an excellent birdie, Pepper. I’m hoping one day soon you’ll find a new home.” Although he had to admit he was growing fond of the silly bird, he’d be more than happy to sell Pepper to a parrot lover. Business was business, right?
The middle-aged man who had brought in the bird had told Chase that Pepper had belonged to his mother, now deceased. His wife hated the bird. So he had to get rid of Pepper.
It was hard on long-lived creatures like large parrots. When their owner passed on, the birds experienced grief much like humans did. But after a few weeks here in the pet store, Pepper seemed to be adjusting to his temporary home and clearly enjoyed greeting customers.
Sometimes not too politely, Chase thought with a frown.
“I’ll find you a permanent home soon, ol’ codger,” he promised. Unfortunately he hadn’t had a single response to his advertisement so far.
Chase washed his hands and tried to tame the lock of hair that kept falling down over his forehead, to no avail.
Outside, another sunny but cool morning greeted him. The school day had already started, and none of the shops had opened yet, so there was little traffic on the street.
Despite the Closed sign on Happy Endings’s door, Chase knocked on the glass window. He peered inside until he saw movement in the shop. Then he stepped back and cleared his throat. Absently, he rubbed his damp palms on his pants and shuffled his feet. She wasn’t expecting to see him today, and he wasn’t sure how she’d react to his idea for Saturday.
Vivian lifted the sign and saw him. Her pretty blue eyes widened, and he heard her unlock the door. Her expression was both surprised and wary as she greeted him.
“Sorry to come by so early, but I wanted to talk with you,” Chase said.
“Sure.” She opened the door wider. “Is it about our Doggie Daze event?”
“Yeah, sort of.” He stepped inside. As she closed the door behind him, Chase caught the fresh scent of citrus—Viv’s perfume or shampoo, he suspected. It mixed pleasantly with the unique smell of books and printer’s ink. He glanced around the shop—the walls painted in blue, green and tan—and its dozens of bookcases with their shelves filled with books. He noted that Allison apparently hadn’t arrived for work yet.
“I wondered if you’d like to go with me to the Happy Havens shelter tomorrow?” he asked. “You could check out the dogs, decide which ones you’d like to bring in for your Doggie Daze affair.”
“I’d love to! I’m sure Allison would let me come in a little late. She’s very excited about the event.”
Her eager response, and the way her eyes crinkled at the corners when she smiled, delighted Chase. He was already looking forward to spending a little time with Viv. Getting to know her better. Just as friends, he reminded himself. He wasn’t looking for a romantic relationship. He had broken up with a woman in Wichita only a few months ago. No need to get involved again too quickly.
They made plans to meet at his shop in the morning, and he’d drive them to the shelter.
“Say, I put on a pot of coffee about five minutes ago. Would you like a cup?” Viv asked.
He glanced at his watch. “How ’bout a half cup? It’s almost time to open the shop.”
“Perfect.”
He followed her into a back room, noting the way her auburn hair shifted gently across her shoulders, the tips just brushing the collar of her green blouse.
In addition to a couple of unopened cartons of books, the room contained a sink and a microwave on the counter with a coffeemaker next to it.
“How do you take your coffee?” she asked.
“Black’s fine.”
She poured coffee into a mug and handed it to him. Their eyes met for a moment in silent communication before she turned to pour coffee for herself. A ripple of awareness warned Chase that more than friendship might evolve between him and Vivian. A prospect he hadn’t anticipated. Although maybe he should have.
Her hands wrapped around the mug, she leaned back against the counter. “You’re a businessman. Can I ask you for some advice?” she said.
“Sure. Anything about dogs and cats and hamsters I can handle. World peace is above my pay grade.”
Her laughter rang a happy note that resonated somewhere in Chase’s chest.
“I promise it’s nothing that earthshaking.” She took a sip of her coffee. “Since the town had to cut back on its support of the library, and I lost my job there, my income has dropped considerably. I’ve been trying to think of a way to supplement what Allison pays me. So far I’ve come up empty.”
“Hmm, let’s see.” He admired a woman who didn’t sit around waiting for someone else to bail her out of trouble or take care of her. Thinking about her question, he sipped his coffee, which was rich and hot. “Maybe I could hire you to come in early to clean up the puppy pen.”
She wrinkled her pert little nose. “That wasn’t exactly what I had in mind.”
“What were you thinking?”
“I’m not sure.” She seemed pensive, as if she’d been considering the problem for some time. “If I could do something at home, then I’d be able to work around my schedule here.”
“That sounds like a great idea—if you can figure it out.”
“Yeah, that’s a big if.”
“It’s not easy to find that kind of job.” Leaning against the doorjamb, he drank some more coffee. “Telemarketing?”
Her smooth forehead furrowed. “I don’t think so.”
“Doing opinion polls?”
“I’m not sure I want to spend that much time on the telephone.”
“Understandable.” He drank another sip of coffee. “Nothing else comes immediately to mind, so let me think about it awhile.”
“Sure. Maybe between us, we’ll come up with something that would work.”
“I’ll do my best.” He set his mug down on the counter. “I’d better get going.”
They said their goodbyes, and Chase headed back to the pet shop, his spirits high, his footsteps light. Odd how planning an ordinary trip to an animal shelter could make him look forward to a very special day.
Because of Vivian.
* * *
When Allison arrived at the bookshop, Vivian was busily making copies of the flyer for Doggie Daze to distribute around town.
Allison picked up one of them. “This is wonderful. You’re so talented. Cute dog.”
“I used free clip art from the internet.” Heat warmed her cheeks. “I thought this dog looked a lot like Boyo, Chase’s dog.”
“Oh, he does. A little bit shaggy but so cute.” Allison eyed Vivian with evident curiosity. “You sure there isn’t something I should know?”
“Huh? Oh, no, not really.” Trying to cover the fact that she’d been so pleased to see Chase earlier, she stacked the flyers on the counter. “Chase came by early this morning. He invited me to go with him to the animal shelter tomorrow morning. If that’s okay with you,” she hastily added.
“Of course it’s fine with me. I think it’s nice we might have another romance going on here in town.”
Vivian laughed self-consciously and shook her head. “I wouldn’t count on that.” In fact, she had to be careful not to read too much into his invitation. Chase worked closely with the shelter to help them place dogs and cats in good homes. Since Happy Endings was having the doggie event, and he no doubt