AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I take a look at Harry, blissfully snoozing on a full stomach of too much dairy and too much sugar, and wonder when it’s going to come back up. Because it always does.
I want to kill her.
“Jewel. Adult cats are not supposed to have dairy, and certainly not sugar.”
She scratches her head. “But Livvy, it was a win-win. Harry got a treat, and I didn’t have to clean up,” she says cheerfully.
Good God.
I go back to my storage closet-as-an-office before I say something I’ll regret. I’m already in enough of a tizzy, remembering I have a date tonight with my brother-in-law’s creepy coworker, the nose picker. What the hell was I thinking when I said yes?
Actually, I know what I was thinking. Get my sister off my back. Saying yes was my only option. And now I’m dreading it so badly my stomach is in knots. I’ve got to get out of it.
But how?
I spy the exacto knife we use for opening shipments. I could sever a finger. Or wander into the street and get hit by a cab.
Either of those would work well.
But something less bloody would be even better.
Then, the bells on the front door announce a visitor. Maybe this will take my mind off my anxiety.
If only.
“Well, hello, Bartlett. Nice to see you,” I say, extending my hand to our skinny, balding, local councilperson. The same one whose wife trash-talked me.
“How’s your little puppy?” I ask, forcing a smile.
His eyes dart around the shop, avoiding my gaze. I glance at Jewel behind him, and she raises one eyebrow.
“Well, um, we had to um, get rid of him,” he mumbles in a quiet voice.
“WHAT?”
Shit. I didn’t mean to holler.
My outburst grabs his attention, and his gaze finally meets mine. “She was, well, she was peeing all over the house. We brought her back to the breeder.”
Holy crap. I know some pet owners are more savvy than others, but this is the work of a total idiot. I am about to tell him that dogs’ bathroom habits need to be trained. But Jewel knows what I want to say and shakes her headnoin warning. She’s right to remind me to keep my mouth shut.
“Yeah. It wasn’t what the missus and I wanted. But… you know. We’ll get another dog at some point. Hopefully one smart enough not to pee all over.”
What an ass.
He claps his hands, signaling an end to the dog conversation, and I wonder why he’s here. It’s surely not to stock up on dog food.
“Saw you at the EastSide gathering the other night,” he says. “Didn’t get to say hi. Sorry ‘bout that.”
“Well, your wife did. Sort of.” I laugh.
I really need to just shut up right now. But that’s not going to happen.
“She did?”
I nod. “Yup. Overheard her talking about me in the ladies’ room. Something about someone staring at me, even though I’m nothing special.”
His eyes bulge while his complexion goes through a contortion of unhealthy-looking colors, starting with bright red, and I get the feeling he’d rather die than be here right now.
