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‘Merry Christmas. Have a good one.’ The delivery driver stuck his hand up in the air as he stepped out into the cold.
‘You too,’ Poppy said automatically before turning to the package in front of her on the counter. She glanced around the reception area. She could hear Alex and Susan chatting and laughing in the kitchen behind her. Looking at the address label, she frowned. It was addressed to her, and she was certain it was Ben’s handwriting; the Ps had that backward swoop of the tail he always used when writing her name.
She picked it up and shook it gently, holding it to her ear. Had he sent her a Christmas present? They’d never really bothered with presents. Of course, they’d bought for family and close friends, or she had bought them, to be precise, but early on in their relationship they’d agreed that there wasn’t any point buying each other extravagant gifts when neither one of them was really bothered with Christmas. Over the years, even buying each other a little token gift or two had fizzled out.
Why would he have bought her something this year? And gone to the trouble of sending it to her down here, no less?
She looked down as Dougal nudged her with his nose. Dougal had looked so sad when she’d walked by his kennel this morning that she’d let him join her in the reception area. Most of the other dogs were either exercising or training, with the exception of Eden, whom Flora had taken to meet the Smiths, who were interested in adopting her.
‘What do you think he’s got me, hey, Dougal? It’s too big to be perfume and he would have never known which one to buy anyway. Too hard to be clothes…’
She was being daft. Why would he start buying her presents now? When they had separated? If it wasn’t for the fact he’d basically told her he had fallen in love with Davina, there might have been a small part of her that believed he had sent this to try to win her back. And there might have been a tiny, even tinier than tiny, part of her that may have welcomed it.
She shook her head and tore the brown parcel paper open, frowning as she was met with another layer of slightly darker parcel paper. After tearing that open, too and throwing it down on the counter, she sat back on the stool, snorting at herself.
‘What an idiot I am, hey, Dougal? Thinking for even a second that Ben had sent me a present.’ She picked up the parcel again and opened the lid of the box inside. Yep, just as she’d thought, the awful ornament she’d chosen and paid for to give to Ben’s mum for Christmas from the both of them. After having it delivered, Ben had just wrapped it back up and sent it on to her without looking inside or wondering for one moment what it had been.
Closing the lid again, she shoved the whole box in the bin before scrunching up the parcel paper and chucking that in too. She sank to the floor and held her arms out as Dougal bounded towards her.
Wrapping him into a hug, she sank her nose into the top of his head and breathed in his warm, comforting dog smell.
‘What would I have actually done if he had sent me a present? I know we’re not good for each other and one measly present wouldn’t have changed that fact.’
Closing her eyes, she leaned against the wall as Dougal laid his head on her lap. She knew why she was feeling the way she was, and it had nothing to do with Ben and the parcel.
It was to do with Mack. Yesterday’s conversation had not only confused her further, but cemented how she felt about him. She couldn’t help herself. She’d tried so hard to squash any feelings, but she couldn’t. The reason for why he wouldn’t give away any medication, or his expertise, for free didn’t annoy or anger her; it made her like him. Value him even more. He was a good guy, and he had a good reason to be wary of his finances – he didn’t want to put his brothers back in the situation they’d been in before. He’d worked so hard to build a life, a home for Gus and Spencer, that now he wasn’t going to do a thing to jeopardise it.
She shifted her leg and fussed Dougal to settle him. Yes, he could more than likely afford to give his time for free, to see the dogs in their care without charging, but he’d been so close to losing everything that it made sense that he’d be scared to go back there. Petrified. Especially with his dad trying to muscle his way into their lives once again.
And as much as she wanted to hate him for the choices he’d made, for making life harder for Wagging Tails, she couldn’t.
The loudbrring-brringof the landline phone filled the office and Dougal immediately jumped up, searching for the location of the offending sound.
‘Come on, we’d best find that.’ Poppy pulled herself to standing and rummaged beneath the papers before pulling the phone out. ‘Hi, Wagging Tails Dogs’ Home. How can I help you today?’
‘Poppy, lovely, it’s me, Flora. I’m in a spot of bother and hoping you can help.’
* * *
‘There they are.’ Spotting the Wagging Tails’ van at the side of the road, Poppy indicated and pulled onto the grass verge. She clicked on the hazard lights and glanced behind her at Dougal, reaching back to check he was still secured to the seat belt. ‘You be a good boy and wait here a moment.’
Stepping outside, Poppy quickly buttoned up her coat before running towards Flora.
‘Thank you so much, lovely. Did you bring the jump leads?’
‘Yes, they were already in the boot, I checked.’
‘Good, good. I thought they might be.’ Flora unlocked the bonnet on the van before pulling it open.
Poppy peered at the engine. ‘What happened? Did it just stop?’
‘Pretty much. I slowed to let a car out at the corner, stalled the thing, and now it won’t start.’ Flora walked around to the boot of her car and took out the jump leads.
‘How do you know it’s the battery? It could be anything. Should we ring the breakdown service, so we’re put on the waiting list at least? If the jump leads work, we can always ring and tell them we don’t need their help.’
Poppy watched as Flora attached the leads to the battery in the van.
‘I’m pretty sure it’s the battery. It’s been on the blink for the last couple of weeks now.’ Flora nodded towards her car. ‘Can you just pop the bonnet please?’
