measurements while Eli worked on removal. They didn’t speak much while they went about their tasks with Henry Dale cutting the pieces to fit, then sanding and waterproofing the back side of the replacement boards.
A black truck drove by and leaned on the horn; then a man in a ballcap shouted, “You forgot the rainbow flag on your gay purple house, losers!”
“What a turd wrapped in human skin,” said Henry Dale.
Eli couldn’t agree more. The world was better these days, but people like that still existed, unfortunately. It was also why groups like HAPI could grow their numbers at an alarming rate.
Later in the day, Iris came out with mugs of hot coffee. “It looks like rain,” she said, peering at the clouds with a worried look.
“We can wrap up before it breaks.” Henry Dale took the mug with his usual stoic air, but Eli could tell the old man was happy.
“Don’t get sick,” she said firmly.
“Thanks.” Eli met her halfway, stepping around the gaps in the porch. “And be careful out here. It’s kind of an obstacle course.”
“This is amazing. I can’t believe how much you’ve already gotten done. Can you imagine how pretty it will be when I have a chance to redo the flowers out front?”
Before he could respond, the next-door neighbor, Susan, marched across the yard like she was going to war. Granted, she normally looked like someone had pissed in her cereal, and today, she appeared no more cheerful, her face pulled into an expression of discontent. Though it wasn’t freezing by any means, she was wearing a huge puffy coat, and her orange hair had been permed within an inch of its life. That might be new, both the perm and the color. He couldn’t recall if she’d looked this way before.
“How much longer do you plan on keeping up this racket?” the woman demanded, addressing Henry Dale.
The older man shrugged. “Until the weather breaks, we lose daylight, or the work is done. Hard telling what will come first.”
“The good lord knows I have tried to be polite. Welcoming even! But you refuse to extend me the same courtesy.” Susan stepped closer to glare at Iris.
What’s wrong with this woman anyway?
“I don’t understand the problem,” Iris said. “You threatened me about contacting the city, and now that we’re fixing the porch—like you wanted—you’re mad about that too?”
“It’s just good manners to advise close neighbors when you’re starting a renovation project. Yes, I advised you to fix the porch, and you kicked me out of your house without even tasting the casserole I made. You obviously have no intention of being a good neighbor! As evinced by the way you do whatever the hell you want regardless of how it impacts the rest of the neighborhood.”
An older woman across the street happened to be getting her mail. Eli didn’t know her name, but he sighed as she came to the end of her driveway. If she ganged up on Iris too, he honestly didn’t know how he’d keep himself in check. If he slipped away and shifted silently, they’d never know it was him dive-bombing Susan as an angry hawk. In that case, they couldn’t charge him for assault either.
The older woman frowned. “That’s enough, Susan! You drove Gertie to an early grave with your nagging. Don’t start with her little niece now too.”
Hearing the other neighbor lend some support allowed Eli to keep quiet.
I’m just her housemate. I don’t have the right to step in.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Crap.
At least all the neighbors don’t hate me. Having said her piece, the woman across the street went back inside, leaving Iris to stare at Susan Calhoun, whose new hairstyle didn’t suit her even slightly.
“I can tell you weren’t raised right,” Susan said.
Oh, Delphine would love that. Maybe I could introduce them to each other.
Yet Iris tried to stay civil since escalation would only make things worse. She’d already lost her temper with this woman once. No benefit in doubling down. “Look, I’m sorry we got off on the wrong foot. We won’t be working on the porch late into the night or anything, so it shouldn’t disturb your sleep.”
The woman scowled. Lines on her face made it clear this was her usual expression. Then she let out an exaggerated sigh. “I should have known that anyone who’s related to Crazy Gertie couldn’t be normal.”
Iris narrowed her eyes. “Excuse me?”
Susan had gotten a free pass the first day they met, but Iris had no intention of letting anyone trash-talk her auntie.
Susan didn’t take the warning in Iris’s sudden shift in posture. “We’ve discussed this before. It’s nothing new. Gertrude Van Doren had a bunch of screws loose, bats in her belfry. Do I need to go on?”