4 Cupids Curse Read Free Page A

had.”
    “I’m making brownies for dessert tonight , but maybe one for the road.” I picked up a package with a single pastry.
    “So are you ready for your opening on Thursday?” Hazel asked about the long-awaited opening of Zoe’s Zoo.
    “More than ready.”
    “Remember to keep an eye out for a kitten for me.”
    “You’ll be the first one we call if one is brought in.”
    “I like what you’ve done with the place,” Hazel said, referring to the remodel we’d been working on since Zak had purchased the property from the county.
    “You’ve seen it?”
    “I stopped by the other day when Jeremy was there with Kevin Michaels and his new assistant. Those new cages you built in the back are going to be a godsend once our wildlife becomes active in the spring.”
    My assistant , Jeremy Fisher, had been putting in a lot of hours to ensure that Kevin got everything done in time for the opening. I had to agree with Hazel that the place looked awesome. Now if we could just get our final approval to occupy the space in time for the opening. It seemed like for every step forward we made in the process, something happened to cause us to take a step back. The community had been without a shelter since the county closed us down the previous November, and I knew I wasn’t the only one anxious to get open for business.
    “The new cages are going to allow us to house twice the number of large animals we used to,” I confirmed. In addition to serving as a shelter for domestic animals such as dogs and cats, Zoe’s Zoo planned to specialize in the care and rehabilitation of wild animals such as bears and coyotes as well. “I’ve already had a discussion with fish and game about taking over the care of those two cubs that were wounded in the Anderson fire. It seems the facility where they’re currently being housed doesn’t really have the infrastructure to provide long-term care.”
    “ Excellent. It’s always fun to have a bear on the property. Well, I guess I should get going. I’m taking a late lunch today, but I really need to get back. That new mystery novel you’ve been waiting for finally came in. I can hold it for you, if you want to stop by in the next day or two.”
    “Thanks. I’d appreciate that.”
     
    After we finished our shopping , Charlie and I headed home. We live in a converted boathouse that, along with the fifty acres of lakefront property that goes with it, is owned by my maternal grandfather, who originally used it to house his boat. I love my home. It’s weathered and unconventional, with a large living area, a small loft bedroom, and a modern yet cozy kitchen. The entire wall facing the lake has been replaced with glass to give the space an open, airy feel. Off the front of the boathouse is a large deck, where I love to while away a summer afternoon or entertain guests. The little cove on which the boathouse was built is isolated from the main residential section of the lake, so when you’re sitting on the deck, it feels like you have the entire lake to yourself.
    I checked on my cats, Marlow and Spade, bef ore building a fire in the river-rock fireplace and mixing together the brownies I’d bought and planned to serve with ice cream for dessert. While I considered my home to be primarily my space, I had made some concessions to the fact that Zak was spending the night more often, as evidenced by his shaving kit in the bathroom, his coffee mug on the rack, and extra clothes in the drawer I’d cleared for him in my dresser. Unlike my dad and Blythe and Levi and Barbie, who seemed ready to merge households after only a few dates, Zak and I have decided to take things slowly.
    It had been snowing steadily the past few hours, so I put on knee-high boots and a heavy jacket and went out to shovel off the back deck, which had been added to the boathouse during the conversion and is separated from the lake by a good twenty feet of beach. When my grandfather originally built the boathouse, the