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The Good Neighbor by A. J. Banner



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Author: A. J. Banner

Publisher: Lake Union Publishing

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Publish Date: September 1, 2015

ISBN-10: 1503944433

Pages: 204

File Type: epub,mobi,lrf,lit,htmlz,pdb,azw

Language: English

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Book Preface

That early October evening, everything on Sitka Lane was still perfect. The twilight sky blushed in iridescent shades of pink and gold. The first fallen leaves tumbled across the lawn, cedar and alder trees swaying in the ocean breeze. I still felt robust and healthy as I straightened the painting of Miracle Mouse on my studio wall. The furry detective perched on a stack of books, her bespectacled eyes bright and perceptive.

I needed to write her next adventure, but when Johnny went away, I ended up chewing the tip of my pen and staring off into space. Every time my cell phone rang, I imagined his arms around me, his hand at the small of my back, circling lower. After three years of marriage, I still felt like a revved-up newlywed.

I pictured him at his conference in San Francisco, captivated by the latest advances in the treatment of acne and eczema, while I puttered around in the sleepy town of Shadow Cove, Washington, decorating our dream house. Or technically, Johnny’s dream house, since he’d bought the place before I’d ever met him.

I focused on rearranging my studio, which held the evidence of my busy life—boxes of books to donate to the library, my reading club schedule, notes from writers in my critique group.

At six thirty, my cell phone buzzed, the letters BFF popping up on the screen. I hit the answer button. “I thought you and Dan had left for India.”

“Our flight’s in four hours,” Natalie replied, Miles Davis playing in the background. “I had a weird feeling about you.”

“What is it now?” Natalie was the queen of outlandish premonitions. Ten years earlier, when we’d met as undergrads, she’d predicted the apocalypse before every exam.

“I worry one of those tall trees will fall on your roof.”

“You get this way before you travel,” I said.

“I know, but you’re alone in that gigantic house, and—”

“It’s not so gigantic.” It was true, but still, I shivered. The wind picked up outside, rushing through the trees. “I still can’t believe you’ll be gone for six months.”

“The clinic wanted Dan for a year, but his patients need him here. I’ll bring you some silk and sandalwood.”

“And Darjeeling tea,” I said.

“Green tea is better for your health, if you’re trying to get preggers.”

“I prefer black tea. You know that.” I felt a twinge beneath my ribs. Johnny and I had been trying to conceive for nearly a year.

“One cup a day,” Natalie said. “Or drink decaf.”

“Yeah, yeah. Do you ever stop being a nutritionist?”

“Only in my sleep. Give that hunky husband a hug for me.”

“Likewise.” I hung up, missing Natalie already. As I finished tidying my desk, her words played through my mind. I had a weird feeling . . .

A few minutes later, my phone rang again, the word Johnny lighting the screen in blocky white letters.

“I missed you all day, Dr. McDonald,” I said, smiling.

“I missed you more,” he replied in his sleepy baritone voice. “I’ve been up to my ears in hidradenitis suppurativa—”

“Suppura-what?”

“It’s associated with high morbidity.”

“I hate that word, morbidity. Sounds like death.”

“It is about death. I need to come home.”

“You mean you’re not turned on by exciting lectures on flesh-eating bacteria?”

“I’m turned on by you. What are you wearing?”

“That little lace number you got me for Christmas,” I lied, looking down at my T-shirt and denim coveralls.

“Mmm. We could, you know . . . over the phone.”……………….


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