“Thank you so much for all your help. I just love how my backyard looks now,” she said. She was still in bare feet and couldn’t walk around the side because of the gravel in the front that she didn’t want to step on.
“It’s looking really good,” Brody said. “He did a great job.”
“Everybody did,” she said. She made her way back into the house, then poured herself a cup of coffee and stepped onto her new deck, watching with glee as the men pounded and slammed the framework apart. They collected all the wood, and she hoped a ton of nails or screws wouldn’t be left behind in her yard.
When Tony looked up, noting her bare feet, he said, “You may want to take a walk around in sturdy shoes afterward. We’re doing the best we can to make sure no nails pop free, but it’s always possible we’ve missed some.”
“That’s a good idea,” she said. “As soon as you’re done with one section, I’ll come take a closer look.”
“Did the captain ever come back with the framework to put up that gate?”
She looked at him in surprise. “Honestly I forgot all about it,” she said. “But I presume not, because it wasn’t there when I was looking yesterday.”
“Maybe I’ll finish that off on the weekend,” Tony said. “And you also need a gate on this side.”
“That would be good,” she said. “I wouldn’t have to worry about Mugs running out onto the road.”
“It doesn’t help with the creekside much,” he said, looking back at the creek. “But then, if he’s a smart dog, he won’t be going into that rushing water anyway.”
She glanced to see the creek was, indeed, much higher than she had expected. “No,” she said with a smile. “He loves the water, but he does have smarts enough to stay out of it.”
“Right,” he said with a smile. “We shouldn’t have too much more to do here. It’s going pretty fast.”
And, even as she looked on, his buddy Brody walked down with a sledgehammer, releasing the framework all the way down on one side to the creek and then hitting it all the way back. Tony quickly grabbed the freed-up wood and collected an easy half-dozen pieces, then carried them out to the truck in the front. Three trips each and all the wood was collected on the side, and Brody was already working around to the other side. “Is it safe to walk on the paths now?” she asked, when Tony came around.
He immediately hopped onto the concrete and said, “Absolutely.”
She grinned and hopped down with Mugs at her side. “Wow,” she said. “I’m absolutely loving it. This is wonderful.”
“Looks pretty good, doesn’t it?” he said. “The colors are a little darker on the patio, but it should balance out pretty quickly.”
She had noticed the color variation but hadn’t cared enough to even make a comment about it. “This is a stunning backyard now,” she said.
“When you get the gardens fixed up just the way you want them,” he said, “it really will be quite an oasis for you.”
She looked over at her gardens. “I’ve got a lot of plants filled in on one side but not the other yet.”
“Not a problem,” he said. “This town is garden crazy. I’m sure you will have no problem getting in more plants.”
“I was wondering about putting some vegetables in,” she admitted. “I haven’t done any vegetable gardening before, but it sounds like fun.” She watched as Brody walked up again with a sledgehammer and started doing the sidewalk on the right-hand side. And very quickly, Tony was behind him, picking up the loose boards. She followed them out slowly as they made the last of their trips, and she realized the entire side of the house now had a beautiful path, and she wouldn’t have to worry about weeds or mowing or anything. She stood in the front, where the grass and the concrete stopped and grinned. “This is gorgeous,” she said. “Of course I have lots of gravel to dump, but that’s all right too.”
“You shouldn’t have too much of a problem with that,” he said. “Just along the sides to fill it in a bit.”
“I got this.”
The men hesitated; then they looked at their watches and said, “We wanted to put the gravel in place, but we’re late.”
She waved them off. “Go, go, go,” she said. “I can get at that on my own time.”
“If you’re sure?” Brody asked.
She smiled and nodded. “It’ll be fine,” she said. As they disappeared, she thought it wouldn’t be fine. That was a lot of gravel to move. But then nobody said she had to do it all at once. She also wondered if she should put something underneath it to help stop the weeds. She knew nothing would ever completely stop the tenacious weeds. She headed back inside and texted Mack. They’ve finished the concrete too. I’ll send you some photos. After that she quickly took a bunch of photos, and sent them to Mack. And then, with Mugs and Goliath and Thaddeus squawking, she walked along the sidewalks. Her brand-new, beautifully accented sidewalks went all the way down to the creek. She knew Tony had said something about the high water in the creek, but she noted the water from the creek would have to rise two feet before it hit her concrete. She smiled as she stood here in a little bit of the pathway. The animals were at her side, and she said, “You know what? This is a perfect place to sit.” And she plunked her butt down on her new bench and crossed her legs out in front of her. She took a selfie at that point in time, laughing as the sidewalk behind her stretched all the way beyond her, and she sent it
