Patrice watched Bill walk with Lindsey on his hip like she was a bag of seed. He swung her around and set her gently on the ground. She looked up at him and said, "Dada."
The air was sweet with the smell of burning hickory and sizzling chicken, and the Allman Brothers played Jessica. The dog fetched three foot baby throws, and the dog's house appeared to have antlers.
"Looks like rain," he said. But Patrice looked up and saw only clear sky and sun. Bill sat up, opened the bottle, and blew blue bubbles.
"Happy Birthday," he said.
Everyone complains about the August heat, but August is the twilight of summer, the cooling down.
It's July that sears the skin.