Page 11 of My Inherited House Might be Haunted

Calix huffed out an incredulous laugh. “You’re kidding.”

“I’m totally not kidding. Dog’s sweet but filthy. Can I please, pretty please, use your tub to give him a bath?”

“Of course, man, bring him over. Tell you what, while you’re washing him, I’ll grab some supplies from the pet store next door.”

“I owe you, man, thank you so much.”

Calix was seriously the nicest guy I’d ever met. Also one of the hottest men I’d ever laid eyes on. I think he was about five years older than me? He had this kind of African shaman air to him, what with the alternative store he ran and the style he had. His black hair was always in these braids past his shoulders, with all sorts of crystals and beads woven into them. Most of his shirts showed a good section of his chest, too, and it was all mahogany skin and muscle. Honestly, he looked like a fantasy character brought to life in many ways. If I had any inkling he was interested, I would have tried flirting by now.

I looked down at the dog, which had finished yet a second bowl of water and was looking up at me expectantly.

“Under all that dirt and grime I think there’s a really handsome dog. Let’s find out, shall we?”

Five

Calix

Of course my apartment wasn’t clean when my crush needed to come over. Of course it wasn’t. It was inevitable that when a hot guy was in my vicinity, I did not have my shit together. Probably why I was still single. If I was lucky, I could handle the worst of it before he actually breached my doorway.

I told Rhett to just come up the stairs over the phone, then I threw aBe Back Soonsign on my store door, raced upstairs, and abruptly remembered I had a Brownie to deal with.

“Uh, dammit, hi. I swear I didn’t forget you, it’s just that my neighbor has a dirty dog that he’s bringing up for a quick bath and can you hide somewhere?”

Brownie gave me a thumbs-up, hopped off the couch, and dove into the nest of blankets on the window seat.

“Perfect. Sorry for this, really. As soon as he’s gone, I’ll get you better settled.”

Brownie waved from under its nest of blankets and seemed wholly unbothered. I really had to get a name and better clothes for my new friend, but one emergency at a time.

I heard a commotion at the door, raced that way, and found Rhett there with both dog and cat in tow. Not that he’d carried the cat up here, but apparently cat went where Rhett went.

I’d thought this when I’d first met the cat, but now seeing how she was shadowing Rhett, I felt it even stronger. I’d bet you anything that cat was a familiar. Why she’d chosen Rhett I did not get, as from what I could tell, Rhett wasn’t an active magic user. Although that aura of his did make me question my assumption. I was very, very curious on why the cat adopted him.

Also not sure if it was my business to poke my nose into, but curious regardless.

“Thank you so much for this.” Rhett looked fit to be tied and as if he wasn’t sure what to do next.

“No problem, no problem. Hi, puppy.” I extended a hand in greeting.

I got a tail wag in response, with the dog pushing his nose into my hand for scratches. Which I gingerly gave because he was really filthy. I’d never seen a dog this bad off. “Uh, wow, you really need a bath. Rhett, bathroom’s this way.”

“Lead on.”

I could see Rhett take a look around my apartment as he walked through. It wasn’t large, about nine hundred square feet in total, with two bedrooms and one bathroom. I used one of the rooms for my “making” room, where I crafted all my spells and specialty items. Hydroponic planters were everywhere I could make a surface, growing all sorts of herbs that I used both for the shop and myself. In between all the plants I had knickknacks, open books on witchcraft and candle spells, and bohemian style furniture with thick pillows and blankets for comfort. It was very lived-in.

I preferred the term lived-in over messy.

The bathroom, at least, was suitable for guests over. Also roomy, which was good, as this was not a small dog. I pulled out a wide tooth shampoo comb first, handing that to Rhett. “Try to get those tangles out first. I’ll run next door and grab supplies.”

“Thank you.” Rhett gave me his blinding smile that did very unfair things to my heart. “I’ll pay you back, just tell me what the total is.”

“Sure, no problem.” I’d be this man’s sugar daddy in a heartbeat but probably shouldn’t say that out loud, huh? “Be back in a jiffy.”

I sped my way out of the apartment, hitting up the pet store. We all had shops in a little strip mall, including a nail salon and local restaurant, but I’d never been in the pet store before. I’d never needed to before now.

I beelined for items as much as I could. Grabbed a bone—dog would need a treat after bath—shampoo, collar, and leash, then on a whim grabbed two bowls and some wet dog food. Poor thing looked half starved, so food was probably a good idea. I was in and out of the store in five minutes flat.

I hadn’t expected much to happen in five minutes, but once I was back in my apartment, I stalled right inside the door.

---