by E J Cochrane
“You can’t be serious,” she said despite the tightening of her stomach at Nadia’s words.
“Let me take care of the dogs while you get comfortable. Take a bath, finish your drink, whatever you need. Just take care of yourself while the pups and I go for a walk.”
“Really?”
“Is half an hour long enough?” She nodded, already dreaming of time in the tub without a hundred and thirty pound dog trying to join her. “Maybe when I get back, we can have a drink and talk.”
She nodded again and moved to get the boys’ leashes, but Nadia stopped her, a soft hand on her arm. Her skin tingled beneath the warmth of Nadia’s fingers, and she kicked herself for her body’s predictably traitorous response. All of this was a bad idea—possibly her worst since driving into the heart of a traffic jam—but she convinced herself that she could handle it, that contrary to her entire history with Nadia, this time she would maintain her composure in the face of Nadia’s considerable charm.
“I’ve got it,” she said, and as soon as she had the leashes in her hand, she was besieged by dancing, eager canines, who guided her (perhaps a bit too enthusiastically) out the door.
Wasting no time, she dashed to her bathroom. She hadn’t had the opportunity to soak away her stress since becoming a dog mother of two, and though she didn’t have long, more than five uninterrupted minutes in the bath was a gift not to be dismissed. She didn’t even wait for the tub to fill before climbing in.
She sank in sighing contentment as the hot, bubbly water rose around her. Ideally, she’d have her drink and a book to complete the basking experience, but after a day like the one she’d had, the mere thought of being alone in her bathroom soothed her. Considering that she could barely clean the bathtub without sparking Goliath’s interest in a bath, she realized she might not have another opportunity like this for years.
Sighing again, she glanced at her watch before letting her head rest against the back of the tub. She didn’t want to lose track of time and have Nadia walk in on her in a compromising position (among other things, she doubted that would help her maintain the aloof detachment she longed for in this scenario), but the more relaxed she felt, the more her thoughts drifted to Nadia.
For weeks, she’d wanted nothing more than to see Nadia, but now that she’d shown up, she wasn’t sure she wanted to hear what Nadia had to say. If she came to officially let her know what she’d surmised by week four of silence—that Nadia wasn’t interested in seeing her anymore—she could handle it. It would be one more dismal event in an already brutal afternoon, but she would get through it.
But if Nadia had returned to say she wanted to try again, Maddie didn’t know if that was any better. Nadia’s disappearance had hurt and wouldn’t taking her back send the wrong message? Didn’t it say, “Abandon me whenever things get rough, and I’ll just be waiting right here for you?” She wasn’t sure what she wanted, but she had no desire to say that. Ultimately, though, knowing where they stood would be better than living with the constant, miserable wondering.
Her emotional quandary momentarily settled, she checked her watch again and settled in to enjoy the remaining eighteen minutes of blissful solitude.
“Sugar pie? Honey bunch?” Dottie’s voice rang out. “I know you’re home because your door was unlocked.”
“This cannot be happening.” Maddie sat upright, hoping she was hearing things. She hadn’t been expecting Dottie, so of course she should have expected her.
“Where are you?”
“I’m in the bath,” she called, knowing her chances of evading Dottie were nonexistent.
She was about to call out that she would be right out when Dottie burst through the door. So much for her relaxing alone time.
“Where are your beasts?”
“Please, Dottie, come in. I wasn’t doing anything private.”
Dottie dismissed her comment with a flutter of her fingers.
“The dogs are out,” she explained.
“Out? What? Did they make a run for snacks?”
“They’re on a walk.”
“By themselves? Goliath’s training must really be paying off.” Dottie draped Maddie’s towel over the toilet and perched delicately on it.
Maddie almost said, “Don’t be ridiculous,” but then she remembered who she was talking to.
“They’re with Nadia.” She attempted to sound casual and failed completely.
“Nadia?” Dottie shrieked. “The illustrious Dr. Sheridan has returned?” Her eyebrows rose to astronomical heights as she took in Maddie’s bubble-strewn repose. “Well, well, well. The good doctor does move fast.”
