“Sure thing, Juliet. Is there anything else I can help you with?”
“No.” There wasn’t anything else she could do to help with the rest of the mess that had become my life.
“You have a good day, and thank you for doing business with Regional Advantage Bank.” Pause. “And say hi to Noah Douglas for me the next time you see him.”
She hung up, having shot that last barb at me with a slightly sarcastic tone. Someone nicer probably would have assumed she was being polite, but I knew my own kind and how we threw shade at others.
I needed money. Like, now. Not fifteen days from now. And business days were stupid. Our world was international and open 24-7. There should just be days, and weekends should count when someone took all your money.
A cold chill enveloped me, and I shuddered a little. I was just now understanding what had actually happened—and there was a sense of violation that some unnamed person had stolen from me. Taken everything I’d worked so hard for and blown it all in just over twelve hours. It seemed so unreal that I’d been robbed. My normally dim outlook on humanity had grown even bleaker.
I glanced at my phone. I needed to take that shower and get ready. I had an appointment in a couple of hours. I relied on muscle memory to carry me through the motions as I considered my options.
There was always my mom, but she had a major hang-up about me not repeating her mistakes. She didn’t want me to marry someone older than me who had a reputation as a player like my dad apparently had (I found that hard to believe) and who would walk away when things got too hard. She’d always counseled me to be sensible and get a steady, well-paying job. She had not been pleased when I’d graduated with an accounting degree but no plans of becoming an accountant. That I would figure out what I wanted my job to be.
When I told her about my plan to buy the van and start Waggin’ Wheels, she reminded me that I wasn’t prepared and didn’t know how hard it was to start your own business (which she had done, so she knew better than I did). I kept insisting that I could do it and she didn’t have to take care of me. There was no way I was going to run to her now and admit that she’d been right about everything and I needed financial help.
Especially since she was being so careful with her own expenses because she was pursuing her degree full-time. I knew her concern came from a place of love and that she would help if I asked, but it was important to me to be independent.
I could ask Shelby, given that Noah was paying her so well and all, but I wondered if that would be akin to him giving me money, and I definitely did not want that.
It was something I kept running over in my mind. Part of me hoped that the bank would do their investigation quickly and that I didn’t need to worry about bringing in some extra money, but I knew I couldn’t depend on it.
I spent the day helping out at an adoption fair for a local animal shelter. Volunteering always put me in a good mood. While there I also handed out fliers offering one free grooming session to anyone who adopted a dog. There was nothing better to me than knowing animals were going to a good home, and I could definitely use the karma points. The hours flew by and thankfully distracted me from my current circumstances.
After the fair ended and we’d packed everything up, my problems came rushing back. What was I going to do? What could I do?
I could sell my plasma. I could try to get some gig job like delivering food or doing people’s grocery shopping. The problem was that I didn’t have a car, just my van. And by the time I added in the gas costs, I probably wouldn’t be making any money. I could try to borrow Shelby’s car, but now that she had a full-time job again, I knew she’d be driving all over the place to meet with her contractor and look for samples to show Noah and pick up band saws and jackhammers or whatever she did with her day, and her car would not be available.
When I got into the van, my phone rang. It was Shelby.
I answered and said, “This is a coincidence. I was just thinking about you.”
“Juliet, I need your help.”
I put on my seat belt and said, “I swear, if you’re calling me because you’re claiming that Noah is in desperate need of mouth-to-mouth resuscitation . . .” I mean, I would probably be too freaked out to do it, but if it meant keeping him alive, I could probably take one for the team.
Maybe.
“No, it’s nothing like that.” It was then that I noticed the frantic edge in her voice, making me feel like a jerk for teasing her. “I’m at Noah’s place with the movers and there was someone here watching his dog because I told him we’d be in and out all day and that guy just took off and I remembered that you mentioned that the dog tries to get out and run off and everybody’s asking me what to do but I’m so distracted and I cannot start this job by losing Noah Douglas’s dog.”
Honestly, she was extremely lucky that Magnus hadn’t run away already. “Okay, there’s a leash hanging up in the kitchen. Put it on his collar and hold on to him until I get there. Things are going to be fine. I’m on my way. I’ll take care of him.”
Traffic was terrible and I could hear my phone buzzing, presumably with texts from Shelby asking if I was almost there yet. Shelby had never really liked animals, and I could only imagine that this was freaking her out. Magnus was a sweet boy, but he was a big dog and might not be all that easy for her to manage.
When I arrived, Shelby was waiting out front with tears streaming down her face. “I’m so glad that you’re here!”
I hugged her briefly and moved to take the leash. “Are you okay?”
She nodded and gulped. “This has to go well. It just does. I cannot blow this again. This is my last chance.”
“I’ve got this,” I told her. And I meant it. I was going to do whatever I had to do to make sure that this was a success. Shelby was my framily (my friend who was also my family), and I had her back. “Go and do whatever you need to do. I’ll take him for a walk.” Magnus wagged his tail at me, apparently pleased to see a slightly familiar face. Or maybe he understood the word walk.
“Thank you,” she said. “I owe you one.”
A mover stepped out of the front door. “Are we taking the mattress or leaving it here?”
“Leaving it here. I’ll be inside in a second to tell you what else goes and what stays,” she said. Then she whispered to me, “Can you believe Noah Douglas has a mattress on the floor? Like he’s still in college? I can’t wait to buy him an actual bed.”
I didn’t want to think about Noah in any bed. “Sounds fun. Anyway, we’re off.”
She waved happily to me, her good spirits restored now that I was in charge of Magnus.
“Come on, boy.”
We’d only been walking for a couple of minutes when I noticed a dog sitting across the road from us, watching. He looked like a black poodle mix. He had on a collar, but I didn’t see any people with him. The road had a sharp bend here, and I was afraid he might run out into the street at the wrong moment and get hit.
I tugged Magnus to come with me, and I crossed the road. The dog growled slightly, as if warning us not to come too close, but there wasn’t any real conviction behind it. In fact, he looked like he was trembling a little. I put the loop of the leash handle around my wrist to free up my hands. I told Magnus to sit and he did as I asked. I crouched down and pulled out one of the treats I still had in my pocket and offered it to the dog. He waited a few moments, sniffing the air between us. In the end his hunger won out, and he came over to scarf down the treat.