The Magnolia Sisters (Magnolia Sisters #1) - Michelle Major Page 0,29
sis.”
“I wasn’t going to give them to you unless you agreed.”
“You really are a master.”
Meredith beamed like she’d been given a huge compliment, then walked toward the door, stepping over the sleeping dog.
Avery poured the coffee and took a long swig, so desperate for caffeine she didn’t bother with creamer.
She stared at the dog, wondering exactly what she’d gotten herself into. Her mother had never allowed pets when Avery was a girl. Too messy and too much work, she’d said. As an adult, Avery had taken much the same stance. But her life in Magnolia was different than it had been in California. She no longer had a seventy-hour-a-week job or a standing appointment with a personal trainer at the local gym. She no longer had much of anything.
Except now she had a dog. Temporarily.
Meredith returned with the donuts and a bag of dog supplies.
“I brought enough diet dog food to last a week. I have more out at the rescue.”
“Okay,” Avery said absently as she opened the box and released the sweet, doughy scent of the donuts.
“Do you have any questions?”
“Glazed or jelly?”
“Glazed,” Meredith told her. “I’m a purist.”
Avery placed a glazed donut on a napkin and handed it to Meredith, then picked up a chocolate-iced one for herself. Suddenly the little dog sleeping near the front door woke with a start. Spot sniffed the air, then trundled over to the kitchen.
“No people food,” Meredith told both Avery and the dog.
Spot ignored her rescuer, plopping down at Avery’s feet with a plaintive whine. “You heard her,” Avery said. “It’s for your own good.”
The dog barked.
Avery raised a brow and glanced at Meredith. “I thought you said she didn’t do that.”
“It’s the donuts.”
“In that case,” Avery said to the animal, “I don’t blame you, but you’re not getting fatter on my watch.”
“Thank you.” Meredith wiped her fingertips on the napkin. “For agreeing to keep her.”
“Like you gave me a choice.” Avery took another bite of donut, then placed the remaining half on the counter. “I expect to see you Saturday at the memorial service.”
“Weekends are busy at the rescue,” Meredith answered immediately.
“You promised to be helpful,” Avery reminded her. “By helpful I assume you mean letting me boss you around.”
Meredith sniffed. “Hardly, but I’ll try to make it on Saturday. Right now I have to get to the day job. The office opens at eight.”
“I’m meeting with some of Niall’s tenants in town this morning. I’ll take Spot for a walk first.”
“She’ll love it.”
“I doubt that.”
“Good luck with your tenants.”
Her tenants. Avery’s stomach pitched thinking of the difficult conversations she was bound to have.
After Meredith left, Avery put the remaining donuts in a resealable container and loaded the mugs into the dishwasher. Spot didn’t move but continued to watch her with baleful eyes.
“New plan,” Avery said to the dog. “You’re coming with me to town. How upset can people get with me while I’ve got a furry, spotted sausage roll on the other end of the leash? Maybe a distraction isn’t such a bad idea after all.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
“THAT DOG DOESN’T look right.”
Avery gritted her teeth at the not-so-helpful observation delivered in a slow Southern drawl. “She’s fine,” she said without turning around. Instead she concentrated on Spot. “I’ve got a whole bunch of treats in my pocket. Who wants a treat?”
She tugged on the leash, but Spot didn’t budge. The dog had made it about twenty-five feet across the grassy park in the center of town before dropping to the ground and refusing to walk any farther.
Avery had purposely parked on the far side of the park to give Spot a bit of the exercise she desperately needed. She’d planned to take the dog for a walk before leaving, but instead she’d taken a minute to check email and her social media accounts, and gotten sucked down the online rabbit hole.