Sit! Stay! Speak! Read Free Page B

favorite pastime.”
    â€œThat doesn’t make it any less illegal.”
    Addie raised an eyebrow. “What are you, some kind of lawyer?”
    â€œI used to be.” Jasper reached above her to pluck a showerhead from the shelf. “Here, I think this one will probably work for general purposes.”
    â€œAnd now you just hang out in the hardware store assisting confused young girls?”
    â€œSomething like that.” Jasper’s face was expressionless, but Addie could tell he was trying to stifle a smile. “You aren’t so young.”
    There was an awkward silence, and Addie was relieved that this time she wasn’t shaking Jasper’s hand as it happened.
    â€œWell”—Addie held up the box with the showerhead inside—“thanks for your help, Counselor. I’ve got to go and find some hundred-fifty-grit sandpaper.” She brushed past him, clutching the box to her chest. She could feel his eyes on her, and she wondered what Jasper meant when he said he “used to be” a lawyer. No wonder he made her nervous.
    And for Addie, that was almost as bad as feeling out of place.

CHAPTER 4
    T WO DAYS LATER , A DDIE SAT IN THE WAITING ROOM OF THE Dixon Veterinary Clinic. This was the day she was picking up the dog she’d found—the dog she thought would surely die.
    â€œAddie!”
    Addie looked up. Wanda waved her over to the reception desk.
    â€œAddie, honey, how are you?” Wanda flipped her rust-colored hair behind one shoulder. “I’m sorry I had to skedaddle the other night. My four-year-old was driving the babysitter crazy.”
    â€œOh, that’s okay.”
    â€œHey, what are you doing tonight?” Wanda leaned over the desk excitedly. “Do you want to go to the county fair with me and Bryar?”
    Addie furrowed her brow and replied, “Who’s Bryar?”
    â€œOh, Lord. I’m sorry. That’s my son!”
    Addie searched for an excuse not to go. It didn’t seem like a good idea to make friends when she wouldn’t even be in townmore than a few months. Friends meant connections and connections meant growing roots, which was certainly not Addie’s first plan. “I really have a lot of work to do at the house, and I shouldn’t leave a puppy alone, should I?”
    â€œWell, it ain’t gonna take a week,” Wanda replied. “Besides, it’ll be fun. Old Man Alcee makes the best funnel cakes this side of the Mississippi.”
    A funnel cake did sound pretty good. “Sure,” Addie said finally. “But just for an hour or two.”
    â€œGreat!” Wanda clapped her hands together. “I’ll take you on back to get your pup. He’s perked up some since you last saw him.”
    Addie followed Wanda into a sea of barking dogs. At the end of the hallway, Wanda pushed through a set of doors, and they were surrounded by kennels.
    â€œThis is where we board dogs that are staying with us,” Wanda yelled over the noise. “Your little guy is back here somewhere.”
    Addie was anxious. She hoped she was doing the right thing by taking this dog home. Of course, she thought, what are my options? Let him die?
    Toward the back of the room, Wanda opened up a kennel and reached inside. “Come on, buddy.”
    Addie held out her hands. Wanda handed him to her, and in that instant, Addie was in love. He shivered underneath her arms, and Addie nuzzled him and whispered, “It’s okay now. It’s all okay now.”
    When Addie got home with the dog, she carried him inside and placed him gingerly down on the dog bed she’d bought the day before. He was still shaking, and Addie was desperate to make him comfortable.
    â€œPlease don’t shake like that. I won’t hurt you.”
    She sat back. He was just a puppy, but Addie knew that by the size of his paws, she probably shouldn’t be able to see each of his ribs beneath the skin. He