FLUFFED

21: Ojai

SOOKIE

Thanks to the fucking traffic, it took almost three hours to get to Ojai. Hellacious traffic was one thing I sure as shit wouldn't miss about Los Angeles. The driveway to reach the house was a long one. I liked that. It meant we had plenty of privacy and I wouldn't have to worry too much about Henry running into the road and getting hit by a car. The backside of the house was fenced in with green metal of some kind. We would have to fence in the front yard if we had kids.

I was thinking about kids more and more as of late. It was kind of scary but cool at the same time.

My Jeep came to a stop behind a shiny Mercedes parked in the driveway. There was a three car garage.

"Ooooh, you'd have space for a bike if you decided to get one," I said. The exterior of the house had a little stone and the siding was yellow with green trim. I wasn't crazy about the colors but that was easy to change.

"Something tells me you want to see me get a bike," he teased. He did want to get one. "If we like this place I already have a buyer for my house."

"Yes I do want you to get a bike. I don't think you would approve of me going for rides with Alcide Herveaux." He was one of those hunky beefcake types who was big with the ladies who watched daytime soap operas. He was also from Mississippi so we commiserated over our southern roots.

"Uh, no. You will not be on a the back of a motorcycle with that douche," Eric said. He didn't get jealous often, if ever. He did not like Alcide.

"You know him?" I took off my seatbelt. "He's not a douche, by the way."

"I know you like him, that's enough for me to think he's a douche," he chuckled. He got out of the Jeep and walked around the front to wait for me.

"He does have pretty eyes," I confessed when I took Eric's hand in front of the Jeep.

"Douche," he muttered.

"He's not a douche," I laughed. "And just so we're clear the only thing of his I've ridden is his bike."

"Good to know." He stopped in his tracks to take in the house. "This is a lot of house. It looks so grand from out here."

"It's got five bedrooms. Guest rooms would be nice for company, especially if your mom comes down to see you. I'm not sure I like the yellow and green."

"We could paint if we like the inside," he suggested. "I really like this yard, though."

"Me too. Even though we'd have a corner lot it doesn't seem like a high traffic area."

"No, not really. With five rooms that would give us room for three babies and a spare room."

"Three babies, huh?" I smiled up at him. It was cute that baby talk didn't freak him out.

"Three, yes. I was an only child, your family is... a bunch of assholes. I think we both deserve a big, loving family."

"I could get on board with that." We walked around the front of the house. There were lots of trees and a few benches in front of the house that I would have to get rid of. The listing made it obvious that an elderly couple was living there. There was an orthopedic bench in the shower, plus the current décor screamed septuagenarian.

The front door opened and a slick looking guy with man bangs and a three piece suit stepped out of the house. I couldn't help imagining him with a monocle and a cane. I had to bite my lip to keep from laughing.

"Mr. Compton?" He looked stiffer in person than he did in his picture and that was impressive. From the tight smile in his online photo I might have thought his picture was being captured by the first camera ever.