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It was only after I’d spoken those words out loud that I realized the other, completely wrong way they could be interpreted.

Olive burst out laughing and slapped her hand over her mouth. “Keep those balls in your pants, though, or my mother is going to kill you.”

A burst of laughter ripped through me as well, and before long, we were both in stitches. It wasn’t so much the lame joke that had me cracking up. It was more the exhilarating realization that I could still laugh like that after all that had happened to me back in England. And I had Olive to thank for that newfound freedom.

“I didn’t know hamster hotels were so funny,” someone said.

I wiped tears from my eyes with the back of my hand and turned around. A guy with the same chestnut hair and hazel eyes as Olive stood in the doorway. He looked younger than her, but they were unmistakably siblings.

“This is Benjamin, my brother,” Olive said, confirming my guess about their relationship. “Benji, this is Lewis. He took over Pine Paw Prints.”

“Ah, the vet everyone keeps talking about. Nice to meet you, dude.” He cocked his head sideways. “Is that my T-shirt you’re wearing, or do you happen to be a Foo Fighters fan as well?”

“Olive gave it to me after she smeared cake on my shirt and ruined it.”

My words elicited a slap on the arm from her. “By accident. You make it sound as if I did it on purpose.”

“That’s your word against mine. For all I know, you just couldn’t wait to get me naked.”

Her eyes grew wide, and her cheeks darkened until they were beetroot. I wasn’t known as a tease, but making Olive sweat was actually kind of fun.

Benji’s eyebrow shot up, and he alternated his gaze between the two of us. A wide grin spread across his face as if he had cracked an important code. “Okay, you two, I don’t know what’s going on here, but you’ll have to stop for a moment. Mom wants everyone in the backyard for a toast. After that… well, you can go back to shamelessly flirting.”

Olive shook her head and shot her brother a look. “We’re not flirting. Find someone else to annoy, B.”

He laughed. “Oh, little O, you forget I can see right through you. I lived with you for eighteen years, remember? I know when you’re into a guy or not.”

Benjamin walked away, leaving Olive and me alone in the hamster hotel. Through the window, I saw more and more people gathering in the backyard. “We should probably go as well before everyone thinks there’s something going on between us,” I said.

Olive nodded, still looking flustered. “Yeah, we don’t want that to happen.”

I followed her down the stairs. Right before we got to the backyard, she turned around. “Please ignore my brother. He loves getting on my nerves, and I always fall for it.”

“Don’t worry about it,” I said.

We joined the other guests in the yard, and a couple of minutes later, Colleen got on a chair, starting her toast.

I stood right behind Olive, the perfect position to study her without her noticing. She kept playing with one of the pompoms attached to her hoodie’s drawstrings. I couldn’t help but wonder if she was thinking about what had happened between us in that room. Not that something crazy happened, but I was positive she’d felt the charged air between us too. She must have.

Colleen ended her speech, and Olive turned around, showing me a heart-stopping smile. “Want to grab a drink?”

She led me to a folding table decked out with cups and a variety of beverages. I uncapped a beer bottle and took a sip.

“Don’t look now,” Olive said, “but this girl who is trying to steal my clients is walking toward us.”

Of course, I looked. I had to know who would do something like that.

The girl in question made a beeline for the table. I expected her to greet Olive, but instead, she extended her hand to me, completely ignoring Olive. “Lewis, right? I’m Melissa. We talked on the phone about your dog walking needs. You look… amazing, by the way. I love the tie. It’s truly special.”

Oh, everything clicked now. “You’re the girl offering glitter poop bags and rhinestone collars?”

“I am.” She beamed at me. “If you’re still looking for a respectable dog walker, I’d be happy to go over my packages with you. In private,” she added, shooting Olive what was definitely a fake smile.

“I admire your determination, Melissa,” I said. “But I’ve already found a dog walker.”

Her eyebrows shot up in surprise. “Let me guess – her?” She motioned her head to Olive. Then she leaned closer and whispered in my ear. “You’re new in town, so there’s no way you could’ve known, but Olive here is a bit… weird. I mean, look at her outfit. Don’t you think that costume is something a six-year-old would wear? Plus, she claims to be a tarot card reader. Are you sure you trust a hippie like that with your dog?”

Ouch, Melissa clearly wasn’t the subtle type. I wanted to set her straight, but I didn’t. If there was one thing I’d learned about bickering women, it was not to get involved.