was nice of Logan to come help out. He's a good guy,” Alice said. “Why don’t you take a short break?”
“Caught you two lovely ladies resting on the job,” Theo said with a smile as he joined them under the shade of the umbrella.
Alice laughed. “I’ve been inside baking dog cookies. It’s hard work.”
“Smells like the peanut butter kind in my kitchen. I thought they were for us.”
Alice laughed. “I’ll make you some too. The people kind.”
Trevor turned toward the group and made an announcement. “Thanks to Logan’s help today, the fence is totally dog-proof now.”
“Trevor has been so helpful,” Theo said. “And that boy Logan is a hard worker too.” He looked right at Shelby. "A real standup kind of guy. One you can trust.”
"That's what I thought," Alice said. "Glad to hear it.”
Alice must have mentioned Shelby’s date with Logan the other night and they were trying to reassure her.
Embarrassed, Shelby shrugged. But it was nice to hear. Things felt good with Logan for now, but she would still be cautious. If nothing else, her mother’s failed relationships had taught her that.
“I’m going back to work,” Shelby said.
“We’ll join you soon,” Theo said.
As Shelby walked away, she heard Theo mention something about a picnic to Alice. She was glad she had her back to them so they couldn’t see the grin that brought to her face. She walked around helping where she could. Josh and Steph had both made it today and so had Eleanor. Mindy and Trevor were putting dog toys together. The laughter between them and steady glances made it pretty clear how well they were getting along. Perhaps, Shelby thought, they should call this venture the Lonely Hearts Dog Walkers Club. She laughed to herself. It wasn’t so far from the truth. She’d have to remember to mention it to some of the others.
About an hour later, with everything completed and ready for the grand opening, people started to leave.
Eleanor waved from the gate. “See you all at the Fourth of July party.”
That was coming up soon and Shelby had heard so much about it and what a grand event it was. Her grandmother had suggested several dishes they could make together and bring over for the occasion.
Logan moved in beside her. “The dogs are going to love this place.”
“I think they will,” Shelby said. “And thanks for all your help.”
“A commendable project, for sure. And…by the way, I’m off tomorrow. When you finish your dog walking in the morning, would you like to go on a canoe ride with me? We keep one at our dock. I could pack snacks, my guitar, and we could paddle up the lake to a cool spot I like.”
Shelby liked the sound of that, but she didn't want to sound overly eager. "I guess that would be all right."
"Well, don't sound too excited," Logan said with a big smile. "You know I’ve never asked anyone else to go there with me before.”
She liked the sound of that too. “I’ll meet you about 1:00. And, Logan, thanks. It sounds wonderful.”
“I can walk you home if you’d like,” he said.
“Let me check and see if my grandmother wants to walk back with us. Be right back.”
Shelby found Alice inside petting Wally and slipping him another cookie. “Do you want to walk home with Logan and me?”
Alice winked at her. “You two go.”
“I’ll make sure Alice gets home just fine,” Theo said.
Shelby was sure he would.
Shelby finished walking her clients’ dogs for the day and was looking forward to the canoe ride with Logan. She’d worn a bathing suit under her clothes and walked over to Logan’s house.
“Come on in,” he said. Waiting by the door was a small plastic cooler and his guitar. He handed Shelby a ball cap before putting one on himself. “The sun gets pretty hot out there on the water,” he said. “I put towels in the canoe too.”
“You are prepared,” she said.
Logan led her to a hand-crafted wooden canoe waiting at the end of his dock.
“After you,” he said, helping her in.
They each took an oar and paddled out into the glistening lake. They kept close to the shore, where the summer homes and boat docks cast long shadows across the water as they passed. A young boy ran down his deck, drew his knees tight to his chest, and splashed into the water, followed by his black lab.
“Looks fun,” Logan said.
Shelby thought about how much Gabe wanted a dog and could see him doing