Page 14 of All It Takes

“He looked really sweet when he came in,” she commented.

“What’s up, Bowtie?” I asked the corgi who had been the picture of joy and cheer when he came into the waiting area a mere fifteen minutes ago. His eyes were wide, and he looked furious.

The owner was crying. She looked up at me, sobbing, “He gets so upset about getting his nails trimmed.”

“Oh, are we breaking your heart?” I asked as I approached Bowtie, aptly named by the white marking on the back of his neck shaped like a bow tie.

I looked over at his owner, who blew her nose in a tissue. “We are in the process of hiring a vet tech,” I shared.

Alice arched one brow. “I don’t know how much that’s going to help with this guy. His legs are so short there’s nothing to get ahold of, and his body is a tube. He’s all muscle.” She looked over at the owner, offering helpfully, “I’m so glad he’s in good shape.”

The woman snorted at that.

Alice was sitting on the floor with Bowtie and scratched behind his ears. “If it’s okay with you, we can give him something for his anxiety. This is anxiety-based aggression. It’s really stressing him out. We can give him medication and let him chill out with you, then try to cut his nails in a bit.”

The owner nodded vigorously. “I’m on board!”

“There are other ways to go about this, but his anxiety is so severe, I don’t want to make it worse. My prediction would be if he comes for vet appointments a few times with some anxiety assistance, his fear will resolve because the experience will be good instead of terrifying.”

The owner waited with Bowtie in the exam room after he took the medication, and Alice and I walked out front together. I smiled over at her. “You’re good.”

She laughed under her breath. “Bowtie doesn’t want his nails clipped. It’s scary. We can do some behavioral strategies and training later, but first, we need to get him not to be terrified. What’s the rest of my day look like?” Pausing beside my desk, she added, “I need a pen.”

She opened the desk drawer before my brain caught up. The list I had folded up was sitting on top, and the motion of her opening the drawer caused it to unfold. I stayed quiet, my pulse racing a little as I prayed Alice didn’t notice it. She snagged a pen and went to close the drawer. I let out a silent sigh of relief.

My luck ran out because the paper unfolded even more and was caught in the edge of the drawer. It fell on the floor. Alice leaned down, picking it up. “What’s this?” she asked curiously as she looked down.

Heat crawled up my neck and into my cheeks. “Nothing,” I said a little too brightly.

She looked from the list to me, her lips curling in a sly smile. “Are we kissing Wes now?” She handed me the list.

“Not anymore,” I said firmly as I folded the list twice.

“I like Wes,” she stated. “He was so nice at the shelter. He’s on the same crew as Chase and Jonah at work. They both say he’s great.”

“Oh right,” I said all casually as if I wasn’t trying to surreptitiously absorb every nugget of information I could about this man.

I crossed over to the shredder and dropped the list in, immediately hitting the button and listening to the quick vroom of the machine. My list was shredded into tiny scraps. Good riddance. Maybe the universe was telling me to let go of my love of lists.

“You don’t have any more appointments today.” I crossed my arms and lifted my eyes to the clock. “In fact, now that you’ve given Bowtie anxiety medication, you’ll end up being late, and Jonah will wonder where you are.”

Alice gave me a sideways look, just as her dog, the very dog she found at the shelter where I’d encountered Wes for the first time since high school, sidled closer to her. She leaned over to stroke her palm down Honey’s back as she glanced back up at me. “Jonah is working out at the station. He doesn’t usually keep tabs on my schedule,” she said pointedly. “I told him I’d pick up a pizza. Why don’t you go with me? I’ll bring some home for him, and you can tell me why you’re kissing Wes and refuse to date anyone.”

ChapterThirteen

TIFFANY

Alice was quiet for the first few minutes while we ate. We were dining at Alpenglow Pizza, a newer place in Willow Brook that had quickly become popular for its woodfired pizza. They had some fancier options, but I often defaulted to the basics. I’d needed stress relief, so I ordered double pepperoni with extra cheese.

After I finished a slice, Alice took a sip of water and cocked her head to the side as she studied me. “Okay, explain.” She circled her hand in the air.

“There’s nothing to explain,” I said quickly. “I kissed Wes, but it was totally a mistake. Just like my list said, it won’t happen again. We have to focus on Ross.”

“Obviously, Ross is a priority, but kissing Wes doesn’t change that. Also, that’s not all I’m asking about, and you know it. We’ve gotten close since you started working for me. You areallabout making sure everybody else finds love and all that.”

“Hey, I only made sure you did. Plus, you and Jonah are perfect for each other,” I pointed out.

Alice narrowed her eyes, taking none of my bullshit. “Ha! As soon as you get a chance to set someone else up or decide they’re dating the right person, you’ll be all over that shit. You are as bad as Bea.” She was referring to Jonah’s grandmother, a seriously nosy busybody, and an unabashed matchmaker.

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