by Daphne Maple
I grinned back. I might have lost Lily, but I had my mom and I had my friends. And that was pretty awesome!
Lily galloped over to me as soon as I walked into the shelter that afternoon. She nearly trampled Coco and Waffles in her rush to greet me.
“I miss you too,” I told her, freeing the other dogs from their leashes so I could hug Lily.
She climbed right into my lap and wouldn’t stop licking my face until I squealed with laughter.
“Looks like someone’s happy to see you,” Alice said. She was holding a clipboard in one hand and petting Boxer with the other.
“Yeah, it’s mutual,” I said, wrapping my arms around Lily and wishing I never had to let her go.
But then Sasha came in with Gus, Jinx, and Hattie, and Lily jumped off me to greet them. Moments later Taylor, Mr. S, Popsicle, and Humphrey came in, followed by Kim and Missy.
“The gang’s all here,” Alice said cheerfully as the dogs were released from their leashes and began romping about the room. Tim threw a tennis ball that Lily, Daisy, Gus, Mr. S, Tuesday, and Waffles chased while Caley accepted Boxer’s Frisbee and sent it whizzing across the room. Caley probably had the strongest throwing arm of all of us and the Frisbee bounced off the wall, much to Boxer’s delight.
“I want to make sure we’re set for the festival on Saturday,” Alice said as Oscar jumped down from his perch and twined around her ankles, delicately stepping around Missy and Humphrey, who were at Alice’s feet.
“Good idea,” Kim said from where she had sat down to snuggle Gracie. “The Lopezes are bringing the candy to the booth in the morning.”
“I can’t wait to see how it looks,” Caley said.
“Who cares how it looks?” Tim teased. “I can’t wait to taste it.”
I giggled at that.
“My mom is picking up the bags and calendars on Friday,” Sasha said from the corner where she was playing tug-of-war with Jinx. “She and Taylor’s dad will drop them off at the booth before the festival starts.”
“That reminds me,” Alice said, absently removing a strand of dog hair from her T-shirt that had a colorful parade of dogs marching across the front. “The festival starts at ten, so I think we should all be there by nine thirty. Does that sound okay?”
“That’s early for a weekend,” Tim said.
Caley rolled her eyes. “But worth it for a good cause,” she pointed out. “Though if you want to come late you’ll just be stuck standing at the booth since there won’t be enough stools for all of us.”
“Are you saying you wouldn’t give up your stool for me?” Tim asked in mock dismay.
Caley laughed. “That’s exactly what I’m saying.”
“Then I guess I’ll be there at nine thirty,” Tim said with a loud sigh.
“And I’ll bring Tuesday for the first dog shift at the booth after I swing by the shelter to give the dogs breakfast,” Alice said.
That reminded me that the second dog at the booth would be Lily. I knew it would be wonderful if we found a family to adopt her, but the thought of her leaving made my chest ache.
“Everyone should wear their Roxbury Park Dog Club T-shirts,” Sasha reminded us.
“And my mom said she’ll bring a box of sandwiches and drinks from the Rox over to us for lunch,” Kim said.
“Yum,” Caley said.
“That’s so nice of her,” Alice added.
“She wanted to do something to help,” Kim said, and I heard a note of pride in her voice. Not that I blamed her. Things were better with my mom, but we were still a long way from her supporting the club and what we did here, the way the other parents did.
“Okay, I think we’re set,” Alice said, heading back to her office.
“That means it’s time for doggy basketball,” Tim announced, tugging the laundry basket off the toy shelf. “Bri, you get first pick.”
Soon we had dogs and people divided into teams. Caley, as ref, threw out the ball, and Lily, who was on my team of course, leaped up and grabbed it.
“Go, Lily!” I shouted, pumping a fist in the air as Lily made a wild run for the basket, Boxer, Daisy, Mr. S, Jinx, and Tuesday hot on her heels. Hattie ran past with a tennis ball and Tim was running after her shouting, “Wrong ball!”
Lily turned and skidded a bit on the floor, her nails scraping as Sasha, my assistant coach, cheered her on.
Missy, who was usually calm, ran in to join the fray, and Popsicle confused everyone by dashing past with an orange ball that looked just like the one we were using for the game.
