Paws for Love, A Novel for Dog Lovers Read online

  She glanced at the screen. “You have three missed calls and a message from the same number.”

  “Yeah?” He was not in the habit of checking his phone because he didn’t really understand half the buttons on it, and he’d never figured out how to get to the messages. He kept his eyes on the road. He could not bring himself to ask her to check for him. Exactly why you let her go, Bill. Don’t forget it.

  “I’ll check it out later.”

  Misty called Ernest. When she hung up, her whole body sagged in relief. “He’s going to take Jellybean until Lawrence shows up, if he ever shows up.”

  “Awesome. When?”

  “He said anytime, so I could bring him right now, if…” She hesitated. “If you can give me a ride, I mean.”

  He squirmed. “I, uh, really should be back at the shop.” The real truth was, he was reluctant to spend a moment more with Misty than he had to. The shame and the yearning were too great.

  She gazed out the window. “I understand. Sorry I asked. It was thoughtless.”

  “No, I get it. I mean, the dog just totaled your car. Let’s go right now. It’s okay.”

  She tried to talk him out of it, but he was determined. If she could off-load the dog, it would be one more step toward getting what she wanted—to leave Albatross for good. It’s the right thing for both of us, Bill told his churning stomach.

  She chewed a fingernail as they drove along until he couldn’t stand the quiet. “What’s on your mind?”

  “Something Jack said. I saw him at the Lady Bird yesterday.”

  Jack. The name made his jaw muscles clamp down tight. They’d been making dinner plans, he figured. Why not? Jack was a real man, the kind who came with an education and a bright future. With an effort, he kept his tone level.

  “What did Jack have to say?”

  “That Lawrence was supposed to give some sort of speech Friday night to kick off the Silver Screen Festival. I wished I’d had the chance to tell him on the phone. He might have come back just for the opportunity to address his fans directly.”

  “Maybe he will call again.”

  “Then I’d better stop somewhere in Twin Pines and get a new cell phone, just in case.”

  “Right.” They traveled on. Fiona slept with Jellybean curled up on her lap.

  “Adorable,” Misty said. “You’d never guess in real life Jelly could be such a handful.”

  “Fiona too. Sleeping, they look like angels.”

  Bill’s phone buzzed.

  “Missed call again?” he asked.

  “No,” she said, looking at the screen. “A text this time.”

  His mind began to spin. What if the shop was burning down? Or Gunther had an accident?

  He felt her looking at him. “Do you want me to tell you what it says?” she said softly.

  Because you can’t read a simple sentence?

  His skin flamed hot.

  Let her, he told himself. Let her see the kind of life she was getting away from.

  “Yes,” he choked out.

  “It’s from Catherine Anderson.”

  His head jerked toward her. “Catherine Anderson? That’s Fiona’s aunt.”

  “The one who was overseas?”

  “Yeah. What does she say?”

  Misty read the message. “She said she’s been calling and calling. She’s on her way to Albatross right now. Actually, she’ll be at your shop within the hour.” Misty’s eyes opened wide. “Better turn around, Bill. I’ll get Jellybean to Ernest later. Let’s get you back so Fiona can see her aunt.”

  “She’s never shown much interest before.”

  “Maybe she’s come home for a while. Where does she live?”

  “Georgia, I think, when she’s in the States. Long way to come just for a visit.”

  She studied his face. “I’m sure that’s all it is. Just a surprise visit.”

  Misty’s calm reasoning did not totally erase the nervous twinge in his gut.

  Bill drove faster than he should have, and they arrived at Chocolate Heaven within the hour. He lugged a cranky Fiona out of the car. Her hair was sticking up in all directions, and she was not at all pleased to be awakened from her nap. Jellybean wasn’t either, but Misty clipped him to his leash.

  They entered the shop to find Gunther up to his elbows in yellow rubber gloves and a wide lake of brown chocolate on the floor.

  “Conching machine’s busted, and I tipped it over trying to fix it. Place is a mess.”

  Bill groaned, trying to restrain a wriggling Fiona. “Hold on, Fee. I don’t want you in the chocolate.”

  Fiona wriggled harder, turning her body into a floppy fish that Bill struggled to hold on to. “Stop it, Fee.”

