The Treasure of the Hairy Cadre (An Alpine Grove Romantic Comedy Book 8)

by Susan C. Daffron

  “You truly are like a seven-year-old.”

  “Oh come on, you’re telling me you don’t want an ice cream cone? If you are, I don’t believe you.”

  “Ice cream is fattening.”

  “And so good on a sunny summer day like this one. You can indulge and support a local entrepreneurial enterprise at the same time.”

  Zack bought two ice cream cones and they continued down the street. In between bites of butter pecan, Sara smiled at a woman with straight blonde hair who was walking toward them holding a medical smock. Sara gestured a greeting with the cone and licked a drip off her index finger. “Hi Tracy.”

  Tracy stopped, crouched in front of Holly to pet her, and looked up at Sara. “How’s my favorite herding dog doing?”

  “Holly is great, but I got distracted and forgot I needed to call you. I need the de-skunking recipe.”

  “I can tell.” Tracy stood up and glanced at Zack. “It’s one quart of hydrogen peroxide, a quarter-cup baking soda, and one teaspoon dish soap.”

  “Peroxide?” Zack said. “Is this dog gonna end up a bleached blonde?”

  “No. You mix it all up, pour it on the fur, and rinse it off quickly.” Tracy put out her hand. “Are you a friend of Sara’s?”

  He shook her hand. “Hi, I’m Zack Flanagan.”

  Startled from her skunk-related thoughts, Sara said. “I’m sorry. That was rude of me. Yes, Zack is my, um, friend.”

  Tracy gave Holly a final pat. “Nice to meet you. I need to run and deal with a deadline at my other job, but good luck with Holly.”

  On the walk around town, Sara stopped and chatted with a librarian and the woman who owned the gift store. As they were walking back to the house, Zack said. “For someone who hasn’t lived here long, you sure know a lot of people.”

  “People are friendly here,” Sara said. “I know Tracy from the veterinary clinic, but sometimes if you’re standing in line at the post office or the grocery store, people will start talking to you. Then I see them on the sidewalk or one of their kids ends up in my class, so we chat again.”

  “I don’t even know the name of the guy who lives in the apartment next door to me.”

  “That’s too bad. If he knew who you were, maybe he would have stopped Ozzy.”

  “I suppose.” Zack crunched the last of his ice cream cone. “That was good, but it would have been better with a piece of cake.”

  “Normally I’d make a comment about how you sound like your father, but I have been having a bit of a craving for cake lately too. I think there’s a mix back at the house.”

  “How about frosting?”

  “Yes, frosting too. I have to make cupcakes for school sometimes, so I try to keep the ingredients on hand.”

  “Cupcakes?” Zack made a swooning face and pressed his hands to his heart. “If you make cupcakes, I promise I’ll be your love slave forever.”

  Sara laughed. “I might hold you to that.”

  “Sounds good to me.”

  After they returned to the house, Sara dumped the cake mix into a bowl while Zack and Holly looked on. Zack sat on the counter with his legs dangling. He leaned over, picked up the can of frosting, and pulled the metal tab to open the top. “I’m surprised you have the canned stuff. I would have thought you’d make it from scratch.”

  “Although making frosting is easy, when school is in session I’m too busy to bother. The kids can’t tell the difference. To them, frosting is frosting.”

  “I get that.” Zack stuck his index finger in the can and pulled out a glob of chocolate goo. He reached out and smeared some on her neck. “Oopsie.”

  “What are you doing?” Sara reached up and tried to wipe it off.

  “I’m thinking about all the fun we could have with frosting.” He jumped off the counter and leaned over to lick the frosting off her neck. “Yummy.”

  Sara put down the mixing bowl as little shivers shot down her spine. “Zack, you know what that does to me. If you keep doing that, your cupcakes will be delayed.”

  “Yeah, but it will be so worth it.” He dipped his finger in the frosting, rubbed it on her lips, and kissed her. “Mmm.”

  Quite a bit later, Sara was significantly more relaxed and the cupcakes were finally in the oven. With Zack around, she might not get much cooking done. He had an extremely creative sweet tooth.

