Pulling up to the garage at Faith's house, I shifted the Beast into "park". The twenty year old Ford Explorer was on its second transmission and got abysmal gas mileage, but it was mine.
Stepping out, I shouldered my backpack and walked up to the front door. Behind me, I heard the approach of Faith's car. I stopped to wait for her, giving a little wave and trying to look like I wasn't wearing special underwear for her daddy's enjoyment.
The garage door raised, and I followed her as she pulled inside.
"So, you're actually doing this?" Faith slammed the door behind her, not looking at me.
"Yep!" I answered, "It'll be fun."
"Fun?" She turned to me, "Rummaging through my mom and dad's stuff is going to be 'fun'?"
Jumping your daddy's bones will be...
I shrugged, "I don't know what it is – there's just something really satisfying about organizing a mess."
Faith scoffed. "I'll take your word for it." Shaking her head, she opened the door.
Inside, I let the door shut behind us, listening as father and daughter greeted each other.
I bit my lip at the sound of his delicious baritone, remembering how it sounded when he was trying to be quiet...
Flushed with excitement, I walked into the living room behind Faith.
"Hi, Mr. Coleman!" My voice was all bubbly innocence, but my heart raced with anticipation.
"Oh, hi Hailey!" Turning to Faith, he said, "Hang on hon, I'll get her started and then I'll be right up."
Faith rolled her eyes behind his back.
He walked over to the kitchen counter, picking up a keyring and a slip of paper. "So, here's the spare key and the code to the security system."
I took these, and when he led the way down the stairs, I followed.
Downstairs, in a side room that also housed the furnace and water heater, Jason stepped aside to let me survey the mess.
And it was a mess.
Totes stacked up to the ceiling joists and access was impeded by the multiple pieces of furniture blocking the way.
Most of them were parts of a set, a purple leather couch, sofa and easy chair, remnants of that time Faith's mom, Amanda, had fancied herself an interior decorator.
Pivoting on my heel, I surveyed the situation.
When my eyes caught the gargantuan, gilded mirror, I flinched.
"Ah. I was wondering where that went..."
The massive, gaudy "statement piece" had stood in the entryway, and when it disappeared, I'd assumed that Amanda had taken it with her.
Either she'd developed good taste, or her new husband had put his foot down.
Good for him.
"That was one of the first things I moved down here. After the divorce was finalized, I didn't have to pretend to like it anymore." Jason eyed the monstrosity, grimacing.
I shook my head, "Can't say I missed it."
Finishing my survey of the room. I moved to lean against the armrest of the easy chair, thinking.
"Okay, so we need to get the furniture out of here before we can really tackle whatever is in those totes. I'll do some research on pricing and then post these on Facebook Marketplace." I looked up at Jason, "Unless you'd rather use Craigslist?"
He shrugged, "What's the difference?"
"My Mom uses Marketplace – she thinks Craigslist is too sketchy."
"I trust your judgement."
"Okay, I'll get started on that. I might need your help to move the bigger pieces around when I go to take pictures?"
"Okay. Let me know when you want me."
I felt myself blush at the double entendre, and I couldn't help the saucy grin that was spreading across my face.
Jason smirked before leaving me to my work.
I was jotting a price in my notebook when I heard footsteps on the stairs. I licked my lips, trying to focus.
The post in front of me listed a similar furniture set from the same brand with roughly the same amount of wear. It was the third one I'd found, and I was saving the posts and making a list of the prices to create a range for Jason to pick from.
Speaking of...
The footsteps neared the doorway, and I called out, "Ready to help me move some furniture?"
Faith answered, "No. But I am ready for you to tell me what the hell you're really up to."