“She’s here to talk. That’s all,” Maddie huffed.
“Of course, doll.”
She rolled her eyes and sank lower in the tub since it seemed like her best friend had decided to make this an extended visit. Though she really wanted Dottie to clear out before Nadia returned with the dogs, it didn’t seem likely she would get her way. Her bath had gone from relaxing to stressful in under a minute.
“Has your bathroom always been this large?” Dottie scrutinized the room.
“Uh-huh,” she said, trying to calculate her odds of grabbing a new towel without giving Dottie a peepshow.
“You’ve never moved any walls?”
“Nope.”
“Impressive square footage.” Dottie rose and turned in a full circle.
“Thank you.” Considering how frequently Dottie had used her bathroom in the past, Maddie wasn’t sure what to make of her sudden interest in its layout.
“How difficult is it to make a bathroom larger?”
“For you? I wouldn’t recommend it. Why?”
“You know my unquenchable thirst for knowledge knows no boundaries.” Dottie moved to the doorway to study the woodwork.
Taking the opportunity provided by Dottie’s diverted attention, Maddie stepped out of the tub and grabbed her towel. She wanted to put some clothes on before Nadia came back to an unbelievably awkward scene, but as with everything else in her life that day, fate thwarted her simple desire to be dressed when she next saw Nadia. Towel in hand but otherwise exposed, she froze when bath-crazed Goliath charged in. Nadia, tethered to the strong and willful Great Dane, followed immediately behind despite the protests from Bart, who avoided the bathroom at all costs (unless he was bound to someone being dragged there by his larger, stronger brother). All eyes turned to Maddie, who stood there, stunned and dripping. She didn’t even have the presence of mind to cover herself with the towel she held.
The tiny functioning portion of her brain registered Nadia’s satisfied grin before she averted her eyes and removed herself and the dogs to give Maddie some privacy. That was at least as gratifying as the experience was embarrassing. Dottie, however, didn’t even flinch at her friend’s nudity, but she latched on to her first brief glimpse of Nadia.
“That’s your former?” she cooed as she took control and wrapped Maddie’s towel around her. “I’m impressed, sugar lips. The doctor is definitely in.”
“The doctor is here to talk, probably to clarify what a huge mistake she made by ever dating me.” Doubting that Dottie would suddenly offer her privacy, Maddie gave up waiting and started dressing. She hadn’t finished pulling her favorite soft T-shirt over her head when Dottie gasped.
“You’re wearing that?”
“Just until I can get to my collection of ball gowns,” she deadpanned. “Of course I’m wearing this.”
“I can’t allow that.” She stared at her friend, eyebrows raised but saying nothing. “You can’t possibly re-woo the love doctor in a worn-out undershirt.”
“First, I don’t know if I’m interested in re-wooing her, and second, she just saw me completely naked. I think my fashion choices have become irrelevant at this point.”
“I can’t abide such blasphemy, but you may have a point.”
“Can I finish dressing now?”
“By all means. I’ll go keep your lady friend company.�
�� Dottie started out the door. “And do something about your hair. Do you even own a brush?”
She scowled, but a glance in the mirror told her Dottie was right. Wisps of hair had escaped from her braid as she drove around the city, and now they stuck out from her head like frail red-brown tentacles. Windswept was not a good look for her.
Knowing the futility of her actions, nevertheless she attacked her hair with a brush, cringing as it grew larger, frizzier and more unruly with every pass through. Not even an industrial strength hair tie could salvage her rebellious mane. Her only recourse would be to wash it and start over.
Understanding the risk she took by leaving Dottie alone with Nadia for any length of time, Maddie embarked on the fastest grooming known to humanity. In under ten minutes, she washed and mostly dried her hair, making it resemble something close to a civilized and well-groomed human’s head of hair.
Now all she had to do was get rid of Dottie (while keeping Dottie in the dark about being ousted), implement Dottie damage control with Nadia and hear Nadia out (without breaking down in either tears or wanton abandon) before she could go to bed and put this rotten day behind her. How hard could it be?
