Page 42 of This Baby Business
In the shower, I reviewed my options for today. I had some work to do because there was no such thing as weekends or taking time off when it came to running a small business. While drinking my first coffee of the day, I answered emails. A new photo of Grace wearing a pair of lace-trimmed jeans and a matching denim-and-lace headband had become nearly as popular and well received as the first viral blog post. I had definitely turned a corner with RockYourBaby.
I had a voice message from Mrs. Lane who asked about getting together for dinner, the four of them. I would certainly have to swing that by Levi first.
I stared at the accounts-payable pile on my desk and thought of all the bookkeeping that lay ahead. Mom’s favorite part. Facts were, I had several hours’ worth of work ahead of me with my mortal enemy, Excel. But today was beautifully sunny and warm, an unusual October day. Ishouldskip the pet wash, but Zoey would be disappointed. So I dressed in a soft yellow summer shift dress and paired it with a cropped long-sleeved denim jacket and my favorite strappy sandals.
Later, I sat in my car in the Magnum Aviation parking lot.Why am I here?Maybe it wasn’t a good idea to show up where I knew Levi would be. It might be best to continue to keep my low profile, at least until the Lanes were out of town. Plus, I didn’t even have a dog, so why was I at a pet wash? Silly. I should be…doing something else. Anything else. Using my time wisely, for instance. Or I could go shopping for shoes with money I didn’t have.
But even though I sat a little frozen by the fact that I’d see Levi again—shirtless—the facts were that I was here to support Zoey and the pet adoption cause. Because as a general rule, I had always supported every charitable cause in Fortune. It had always been the Gilmore way. I wasnothere because Levi would be here. Not wearing a shirt.
The first and last time I’d seen that, my jaw had slackened and my tongue had disengaged from my brain. I hadn’t even known what it would be like to kiss him then, but now I did. Now I unfortunately realized that he kissed on par with what he looked like—not helpful knowledge for a woman lookingnotto get involved.
There was a knock on her window, and I turned to see Jill. “Are you getting out?” She cocked her head.
I stared from Jill to the leashed black Lab sitting next to her. Interesting, since Jill didn’t own a dog.
I rolled down my window. “Who’s this?”
“Henry.” Jill nodded as if introducing them. “I’m dog sitting.”
I grabbed my keys, hopped out of the car, and bent to give Henry a pat on the head. He licked me from forehead to chin and nearly knocked me on my butt.
“Sorry. I should have warned you. Henry here is a licker.”
I used the tissue Jill handed me to wipe my face. “Who are you dog sitting for, anyway?”
“Don’t laugh, but it’s for this guy I just met. He’s low end of the Chris Scale but still a hunk and half. I figured you met a Chris while babysitting. Who’s to say I can’t meet my own Chris while dog sitting? You never know—after the first kiss he might jump up several points on the Chris scale. It could happen.”
We walked toward the hangars where just outside of one of them I noticed a line of mostly women with their pets. Most of them dogs, though there was at least one cat in the mix. I recognized many of the women, including Emily’s grandmother and some of her Pink Ladies genealogical society friends, Marci from the Drip, and my third-grade teacher, Mrs. Olson. Sarah stood at the beginning of a long line, taking donations. At the end of the line, it split in three different directions.
“It’s kind of luck of the draw which guy you get to wash your pet,” Sarah said when Jill handed over a twenty-dollar donation.
All three of the men were wearing nothing but board shorts. For what it was worth, they all seemed to be doing a good job of washing the pets—and being good-natured about getting soaked when the dogs shook all over them. I noticed Levi bend to take a sponge to a wet golden retriever, the sun glinting off his tight shoulder muscles. I stared at his perfect body, knowing those abs were as hard as they looked.
Jill pointed in Levi’s direction. “That must be him. Hot Dad.”
“Yeah. That’s Levi.”
She elbowed me. “I don’t blame you for watching the baby now. Good move.”
“I didn’t do it because of him.” I put my hands on my hips. “I needed the baby. Remember?”
Jill rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah, I remember now. The baby. You needed the baby.”
We moved up the line. Dogs were washed, toweled dry and primped. Off to the side, Zoey gave dogs massages. Emily and her sister, Molly, placed ribbons on the females and little plastic bow ties on the males. Hunter, Matt’s teenage son, was taking photos with an old Polaroid camera and giving them to the owners. The whole thing was freaking adorable. A marketing genius must have come up with the idea.
Ahead of them, I noticed a beautiful blonde I recognized to be Joanne, owner of the only bridal shop in town, flirting openly with Levi. Naturally she’d be here, as she and Matt were parents to fifteen-year-old Hunter. She wore a short dress that showed a lot of leg and a pair of wedges with a ribbon that wound up around her thin ankles. Her long blond hair was loose, and every time she smiled at Levi, she tossed the mane of hair over her shoulder. She placed her hand on Levi’s bicep, laughing when he squatted down to better pet the top of her toy poodle’s head.
“Is Joanne…still single?” I said out loud.
“I think she’s dating some semipro baseball player. Isn’t she?”
“That’s right.” I nodded.
“Wait a second.” Jill turned. “Hoo, boy. Look at you.”
“What is it?”
“You’re jealous.”
