Another neighbour says hello

No more than a few minutes had gone by when Frank heard a voice calling hello. He turned to see a pretty blonde walking up his driveway with a happy smile on her face.

"Hi, I'm Amanda. Amanda Dyson. I live across the street. Well actually my Mother lives there and I'm just home for the summer. I saw Miss Congeniality just leave. Tara Scott. Isn't she a piece of work?"

"I've met more charming people," Frank smiled. "Frank Castillo. Are you home from college?"

"That's right! Up north." She made a pretence of shivering. "I don't like the winters up there. Are you going on vacation or something."

"I'm going to take my boat out."

"You have a boat?" Amanda's eyes widened and lit with excitement. "I love boats. We used to have one but when Mom and Dad split the boat got sold. I really miss it."

"Well, if you're not doing anything more important, why don't you come along? It's only an hour away. I was planning to be back by late afternoon, early evening. We could have lunch on the water."

"Do you mean it?" she squeaked excitedly. "Of course I'll come! How long do I have? I need to change and grab a few things."

"Can you be ready in fifteen minutes?"

"You bet! Thank you so much!" Frank smiled as he watched her bounce back across the street, then went inside his house to complete the last preparations.