  He walked up behind her and put his arms around her waist. “Thanks for making cupcakes for me.”

  She turned around and gave him a kiss. “I’m not sure I’ve ever had that much fun baking before.”

  “That gives me an idea. Truth or dare?”

  “What?”

  “You know—the game. Pick one: truth or dare?”

  Sara leaned back on the counter. “I hate to consider what type of awful dare you might think up. I pick truth.”

  Zack gave her a thoughtful look. “Okay. What is your biggest fear other than death? Everyone always says death, so what else?”

  “I don’t know. That I’ll be alone and have no friends or family when I get older.”

  “Interesting. And probably unlikely, given that you live here. You already know half the town.”

  “Maybe.” Sara stood up straight and pointed at him. “Okay, fine. Your turn. Truth or dare?”

  “Let’s go with truth to make it more challenging. You already know I’ll do pretty much any dumb thing.”

  “Let me think for a second.” Sara looked around the room as if the kitchen might reveal great insights. “Okay, here’s one. What do you like most about me, other than sex? Because everyone always says sex, so what else?”

  “Ooh, sneaky.” He rubbed at a smear of frosting on the counter. “Way to throw my words back in my face. Okay, I think my favorite thing about you is that even though you are a kind person, you also always say what you think. You don’t dance around the truth. That kind of honesty is unusual, in my experience.”

  Sara looked into his eyes. He was serious. “I’m not like that with other people. Ever since I met you, I blurt out whatever is on my mind before I’ve even thought about it. I don’t know why I do it. You know things about me that I wish you didn’t.”

  Zack took two steps across the small kitchen and took her in his arms. “You shouldn’t worry about that. I love you. All of you. And let’s face it, you know a lot of things about me that don’t exactly enhance my image. And you’ve even met Flan. Yikes.”

  Sara giggled. “That’s true. I may turn into an unruly teenager around my parents, but being related to Flan would be really complicated.”

  “Tell me about it. I’m still trying to adjust to the idea.”

  After polishing off a freshly baked cupcake, Zack grabbed Sara around the waist, picked her up, and gave her a spin-around hug. “I need to ride this sugar high! Where’d you put the treasure box? I want to look at that sheet music again.”

  Once he put her back down and she could breathe again, she said, “It’s upstairs in the bedroom.”

  Zack released her and darted out of the kitchen followed by Holly, who was up for any excuse to run up and down the stairs.

  Sara began putting away the rest of the cupcakes. Feeding Zack a whole lot of sugar might not have been the best idea, but at least he seemed happy.

  Holly galloped back into the kitchen followed by Zack, who was holding the sheet music and guitar. He settled into one of the bistro chairs and began plucking at the strings and strumming experimentally.

  Sara turned around from the counter. “Can you play it?”

  “Maybe. I’m not real good at this yet.” He looked up from the guitar at her. “The song is called ‘Why Wasn’t I?’ and jeez, it’s pretty sad. I think maybe Ira wrote country songs. Prepare yourself.”

  Sara clasped her hands in front of her, getting ready to listen. “Well, the tune is pretty.”

  “Here goes.” Zack stared at the music intently and strummed the chords as he sang.

  I’m at the last exit

  off a long highway.
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  And here at the end,

  I’ve got a lot of questions.

  There are no answers,

  but I’m asking anyway.

  Because I still want to know.

  Money can’t buy love

  and I knew that,

  but it didn’t matter.

  Why wasn’t I there for you?

  I spent too much time afraid

  and I knew that too.

  Why wasn’t I living

  the life I wanted to live?

  I worried about

  what other people thought.

  Too much for too long.

  Why wasn’t I brave enough

  to trust the voice in my head?

  I lost touch

  with so many friends.

  Working too much.

  Then not working at all.

  I let down my son,

  my friends, my wife.

  Why wasn’t I smart enough

  to see that I lost everything?

  Zack stopped, put his palm flat on the front of the guitar, and looked up at Sara. “Whoa, Ira was kinda hard on himself there at the end.”