Chapter Four
Maddie wasn’t sure what to make of the scene she found when she finally emerged from the bathroom (clean but no less frazzled than when she’d entered) and stepped into her living room. Bart, Goliath, and Mabel had curled up in a furry mass that spilled over the edges of Goliath’s king-size dog bed. She’d given up trying to place the boys’ beds close together since they always rejected the second bed in favor of crowding into one. She didn’t understand it, but she thanked the gods of dog care that her pups got along so well.
Adjacent to the pile of snoring canines, Dottie had draped herself across Maddie’s couch, lounging in her default seductress way. She divided her attention between the half-consumed cocktail she’d helped herself to and an anxious but politely attentive Nadia, who sat on the opposite end of the couch listening to one of Dottie’s tales of high society. A mostly untouched glass of wine sat on the coffee table in front of Nadia, and Maddie offered silent thanks that Dottie had been such a gracious host with Maddie’s booze.
An easy grin replaced Nadia’s former neutral expression when she saw Maddie. It was entirely possible that her elevated mood sprang more from an end to alone time with Dottie than the pleasure of seeing Maddie, but she chose to interpret it in the more favorable light of delight at her presence. Maybe she would ask—if Dottie ever left, and if she got a sudden infusion of boldness.
On her way to the kitchen to freshen her drink and mix the next round for Dottie (who would pout mercilessly if she suspected Maddie of neglecting her refreshment needs), she grabbed her ringing phone. She groaned when she saw who was calling but answered anyway. It wasn’t like her night could get any weirder or worse.
“Mavis, hi. It’s Lester Parrish. You remember me, right?”
How could she forget? She’d met Howard’s niggling, busybody neighbor shortly after Howard’s death. Ever since he found out that she’d inherited Goliath (and by extension, his former house), Lester had taken to calling her regularly “to keep her up-to-date” on the neighborhood goings-on. Ignoring his calls merely increased their frequency and his worry, so leaving the work of dealing with Lester to her voice mail was not an option. Nor was quickly terminating the call. She barely had the opportunity to say anything after “Hello,” so she had zero hope of ever telling him she had to go. Or her real name. Not that she wanted to cultivate a closer relationship with him.
“I was out for my evening constitutional…You know how I love to walk. It’s so beneficial, especially on such a lovely evening. Can you believe what gorgeous weather we’ve been having? I thought those weathermen were all wrong when they said a high in the sixties—and who could blame me for that? They give an accurate weather forecast about as often as the city of Chicago operates under budget. But I guess they got it right for once.”
Why couldn’t he ever just get to the point? Three weeks earlier he’d called to inform her of “activity at Howard’s house” (which she already knew about thanks to signing Dottie’s lease just that morning), but it took him twenty minutes to get around to telling her since, as usual, he’d taken the scenic route to his point. And, figuring he’d take another lengthy detour, she’d tuned out again immediately after his big revelation. She hoped she would escape this call with at least a portion of her rapidly dwindling patience still intact.
Cautiously optimistic, she turned her attention back to Lester’s endless stream of words. He seemed to be wrapping up his praise of the weather, which meant he might make sense of his call in record time. Or he might be getting his second wind.
“I couldn’t help but keep going, much farther than usual. I mean, there’s healthy, and then there’s extreme, right Mavis?” With no pause for breath or an answer from Maddie, Lester pushed forward. “That’s when I noticed the trouble at your little store—such a cute place. I love your logo.”
“What trouble, Lester?” She forced her way in.
“The break-in.”
“What?” she shrieked. The room started to spin, and she leaned heavily against the kitchen counter.
“Attempted break-in. I was across the street and saw someone pulling and pounding on the door. I yelled, ‘They’re closed,’ but no one listens anymore. It’s like there’s a law against common courtesy. Anyway, the racket continued, so I ran home to call you—no sense calling the police. You know how they are.”
“Thank you, Lester. I’ll take care of it,” she said with a calm in direct opposition to her racing heart and shaking hands, and then she hung up on poor Lester.
