Amburst Oaks

Chapter One

I sat on the couch with my iced coffee, taking a well deserved break from unpacking. I absolutely loved this house, I knew from the pictures that it was perfect for us; even had the realtor put a bid on it without seeing it in person. The pictures were just amazing; the whole area was absolutely beautiful. Kansas was not at all like I thought it would be; I pictured corn fields for some reason, more of a farm/country setting.  Our town was just outside of Kansas City, it was honestly the best of suburban and city life. The neighborhood itself was only a few years old, they were still building houses on the other end of the neighborhood. We had everything we needed within a fifteen minute drive from the house.

Owen didn't want to put in for this promotion, he didn't want to leave family and friends behind; I didn't either but I so badly wanted the fuck out of Indiana. After days of going back and forth about it, he finally took a chance and put in for the promotion. I had completely forgotten about it weeks later when he came home and asked if we were ready to move. I was worried the girls would take it hard, they were 10 and 8, surprisingly they were just as excited as we were. I thought this would be a chance for us to get out of the rut we were in, shake things up a bit. Plus, the opportunity Owen had for advancement in Kansas was higher than in Indiana. Owen worked for a large corporation as a consultant (I called it a fancy sales man) he traveled a lot for work. The office he worked from in Indiana did not have sales people in it; it was more of a clerical or customer service office. Unless he wanted to leave the company (Which hell no because he made damn good money and the benefits were amazing) we would have to move to a different location for him to be able to advance. Kansas was the only location that had a potential opportunity within six months to a year.

I didn't mind that Owen traveled a lot; I was always independent and did my own shit. He traveled for a week and then was home for a week. I did miss him when he was gone, but maybe after ten years of doing this, I was just used to it. This house and this new life was so fucking worth it. I loved the openness of the house, I loved the neighborhood. There were so many kids around the  girls ages, kids constantly playing in the street. Hell, the minute we started unloading the moving truck, neighbors came over and introduced themselves and helped us unload. You don't find that kinda shit in Indiana.

"How's the new house?" Stacy, my best friend seemed excited

"Slowly getting unpacked; I can't wait for you to come visit! You would love it out here!" I smiled into the phone.

Leaving our family and friends was so hard, and leaving Stacy sucked worse, she was my best friend since I was 10 years old.

"I can't wait to see it! How was the drive? How were the kids?"

"It was long, but the kids were good; Owen worried me for a while... you know how he hates long drives and my driving" I chuckled

"I don't know how you do it" she chuckled "Tell me about the neighborhood. It looks beautiful in the pictures! Have you met your neighbors yet?"

"GURL! The neighborhood is amazing, everyone we've met so far has just been so nice; even the hottie next door that Owen has befriended" I sighed

"Oh! Hottie next door? I need details" she sing sang

"Stac... I haven't met him yet; I just saw them talking in front of the house yesterday, he's about O's height and build, probably close to O's size but you can tell he does or did hard labor for work... gives the dad bod a whole new meaning. I guess he's got some big construction company or something, around here. I almost ran over one of the kids gawking at him in his tank top and shorts" I laughed

"Take a picture next time! Find out if he's single so I can mingle when I come visit" She giggled

"I think he is? O said something about his girls being close in age to ours and then having a playdate when they come" I shook my head "Gage I believe his name is"