Cassidy arched an eyebrow. “Can’t I smile?”

“You just accused me of being a slave driver.”

“And you are.” Cassidy finally got to her feet, standing in front of Laura. “I’m smiling because I was picturing you having pizza last night—inhaling it—with tomato sauce on both cheeks.”

Laura playfully punched her arm. “You could have told me! When I went up to brush my teeth, I nearly screamed when I saw it.”

Cassidy laughed. “Yeah, I probably should have told you.” She stared at her now, seeing a streak of dirt on her face. “How is it that you get so dirty?” She reached out a hand and gently wiped it away.

“Because I’m not a dainty girl, apparently,” Laura said.

“No, you’re not.” And Cassidy found she liked that about Laura. She tried to imagine any of her other friends out here, playing in the dirt like Laura was and she couldn’t even envision it.

Laura had dirt stains on both knees and sweat clung to her skin. A baseball cap covered up her bedhead—which she’d spied that morning when they’d had coffee—and her ever-present cutoff jeans were soiled as well. She wondered how many pairs of them she had.

“How about I finish spreading the mulch and you start bringing the stone over?” Laura suggested.

“Seems like I’ll be doing more work than you. Is that fair?”

Laura gave her a rather flirty smile. “And whose idea was the flowerbed again?”

“It was mine. But—” Cassidy pointed her finger at Laura. “Whose idea was it to put stone around it?”

“Hey, I simply offered that as a suggestion. You were the one who agreed to it.” Laura pushed her toward the truck. “Off you go. The more you complain, the longer it’ll take.”

“And the longer it takes, the less pool time we’ll have.”

“Exactly.”

Cassidy found herself smiling as she slipped on her gloves. In her life, professionally and personally, she was used to being in charge. Certainly at work, she was the boss. And in her personal relationships—both with friends and lovers—she found most, if not all, deferred to her. Not Laura. She wasn’t afraid to take charge. It was refreshing, really.

She picked up the first stone and lugged it over to the flowerbed where Laura was once again on her knees, spreading mulch carefully around the colorful flowers. Laura had told her the varieties, but Cassidy had already forgotten. The names didn’t matter to her. They were beautiful and colorful and a feast to the eyes. As she went back for a second stone, she paused, watching as Laura lifted the petals of a flower before placing mulch around it.

“Hey…you want to come over for a steak tonight?” she asked, the question out before she could fully comprehend it.