Catching Her Rival (Mills & Boon Superromance)

by Lisa Dyson

  Allie didn’t know what to say. Who had told her mother about Charlotte?

  “What’s his name?” her mother asked.

  “His name?” Allie was more confused. At the same time, she was relieved that Mom wasn’t asking about Charlotte. “Who are you talking about?”

  “I’m talking about that handsome man you were dancing with at your brother’s wedding.”

  “Oh.” How much should she tell her? “He’s just a friend.” Isn’t that what the two of them had agreed to? At least until his last statement... “His name is Jack, and I met him at the wedding. He’s Emily’s cousin.”

  “Emily’s cousin,” her mother repeated as if it was a very interesting fact. “Now what? Where does he live? Are you going to see him again?”

  “He lives in Newport.” She purposely didn’t mention how close their Providence offices were. “I told you, we’re friends, Mom. I’m not interested in anything more right now.” If her mother required further explanation, Allie didn’t have much she wanted to share about why she didn’t care to get involved with a man at the moment. She didn’t want to stress her mother any more than necessary. If she found out that her middle child nearly went to federal prison because of her last boyfriend, her mom might have a nervous breakdown or worse. “Who told you about Jack?”

  “Several people, actually,” her mother answered. “I guess I’m the only one who missed seeing him.”

  “There was nothing to see.” Allie tried to reassure her, wondering why people had felt the need to tell her mom about seeing her with Jack, but no one had mentioned that she’d had a doppelgänger at the wedding. “Neither of us wants a relationship right now.”

  “You know you can date without getting what you young people call ‘serious.’” Her mother had an answer for everything.

  “I know, Mom. I’m busy right now trying to keep my company afloat—I have no time for dating. Please don’t go into your matchmaking mode.” The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them. Now that she’d spoken up, she was actually relieved to have the subject open for debate.

  “Matchmaking mode? I’m just looking out for your future. Besides, your dad and I warned you about going off on your own in business, but you were too headstrong to listen.”

  They’d had this conversation several times after Allie had made her decision. Her parents had no idea that she’d really had no choice—that she’d been blacklisted by every advertising agency she’d contacted after she lost her job because of her involvement with Jimmy.

  “I’ll manage.” Allie repeated what she always said when her mother went off on the subject. At least she’d moved the conversation away from Jack. “I really do need to go, Mom.”

  They ended their phone call, but not before her mother reminded her that she shouldn’t work so hard.

  As if her company had anyone else who could keep it from going belly-up.

  * * *

  A LITTLE WHILE LATER, Allie’s adrenaline surged as she drove the few miles from her office to the Animal Rescue League.

  “I never thought you’d get a dog. You don’t seem the type.” Penny, the receptionist Allie shared, sat in the passenger seat. At the last minute, as Allie was running out of the office, she’d noticed that Penny was leaving for the day. Penny had experience with dogs—as evidenced by the pictures of two dogs on her desk—so Allie had invited her along for moral support.

  “It’ll only be for a few weeks, maybe less,” Allie said to the fortyish woman she barely knew. “It all depends on how long it takes for the animal-food account to be awarded. That’s why I decided to foster a dog.”

  “How is having a dog going to help you?”

  “I figured that if I had pictures of Harvey to show the client, it would prove that I’m familiar with dogs and she should, therefore, go with my company for her advertising. I can probably even bring him in during my presentation since the owner keeps her dog in her office.”

  “But you’ve never had a dog before?”

  “I’ve never had a pet of any kind. Not even a fish. My parents were too busy with five kids to have pets, too.”

  “Do you know how to take care of a dog?” Penny asked.

  Allie shouldn’t have been so hasty about bringing the woman along. She was supposed to support Allie, not question her wisdom.

  “I’ve been reading up on it.” That was a partial truth. Allie had skimmed an article about dog breeds and found out that she was probably getting a pretty smart one. That should save her some aggravation.

  “Couldn’t you have borrowed a dog and taken pictures of it?” Penny had a point.

