“And I will welcome them happily.” She smiled, then reached over for a one-arm hugged, not really hugging me at all.
I laughed. “Have fun.”
“Thanks. Tell Maya I’ll call her tomorrow when we land.”
“Yes, Mom.”
“Shut up, Mason.” She opened the door and paused before getting in. “Try not to fall back in love with your neighbor before I get back.”
I glared at her. “Why don’t you f—”
“Dadda! I can find my jarmers!”
Fran tapped the side of her nose, winked, and waved to Maya.
“Bye, Mama!” Maya waved with both hands then turned to me. “Dadda! I tired! Jarmers!”
Fran’s laughter was drowned out by the sound of her engine, and I turned back to the house. “Damn, Mason!”
I looked back at Fran. “What?”
“Mom promised to take her to the dog shelter tomorrow before I remembered we were on vacation. I kind of told Maya you’d take her instead.”
“If you think I’m getting a dog, Francesca, you can think again.”
“You just have to take her. She likes to look at the puppies.”
“I’m not getting a darn dog!”
She held up her hands. “Just look. That’s all. They let the kids play with them on Thursdays between one and three, okay?”
I shook my head. “No. That’s not okay. I have to work.”
“It’s your funeral, then. She goes most weeks.”
I sighed and threw up a half-hearted wave.
I didn’t care what she said. I was not getting a dog.
***
I had a dog.
Apparently, the ability to say ‘no’ to my daughter was disappearing the older she got, and I was now the proud owner of a round ball of fluff I was informed was called a Shih Tzu.
Pronounced shit-zoo, and not the thing you wanted your three-year-old telling everyone you were getting in the middle of the pet store.
We would be bringing her home tomorrow, but for now, I had half of said pet store in the trunk of my car.
“Can she seep in my room, Dadda?” Maya took the fluffy bed I handed her and looked at me with her big, blue eyes. “Peas?”
“I guess that’s fine when you’re here. She has to go in a crate at night at first, though, until she’s house trained.” I had no idea how to house train a dog.
“The crate in my room, yeah?”
“She might cry.”
“I wipe her tears. It okay.” She trotted off toward the front door, and I grabbed a box full of puppy food and biscuits.
What had I gotten myself into here?
I put the food down so I could unlock the door. Maya rushed inside before I’d even taken the key out of the door, and I almost tripped over the dog food.
I was going to spend the next twelve years tripping over the actual dog, wasn’t I?
With a sigh, I pushed the food into the kitchen and went back out to the car. Judging by the thundering around upstairs, my little fairy elephant was busy finding a home for the bed that would ultimately move into the crate as soon as the dog came home tomorrow.
I hauled the crate box out of the trunk. It was damn heavy, and I wasn’t entirely sure I needed one as big as I had. The guy in the store had talked me into it, but my first clue should have been the dog on the front.
Looked like a damn police dog.
“What’s that?”
I looked over at Immy’s porch where her grandmother, Jen, was leaning so far over the side of the porch I was pretty sure she was going to take a tumble. “Good afternoon, Jen!”
“Yeah, yeah. What’s that? You getting a Rottweiler?”
“Uh, no, ma’am. A Shih Tzu.”
“Why are you getting a Shih Tzu?”
“I was outvoted by a three-year-old for a dog I didn’t even want.”
She cackled, straightening up. “Kids suck. When are you getting the little frou-frou fucker?”
I glanced back toward the house to make sure Maya wasn’t out here.
Jen covered her mouth. “Do you have your daughter? Sorry.”
“She’s upstairs finding a home for the bed. It’s fine.” I shrugged a shoulder. “I’ve got her for a few extra days this week while her mom is away.”
“Being a good dad. Such an attractive quality. Why are you single?”
“Because I work too much and parent when I’m not working?”
“I’m going to set you up with someone.”
“I’m pretty sure you’re already trying to do that with your granddaughter.” I smiled.
She parted her lips and pressed a hand to her chest. “Me? Set you up? Whyever would you think that?”
“I don’t know,” I said wryly. “Unless the rubber spider jumped into the mailbox of its own accord, of course.”
“Gosh darn it!” She punched the air. “You’re smart, too. You’re the perfect candidate for my future great-grandchildren.”
“And I think we’re done with this conversation.” I choked back a laugh and moved to pick up the crate.
“Wait, wait, wait.” She flapped her hands at me. “When are you getting the frou-frou puppy tomorrow?”
“The afternoon. Why?”
“My grass desperately needs a cut, and the neighborhood boy who usually helps me is going to some baseball tournament. Inconvenient, really.” She sniffed, pushing her hair behind her ear. “Anyhoo. I’ll pay you.”
“I don’t think I can take your money, Jen.”
“Fine. Take Immy on a date.”
“I have Maya. I can’t just leave a three-year-old to her own devices to mow your lawn, even if you are willing to pay me.”
There was no way in hell I was agreeing to her second option.
“I’ll watch her. It’ll only take you twenty minutes.”
I raised my eyebrows. “You’ll watch my daughter? Why?”
“Because I’m a nice person.”
I raised them even further.
“Fine. My grass needs cutting. It seems like a fair trade. Besides, I can’t possibly corrupt a child as young as three in twenty minutes. I need at least thirty for that.”
I had no idea if she was joking about that, but I wasn’t sure I was willing to bet on it.
Then again, I didn’t want to be a bad neighbor. She was old, and if Immy was working and the usual kid was away, I knew I’d feel bad if I didn’t.
“I’ll even watch her after so you can work. I bet she won’t leave you alone at all tomorrow until you’ve picked up your puppy,” Jen continued. “I’m good with kids. We’ll bake cookies. I’ll teach her how to get them right.”
Maya did like baking…
“Who make cookies?”
Of course this was when she finally joined the conversation.
“Mrs. Anderson wants me to cut her grass for her tomorrow, and she said she’d do some baking with you after so I can work,” I explained. “She’s our new neighbor.”
“She bake? Wif me?” Maya looked over at her. “I liked her dress.”
Jen grinned. “I’ll bake with ya, sugar! What kinda cookies do you like?”