“Put it in the basket!” Tim called to Popsicle as he tripped over Boxer and fell to the floor, uninjured and laughing.
“That’s cheating!” I yelled, because Popsicle wasn’t on my team. I charged after Popsicle as the big group of dogs came flying by. There was barking, laughing, dog nails scraping, and of course, the sound of us cheering the dogs on. In other words, complete chaos.
And that was when I looked over and saw someone standing by the front door of the shelter, watching us. Someone who looked a lot like my mother.
“Mom?” I gasped, stopping in my tracks. Tuesday nearly crashed into me but ducked past at the last second.
“Hi, Bri,” my mom said. I couldn’t read her expression as she watched the ruckus taking over the shelter.
“Score!” Tim shouted as Hattie dunked the ball, and my mom winced slightly.
“Um, guys, this is my mom,” I said, then shouted since no one could hear.
Everyone trooped over to say hi to my mom.
“Your stir-fried beef is the best I’ve ever had,” Taylor told my mom after I’d introduced her.
“We all steal Bri’s leftovers at lunch,” Sasha added, and Kim grinned sheepishly.
My mom smiled. “You’ll have to come over for dinner sometime so you can have it fresh.”
“Sounds good,” Taylor said. “Thanks.”
Just then Lily, who had been busy wrestling the ball from Jinx, realized who was here. She raced over and threw herself at my mom’s feet, panting happily.
I held my breath, worried my mom would say something about Lily’s fur or the way she was drooling a bit on my mom’s black boots. But my mom surprised me by squatting down so she could give Lily a good belly rub.
By now Alice had come out of her office, and once my mom stood up I introduced them. I couldn’t help wondering what my mom, in her neat khaki pants and fitted blouse, would think of Alice’s work clothes: a baggy T-shirt, old jeans, and beat-up sneakers. Though of course my mom just smiled politely as she shook Alice’s hand.
“It’s so nice to meet another person crazy enough to work full-time with dogs,” Alice said warmly, and my mom laughed.
“It does take a certain breed,” my mom said.
Alice cracked up at the joke and my mom grinned again, a real grin. Lily stood up and leaned against my mom’s legs so my mom could pet her head.
“I’m glad you came to visit,” Alice said. “Make yourself at home and let me know if I can answer any questions. Though of course, Bri knows everything.” She shot me a smile. “We’re so pleased she’s come on board.”
My mom glanced around at the chaos but then smiled. “She’s pretty happy about it and I can see why. It’s like a party in here.”
Alice laughed. “That’s one word for it,” she said comfortably. “I suspect you’re a bit more organized at the Pampered Puppy.”
My mom bit her lip for a moment. “We are, but I’m starting to learn that there’s more than one way to care for dogs.”
I beamed at that.
Alice smiled too. “Maybe we can get coffee sometime and trade stories,” she said.
My mom’s eyes lit up at this and I felt a rush of gratitude to Alice for reaching out to my mom. I never could have imagined it before today, but maybe Alice would be my mom’s first friend in Roxbury Park.
“I’d like that,” my mom said. “And there is actually something you can help me with today.” She looked down at Lily, who
se head was pressed against her leg. Then her eyes found me. “Bri, you were right. I did miss Lily, a lot. I think that’s why I snapped at you—I was missing her but wasn’t ready to admit it yet. And now I’ve come around. Lily’s sweet and loving and everything we could ever want in a dog.”
I held my breath, not daring to hope that she was saying what I thought she might be saying.
“So how about you and me fill out adoption papers so we can take Lily home with us, where she belongs?” my mom asked.
For a second I couldn’t believe I had heard right. But then Taylor, Kim, and Sasha shrieked and threw their arms around me, Caley cheered, and Tim let out a loud whoop.
My mom looked at me inside the tangle of my friends and grinned. “I’ll take that as a yes,” she said.
16
It was sunny and warm on Saturday, the perfect weather for a craft festival. I had breakfast with my mom and Lily and then headed into town. There were booths all along Main Street, which was closed to traffic for the day. Stores had tables out front and the doors to the community center were open so that everyone could see the art display inside. There was a clown juggling and a band setting up in front of town hall. It was like walking through the best and biggest birthday party ever, and it hadn’t even officially started yet!
