Mike was reliving his evening with Sarah as he expertly edged the lawn. The date, which had been arranged by friends, turned out much better than he could have ever imagined. He knew he wasn’t a great catch but he really wanted Sarah to agree to go out with him again. From the moment Mike entered the bar and saw her, he couldn’t believe his luck; she looked stunning in her well-fitting jeans and Tshirt. He found Sarah to be confident but not overbearing and Mike wasn’t his usual tongue-tied self. He loved the way her blonde ponytail jiggled about as she spoke enthusiastically about her job as a nursery teacher. Mike looked around, appraising his work. Two more gardens to do and then he would be finished for the day and Sarah should be home from work and hopefully would want to chat.
It was Sarah who had suggested a tour round his garden when she found out what he did for a living. She told him of her passion for flowers and how she was only able to plant up tubs in her small yard and proudly showed him photos of them on her phone. Mike could see she was no gardener but complimented her on her use of colour which pleased her immensely. What he didn’t add was that he found the layout of the mismatched pots somewhat higgledy-piggledy and the gravel path could do with a bit of attention.
On the one hand Mike couldn’t wait for Friday evening, but on the other hand he had so much to do. His own garden didn’t take priority in the summer months but at least his flat was neat and tidy, only requiring a fresh towel in the bathroom and a straightening of the cushions on the sofa. Mike just had enough time to line up the pots on the patio and remove a few wisps of grass from between the paving slabs. The borders were in full bloom; the pattern of the well-staked, flowers both in colour and form was repeated three times. An even, green lawn which wouldn’t look out of place in a bowling club finished off the picture. He made a small adjustment to one of the patio chairs and surveyed his plot with approval.
Sarah arrived dead on six. Mike, who liked punctuality, thought that they had a lot in common. He considered that this relationship seemed to be going well as he followed Sarah who was making straight for the garden. He was a little disappointed that the polish on the toe nails revealed by Sarah’s sandals was rather chipped. He waited for the exclamation of delight when Sarah set eyes on his garden which, even in his eyes, looked pristine. She turned to face him, her eyes wide.
“Mike, It’s really ..... neat.”
Mike smiled contentedly as he considered that he had found his soul mate in Sarah.
Author Bio: Linda Casper hails from Yorkshire and, after a long career as a high school teacher, she has recently begun to write and has had many short stories, poems and travel articles published. Linda has a keen interest in gardening and is a judge for Yorkshire in Bloom.