  “I could have, but this way I can speak from experience.”

  The parking lot at the Rescue League was nearly empty when Allie pulled in. She and Penny entered the building. The sound of barking dogs came from somewhere in the rear of the structure.

  Penny stayed a few feet behind Allie while she introduced herself. “I’m Allie Miller, and I’m here to pick up Harvey.”

  The older woman behind the desk stood up and put out an enthusiastic hand. “I’m Joan Broadwell. We spoke on the phone. I’m very pleased that you’ll be fostering Harvey. He’s such a sweetie.”

  After shaking hands, Joan disappeared through a door leading to the back. Allie exchanged looks with Penny, who was less than reassuring. Should she back out, tell Joan she’d made a mistake?

  Joan returned a few minutes later carrying a brown, black and white dog with floppy ears and big brown eyes. “Isn’t he so cute?”

  “Very,” Allie answered as if on cue.

  “Everything’s in here,” Joan said, pointing to the bag hanging at her elbow. “His last foster home sent along his favorite chew toy, and his rabies tag is on the collar he’s wearing. I think there’s even a leash in here.”

  Joan managed to produce the leash from the bag and hooked it onto Harvey’s collar, all with one free hand, before setting him on the ground.

  Harvey immediately barked at Allie.

  “What’s wrong with him? Does he not like me?”

  Joan laughed. “He’s saying hello. Look at his tail wagging. Ignore him until he sits quietly, and then you can pet him. If you pay attention to him before he’s calmed down, then he thinks you’re rewarding him for being excited, and he’ll keep doing it.”

  Maybe having a dog wasn’t going to be as simple as she’d expected.

  Allie waited for the dog to sit quietly like Joan said he would, but Harvey never did. He continued to bark at her.

  “Harvey, sit,” Joan finally said, and Harvey did exactly that. She leaned down to pat his head. “That’s a good boy.”

  Seemed simple enough when Joan did it.

  Allie reviewed her mental list of questions for Joan. “Is he housebroken?”

  “I would say partially.”

  “What does that mean?”

  Joan smiled patiently. “That’s right, you told me this was your first dog, didn’t you?” She reached over the high desk and came up with a brochure, handing it to Allie.

  How to Take Care of Your New Family Member was the title of the pamphlet. “Thank you.” Allie slipped it into her purse and then prompted Joan to answer the original question. “So, he’s partially housebroken?”

  “That means he should be easy to train once you get him home. He’s old enough to learn quickly, and he is already crate-trained. Take him directly from his crate to where you want him to do his business every time.”

  A crate? She didn’t have a crate.

  Joan continued. “Take him outside right after he’s eaten, first thing in the morning and last thing at night. Of course, any other time he seems to need to go, as well.”

  Allie nodded, wondering if he could wait long enough to make it down her apartment building elevator each time.

  “What should I be feeding him?”

  Joan held up another bag. “There’s a few days’ supply of food in here, along with instructions and the kind of food to buy. Sti
cking with the same food is the safest way to go as long as he has no digestive problems. He’s still a puppy, so he eats twice a day, morning and evening.”

  Allie nodded mutely, her brain overflowing.

  “Here’s Harvey’s shot record.” Joan handed her a red folder with the Rescue League’s name and logo on the front. “He’s scheduled for neutering on Friday. The vet will give you follow-up instructions.”

  “Neutering?” She hadn’t known she’d be involved in that.

  “Our policy is to spay or neuter our animals before they’re put up for adoption. The address of the veterinary hospital is in the folder, as well as preop instructions. Just have him there by the time specified.”

  “Okay.” Allie was completely overwhelmed by the magnitude of care this dog required. All to save her company by landing the animal-food account. No backing out now.

  Before she knew it, Allie, Penny and Harvey were in the car, ready to drive Penny back to the office parking garage.

  “I don’t have a crate,” Allie told Penny. “Would you mind if we stopped at the pet store on our way? I don’t want to leave Harvey in the car by himself.”