“Hey, Bri,” Alice said when I arrived at the booth. All the booths were a simple white, and ours had a sign that proclaimed “Roxbury Park Shelter and Dog Club” on the front.
I greeted Alice and Tuesday, who was freshly brushed and looked excited to be part of things.
A moment later Kim came up, then Caley and Tim. “Dibs on a stool,” Tim called as he came inside the booth. His hair stood up on one side of his head like he’d just rolled out of bed. Which he probably had.
Alice grinned. “There are enough for all of us,” she said.
“But I thought there was a big rush to get a seat,” Tim said, looking accusingly at Caley, who raised up her hands.
“I had to get you here on time,” Caley said playfully.
“Okay, but you owe me a cup of coffee,” Tim grumbled, though I could see him hiding a smile.
“Fair enough,” Caley said. “Alice, do you want some too? I’ll make a run.”
But before Alice could answer, Sasha and her mom and Taylor and her dad arrived, each carrying a big cardboard box.
“Oh, I can’t wait to see how our bags turned out!” Kim cried.
“And the calendars,” Taylor added, setting down one of the cartons.
We opened the top box, which turned out to be the calendars, and paged through. The paper was thick and glossy and the photos were so good it looked professional.
“These are awesome,” Tim proclaimed, and everyone else agreed.
“Okay, let’s see the bags,” I said eagerly.
Sasha’s mom opened the carton and Alice passed them out to each of us. The bags were made out of a sturdy canvas and I nearly gasped when I saw how cool the silhouette looked.
“These are going to go like hotcakes,” Alice predicted.
“Yeah, they are fantastic,” Sasha’s mom agreed. “I hope you’re proud, Bri. The logo looks like it was created by a pro.”
I beamed as everyone else chimed in about how good they looked.
“I have a great idea,” Kim said, her eyes lighting up as she looked from me to the bag. “Bri, you should be in charge of our website, the art part.”
“That would be awesome,” Taylor agreed. “You can make it look all cool with a new layout every week. And add in the logo and this picture and any other designs you come up with.”
“It would raise our profile if our website was dynamic like that,” Sasha said, in full businesswoman mode. She glanced at her mom, who nodded.
“I’d love to,” I said. And I realized that this was the last barrier: now I wasn’t just a member of the Dog Club—I had a role that was all mine. And a role I knew I’d love.
We began setting up our booth, arranging the bags and calendars, plus a big pile of flyers about the fostering program and a clipboard where people could sign up to begin the foster process. Alice also set out a box for donations. And a few minutes later the Lopezes arrived with the candy.
“I think it turned out great,” Carmen said as she helped us pile it up on platters, the foil glittery in the sun. “And they taste pretty good, too, if I do say so myself.”
“I can help you judge that,” Tim said, reaching for one.
“Why don’t we each take just one,” Alice said, sounding like a preschool teacher. “We want these to help get the word out about the fostering program.”
“And to raise money for the Dog Club and shelter,” Caley reminded Tim.
“Got it,” he said, already unwrapping his.
We each took one and just as Carmen said, they were delish, the caramel silky and sweet and the chocolate smooth and rich.
Main Street was starting to fill with people: the festival had begun.
“Hey, everyone,” Mrs. Washington said, waving as she and Gus walked by.
A moment later a woman stopped at the booth. “So you guys run a foster program?” she asked. “I think this would be perfect for my mom. She loves dogs but travels to Florida every winter so she can’t own one.”
“Let me tell you about what we’re doing,” Alice said, passing the woman a flyer and explaining the program.
“Can I have some candy?” a little boy asked, his dad coming up behind.
“This is for people helping dogs find homes, Johnny,” the dad said. “Not a candy booth.”
“I’m scared of dogs,” Johnny said.
But just then he caught sight of sweet little Tuesday with her big eyes and soft fur. “But this one seems okay,” Johnny said slowly.
“Do you want to pet her?” Kim asked, looking over at Johnny’s dad to make sure it was okay.
“I think so,” Johnny said, looking both scared and brave as his dad nodded encouragingly. “Yes.”
