“Low maintenance.” I came up next to Sarah, keeping my gaze away from the dogs, prolonging the inevitable decision as long as I could. “Potty-trained. Obedient. Under twenty-five pounds. And not too needy. I’m giving him a home, but we’re both going to need our own space.”
“You’ll want one of the older dogs then.” Sarah lifted the latch on the gate. “Why don’t you go inside and get to know them? You can give them a few commands to see which will be the best fit for you.”
“Can I go inside, too?” Mary Ann squealed with delight when Sarah nodded. She squeezed through the narrow gap Sarah had cracked open, then she was promptly attacked by obsessive licks from random dogs.
While the pups were diverted, I slipped inside, and went to the opposite end of the pen so I could study each dog from afar to evaluate which would be the most self-sufficient. As soon as I sat down in the corner by myself, a little brown dog with a long back trotted over, and started jumping on me.
“Down, doggy.
Down
,” I said, sternly. But the pup ignored my commands, and continued to lick my face, arms, and any spot it could get its wet tongue on. Then it stopped suddenly and started hacking.
Hagh! Hagh!
“You don’t want that one.” Sarah’s brows came together. “Definitely high maintenance. I rescued her from the pound yesterday, and I’m pretty sure she has kennel cough.” She shook her head. “It’s likely she’ll need antibiotics. Plus, I noticed flakes of skin all over her coat, which could be from malnourishment. I’ll have to take her to the vet, which I’m guessing will be a hefty bill.”
Hagh! Hagh!
The short wiener dog arched her chin forward as she coughed again, choking as if she might keel over at any second. Then she stopped abruptly, quieted, and paused as if waiting for her coughing fit to continue. When it didn’t, she shook her head, ears flapping about her. Then her dark-eyed gaze met mine and she began jumping on me with vigor, attacking me with her wet tongue.
“Sit! Sit!” I instructed, but it was no use. The dog continued to assault me with her energetic licks and she couldn’t get close enough. I leaned away, pressing my back against the metal fence, but she wiggled onto my lap and began sniffing under my arms. “Stop!”
“Come over here, Melinda!” Mary Ann called out from across the dog run. “I’ve found the perfect dog for you! He such a good boy.”
Blocking my face from the crazy hot dog invading my personal space, I turned in time to see Mary Ann point to the ground.
She circled her finger in the air. “Roll over. Now . . .
sit
.”
The pretty black dog with the shiny coat followed her commands, then sat quietly at attention waiting for the next instruction.
“Isn’t he great?” Mary Ann called out. “Come check him out.”
I fought to push to my feet, but the little brown pup—which had to be some kind of dachshund mix—pounced on me. Her obviously too-long nails scratched my arms, and when I managed to wring myself free, my sleeves had snags. “Oh, no!”
“I’ll come get her from you,” Sarah said, apparently sensing my distress.
As I heard the metal gate squeak open, I used both of my hands to hold the squirmy little dog down. But the chaotic wiener dog wiggled erratically, struggling to get free so she could no doubt find a spot of me to slobber on.
“Come here, girl.” Sarah lifted her away from me, holding the pup in the crook of her elbow, and the chaos stopped.
I fought to catch my breath now that the struggle was over, and for some reason I glanced up. A dark-brown gaze met mine, staring at me wide-eyed, with a look of longing. Then something happened. The seal around my heart cracked, slipping away like hot liquid, leaving a long forgotten spot exposed.
I reached toward her. “Wait . . .”
Sarah swiveled. With a look of confusion, she placed the wiener dog into my outstretched arms, and quietly stepped away.
“Hi, girl,” I said, holding her against me.
She whimpered with joy, scrambling up my chest with her two front paws as if she couldn’t get close enough to me. Her wet nose brushed my chin and she began licking my cheek repeatedly, her tail swooping back and forth behind her.
“What do you think?” I asked, staring into her brown eyes. With a shaky hand, I rubbed behind her ears, and she pushed her nose into my palm, finding a new licking spot. And in that one little nudge, my heart melted, and there was no more fighting it.
I knew she was mine.
****
On Wednesday morning Bernie’s Realtor, Wendy Watts, dropped in to say she had an interested buyer coming to tour the bakery and building on Friday, and my heart pretty much stopped. As Wendy rattled on about the importance of having everything in perfect order for the showing, a wave of dizziness overtook me. I gripped the counter for support.