  “That’s fine,” Penny said pleasantly. She was turned in her seat just enough so that she could reach into the backseat to pet Harvey. “He’s a sweetie. You know, most pet stores allow you to bring in your dog.”

  Good to know. “Maybe next time.” If there was a next time.

  Buying the right size crate was surprisingly simple, and Allie was back in the car in a few minutes.

  “Thanks for coming with me,” Allie said to Penny when they got to the office.

  “Anytime,” Penny said. “Good luck with this sweet boy.” She gave Harvey’s head one last pat before exiting the car.

  Unfortunately, now that Penny was gone, Harvey wasn’t happy in the backseat anymore.

  “Harvey, no.” She spoke firmly when he jumped on the console between the front bucket seats and landed on the passenger seat. She wished she’d thought of bringing an old towel to protect the leather. Her car was several years old, but she cared for it as if it were new. Especially since her loan on it was paid in full.

  She carefully maneuvered out of the parking garage and back onto the street. She began to relax, but then Harvey started barking like crazy at a man walking a dog on the sidewalk.

  “It’s okay, Harvey,” she cooed while he continued barking and spinning in circles. “It’s only another dog. No need to get excited.”

  Harvey wasn’t paying attention to her.

  Keeping her eyes on the road, she reached out her free hand to pet him, hoping that would help calm him.

  Instead, he jumped onto the console and then into the backseat. He paced back and forth on the seat as he watched the other dog through the back window.

  Allie did her best to drive safely the few more blocks to her apartment building. She was about to turn in to her parking garage when Harvey went nuts again. She was startled and nearly hit a parked car as well as the cinder block wall of the garage.

  She pulled out the electronic card that let her into the garage. As soon as she started opening the window, Harvey was trying to stick his head out.

  “Stay back, Harvey.” Of course, he didn’t have a clue what that meant.

  Hoping he wouldn’t jump out the open window, she lowered it enough to stick her arm out to swipe her card. “Get your nose inside,” she told the dog when she had her arm back in the car, trying to close the window. She decided to leave the window open until she parked, since it wasn’t worth the effort to win this argument.

  She pulled into her assigned space and turned off the engine. “Now you have to move your head because I can’t leave my window open.” She merely touched the button to raise the window, and it was enough to startle the dog into retreating. “Good boy.”

  Worried that Harvey would take off as soon as she opened her door, Allie unbuckled her seat belt and reached into the backseat to grab the end of the leash.

  “Come here, buddy.” She tugged on the leash, but he wasn’t budging.

  She twisted in her seat and got up on her knees to get a better angle, but he was backed up as far as possible next to the window behind her seat.

  She slumped onto the back of her seat. “Come on, Harvey. Don’t you want to go see your new home, even if it’s not your permanent home?” She tugged on the leash again, not wanting to pull too hard and hurt him.

  Harvey barked, as if answering her question in the negative.

  Allie smacked her head several times on the headrest. She was in a battle of wits with a dog. Who would have guessed?

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHARLOTTE SAT ON her porch, staring at her laptop. She was getting nowhere trying to figure out how her mother came to have a big chunk of money practically overnight. There was nothing more to add to the list of facts she’d compiled. She saved and closed the document.

  Her cell phone rang. It was Allie.

  “Hey,” Charlotte said. “How are you?”

  “Not great,” she said, before a muffled “stop that” could be heard in the background. Who was Allie talking to?

  Charlotte’s heart pounded. “Are you okay?”

  “Yes.” Allie was breathless. “I’m not far from you—”

  “Do you want to come over?”

  “Yes.” Again a muffled but sharp “no.”

  “I’ll explain things when I get there.” Allie disconnected before Charlotte could ask anything more.

  Maybe five minutes later, Allie’s car came down the street. Charlotte closed her laptop and went to the porch railing.

  After parking and exiting the car, Allie waved and slowly opened the passenger door. She struggled with something in the backseat. Finally she pulled a dog from the car. It began running in circles, tangling the leash around Allie’s legs.