  But she would not stop. Flailing was added to the wiggling, and Bill was not able to hang on. She slid from his arms, and he only barely managed to grab her hand to keep her from falling. Held by Bill’s grasp, her feet hit the chocolate and skidded out from under her, splashing both of them in melted goo.

  Jellybean raced forward, tugging on the leash and trotting right into the chocolate before Misty could stop him. She hauled him back but not before his torso was sticky, his muzzle dripping from where he’d tried to lap it up.

  “Chocolate is poison to dogs,” Gunther hollered. “Don’t let him eat any more.”

  Misty snatched him up, and he promptly shook his coat, vigorously splattering her, Bill, the screaming Fiona, and the woman in the white jacket and pants who stepped through the door at that moment.

  The lady recoiled as if she’d been struck. “What did I just get all over me?”

  “Chocolate,” Bill said weakly. “Hello, Catherine.”

  Jellybean strained to get close enough to the newcomer to welcome her properly, but Misty kept him back.

  Catherine dabbed at her jacket with a napkin she pulled from the nearby table. “Hello, Bill.” She looked down at Fiona and smiled. “Hey there, sweetie. You’re a sticky mess.”

  Fiona stopped thrashing at last. Jellybean whined, flopping his ears and sending more chocolate flying.

  “I’m sorry, Catherine. It’s good to see you, but we’ve had a little chocolate accident,” Bill said. “Can you give me some time to get things cleaned up and we can start this visit over?”

  A frown creased her brow. “I only have a few minutes before I have to present a report to an overseas client, and that might take a long while. I’ll just go check into the Lady Bird, and we’ll try this again tomorrow morning, okay?”

  He nodded. “Can I…are you just here to visit your niece, by the way? I was just wondering if there’s any other reason.”

  “A visit, yes.” Her eyes drifted across the splattered shop. “And to talk about a possible new arrangement. We could have talked on the phone before. I called a half dozen times.”

  “Sorry about that,” Bill said. He did not even try to offer a lame excuse.

  Catherine waved a hand. “No harm done. See you tomorrow.”

  The bells accompanied her departure.

  His eyes met Misty’s as she held Jellybean, her own clothes doused with chocolate. Bill could not read much of anything, but he deciphered the meaning behind Catherine’s words just fine.

  A new arrangement.

  He saw in Misty’s worried gaze that she’d gotten the same message too.

  Nineteen

  Misty scrubbed Jellybean twice against his forceful protestations, and still he smelled slightly of chocolate. Vanquished and pitiful, he sat on a blanket that Misty had graciously thrown on top of her bed in the trailer. Dinnertime came and went, but she had no appetite for anything. All she could do was pace in unsatisfying circles and wonder what was going on between Bill and Catherine.

  Without a cell phone, Misty could do nothing. There would be no chance of connecting with Lawrence again, no opportunity to return Nana Bett’s call unless she borrowed a phone from one of the movie people or called from Bill’s shop. Though she desperately wanted to know how Bill was feeling ab
out Catherine’s surprise arrival, she was afraid to barge in on a tenuous family situation. She was not family, not a girlfriend, not anything to Bill Woodson, she thought with a pang.

  After she slipped on pajamas, she passed the hours scrubbing the stains out of her clothes and playing her violin. Jellybean listened with rapt attention as she soothed them both, her music sad and poignant.

  As darkness came, the first splatters of rain hit the trailer roof. Of course. There was nothing else that could happen to work against these Albatrossians and their festival. Now the weather was conspiring to ruin the festivities too.

  What other factors could possibly conspire against Bill Woodson, already enduring an enormous millstone around his neck? What else? How about if Catherine had arrived with the intention of taking Fiona away? She tried to picture Bill without Fiona.

  His life would be so much easier if he were to give up his parenting role. The pressure to hide his illiteracy and to provide for a child would be lifted from his shoulders.

  Yet she had a feeling that losing Fiona would also break Bill’s heart beyond repair. Carefully putting away her violin, she climbed in bed. Jellybean scooted up tight, snuggling against her tummy.

  “Jelly, what is going to happen to Bill?”

  The dog curled up tighter, letting out a soft whine as he closed his eyes and went to sleep.

  With a deep sigh of her own, she said her prayers and tried to do the same.