I needed to go see my mom as soon as possible and beg for more time to complete my dad’s
Carpe Diem
list. But due to my (still unnamed) pup’s intermittent hacking, I first had to first take her to the check-up appointment I’d made at All Things Furry—the vet clinic where my roommate took her cats.
The vet had come highly recommended by Ginger’s friend, Ellen Holbrook, who also happened to be an old co-worker of mine. Although Ellen and I had both worked in the same department for years, I was practically the only woman at the company who hadn’t been invited to her wedding—or later, to her baby shower.
This was of the many reasons I groaned when Mary Ann called as I was leaving the vet’s office, and asked if she could invite Ellen to my girls’ night on Friday.
“Ellen’s baby is due any day now and she’s been cooped up in her house since she’s been on maternity leave,” Mary Ann pleaded, emphatically. “A spa night with the girls is just what she needs.”
“Spa night?” I blinked, setting my little pooch on the front passenger seat, along with the bag of expensive medications I’d had to charge on my credit card (yep, kennel cough). When I released my pooch she immediately scrambled toward the front passenger’s side window, propping herself up on her hind paws so she could press her nose against the window and study the two kids running through the parking lot.
Ruff! Ruff!
“Yeah, doesn’t a spa night sound fun?” Mary Ann’s voice bellowed enthusiasm. “You’ve had an emotional week, and I think it would be good for you.”
Apparently she thought it would be good for Ellen Holbrook, too. I was already feeling like an outsider at my first girls’ night ever. Thanks, Dad.
I sucked in a breath. “Honestly, I don’t think Ellen would want to come to a party I’m hosting.” I connected Mary Ann to my car’s speakerphone, then set my cell down so I had both hands free. “I’m pretty sure she doesn’t like me,” I said, hoping she’d tell me I was being paranoid.
Long pause. “Okay, that’s another reason I’m suggesting the spa night. It’s come to my attention that Ellen and some of the other gals find you a little intimidating.”
“Me?” I’d been backing out of the parking space and braked way too hard when she’d called me intimidating, remembering that Avery had said the exact same thing to me the other day. “What do you mean?”
“Oh, you
know
.” Her voice rang out cheerfully. “How you’re always so put together, and look like you just stepped out of a fashion magazine. Personally, I say more power to you. But apparently some people find it off-putting. Surprised me, too.”
“I appreciate your honesty.” I slammed my foot on the gas, making the car lurch forward before I sped down the street. I’d worked with some of those women at the office for over four years, and had always thought I’d done something wrong to make them not like me. But it was my appearance? I pressed my lips together. “In grade school, I was made fun of for being an ugly duckling. Now, nobody likes me because I look
too
good?”
“It’s not that they don’t like you,” she said, quickly. Then she sighed. “Don’t get mad at me for saying this, but you are kind of hard to get to know. I mean, every time I want to hang out with you I pretty much have to invite myself.”
“When have you had to . . .?” My brows came together as I thought back to when we’d gone out to dinner last weekend, to breakfast at the bakery on Monday, and then to get my (nameless) dog last night. She’d initiated each invitation. Shoot,
she’d
even called
me
just now. I shook my head, and sighed. “You’re totally right. I guess I have trouble reaching out.”
“It’s no biggie. I just think Ellen might have an easier time getting to know you in a relaxed environment like a spa night.” She lowered her voice. “It’s hard to be intimidated by someone who’s wearing a facial masque. Know what I’m saying?”
A tiny laugh escaped as I realized, ironically, how hard Mary Ann was trying to include me in the group, even though I was resisting emphatically. I slowed my car to make a right turn, realizing that somewhere along the way Mary Ann had become my friend.
My eyes blurred and I blinked back the tears. I pulled into mom’s driveway, swiping under my eyes as I came to a stop. “A spa night is a great idea and I appreciate you thinking of me. Please do invite Ellen. I . . . hope she comes.”
Mary Ann let out a whoop. “Excellent. We’re going to have a lot of fun. I’d better go now. I have a hot date with someone new.”
I laughed, because it seemed like Mary Ann only dated a guy once or twice, before she moved on to the next one. “Have fun, and don’t break his heart.”