“I have to go,” she told her guests as soon as she ended the call.
“What’s wrong?” Dottie asked.
“Someone’s trying to break into Little Guys.” She grabbed her keys and headed for the door.
“Who breaks into a dog walking business? Someone in dire need of Snausages?” Dottie huffed.
“Or someone who wants easy access to all of my clients’ homes.”
“Do you keep the keys there?” Nadia asked, realization dawning.
She nodded. “They’re locked up, but it’s not Fort Knox, and my clients’ addresses are all right there in my records. Put the two together and—”
“It’s a cleverly planned criminal free-for-all,” Dottie jumped in, her excitement obviously getting the better of her. “But you can’t confront the Milk-Bone Bandit alone. I won’t hear of it.”
“I’ll be fine, Dottie. It’s probably just some drunk college kids.” Maddie rushed toward the door, but her minimal progress terminated when Dottie seized her arm.
“Or it’s a lunatic with a machete waiting for a willing victim to behead.”
She exchanged a bewildered expression with Nadia but couldn’t even begin to produce a response.
“You should take backup. I’m sure Nadia would love to be your bodyguard.” Dottie thrust an unsuspecting Nadia toward her. The twinkle in Dottie’s eye announced that her matchmaking tendencies refused to be tamed by inopportune timing.
“Nadia has to stay with Mabel.” Maddie’s already distraught mind swam with the potential wreckage the puppy version of Goliath could inflict on her home. “Unless you’re volunteering to dog sit while we’re gone.”
Maddie’s glance swept the length of Dottie’s designer-clad body, painful-looking stilettos included, and she knew her friend had popped by on her way to more fruitful pursuits. No way would she be content to spend a Saturday evening monitoring a puppy’s activities and intervening on behalf of Maddie’s décor instead of roping in a new rich suitor.
“I would but—”
“I don’t have time to sort this out.” Maddie interrupted whatever excuse her friend was about to offer. “Lock up when you leave,” she said to Dottie. She barely registered Nadia’s concerned expression before hurrying out the door.
Living within walking distanc
e of her business meant the drive there took under three minutes. At that time of night, especially on a Saturday, parking could be an issue, but she found a relatively close spot right away. It wasn’t until that moment that she allowed Dottie’s concerns to give her pause.
Blind panic had driven her out the door, but really, she had no idea what she was about to rush into. It would have been safer (and considerably wiser) to call the police. They handled situations like this all the time, and no matter what disparaging remarks Lester Parrish made, the Chicago Police were far better equipped to deal with whatever lay waiting for her. Barring the sensible approach, she really should have taken Dottie’s suggestion not to show up alone. Cleaning up after the destructive antics of a bored, unsupervised puppy would be preferable to dying at the hands of a criminal mastermind caught in the act. Though the odds of coming face-to-face with a machete-wielding purloiner of pet care supplies seemed infinitesimal at best, she could be on the verge of an unpleasant and dangerous encounter. Maybe she would find drunk college students assaulting her business, or maybe it was something more nefarious. Either way, she was there now—alone and with no way to defend herself—and was about to find out.
She rushed toward her livelihood, and that’s when the day’s latest surprise hit her. Crouching by the thankfully undamaged front door, her head resting against the glass, sat Maddie’s client and old friend Leigh Matthews.
“Leigh?”
Her friend’s head bobbed up at the sound of her name. Though the dim light of the half moon and the nearby streetlamps didn’t offer Maddie a clear picture of the woman sprawled in front of her business, it was enough to know that Leigh looked terrible. For one thing, she was too skinny. Leigh had never carried extra weight to begin with, but now her clothes hung loosely from her frame. She seemed frail and gaunt, more like a fading image of her former self.
Instead of styling her hair in the fun, product-heavy ordered chaos that sometimes made her look like a brunette dandelion, Leigh had covered it with a ball cap, making Maddie question if she’d even bothered to wash it recently. Dark circles had blossomed under Leigh’s eyes since the last time Maddie saw her, and when she wasn’t drawing in shuddering, sorrowful breaths, she was muttering something to herself.