Page 12 of A Holly Brown Christmas
And with that, he made his way down three flights of stairs before heading out to the doggie area. Shmoop was sniffing around, but he didn’t seem overly impressed. It was chilly out, so he figured it couldn’t hurt to bring the dog back inside.
“C’mon, boy,” he said as he opened the gate. “Let’s go inside where’s it warmer, and hopefully find your mom hasn’t tripped over anything else.”
If he didn’t know any better, he’d swear the dog was smiling at him like he understood.
Together, they walked back into the house and up the stairs to the kitchen. Lucas put fresh water in Shmoop’s bowl and grabbed a couple of bottles of water for himself and Holly. And when he turned to head back up to the attic, the dog was right by his side.
“Holly wasn’t sure you could be trusted here in the house, so be sure to behave. I’m mad at my folks at the moment, but I also don’t want to destroy any of their things. Does that make sense?”
Oh God…I’m talking to the dog like he’s a person! What is wrong with me?
But when he looked down at Shmoop, the darn dog nodded at him.
“Maybe I’m more tired than I thought because there’s no way a dog could understand what I’m saying and nod,” he murmured.
When they reached the attic, Holly turned to them both and smiled before crouching down as her dog trotted over to her. “There’s my good boy! Are you behaving yourself?”
And he nodded again.
Stepping closer, Lucas had to ask, “Um…is he nodding? Because I feel like he did that when I talked to him.”
She was scratching Shmoop’s ears when she looked up at him. “Oh, for sure! He’s very smart. Sometimes I swear I think he’s going to talk to me. He knows exactly how to convey what he wants. I don’t know how because I certainly didn’t train him to do half of the things he does; he just does them. It’s really kind of cool!”
“I’ll say.”
“I found several boxes that have more holiday decorations in them. One box had mantle written on it, one had windows, another had upper family room, and the last one was exterior lights. That one’s important so I can hire a company to come and hang them. Other than that, there’s nothing else up here. Hopefully, there’s more in the basement.”
He nodded. “We’ll find out tomorrow, right?”
“Absolutely! I’m already looking forward to it!”
He had a feeling she got this excited about everything, but he supposed it wasn’t a bad thing. He’d just never met anyone who seemed to find this much joy in such mundane tasks.
“This is going to be so much fun, Lucas! I already can’t wait to come back!”
And there was a tiny part of him that couldn’t wait to spend more time with her.
Four
“Hey, Holly. I need…”
“Shush!” she hissed. Waving her hand impatiently at Crystal, Holly tried to listen to the holiday stylist’s reason she couldn’t fit one more house into her schedule.
“I’m sorry, Ms. Brown, but when I didn’t hear from Mrs. Brooks by the end of August, I booked other clients. I simply just don’t have the time or the staff to accommodate you.”
This wasn’t acceptable.
“I understand what you’re saying, Ms. Gray. Violet. Can I call you Violet?”
“That would be fine. However…”
“Violet, Mrs. Brooks has used your services almost exclusively for ten years. She has recommended you to many of her friends and business associates. Haven’t you benefited from those clients?”
“Of course, but…”
“And you’re telling me you’re okay with reaping the benefits of those recommendations—something Mrs. Brooks did not have to share—and not returning the favor when she needs it? You realize that recommendations can also be to warn people away, don’t you? What if all those people Mrs. Brooks praised you to found out that you left her hanging high and dry?”
Silence.
