Rosie and the Stranger #1

Rosie and the Stranger is a retelling of Little Red Riding Hood. I need your help again, my devoted readers/listeners, especially with the title. I usually wait until I've finished my stories to name them, but perhaps you can come up with something sooner. Please leave me a comment with your ideas, thoughts, and tips. Looking forward to your input.

Part 1

    Rosie and her mom live in an old log home in a small Adirondack, New York, community. Rosie’s sweet, gray-haired grandmother lives just down the road and around the corner in a cozy, little cottage. Every Sunday, Rosie’s mom bakes yummy, blueberry muffins. While the muffins are still warm, Rosie places some in a basket. She covers them with a red and white checkered cloth napkin. Then she and Mom walk down the road and around the corner to Granny Jane’s cottage. Together, they eat muffins and drink tea as they tell each about their week.

    Rosie enjoys their weekly stroll to Granny Jane's, except when she has to walk by Mr. Brown's place. Then, she holds tight to Mom's hand in case his big, black German Shepherd is outdoors running along the fence, jumping and barking at them. Mom says he's the perfect guard dog for Mr. Brown's seven apple trees. No one would dare hop the fence to take apples with him patrolling the grounds.

    This Sunday, as Rosie and Mom start down the front steps, Mom trips and twists her ankle.

    “I should have changed my dress shoes and put on my sneakers,” she tells Rosie.

    Rosie helps Mom back into the house and puts ice on her ankle.

    “I cannot walk to Granny Jane’s with this ankle,” Mom moans.

    “Please. Let me bring Granny the muffins,” says five-year-old Rosie.

    Mama’s swollen ankle is throbbing. Rosie has never walked down the road and around the corner to her grandmother’s house by herself. But Grandma Jane so looks forward to their weekly visit.

    “Please, please, please,” the young girl begs.

    Mom finally agrees. She pats Rosie on her short, curly red hair and kisses her cheek.

    "I'm letting you go but only if you promise you’ll go straight to Granny’s. I’ll call her so she knows you’re coming. And don’t talk to any strangers along the way."  

     "Don't worry about me, Mom. I'll go straight to Granny Jane's, no stops, I promise," calls Rosie as she skips out the door and down the front steps, the basket of warm blueberry muffins swinging on her arm.

    Jay Wolf watches from across the road as Rosie skips down the steps with the basket over her arm. He wonders where the pretty little girl is going all by herself. Staying hidden behind trees and bushes, he follows her, sneaking quietly down the road. When Rosie turns the corner, Jay Wolf races through a neighbor's back yard to get ahead of her. Huffing and puffing, he stops by Mr. Brown’s fence. He quickly leans back against the post, crosses his legs, and pretends to be waiting for someone. As Rosie walks by, Jay Wolf sticks out his right foot and trips her.

    "Ow--w--w," cries Rosie as her hands and knees scrape the gravel on the shoulder of the road. The basket flies out of her hands and fresh-baked blueberry muffins roll into the road.

    "Oh, you poor child," coos Jay Wolf. "Let me help you." He reaches down and pulls Rosie up and out of the road.

    Tears fill Rosie’s big brown eyes when she sees Granny’s muffins scattered all over the road.      

    "Granny’s m-muffins," she sobs.

    "Here, I'll get them for you. Look! They're fine," Jay Wolf says dusting them off and dropping the still-warm muffins back into the basket. He carefully tucks the red and white checkered napkin around them.

    "Where are you taking these delicious smelling muffins?" he asks.

    Rosie looks at Jay Wolf and remembers her mother's warning.

    "I'm n-not allowed to talk to strangers," she says, sniffling and backing away from Jay Wolf.

    “Oh, I’m not a stranger,” he laughs smoothly. “I just moved here. I’m one of your neighbors. You live in that old log cabin, right?”

    Rosie nods as she continues backing up. He does know where I live, she thinks.

    "If I wanted to hurt you, I wouldn’t have helped you.” Jay Wolf purrs.

    Rosie stops. Why, he's right, she thinks! He’s probably not a stranger! She wipes the tears off her cheeks and smiles at Jay Wolf.

Is Jay Wolf a stranger to Rosie? What do you think will happen next? Do you have an idea for a title?