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I frowned. “Aren’t turtles supposed to be inactive?”

“Better safe than sorry, dear,” Milly said with a smile.

Wow. One mention of a British vet and they’d all lost their minds. I hadn’t seen them this excited since movie star Justin Miller moved back to Old Pine Cove.

Thankfully, Alex took his spot at the front to start the class before anyone could come up with another ridiculous reason to make an appointment at the vet clinic.

The chatting died down, and everyone got lost in their yoga flow. The hour-long session flew by.

Still relaxed thanks to that amazing post-Shavasana bliss, I took my time to gather my things and roll up my yoga mat.

I swung my bag over my shoulder and put a sweater on before heading outside. Even though it was summer, the nights hadn’t been particularly warm.

As I opened the doors of the community center, I spotted Justin Miller at the top of the stairs, waiting for his wife, Addy. She was one lucky lady to have landed a handsome movie star as her husband. Justin stopped by Sip’nBean a couple of times a week, and even though I didn’t really know him that well, he always asked me how I was doing and if my side business was going well. It was nice to have people care.

“Hey Olive,” he said, the dimples in his cheeks deepening with his smile. “Let me guess, Addy is still in there chatting with Suzie?”

I laughed. “As always.”

“They’re on the phone with each other every day, and they still have so much to talk about. It’s unbelievable. Still, it’s good that Addy has a best friend like Suzie,” he said with a warm smile. Every time he talked about his wife, his eyes lit up. It was adorable.

“Looks like they’re here now,” I said, motioning my head toward the doorway of the community center where Suzie, Alex, and Addy had appeared.

“Great. Well, enjoy the rest of your night,” he said.

“Thanks, I will.”

I walked away, breathing in the evening air. There would be no one picking me up from yoga or waiting at home for me. Ever since moving into my own place, I had become lonelier every day. Seeing other people all loved up sure didn’t help with wrangling those feelings of loneliness to the ground. I knew it was silly, though. I was still young and had plenty of time to meet the right person, but somewhere deep down inside of me lingered a feeling of dread. What if Mister Right never came along? I’d have to eat alone for the rest of my life. Not to mention die alone, probably surrounded by a slew of pets who wouldn’t think twice about eating my lifeless body.

I took a couple of deep breaths. I needed to snap out of it already. Self-pity wasn’t going to help me attract some nice guy into my life. What I needed was a positive mindset. I promised myself that I would change things for the better.

I stopped in front of my apartment building at Rainbow Lane and fished my keys out of my bag.

The building was old but housed some beautifully renovated apartments. None of them were mine, unfortunately. The only one in my price range was a studio that looked as if it had been pasted to the building as an afterthought. It had one window and a small balcony, just big enough to fit two chairs.

Inside, I flicked the lights on, threw my keys in a bowl by the door, and kicked my shoes off. The mail I had plucked out of the mailbox didn’t look promising, but there was no point in postponing the inevitable.

I settled myself on the couch and ripped all the envelopes open. One of them contained a coupon book, which I gratefully leafed through before stuffing it in my purse. All the other ones were bills, bills, bills. I groaned as I tallied up the numbers. Two hundred bucks for basic needs like utilities and that wasn’t even including the three hundred dollars I owed Gene for my latest car repair.

I took a deep breath. I wasn’t going to sit and wallow. All I needed was a plan. Maybe I could ask for extra shifts at the coffee shop after all. Plus, I could finally tell Mrs. Hudson I actually charged ten dollars for half an hour of dog walking, not five. Then again, could I really? She had told me once how small her retirement checks were, and I didn’t want to be the one to put her in a bad financial situation.

My phone rang, filling the quiet room with the tones ofMe and You and a Dog Named Boo. I picked it up from the coffee table and swiped to answer. “Olive speaking.”

“Hello, I’m sorry to call this late, but I wanted to enquire about your dog walking services,” a guy said in a British accent.

“Lewis?” I asked. “Is that you?”

Apart from him, there was no one in town who had that accent or could pull it off so well.

There was a beat of silence. “Yes, this is Lewis. Are you a psychic as well as a dog walker?”

His question made me laugh. “I thought you didn’t believe in those kinds of things. Didn’t you say tarot card readings were a real money scheme?”

Silence again. Then he said in a cautious tone, “Is this the same Olive who works at that coffee place?”

Ha, he had put the pieces together all on his own. “The one and only.”

He groaned. “Let me guess. You don’t only walk dogs, but also read their cards, which means I completely offended you this afternoon?”