Page 44 of Rare Blend
I shake my head. “Sorry, I don’t have a key. And I have no idea if he keeps a spare.”
She frowns. “I’m supposed to let Goose out for a potty break and I lost my key.”
She looks genuinely upset, so I try to think of something that may be comforting. “Worse comes to worst. He’ll have a little accident inside, but he’ll be fine.”
Picturing burly Ethan wiping up a pee stain, or worse, a giant pile of dog shit right in the middle of his living room makes me want to laugh. It would be karma, really.
Her shoulders sag. “You’re probably right. I just feel bad.”
She stands with her hands on her hips, contemplating something. And then she looks at me, eyes bright with an idea. “You have a key to this cottage, though, right?”
“Yeah…”
“They were all built at the same time. Maybe they all take the same key?”
I doubt it, but it’s worth a shot, I guess.
I grab my key and hand it over to her, and we walk next door to give it a try.
She inserts the key, and it easily turns, unlocking the door. You’re kidding me. That actually worked?
The cottages were built at least twenty years ago, if not more. And this entire time, they’ve all taken the exact same key. Isn’t that a safety hazard?
“I can’t believe that really worked,” Elyse says.
“Me either,” I muse.
Once she’s inside, I start to turn around, but her voice stops me.
“You can come in with me. I like the company.”
She offers me a hopeful smile. Ethan may no longer despise me, but I’m not too sure how he would feel if he knew I was in his place without his permission. Before I can decide if it’s a bad idea or not, my feet are already dragging me in.
His cottage is a mirror image of mine. Completely the same, but flipped around. There’s nothing personal on the walls, and it’s tidy and bare, no indication that anyone actually lives here. I feel a touch of self-consciousness when I think of my place and the clothes I have scattered everywhere, the unpacked boxes, the mess of snack boxes on the counter.
Maybe I’ll add cleaning to my list of things to take care of today.
“Goose,” Elyse calls and then does a whistle. “Come on, boy.”
A sleepy looking Goose emerges from the bedroom.
“Time for a potty break.” She opens the door for him, and he slowly walks out.
“Doesn’t he need a leash?” Apart from the time I was lost, I’ve always seen Ethan have Goose on a leash.
She shakes her head. “Nah, Ethan is just paranoid about his precious child. That dog isn’t going anywhere.” She leans against the kitchen counter. “He’s always been super overprotective andworries about everything. I love my brother, but when you look up anxiety in the dictionary, there’s a picture of him right next to the definition.”
I give her a polite chuckle, but it feels wrong to even do that. From what Ethan shared, it’s clear his anxiety is a sensitive topic for him. Despite being his sister, I don’t think it’s something she should be making light of or joking about. If I knew her better, I might say something, but I ignore it for now.
“So, how are you liking this small-as-shit town?”
To that, I do genuinely chuckle. “It’s growing on me.”
“Yeah, I tried to leave, but it sucked me back in.” There’s no regret in her voice; she says it like she’s happy to be sucked in. “Growing up, I was so ready to leave. I hated it. I hated how everyone knew everything about me. When I got into the University of Washington, I was beyond excited. A fresh start with fresh people, people that haven’t known me since I was in diapers. I was ready for city living. And then, shocker, I hated it, but I toughed it out and graduated, and moved back not a second later.”
“I can see the appeal.”
She nods, agreeing. “The only thing that is shitty is a lot of my friends left and didn’t come back. My best friend, Scottie, she’s all the way over in Chicago, so I rarely get to see her.”