  Sara wiped a tear from the corner of her eye. Zack’s singing voice made her emotional to begin with, but coupled with the lyrics and melody, now she was a basket case. “That brings back some memories from the hospital.”

  “Music can kinda stir up stuff.”

  “People who are about to die often talk about their regrets like that, and setting it to music…well, I can’t even….” Sara turned and rummaged in a cabinet. “Ugh, I need a tissue now.”

  Zack set the guitar aside, stood up, and put his arms around her. “Hey, I’m sorry, Sparky. When we found it, I didn’t read the lyrics too closely. I didn’t realize it would rattle you like that.”

  “You don’t need to apologize. I’m fine. In fact, I think you should record that so other people can hear it.”

  “Jeez, you want me to make everybody cry?”

  “I’m partly crying in a good way. You have the most beautiful voice.”

  “Thanks.” Zack gave her a kiss and wiped a tear away with his fingertip. “Have another cupcake. You’ll feel better.”

  “I suppose chocolate might help.”

  “It usually does. Apart from making you cry, this has been a great day. Thanks for taking me to your school and showing me around Alpine Grove. I’ll have to think up something fun for us to do when we get to LA.”

  “I’m looking forward to seeing where you live.” Sara looked down at Holly, who was sleeping on the dog bed in the corner. “Guess what, Holly? You get to go back to see Kat and all your new doggie friends!”

  Holly wagged her tail noncommittally a few times and resumed her nap.

  The next morning, they loaded up Sara’s car and Holly for the trip out to the boarding kennel. After they dropped off the dog, Sara would follow Zack down the hill toward Los Angeles.

  The winding road out through the trees was beautiful and Holly occupied herself by pressing her muzzle to the opening in the back window and sniffing vigorously.

  Zack gazed out at the forest whizzing by. “This place sure doesn’t have much of a problem with privacy, does it?”

  “I know it’s a ways out of town, but it’s such a lovely spot for the dogs. They take the dogs for walks on trails through the forest. I guess Holly got to see a lot of wildlife.”

  “You mean like lions and tigers and bears? Oh my.”

  Sara giggled. “I think it’s more like grouse and deer and wild turkeys.”

  “Wild turkey? Like the bourbon?”

  “Like the birds. You see them everywhere.”

  Zack crossed his arms. “I haven’t seen one, and I even saw a bear. So where are all these turkeys? You’re sure you’re not making this up? Wild turkeys sound like a Thanksgiving joke. Like a jackalope, except it’s served with a side of stuffing.”

  “No, they’re definitely real. People hunt them.”

  “Yuck.”

  “In a letter, Benjamin Franklin said he thought wild turkeys were more respectable birds than eagles.”

  “Only an elementary school teacher would know something like that. Or maybe a historian.”

  “I’m certainly not a history expert, but the kids love hearing about Benjamin Franklin and colonial times. I’ve read some of his writing. He was a fascinating man.”

  Zack put his hand on her leg. “So what else are second-graders learning about colonial America?”

  “Lots of things. I’m supposed to be working on my lesson plans.” Sara delved into her ideas for teaching history and got so excited about the topic that she almost missed the turn to the kennel. They drove down the long driveway and Sara was surprised to find that a gate had been added so that she could no longer drive up to the log house.

  A sign indicated that she should pull off to the left in front of the new kennel buildings. After parking the car, Sara got Holly out of the back seat and walked up to the door. A doorbell had been placed next to a sign that listed pick-up and drop-off hours. Sara pressed the button and turned around at the sound of a door slamming from the direction of the house. Kat walked down the driveway and waved to them.

  “Is that the owner?” Zack said.

  “Yes, that’s Kat. You used to be able to drive all the way up to the house. It’s all different now.”

  “Everything looks brand-new. This building still smells like lumber.”

  Kat walked up to them and Holly jumped in front of her joyously. She told Holly to sit and stroked the dog’s head. “Hi Sara. Welcome to the new digs. We’re not officially open yet, but there’s a young dog staying here while her owners are on their honeymoon, so we’ve been able to test everything out. I think Holly and Dixie are going to like each other.”

