Page 21 of The Single Dad's Guide to Recreation

She pulls her phone from her back pocket and checks it. “Do you have a half hour?”

When I nod again, she points at a car a few rows over in the guest parking lot. “Follow me.”

Ten minutes later, I’m parked next to her in a downtown lot. She tips her head to the side, and I follow her quick stride toward the waterfront. Behind city hall, stately mansions perch along a road curving steeply up the cliffside. Eli’s house is up there, and I wonder briefly if that’s why Avery brought me here. But as I follow her down the cobblestone street, away from the fancier part of town, my gaze drops to her tantalizingly swinging hips, and the questions I really want to ask have nothing to do with our bosses. If my ability to support my kids weren’t on the line, I’d say,Forget Eli and Leia, tell me about you, Avery.

I want to know everything from what made her want to work with kids to why she doesn't have her own children to what those lips would feel like pressed up against mine.

“So, here’s the thing.” She stops at the corner and points at the homes hugging the cliffs. “Millionaire’s Row has always been out of reach for the middle class. They were built by the one-percenters of the time.”

“Back when a millionaire was a major deal?”

“Still a pretty big deal around here. Anyway…” Turning, she leads me down a block and then back up another cobblestone street, away from the water again. This one is lined by tiny but well-crafted bungalows. “These cottages were built for factory workers. Even though they’re well over a hundred years old and in need of work, the prices are out of reach for most locals. Teachers, firefighters, nurses...”

“And the director of the Parks and Recreation department?” I ask, getting where this is going.

“Right.” She nods slowly, tapping her breastbone. “Program managers too. None of us can afford to live here anymore. So we’re stuck in apartments near the highway, unless we want to move outside Climax to the unincorporated county.”

“I get that it must be frustrating, but real estate prices have gone up all over the country.” I take in the sturdy little brick homes with inviting front porches and miniature front yards. I’d say about half are under construction, and a quarter have been recently renovated. The others look like they’re struggling to stand. “And at least gentrification is saving the old buildings.”

Avery shoves her hands in her pockets, and I fall in step next to her as she begins to walk toward the waterfront again. Before I can ask what this has to do with Eli, she stops again and says something under her breath.

“Sorry, I missed that.”

She mumbles, “It’s nothing,” while staring at a house the way I wish someone would look at me. Like it could make her dreams come true.

“Is that one special to you?”

“My great-great grandfather was its first owner. My family hung on to it until my grandmother died twenty years ago.” Her voice is steady, but she takes a moment to swallow, like there’s a lump in her throat. “I’ve always hoped to buy it back, but even though I put money away for a downpayment every week, I don’t think I’ll have enough. Unless things have changed drastically when it goes on the market again.”

“Anyway.” She flips a hand in the air, walking more briskly down the hill. “When Trede moved in, things got exponentially worse. These days, every single house anywhere in Climax not only gets snapped up, but bidding wars drive up the prices even higher.”

“And Leia blames Eli.”

“Exactly. It’s also been particularly rough on her and Travis. When they split up, the kids were still really young, so they created what a lot of people thought was a crazy setup, but now it’s a thing. They call it nesting.”

“I’ve heard of that.” Despite the subject matter, walking side by side with Avery is comfortable. Comforting, even. “Where the kids stay in place and the parents move in and out when it’s their turn for custody?”

She nods. “They’ve had a little house near the rec center since the kids were born, and they also have a studio apartment nearby. But now that Trede is bringing in all these people from California and whatnot who think half a million dollars for a two-bedroom house is a bargain, one landlord wants to sell and the other’s jacking up the rent. While their salaries have been frozen. So, yeah. Leia’s pissed at Eli.”

When she doesn’t add anything else, I say, “Thank you for taking the time to tell—or show—this to me. Even though it seems like there may still be feelings between them, it’ll probably be easier to get him to back off if it’s about business. He’s very excited about transforming Climax Parks and Rec, but hopefully these data points and the fact that we have a new crop of entrepreneurs to focus on will be enough to keep him out of your boss’s hair.”

The sidewalk has narrowed, so I’ve been following behind her. When she suddenly stops, I have to step to the side to avoid running into her. Once I’ve righted myself, all I can see are two perfect pink lips pressed together in a line. “I mean it, I really appre?—”

She holds up a hand between us. “I know I’m supposed to talk to you about Playgroup and all the other programming, but I need to apologize first.”

“For what?”

She blows out a breath and looks up. “For… avoiding you. Being rude to you. Not returning your calls at first.” Before I can accept her apology, she blurts out, “I didn’t know it was about work stuff. I thought you were hitting on me.”

“Um, well. For the record, I do need to discuss Parks and Rec programming with you…” It’s a bad idea—a very bad idea—but that doesn’t stop me from blurting out the truth. “But I also can’t stop thinking about you. What it would be like to kiss you.”

Her cheeks pink up, but she meets my gaze. “For the record, I’ve wondered that too. Since you first helped me pick up those art supplies.”

“Then why were you avoiding me?”

“Because I thought you were taken.” She points at my left hand. “You’re wearing a ring.”

“Oh. Right.” I lift my hand and stare at my wedding ring. The one I’ve taken off and put back on many times over the past year and a half.

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