“Okay. So siblings, cousins, maybe girlfriend doing the delicate dance.” They came to another high fenced property. Amanda could see the lights from some houses off in the distance, but not much else. Sam slowed the car, then flipped his turn signal even though the long desert road was empty. She did love a responsible driver. She glanced up and saw the lone street sign that looked out of place in this very particular way.
Pleasant Lane. Sam turned toward a set of massive gates, then pushed a button up in his visor. The gate slowly opened.
“Oh. So you have your own street. That’s cool.”
Sam responded with a slight smile as he maneuvered the car up the driveway that seemed a whole mile long. Amanda used Poppy to ground herself in reality as they pulled up to a sprawling cul-de-sac with three large Spanish-style ranch houses. The small dog betrayed her though as soon as they pulled to a stop in the wide driveway of the first house. It started wiggling in her arms, eager to hop out.
“This is where you grew up?” she said. There was no reason for her to be surprised. His grandmother was Hollywood royalty and clearly his brothers weren’t doing too bad for themselves either. A beautiful private estate in the middle of nowhere was the least they could do for themselves.
“No,” Sam said as they parked next to a shiny black pickup truck. “ We moved here after my grandfather passed away. My dad wanted us to be close together so he had Pleasant Lane built.” He cut off the car, then turned to her.
“Ready.”
“Should I not be?”
“I was saying that more to myself.”
“Why’s that?”
“I’ve never brought a girl home after she dumped me.”
Amanda leaned back, glaring at him as a smooth, punch-me-in-the-face smile spread out over his mouth. “You know I thought you would be cool about this, but I’ll give you that. You get one.”
“I’ll take it. Thanks.” His smile flashed even wider before he opened the door and stepped out of the car. Amanda rolled her eyes, following close behind him as she carried Poppy with her back into the cold night air. She could hear more dogs barking inside, but only for a second. Something or someone suddenly silenced them as she and Sam made their way to the front door. Sam opened the door for her and ushered her into the warmth of the dimly lit entryway, where they were greeted by three more dogs.
“Oh my gosh. Hello.” She gently set Poppy down and then set about petting and patting every dog she could reach.
“Here. Leave your shoes here.” He nodded toward a row of boots and sneakers by the front door. Some were close to her size but the rest of them were large enough to row a woman and at least three children to safety. His brother Jesse Pleasant was not a small man.
“Oh sure.” She abandoned the puppy parade and toed out of her Converse, setting them beside Sam’s worn boots.
“Come on this way,” he said, motioning down the hallway, where she could suddenly hear voices. The dogs pushed their way ahead, guiding them into the large open living room–kitchen area like a welcoming committee. Sam’s brother was in the kitchen, digging for something in the large pantry. Three women around her age were sitting on the massive sectional and the love seat that took up most of the living space. There was a TV that had to have been eight feet wide mounted to the wall above a Spanish tile fireplace. The opening credits of Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan paused on the screen.
“Finally,” the plus-size woman on the love seat groaned as soon as she saw them. The petite woman beside her who appeared to be biracial, Black and Asian, stood, ready to make proper introductions. Another girl who could have been Sam’s twin poked her head up from the couch and offered Amanda a kind smile.
“Corie, shut up. Guys, this is my friend Amanda McQueen. This is Vega,” he said, motioning toward the biracial woman. She came over and shook Amanda’s hand.
“Nice to meet you.”
“Likewise.”
“And that’s my cousin Lilah over there,” he said, motioning toward the couch.
“Hi,” Lilah said in a quiet, sweet voice as she sat up on the cushions on her knees. She was wearing a pink pajama top that said CHAMPAGNE DREAMS. Amanda had a feeling they would get along.
“The rude mufucka on over there is Corie.”
“Amanda, I’m sorry. It’s great to meet you. But you said you’d be back in five minutes,” Corie replied, fixing Sam with a sarcastic grin. Yeah, they were more like siblings than play cousins. Amanda tried her best not to laugh at their back-and-forth.
“Not a damn thing in this whole county is within five minutes of this house,” Sam laughed. “I said you guys didn’t have to wait.”
“Some of us have manners. Nice to see you again, Amanda,” Jesse said as he turned around. He had a tub of cheeseballs in his hand.
She smiled back at him even though his expression was blank and impossible to read. That he’d remembered her after their nearly nonexistent interaction the week before shocked her a bit. “Likewise. Thanks for having me in your home.”
“Of course. Can I get you something to drink?”
“I’m fine. Thank you though.”
“She likes you.” He nodded toward her side. Amanda looked down and realized she’d been absently stroking the soft head of the black Lab that had parked itself by her socked feet.
“Feeling’s mutual,” she replied with a shrug.
“You’re a dog person?”
“An animal person.”
“You’ll have to go by the stables tomorrow then. Meet Sam’s horse,” Jesse suggested.
“I’d be happy to take you,” Sam said. And something warm bloomed in Amanda’s chest. This was not the plan. She was supposed to be asleep in a king-size ranch bed. Tomorrow she was supposed to take full advantage of a free trip to the