Kim walked Johnny over and Tuesday sniffed his hand, then gave him a kiss on the cheek. Johnny blinked and then smiled. “I like this dog,” he said happily. “Does she need a home?”
“She does,” Kim said. “And if it’s okay with your dad, you can have one of our dog paw candies.”
But Johnny was too excited about Tuesday to care about candy. He was petting her while Tuesday leaned against him.
“Wow, Johnny, Mom is going to be so happy to hear there’s a dog you like,” the dad said. He looked at us. “And surprised. We’ve wanted to get a dog for a while, but with Johnny’s fears we couldn’t.”
“It looks like he and Tuesday are getting along pretty well,” Taylor said hopefully. Johnny was now sitting down and pulling an agreeable Tuesday into his lap.
“I’m texting Mom,” Johnny’s dad told him, pulling out his phone. “We need her to come over so we can see about taking this dog home.”
Johnny cheered while Taylor, Sasha, Kim, and I exchanged gleeful looks. The festival was off to a great start!
By late afternoon we’d handed out all our flyers and Alice had needed to run back to the shelter to print out more. All our bags were sold, as well as the calendars and candy, and our donations box was full. Best of all, Tuesday was going to be adopted and there was a stack of applications from people interested in fostering dogs.
“I think it’s about time to pack up,” Alice said.
But just then I caught sight of two familiar figures. “Hi, Mom,” I called as she came up with Lily, a box from Bundt Cake Bakery in her arms.
Lily happily greeted me and I bent down to hug her. I still couldn’t believe she was mine.
“I thought you guys might want a snack,” my mom said, setting down the box and opening it up to reveal a dozen cinnamon doughnut twists.
“We do,” Tim said happily, grabbing for one.
“Thanks, Mom,” I said, feeling proud as everyone took the treat my mom had brought. Now she was one of the parents supporting us!
“Tell me about the day,” she said to us all. “I hope you got a lot of people willing to foster.” She grinned and caught my eye. “Because you never know when someone might just fall in love with a foster dog.”
“The Roxbury Park Dog Club strikes again,” Taylor said happily.
My mom laughed. “Your club really is pretty special,” she said.
My heart was full as I looked down at sweet Lily, who was now mine, and at my friends, who were so happy for me they were beaming.
And then I threw my arms around my mom, who finally understood how much it all meant to me.
The Roxbury Park Dog Club really had struck again—and it had made me the happiest girl in the world!
Excerpt from Roxbury Park Dog Club #6: A Bone to Pick
DON’T MISS THE NEXT DOG CLUB ADVENTURE!
Sasha feels like she does more work for the Club than any of the other girls—and the stress is starting to affect their friendship. Can the Dog Club survive its first big fight?
1
The halls of Roxbury Park Middle School were packed with kids talking and laughing as I wove my way toward my best friend Kim’s locker. That was our official meeting place after the last bell rang every day and today I was running a little late.
“Hi, Sasha,” Kim said when I finally made it.
“Let’s get going,” my other best friend, Taylor, said with an easy grin as she slung her bag over her shoulder. It was so bulky and heavy it took her two tries. “I don’t want to be late for class.” Taylor, who was the newer of my best friends, took fabulous pictures and had just started studying advanced photography at the Roxbury Park Art Center.
“And I’m helping my mom out at the Pampered Puppy today, so I should hustle too,” Bri said.
Bri was the newest member of our pack and in some ways I was still getting to know her. She was also the newest member of the Roxbury Park Dog Club, which Kim, Taylor, and I had founded at the start of the year. Seventh graders at Roxbury Park Middle School were required to do community service and the three of us had signed up to work at the local dog shelter, an amazing place that took in homeless dogs and kept them safe and happy until they found new homes. But Alice, who ran the shelter, was having trouble making ends meet. At the same time, Kim’s neighbors were looking for someone to walk their dog, Humphrey, in the afternoons before they got home from work. In a flash of brilliance Kim realized that if we started a dog club after school at the shelter, dogs could get a few hours of much needed exercise and fun, and we could bring in some extra money for the shelter. Many of the dogs’ owners also signed up for pickup service, which meant we’d swing by their homes on the way to club meetings and walk the dogs to the shelter. It cost a bit extra but was worth it for owners who were busy at work.