10

You nod. Zoe raises her eyebrows, once again surprised.

"That's strange—I didn't notice anything earlier," she says. "You must have really sneaked in! You're like a moving wizard."

You laugh a little too forcefully and try to move on quickly from that subject.

"So, I guess this means we're neighbors now?" you say.

"Yeah, it does!" Zoe takes a moment to swallow the last of her donut before she goes on. "That reminds me—sometimes I'll invite a few people over for little get-togethers, just a way of winding down at the end of the week. I'm having a few people over tomorrow evening, in fact, so you could always come over if you're interested. Sometimes it's just coffee and cakes, sometimes I'll give a class on gardening or flower arranging. I own the flower shop in town, see. I know your grandma liked gardening—she grew anything and everything, if I remember right. Are you interested in plants at all?"

You get the feeling that Zoe is rambling slightly in an effort to find something to talk about. Obviously this sort of thing doesn't come as easily to her as it does to Maxie, but she's definitely trying her best.