Page 88 of Hound Dog
With a roll of her eyes, Enzo shoved my shoulder. “Yourfamily will be cool and supportive. But my parents? All I’ll hear about is what a waste this is of my God-given talents. How the site itself is blasphemy.”
I slipped my arm around her shoulders and hugged my best friend. “I’m sorry. But how long do you really think we can keepthisup?”
“Are you telling me I bought you a damn hotdog cart and got a kiosk permit for onlytwo weeksof a ruse?” Enzo said, her voice growing louder.
“Shhhhh. Not so loud,” I hushed her. “Honestly, I think the hotdog stand is a good cover in general. Even if our families know and it gets out we have this business, we still kind of need a cover for me so that the people our clients are hitting on don’t immediately recognize us as the matchmaking service. It wasn’t for nothing. And if I’m being honest, selling hotdogs is a good living. Overhead is low. The work is easy. And at least for the summer tourist season, it’s really profitable.”
And with Haylee helping, it was a hell of a lot of fun.
But Haylee would only be here for a few more weeks.
And her boyfriend was coming this weekend.
Fuck me.
Haylee hooked her arm into Enzo’s. “Simon is cute, isn’t he?”
The hairs on the back of my neck stood up.She thought Simon was cute?
“He was good-looking, but that’s not the point—” Enzo squeezed her eyes shut in frustration.
“And he’s into D&D?” Haylee interrupted her. “We didn’t even know that until you two started talking.”
Enzo reopened her eyes and stared at Haylee an extra-long moment. “If there’s one thing I learned about you today, it’s that you’re a good liar. And I don’t love it.”
Haylee tilted her head. “Iswear, this wasn’t some intricate setup. We were having trouble finding Simon a girl he liked.”
Enzo rolled her eyes. “Great. So, he’s some troll that no girl is into but me?”
“No,” I clarified, jumping in. “Total opposite. Tons of girls were interested in him. He always found a reason not to ask for their number… untilyou.”
Then, the craziest fucking thing happened. Enzo blushed. Never in all the years I’d known that girl had I ever seen her blush… anddefinitelynot over some guy.
“Youdidgive him your number, right?” Haylee pressed.
Enzo smiled shyly and pushed her hair behind her ear. “I did. We’re going out tonight for sushi.”
“Yes!” I threw my hands to the heavens. “Thank God. I thought I’d never get that guy a girl.”
Haylee kicked my shin from behind the hotdog cart, and Enzo’s smile shifted momentarily back to a scowl, angled right at me.
Redirecting Enzo’s focus, Haylee stretched her neck, searching for Simon. “Where’d Simon and Princess go, anyway?”
“He went into Lex’s for an iced coffee and to get Princess a water. Abottledwater because she wouldn’t drink from the bowl of tap water that the ice cream place put out for dogs.”
I rolled my eyes. “Wow. That Princess name is well-deserved, huh?”
Enzo’s smile grew even wider. “He’s really cute with her.”
Haylee wiped down the hotdog cart with a rag, smiling back at Enzo. “He is. I think he’s going to adopt her. Maybe you should adopt one of Aunt Meryl’s dogs, too. Then you guys could have doggie playdates.”
Enzo grabbed the tongs and snapped them in Haylee’s face playfully. “Don't press your luck, lady.” Then, she flipped open the bin and pinched a hotdog, slipping it into a bun.
“What are you going to wear tonight?” Haylee asked.
With a snort, I grabbed my messenger bag from behind the cart. “If you two are going to commence with girl talk, I’m going to go to Lex’s and check on Simon. Are you okay to handle the cart?”
Haylee dropped her cheek to her shoulder. “I think I can handle selling the last few hotdogs. Just be back in twenty minutes to help me clean and pack up.”