  “That sounds wonderful. I’m so glad you were willing to take her,” Sara said, and then introduced Zack.

  He shook Kat’s hand and said, “I’m the reason Sara has gotta go to LA.”

  Sara glanced at him. “I don’t have to go. I want to go. I’m sure we’ll have a nice time.” Truth be told, she wasn’t sure at all. In fact, she was a bit anxious. Over the years, Sara had taken enough trips to the airport to develop a powerful dislike of Los Angeles traffic and city noise. However, she wasn’t going to volunteer that information. Zack had said she was honest, but honesty did have its limits.

  Kat said, “I don’t miss the city. Since I moved here, I’ve only been back a couple times, mostly to go to LAX, which is unpleasant.”

  “I can’t argue with that,” Zack said. “I have to fly a lot for work, so I spend way too much time there.”

  “You have my deepest sympathy,” Kat said.

  Chapter 12

  Lonesome Party

  After tending to Holly and playing Frisbee with her in the yard for what seemed like hours, Kat returned to the house. It was great that Dixie was here for Holly’s stay. The fuzzy brown dog was at the obnoxious age when all she wanted to do was play, so she could help wear out Holly. Teenagers were tough on everyone, whether the teens were canine or human.

  Once Dixie returned home, she’d undoubtedly continue testing Beth and Drew with her willful adolescent behavior. When they had dropped off Dixie, Beth and Drew had been utterly adorable. What a pair of lovebirds. They probably were having an incredibly good time on their honeymoon.

  Kat went down to her office and set to work on her latest article. Lately, she had been tasked with writing product reviews, so the FedEx man was becoming her new best friend. He seemed amused by all the techie packages. Not many people in Alpine Grove received six scanners in a week, after all. Her office was starting to look like a computer warehouse, with boxes and packaging material everywhere. Once she was done, Kat had to ship back the stuff, so it was important to keep everything intact.

  The cats weren’t on board with the repackaging program, so every morning Kat found a feline slinking around up to no good. Boxes were like a cat magnet. Even the cats she rarel
y saw, like Tripod, had emerged from their hidey-holes to play in the boxes.

  Kat read the instructions for one of the scanners and wanted to weep. Apparently, the translation from Chinese had not gone well. Wow. You’d think a gigantic international technology company could do better. With a sigh, she began hooking up cables and taking notes on the ease of installation, or lack thereof.

  After she had installed the scanning software and written a few scathing notes about its pathetic user interface, the front door slammed. The somnolent dogs rushed out of the office in a flurry of woofing. Kat raised her arms over her head and stretched.

  Joel appeared in her doorway surrounded by dogs leaping around in canine glee to celebrate his return. Kat spun in her chair and grinned. “The welcoming committee is thrilled you made it back from town unscathed.”

  He walked in and handed her a stack of mail. “I think your contract is in there.”

  Kat riffled through the envelopes and pulled one from the pile. “Ooh, look at the pretty gold lettering on the logo. You’d think they could afford to give me a better advance.”

  Joel leaned on the desk. “Hey, it’s decent money, considering you’ve never written a book before.”

  “I suppose I’m not a proven writer yet.” She tore open the envelope and pulled out the paper. “Hmm, it’s all so official. The words ‘publishing agreement’ are in all upper case. I think they mean it.”

  “Does it match what the acquisitions editor told you?”

  “I think so.” Kat looked up at him. “Seeing it in black and white. I mean, I have to write an entire book in three months. The advance has milestone payments.”

  Joel put his hand on her shoulder. “I can tell by the look on your face, you’re panicking again.”

  “It’s an entire book!” Kat put her face in her hands. “Three hundred pages. How can I do this and run a boarding kennel? I must be completely insane.”

  Joel picked up the paper off the desk. “Those are some…uh…aggressive deadlines you have to meet.”

  “I’m terrified. And seeing Sara again reminded me I haven’t even thought about wedding planning. She took two years to plan hers. Beth and Drew’s wedding was so pretty, and I know she got a lot of help from her mom. But let’s face it, asking my mother to help me would be a recipe for disaster.”