Page 32 of The Problem with Dating

“I’m not buying that.”

“You don’t have to buy it. It’s a gift.”

“I didn’t ask for a water dish.”

“Right, of course not.” I smiled. He didn’t.Figures.“It’s just something I do for each business. I don’t know if you know this, but Honey Creek is a very dog-friendly town—and Walter-friendly.”

“Who’s Walter?”

“Walter is the community cat that wanders,” I explained, pointing toward the orange cat a few stops down drinking from the ice cream shop’s water dish. “So I hand craft each store a unique bowl to help keep the pups hydrated on their daily walks.”

He grumbled and crossed his arms over his apron covered in flour. I wondered if that was a Mary Sue flour mess or one of his own. “I’m not paying you for that.”

I arched an eyebrow. “I already told you it’s free. Just a nice ‘welcome to Main Street’ gift.”

“I don’t want your gift. Get rid of it,” he shot out, his eyes seeming colder than the previous few unpleasant times we’d crossed paths. His grumpiness meter was at an all-time high that morning.

“It’s free,” I stated again. “It doesn’t hurt anyone.”

“It hurts my business, and I don’t want it here.”

“Why are you being a jerk about it? It’s just a water dish!”

“One I didn’t request. Now, remove it or I will.”

I crossed my arms over my chest and stood tall. Even with me standing as tall as possible, I still appeared so small next to his broad frame. “No. It won’t even bother you.”

“I can assure you that seeing dogs slobber and slurp up water from outside my restaurant will bother me.”

I rolled my eyes. “You’re being dramatic.”

“And you’re being rude. I didn’t ask for this, so remove it before I do it myself.”

“Rude?!” I blurted out, stunned by his word choice. My hands flew to my chest. “I am the opposite of rude. I get along with everyone. People like me.”

“Not everyone,” he uttered, his words dripping with annoyance. “I don’t like you.”

My breath caught in my throat as I looked at him, bewildered by his statement. “You don’t even know me!”

“I know you let your dog crap wherever it pleases, and that you try to leave water bowls around even when people don’t want them. Don’t push your dog obsession onto me, Goldie.”

“Goldie.”

“Like those annoying golden retriever dogs. That’s you, Goldie.”

“Did you just mean-nickname me?”

“I did, Goldie.”

“Don’t call me Goldie!”

“I can and I will.”

What was wrong with this creature? “Why are you so mean?”

“Because I can be.”

“Just because you can be mean doesn’t mean you should. You could be nice, you know. That’s an option.”

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