Speaking of broken hearts, my mind immediately raced to Nate. Even though I promised myself to keep things with him on the “friends” level, something still echoed inside me that he might disappear again. But he seemed sincere in his promise, so I should try to trust him again.
Besides, I had enough on my plate right now. Convincing my mom to front my inheritance money would be no easy feat, but I had to try.
Ruff! Ruff!
My little hot dog’s tail whipped back and forth rapidly and my gaze followed hers. The front door of my mom’s house opened and my mom walked out with a younger guy with a fabulous physique. What the . . .?
That’s when I noticed the motorcycle parked ahead of me in the driveway. Nate. What in the world was he doing here?
Chapter Six
Sitting behind the wheel of my car, I stared at Nate and my mom who were deep in conversation on her tiny front porch. They didn’t seem to notice me parked in the driveway, and I wondered what they could possibly be talking about so intently. Had Nate dropped by just to say hi to her? Had he come by to see me? Although, that made no sense since I didn’t live here anymore.
Whatever the reason, Nate’s being here was problematic for two reasons. First, I needed to beg and plead that my mom advance me my inheritance, since those potential buyers were coming to the bakery on Friday, and I couldn’t very well do that with Nate (or any other witness) standing nearby. And second, Nate stood facing my mom at the front door, giving me way too good a view of his backside, which caused my belly to go up in flames.
I’m sorry, but it really should be against the law for him to wear jeans that snug. How did he expect me to stay “just friends” with him when he looked that hot? It was so
not
my fault that I wanted to slide my hands over every inch of him and feel his rippling muscles. My mind immediately flashed to our delicious kisses the other night, leaving me wanting a repeat right here, and right now. . . .
Focus, Melinda.
Focus!
I shook my head, knowing I could
not
lose Bernie’s Bakery. Customer service work would make me even more miserable now that I’d tasted what it was like to be at my dream job.
Mentally pumping myself up to convince my mom to advance the money, I got out of the car, walking my wiener dog along beside me using the leash Sarah had loaned me until I had the time to buy
—make that
charge
on my credit card—
a collar and leash of my own.
Ruff! Ruff!
My four-legged hot dog raced toward the porch, yanking so hard on the leash that her collar tightened around her neck and she started gasping. Not that this slowed her down at all. Despite what had to be a terribly uncomfortable position, she continued thrusting forward until she came close enough to jump obsessively on Nate’s pant leg.
Ruff! Ruff!
Without flinching, he stared down at my little yipper with his gorgeous jade-green eyes framed with long dark lashes—ah, I remember when I had a calmer less complicated life—then his gaze caught mine as I approached. “Hey, Melinda.” His eyes lit up. “Does this belong to you?”
“Yes, she does.” I smiled proudly, my gaze dropping to where my pooch was sniffing Nate’s boot. “Her main hobby seems to be licking whatever she can get her tongue on, though, so consider yourself warned.”
He knelt down beside my little pup, and started scratching both sides of her long neck with his fingers. “What’s her name?”
“Haven’t picked one yet.” I watched Nate get all affectionate with my dog, and his actions only ignited the flame in my belly. He really needed to stop before I started getting affectionate with
him
. “I just picked her up from a dog rescue last night.”
“Sweetheart, you finally got another dog.” My mom’s mouth spread into a wide smile, and she brought both of her hands to her chest, twisting her pearls. “That’s wonderful.”
“It’s also task number one on Dad’s
Carpe Diem
list,” I said, giving her a meaningful look. In addition to wanting to know what Nate was doing here, I really needed my mom to listen to reason regarding my inheritance. “We need to talk that list. Um, alone.”
Still rubbing his hands over my pup, Nate tilted his head up, squinting. “That a hint for me to take off?”
“Well, I—” I was in mid-sentence when the neighbor’s tabby cat, Muffy, suddenly darted across the porch, letting out a loud
Meowrr!
when she caught sight of my pup.
Apparently Muffy was more enticing to my new pooch than Nate was, because she chased the cat unexpectedly, yanking her leash out of my grip.
“Hey!” I shouted as the end of the leash followed my hyper pup, who dashed after Muffy. I watched in shock as my wiener dog disappeared down the sidewalk at full speed, her browns ears flopping up and down. “Come back, girl!”