Page 11 of Daddy's Little Matchmaker

Connor read his fortune aloud. “An exciting business opportunity lies ahead of you.”

Tessica laughed. “I promise I didn’t rig it, but it sounds like the fates have aligned in my favor.” She popped the rest of his cookie into her mouth and eagerly cracked open hers. She read it and scoffed. “Well that proves that it’s not rigged. Mine says, ‘You will be happy with your spouse.’ I’m pretty sure my divorce proves that one wrong.”

“Or, they could be talking about a future spouse,” Connor suggested.

Tessica scoffed again. “Not likely at my age.” She tossed her fortune in the trash, and changed the subject. “I should go check on the animals once more before I go home. Did you want to stay here for a while? Look through things?”

“I’ll follow you down.” He put on his coat.

“You sure?”

He shook his head and said softly, “I know I should go through her things, but… I don’t think I’m ready. Erin and Hannah will finish sorting tomorrow. They’ll make sure everyone receives the items Mom wanted them to have.”

Tessica picked up the takeout boxes, and put a hand on Connor’s shoulder. “It’s okay if you’re not ready. No one thinks less of you for it.”

“Thanks.” His voice was husky with emotion. He broke eye contact, turned off the kitchen light, and headed toward the stairs.

She followed him down, wishing there was more she could say or do to help.

CHAPTER FOUR

A couple of days later, Tessica scowled at the instructions in her hand and then glared at the three shelves on the floor in frustration. “How am I supposed to know which one is shelf A?” she muttered, leaning against the front counter at the animal shelter with a sigh. When she’d bought the shelves online, she didn’t realize they’d arrive in a box.

While she was reading the instructions once more, Fiona’s substitute vet, Gwen, came out from the exam area carrying Butch.

Tessica glanced up at her friend as she locked Butch back in his cage and held the paper out for Gwen to see. “These instructions don’t make any sense.”

“I told you to give Paul a call. He’d be more than happy to put the shelves up for you.”

“Paul is one of my clients. I’m not going to call him to put together a shelving unit like some helpless female. That doesn’t instill confidence.”

Gwen scoffed and walked over to her. “Don’t be ridiculous. Paul is more than just a client. Us kinksters have to stick together. Hell, the only reason I got this job is because you introduced me to Fiona. Besides, doing the books and puttingtogether a shelf are two very different skill sets. He’s not going to be like, ‘Oh, she can’t put together a shelf? Better not have her do my finances.’”

Tessica sighed. “I suppose you’re right, but I’m still not calling him. I’ll call my son, Aiden, and see if he can come help tonight.”

“Tonight? Aren’t you coming to the club tonight?” Gwen asked with a frown. “I mean, I understand why you missed a couple of weeks when Fiona passed. I missed a week, too. But I…” Gwen’s voice grew soft. “Well, I missed you.”

Tessica’s mothering instincts took over, and she walked over to give Gwen’s shoulder a light squeeze. “That’s very sweet of you to say. I forgot it was Thursday. I do plan to be at the club tonight. I’ll see if Aiden can come over tomorrow.”

“Okay, thanks.” Gwen gave her a quick hug.

Tessica patted Gwen’s back, let go, and redirected the conversation. “How was Butch’s checkup?”

“He’s a sourpuss, but other than that, he’s got a clean bill of health.”

“A sourpuss?” Tessica chuckled.

Gwen nodded. “He had his ears back the whole time, and he even hissed at me when I took him out of his cage.”

“Yeah, he is a bit hissy, but he hasn’t bitten or scratched anyone yet. Thanks for checking on him. I appreciate all the extra time you’ve put in these past couple of weeks.”

“I’m happy to do it. It helps me not feel so sad about Fiona.”

“Yeah, I get that,” Tessica agreed. “Working helps me not feel as sad, too.”

“You’ve been putting in a lot of extra hours. Just make sure you don’t overdo it.” Gwen smirked. “Or I’ll tell Paul you’re working too much.”

Tessica smiled and shook her head. “I doubt tattling will end well for you.”

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