Page 4 of In for a Treat

Okay, now he was just twisting his knife as hard as he could. I placed his order on the counter and straightened my shoulders. “It’s not a money scheme. Tarot readings can be extremely valuable.”

Lewis picked up his coffee cup and shrugged. “Valuable for the person offering them, that’s for sure. You just tell people what they want to hear and take their money.”

The nerve of this guy! Tarot readings were not easy to perform, especially when your clients’ only ways of communicating verbally were barking or whining. It took real skill and patience to decipher their thoughts.

“Don’t judge something before you try it,” I said. “Like handing out tips.” I smiled at him, so I didn’t look completely desperate, begging for his money.

He let out a laugh and produced a dollar bill from his pocket. “You’re right, I keep forgetting to tip. I’m not from around here, as you can probably tell.”

I smiled at him. “Yeah, your accent gave you away. What brings you to Old Pine Cove, Lewis? Apart from dissing a wonderful service performed by one of Old Pine Cove’s favorite people.”

Okay, I might’ve been laying it on way too thick, but I wanted him to know his remarks had hurt me. As I couldn’t jeopardize my job by getting full-on angry at him, the only road to take here was the passive-aggressive one.

He held his hands up. “Look, I’m sure this person reading tarot cards for dogs is wonderful. In fact, if she comes to me with a problem, I promise I won’t talk badly about the unusual services she offers. Everyone is entitled to their own likes and dislikes.”

It sounded more like Lewis was the one offering unusual services. I frowned. “Why would she come to you with a problem?”

He broke out in a smile, showing his perfect teeth. “I’m the vet who’s taking over the practice on Pinewood Lane.”

Huh. Lewis, the tarot-card-hating hunk, was Old Pine Cove’s new vet. I snickered as I thought back to what Melissa had said earlier about him having glasses or not. He wasn’t wearing a pair, but I did spot a black frame casually dangling from the hem of his shirt’s neckline. I could just imagine him with those glasses on, gently examining someone’s fur baby with those big hands of his. Melissa could say what she wanted, but glasses on this guy would only add to his sexiness level.

“What’s so funny?” he asked, his green eyes full of curiousness.

I rearranged a basket of sugar packets that didn’t need rearranging at all. “Let’s say your arrival has already been discussed by the lovely townspeople here.”

He pulled a face. “Should I be worried?”

“That depends,” I said with a wink. “People here are nice, but rub them the wrong way and… Well, I guess that’s for you to find out.”

He ran a hand through his wavy hair, an expression of uncertainty on his face. “Do you always make customers nervous like this, or is it just me?”

I put my hands palms up and shrugged. “There’s only one way to find out. If you come back tomorrow, you can put your theory to the test.”

“That sounds good. I have a coffee addiction to feed, and I’d love for you to be my dealer,” he said with a grin. “Anyway, I’ve got to run.”

I grabbed a loyalty card from the stack beside the register and waved it in his direction. “Wait. You’ll need this if you’re such an addict. Buy ten coffees, get one free. You know, the usual tricks us dealers use to get you to spend more money and become even more addicted.”

Lewis slid the card in his back pocket. His eyes zoomed in on my chest, and it took me a couple of seconds to realize he wasn’t staring at my boobs, but instead reading my name tag. “Thanks, Olive. I’ll see you around. Oh, and if you ever need a vet, the first consultation is on me. You know, dealers and their tricks.”

The bells at the door jingled as he closed it behind his perfect butt, and I let out a long breath to try and steady my racing heart. For a moment, I considered calling my boss to ask for extra shifts so that I could see Lewis’s face every day, but that would’ve been ridiculous. I didn’t know the guy at all and couldn’t completely overhaul my work-life balance for him just because he was cute and charming.

The rest of the day went by fast. I couldn’t help myself from grinning every time I thought of Lewis and how he wanted me to be his coffee dealer. It was one of the most exciting things to have happened to me over the last few weeks.

I wondered how I could take him up on his offer of a free consultation. I didn’t have any pets of my own. My sweet dog, Tickles, had died last year, and I hadn’t gotten the courage to adopt a new one. Every time I thought about stopping at the shelter, it felt as if I wanted to replace Tickles, and Tickles couldn’t be replaced, ever. I missed her so much.

I blinked away the tears that were threatening to roll down and tried to focus on Lewis again. Maybe I could borrow one of my clients’ dogs for a free checkup. Or buy a goldfish. They were cheap and low maintenance, but that didn’t mean they never got sick, did it?

Right before closing time, Melissa pranced inside. Seeing her twice in one day would’ve normally irked me to no end, but the memory of Lewis’s smile toned down my annoyance with her.

“Hey, Olive, don’t mind me. I’m just delivering a bunch of flyers.”

I stopped sweeping the floor and leaned my hand on the top of my broom. “Flyers? For your dog walking business?”

“That’s riiiight,” she said in a sing-song voice as if she were the lead in a Disney movie.

“You should ask Paulette for permission first,” I said.

Melissa smiled at me with faux friendliness. “I already spoke with your boss. She was delighted and hopes my business becomes a big success.”

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