by Anna Wilson
‘Ye-es,’ said Molly, still looking at me as if I was the loopiest Fruit Loop in the packet. ‘What’s this got to do with Frank apparently taking on Genius Status?’ she said sneerily.
‘Oh. My. Goodness! This is just too FANTABULOUSY!’
I squeaked. ‘Do you remember in one of your magazines that there was a celebrity wedding with–’
‘BRIDESDOGS?’ Molly shrieked, suddenly clicking on to the same length of wave I was on.
‘YES!’ I shrieked back.
‘Holy Shmoly,’ said Frank. ‘I’m outta here.’
On the bus that afternoon Molly and I decided we had to tackle the issue of bridesdogs head on with April and Nick immediately.
‘We will need to have a very well-planned conversation,’ I said.
‘Yes,’ said Molly. ‘I think we should start by paying April loads and loads of complimentary comments about her choice of wedding dress and the flowers she is going to have and so on.’
‘And then we’ll gently bring the conversation round to us being bridesmaids and how we’re really looking forward to it,’ I said.
‘And we’ll just drop in the fact that Frank’s not keen on the pageboy idea – but we won’t talk about the fact that he would prefer to chew drawing pins,’ Molly said.
‘No, we definitely won’t mention the drawing pins,’ I agreed.
‘Then we’ll show April those really tasteful pictures from my celebrity magazine,’ said Molly. ‘She can’t possibly say no!’
We whizzed round to Molly’s and grabbed the magazine. Molly knew exactly where it was, as she had kept all her celebrity magazines in a folder in her desk. ‘Just in case they are really valuable one day and I can sell them for lots of money like on that Roadside Antiques programme on the telly,’ she explained.
Then we grabbed Titch as well, and zoomed over to my place to play with our pooches while we waited for April and Nick to come round after work.
The pooches rolled around together in the garden while Molly and I poured over the magazine pictures and planned what outfits we could make for Titch and Honey to make them mega-cute bridesdogs.
‘Look at those big velvety bows!’ Molly cried, pointing at a floppy dark green bow round one dog’s neck.
‘That is really classy!’ I agreed. ‘And look at those leads they’ve got that are decorated with tiny white flowers – they match the flowers in the bridesmaids’ hair!’
‘nDudey,’ Molly agreed.
‘What’s that you girls are looking at?’ said a voice.
It was April and Nick, here rather early, unfortunately.
I jumped up in a guilty-ish sort of wag and said, ‘Nothing!’
But Molly had already picked up the celebrity magazine and was waving the picture of the bridesdogs at Nick and squeaking, ‘Look! Look! Bridesdogs!’ which had not been in any part of the conversation-planning that we had so far agreed on.
‘WHAT?’ April shrieked.
Molly stopped waving, and the room filled up with a huge and black kind of silence.
‘Bridesdogs,’ Molly whispered, as April snatched the magazine from her hand.
My sister glared at the picture on the page.
Just as I thought the world would finally come to an end in a TIRADE of April shouting and screaming at us, Cupid trotted into the kitchen, went right up to April, licked her on the hand and looked up at her with soft, adoring eyes.
April’s SCARY GLARINESS straight away disappeared. ‘How could we even think of getting married without ALL our favourite friends and relations there, darling?’ she said to Nick.
So that was how on 26 August, I walked down the aisle behind my sister, carrying a bunch of lilies in one hand and leading Cupid on a leash decorated with daisies with the other. Molly followed with Titch, and Frank dragged his silky-stockinged feet behind us with Meatball on his left and Honey on his right. He’d even washed for the occasion. In fact, he looked a Right Romeo!
‘Do you think that might be the end of all your mad and crazy doggy plans for now,
Summer?’ Mum teased me at the party afterwards.
‘Hmmm,’ I mused. ‘Maybe for now . . . until Honey has her next litter?’
Mum narrowed her eyes at me. ‘OVER MY DEAD BODY, SUMMER HOLLY LOVE!’ she growled.
But I did notice she had a glint in her eye . . .
Books by Anna Wilson
Puppy Love
Pup Idol
Puppy Power
Kitten Kaboodle
Kitten Smitten
Kitten Cupid
And chosen by Anna Wilson
Fairy Stories
Princess Stories
First published 2008 by Macmillan Children’s Books
This electronic edition published 2010 by Macmillan Children’s Books
a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited
Pan Macmillan, 20 New Wharf Road, London N1 9RR
Basingstoke and Oxford
Associated companies throughout the world
www.panmacmillan.com
ISBN 978-0-330-47997-4 PDF
ISBN 978-0-330-47996-7 EPUB
Text copyright © Anna Wilson 2009
Illustrations copyright © Moira Munro 2009
The right of Anna Wilson and Moira Munro to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
You may not copy, store, distribute, transmit, reproduce or otherwise make available this publication (or any part of it) in any form, or by any means (electronic, digital, optical, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of the publisher. Any person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
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