Page 47 of Not Mine to Rescue

“I’ve got this.” My tone brooked no argument. Even if I was lying my ass off about everything else in my life, my work wasn’t suffering. I could handle it.

Because what else did I have?

Molly was super-excited to meet me. Lemon struggled to keep a hold of her as I got out of my car. That led to tension in the leash and Molly did her best Houdini impression. Putting her head level with her shoulders, which had dipped below her spine, and barely a second later, I was attacked by one sneaky and utterly free collie.

“Oh shit. I’m so sorry. Molly, hold still so I can get your collar back on.” Lemon struggled to untangle the canvas and buckles.

“Don’t feel bad. I gave up on her months ago. She even slips out of the most expensive harnesses. You know, the ones they say are escape-proof? I nearly filed a claim against them for false advertising.”

Lemon laughed. “Collies are masters of escape. With the shape of their head and their intelligence, it’s really difficult. I’ll work on that with her so she won’t do it again.”

I scratched Molly behind the ears as we got the collar settled in place. “You can’t be trained, can you? It’s us who need it.” Hugging her filled up the emptiness eating me from the inside. Molly licked my face, sensing my mood.

“Bad day?” Lemon noted the extra-long fur therapy.

“Horrible. But getting better every second now.”

She smiled. “Good. I have to get back inside. They dropped off a raccoon with a concussion.”

“A what?”

She made a face. “Apparently, he was sleeping in a loose piece air-conditioning duct for warmth, and the construction crew shook him loose. Doing so, they dropped him off a two-story building. They brought him in an hour ago.”

“Poor thing.”

“At least it’s not spring yet. Then we get the overflow from other rescues. It literally spikes up to taking care of ninety infants at once then.”

Her words froze my insides. “Infants?”

“You know, fawns, rabbits, raccoons, fledglings, and oh my god the squirrels. Last year we handled seventy.”

“How?” I couldn’t even wrap my head around a baby human, let alone seventy baby squirrels? Lemon was a saint.

“I get help from the prospects. Wombat makes them do part of their initiation here. That’s good, but if I had time, I’d file to become a non-profit and then get funding for this so I could hire people rather than always relying on the club for everything.”

She abruptly changed topic.

“Are you two fighting?”

I struggled to keep my voice controlled. “Of course not.”

“Oh, good. The last thing I need is—” Another change of topic. “Molly was great today. She’s loving the crisp weather and she’s not shedding as badly.”

“What’s wrong?”

Her face went paler than usual. “Nothing.”

I studied her. There was something, I could tell. “You mentioned becoming a non-profit. Would you keep the dog grooming and boarding business?” Please say yes. I didn’t want to lose this place.

“I don’t know.”

My stomach twisted. Molly was adjusting so well here and was evidently happy. “May I ask, why are you considering that step?”

Her shoulders fell. “Cinnamon and Reba went off the full-time roster.”

Given what I knew about her business, that was a huge financial hit. “You’re still boarding Sweet-ums and Izzy, right?”

Her acknowledgment was weak. “People are downsizing. Reba’s mom lost her job, and Cinnamon’s family is relocating closer to the train service so they can commute easier. They’re moving at the end of spring once they find a house.”