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“Archie loves her, so yes, she’s going to walk him. I’m sure you’ll find plenty of other clients,” I said.

An awkward silence filled the air between us. I looked around for Olive, but she had disappeared. Great. I took a long sip of my beer to occupy myself. Melissa rummaged through her handbag and shoved a stack of flyers in my hands.

“Would it be a problem for you to hand these out at Pine Paw Prints? Only to clients with purebred dogs, of course.”

“Purebred dogs only? Why?”

She put her hand on my arm. “Because they’re my target audience. I did a marketing course online, and I know for a fact it’s crucial to niche down. I can’t possibly walk everyone’s dog, so I chose purebred dogs. It was an easy decision, really.”

Her hand was still resting on my arm, drawing both our attention toward it.

“Oh, I’m sorry, Lewis. You don’t mind a bit of physical contact, do you?” she asked in a syrupy-sweet voice, still not letting go. Now she was rubbing my arm as if we were best friends or more. I was starting to see why Olive wasn’t fond of her. Melissa didn’t exactly come across as genuine or kind.

Kind of like Sue.

No, I couldn’t let thoughts like that get to me. Not anymore.

Just when I was about to think of an excuse to leave, Colleen came rushing toward me, her face radiating joy. “There’s my handsome vet. Do you have a minute? There are some people here I want you to meet.”

“Anything for you, Colleen,” I said with a smile.

I excused myself, leaving a pouting Melissa behind.

“So, who did you want to introduce me to?” I asked when we were out of earshot from Melissa.

Colleen grinned at me. “No one. I just thought I’d rescue you. That looked like an uncomfortable situation. Melissa’s not a bad person, but she can be full-on for sure. Now, do you want a private tour of the hamster hotel? It’s themed and has excellent feng shui.”

Her question sounded so full of expectation that I didn’t have the heart to tell her I’d already seen the room. “I’d love that, Colleen. Lead the way.”

Chapter Nine

Olive

As Melissa tightened her grip on Lewis, I snuck away and took refuge in the kitchen. I positioned myself at the sink so I could push the curtain aside and catch a glimpse of what was going on outside. Lewis owed me nothing, but I enjoyed talking to him. I should’ve known Melissa would show up and ruin it for me.

“What are you doing in here?” my father asked, making me jump. “The party’s outside, and in full swing, might I add. The hot dogs are all gone, several people have already subscribed to our newsletter, and Charlie from the pet store, told me he can get us a deal for hamster food if we buy ten dozen bags at once.”

I let go of the curtain and sat down at the table. “If you must know, I’m hiding.”

“From whom?”

I sighed. “Do you have an hour? Because I have a whole list of people I don’t want to see right now.”

Dad put down the empty tray he was carrying and sat down beside me. “Oh, sweetie, tell me what happened.”

I let out a frustrated groan. “My life is a mess. Melissa is out there stealing my clients, my car repairs cost me more than I could afford, and Benjamin made a fool out of me in front of the new vet.”

Dad got up again, grabbed a tin of cookies out of the cupboard, and sat back down. “Sounds like you need one of these. Or several.”

I grabbed a couple of cookies from the tin. “Do I ever. Are you sure this is okay with Mom? She’ll notice if her cookies are missing.”

He harrumphed. “What, I can’t console my daughter with a sugar overload?”

“Thanks, Dad,” I said while stuffing two cookies in my mouth. Very unladylike, but so yummy. “Don’t feel obliged to sit here with me. This is your party after all.”

Leaning back in his chair, he said, “I don’t mind. It’s mainly your mother’s party.”

“I thought this hamster hotel was your dream too?” I asked, studying his face.