Page 43 of Hound Dog
“They’re…” his eyes shifted briefly to Enzo whose lips were pursed. “Okay, fair. I hateregularhotdogs. But I like turkey dogs. And veggie dogs. Eventually, I want to try to make them fancier. Have special toppings that change out like aDog of the Day.”
Impossibly, her eyes narrowed more as she repeated me. “Dog of the Day?”
“Like… tomorrow. I plan on selling the Completo. It’s a Chilean hotdog and traditionally comes with tomatoes, guacamole, onions, and mayonnaise.”
Enzo’s gaze narrowed at Finn. “You plan on selling thattomorrow?”
“Yep,” Finn said quickly. “And I’ll admit, hotdogs aren’t exactly my life’s passion, but I wanted a business of my own with a lot of freedom. I didn’t want to be tied to a kitchen at three in the morning like Liam and Neil. And with hotdogs, prep is easy. And there’s a hole in the market here in Maple Grove.” He paused to take a long sip of his beer. “There’s not a single hotdog vendor or restaurant that even serves a hotdog here in town. Can you believe it?”
Addy’s gaze softened. “Huh,” she said. “I thought for sure you had something up your sleeve. Especially when my friend said he saw you at the beach with a random woman… and you only sold one hotdog in the time he was there.” Slowly, she turned her attention to me. “You know anything about that?”
I gulped.
Shit.
Lie. Come up with a lie, Haylee, fast!
“Aunt Meryl,” I squeaked.
“Meryl?” Addy repeated, seeming confused.
Oh my God, why was I such a spaz?
“My Aunt Meryl and I, um, are trying to find homes for a bunch of her dogs…”
I faded off, desperately looking to Finn for help.Where the hell was I going with this?
“And I had a friend who’s been wanting to adopt,” Finn said. “So, Haylee met me at the beach with one of her dogs so she could meet my friend.”
“Sarah,” I added quickly. “That’s the friend’s name. Not my aunt’s dog. The dog’s name is Yipper. Well,was. I don’t know if Sarah’s going to keep his name or not…”
Why, oh why did I ramble like a crazy person when I was nervous? If cleaning wasn’t an option, then I ran my mouth like I had Tourette’s.
Unfortunately, Addy looked more confused than ever. “And how did that result in you helping him behind the hotdog stand? Adam said you guys were there for over an hour.”
God, Finn wasn’t joking when he said the gossip chain in this town was strong.
“I was so helpful in finding Yipper his new home, that Haylee asked me to help her rehome some of the other dogs. I agreed… in exchange for her help getting the hotdog cart started.” He paused, turning to stare at me from across the table. “Isn’t that right, Haylee?”
Wow. The lie rolled right off his tongue. It was seriously unnerving.
Addy blinked her jade eyes, so similar to Finn’s, in my direction.
I gave a tight nod. “That’s right.”
“Hold on,” Enzo chimed in with a wild hand gesture, nearly tipping over her wine glass in the process. Thank God for Finn’s lightning-fast reflexes as he caught the stem just before it went down.
Enzo barely registered the near-spill, making me wonder just how many of those glasses of wine she’d had. “Don’t you have a job or something?” she asked. “What do you do that allows you to come here to Maple Grove and just help out a stupid hotdog stand?” Enzo paused, turning to Finn briefly, “No offense.”
Not missing a beat, Finn said, “None taken.”
“I’m a voice teacher,” I said. “So, my schedule is flexible. But I won’t be able to helpeveryday,” I added pointedly to Finn.
“Oh,” Addy squealed. “You can sing?”
“A little,” I tried to answer modestly.
Finn snorted and shook his head. “She’s got the most beautiful voice I’ve ever heard.”