  “Do you need some help?” Charlotte asked when Allie was closer, nearly stumbling over the dog several times.

  “I’ve got him. I hope you don’t mind me barging in, but I’ve been having trouble with him.” She pointed to the dog. “I thought a car ride might help, and before I knew it, we were headed here.”

  “I don’t mind at all. You’re welcome anytime.”

  “You’re sure it’s okay if he comes up there?” Allie stopped at the bottom of the steps.

  “He’ll be fine. We can put something at the top of the steps to keep him here. I’m guessing he’ll probably run away if he’s off the leash?”

  Allie smirked. “I don’t know yet, but I think that’s a pretty good guess.”

  Charlotte bent to greet the cute puppy when he came over to smell her shoes. “He’s adorable.” She scratched his ears, and his tail wagged feverishly before he sat down. Charlotte scratched his chest, and she had him rolling onto his back within seconds.

  Allie’s eyes widened. “How’d you do that?” She turned a small table onto its side plus a few of Charlotte’s potted plants to block the stairs. “That should keep him in.”

  “I guess he likes me,” Charlotte said as she straightened. Harvey stood on all fours and shook his entire little body. “I take it he’s a new addition?”

  “He’s temporary. I’m his foster mom.”

  “How nice!”

  “I guess so.”

  Just as Charlotte was about to ask if Allie was regretting her decision, Jack pulled up in front of his house. He was whistling as he exited his car and retrieved things from his backseat.

  “Hey, Jack,” Charlotte called from the railing.

  He turned and gave her a smile after locking his car. “Hey, Charlotte. Oh, hi, Allie.”

  “Want to join us?” Charlotte asked. “I have beer.” Then she said to Allie, “I think he could help with Harvey.” Charlotte figured this was a perfect excuse to get the two of them together.

  “Let me change and I’ll be right over,” Jack called.

  “I didn’t expect to see him,” Allie said quietly after he went into his house. “Though I
guess I should have, since he’s your neighbor.”

  “Are you avoiding him?”

  “No. I just don’t want to give him the wrong idea. I really can’t get involved with anyone right now.”

  Charlotte decided to stop the conversation right there. “I’ll get the beer. You want one?”

  “I’ll take a soda or water. I’ll need all my wits about me with Harvey.”

  Charlotte grinned, picked up her laptop and went inside for the drinks. As she placed the computer on her dining room table that once had been her mother’s and saw her bank statement among the day’s mail, an idea came to mind.

  If her mother had saved everything she thought of as valuable, that would likely have included her pay stubs. Charlotte could match her mother’s pay stubs to the deposits in the bank statements. If the thirty thousand dollars didn’t show up as a bonus on a pay stub, then she could rule out that possibility.

  Of course, then she’d be back to having no idea where to go next.

  A few minutes later, she went outside with a tray of drinks, just as Jack was walking across the street toward her house. He’d changed into jeans and a T-shirt.

  “Can you make it over our barrier?” Charlotte asked as she handed him his beer.

  “I think I’m good.” His long legs easily cleared the table and potted plants at the top of the stairs. “What’s going on? You got a dog?” He was addressing Charlotte.

  “He’s mine,” Allie replied.

  Harvey went directly to Jack, seeking attention.

  “Hey, pal,” Jack greeted Allie. “What’s his name?”

  “Harvey.”

  Jack reached down to pet the dog once Harvey was sitting quietly. “Like the movie?”

  “Huh?”

  “The old movie with Jimmy Stewart and his friend Harvey the rabbit?”

  “If you say so.” Allie sounded almost grumpy.

  “Sorry, I grew up with those movies. My grandfather can’t get enough of them.”

  When Allie didn’t respond, Charlotte chimed in. “Allie is having trouble with Harvey. She thought a car ride might help, and she ended up here.”

  Jack nodded. “A car ride? What kind of trouble are you having with him?”