Drool Baby (A Dog Park Mystery) (Lia Anderson Dog Park Mysteries) Read Free

into an education center. I've got to meet some of the bosses over
    there this morning. They want me to coordinate with the architect and the contractors."
    "Sounds like a fun project. Maybe you'll get your very own hard-hat."
    "Maybe," Anna laughed. "Did you hear? Nadine is throwing a birthday party for Rufus next Monday. Cupcakes for the grown ups and home made dog biscuits for
    the furry ones."
    Lia rolled her eyes. "Some people have too much time on their hands. I suppose it's okay, as long as she keeps everything out in the picnic shelter. The
    dogs always go crazy when there's food in the park."
    "I won't be able to make it, anyway. I have that girl who helps me around the house on Mondays. I need to be at home when she comes."
    The two women began strolling. Honey and Chewy abandoned the squirrel to join them. They said hello to regulars as they made their way to the back of the
    park.
    A slight, grizzled figure sat on a bench with a Border Collie and a gangly Bloodhound by his side. A small, Asian woman sat next to him with her chin
    tilted at a rebellious angle. Dark bangs with electric blue highlights hung in her eyes. A beefy gentleman wearing a camouflage concealed-carry vest stood,
    waving his arms. Underneath a nearby picnic table, a skinny hound excavated while a small Golden Retriever mix supervised.
    The beefy gentleman bore a striking resemblance to Teddy Roosevelt. He wore a walking cast on one leg. As they neared, he turned to the hound. "Jackson! No
    dig!" Jackson and Napa took off, spied Honey and Chewy, and started racing in circles.
    Terry Dunn, the Roosevelt look-alike, turned back to Marie Woo. "Anyone who votes Democratic has their head up their ass. There's a reason the party mascot
    is a donkey."
    "Anyone who still believes in trickle down economics thinks denial is a river in Egypt. The only way money trickles in this country is up, and . . ."
    Jim, the man on the bench, kept silent, but his lips were flattened into a thin line.
    Lia leaned over to Anna. "Looks like diversionary tactics are in order."
    Marie flipped her bangs and overrode Terry's protestations. "Every time someone asks a Republican what they're going to do about the economy, they respond
    by diverting attention to gay marriage and abortion. And at least Democrats tax before they spend. George Dubya Bush cut taxes and then spent fifteen
    trillion dollars more than was coming in. That's how we got into this mess."
    Anna reached into her tote bag and pulled out the Living section of the paper and a pen. She climbed up on the picnic table and began scanning the page.
    Lia climbed up beside her as the pair argued on. Anna waited for a lull in the hostilities, then called, "Oh, Terry?"
    He turned. "Yes?"
    "What's the name of the Political party whose name means "renaissance" in Arabic?"
    He frowned for a minute, then smiled. "Baath. Like bath, with two a's." He wandered over to the picnic table. "What else have you got?" He tried to peek at
    the paper, but Anna held it up to her chest.
    "Hold on a minute. Let me see what else. . . 'Four time Indy 500 winner,' four letters."
    "That's easy. Foyt. F, o, y, t."
    "Thanks." Anna continued scanning the clues for obscure trivia questions.
    Lia looked over at Jim. He no longer looked like he was about to explode. Marie winked at her.
    "So, Lia, was that Detective Hottie you were talking to earlier?" Marie asked.
    "He'd be so embarrassed to hear you call him that. He brought me coffee this morning."
    "That was very chivel. . . chiver . . ." Jim said.
    "Chivalrous." Lia completed automatically.
    "That was very chivalrous of him," Jim said.
    "He's a chivalrous kinda guy," Lia said.
    "Lucky you," Marie said. "Last officer of the law I met looked like a bulldog and had onion breath. And he gave me a speeding ticket."
    "And I bet you were doing fifty going down that hill on Montana," Lia said.
    "Hey, if I stuck to the speed limit, somebody would run me off the road."
    "Tell you what," Lia offered.