  Misty and her canine bedmate overslept until well after ten on Wednesday morning. The movie people were already hard at work, sliding a camera on a long track as they presumably filmed the segments without their star. Misty dressed quickly, fed Jellybean, and looked furtively out the window to make sure no one would spot her escape, particularly Jack. She was not in any mood to fend off his dinner invitations or face more grilling about Lawrence’s whereabouts.

  She intended to check on the status of her pancaked car, borrow Bill’s van, deliver Jellybean to Ernest’s loving custody, and buy a cell phone. More importantly, she hoped to hear that Catherine’s arrival was not the harbinger of disaster she had imagined it to be. Then after all that? Well, she couldn’t very well leave town with her car stuck in a tree, so her timetable was at the mercy of the tow truck.

  When the movie people looked particularly engrossed in their work, Misty eased out the door and walked briskly with Jellybean toward town. The sky was still thick with clouds, but the rain held off, which was a mercy since she had no umbrella. Even with the clouds, or perhaps because of them, the ocean air was fresh and crisp. There was no cacophony of traffic noise, no crush of people, no place, really, in which Misty could hide herself as she walked. Her exposure to the world was the tiniest bit thrilling, she thought as she strode along, and frightening too.

  Her nerves prickled and danced as she closed in on Chocolate Heaven. She wouldn’t pry. Just a quick stop to borrow Bill’s van. Tucking Jelly under her arm, she poked her head into the shop. Gunther was wiping down the counter. His face was more lined than usual, a scowl deeply grooving his face.

  “Good morning, Gunther. I came to ask Bill if I can use his van.”

  He jerked his head toward the door. “Outside.”

  Figuring it would be a waste of breath to attempt any more conversation with him, she let herself out the side door.

  “I don’t want to embarrass you,” Catherine was saying. She was neatly dressed in slacks and a blue silk top with a casual blazer tying it all together. Bill stood across from her, hands on the hips of his white apron. Fiona was on a chair, peering over the back gate to spot a rabbit. Jellybean pulled the leash from Misty’s hand and ran to Fiona. Neither Bill nor Catherine seemed to notice.

  Misty edged quietly around to retrieve the dog and make her getaway.

  “But there are hindrances to you raising Fiona,” Catherine was saying.

  “Hindrances,” he echoed.

  “You know. Difficulties.”

  “Yes, I know what the word means.”

  “Of course.”

  “Why don’t you say it? Just say it, Catherine.”

  Misty’s heart lurched.

  Catherine folded her arms around herself as if she were chilled. “You’re making this harder than it needs to be.”

  “Say it,” Bill said. “Tell me why you don’t think I can be a good parent to Fiona.”

  “Purely a practical decision. I can give her a better life,” Catherine said calmly. “I’ve arranged my career so I will be doing less travel. I have financial resources that you don’t have, and you…” She sighed. “Bill, you’re a good man, and you’ve done an amazing job with Fiona.”

  “So why are you the better choice?”

  Catherine’s voice dropped. “You know why.”

  “Tell me.”

  Misty’s mouth went dry as Catherine cleared her throat.

  No, don’t say it, she pleaded silently. Please don’t.

  “Because you’re illiterate.”

  The word fell like a bomb.

  Illiterate.

  Bill stared at her as if he hadn’t heard.

  “I wish you hadn’t backed me into that corner, Bill. I do not want to demean you in any way. You are a fine man.”

  “But I’m not…” He cleared his throat. “I’m not smart enough.”

  “I know you’re smart, but let’s be realistic. Reading medicine bottles? Understanding school report cards? Planning her financial future? Those are important things.”

  “Yes,” he said slowly. “I know.”

  “It’s not just me. Your father…”

  Misty went cold at the look of defeat on Bill’s face.

  Bill squeezed his eyes shut, and Misty could see the pain that crashed over him in a mighty tide. “I know. My father thinks I’m not fit to parent Fiona.”

  “He knows…we all know you love her, but sometimes love isn’t enough.”

  Misty felt the thoughts tumbling out of her mouth, leaving her aghast at herself.

  “Yes, it is. Bill’s a great father.”

  Catherine cocked her head. “Who are you, if I may ask?”

  Bill found his voice. “Misty Agnelli. She’s a friend.”

  “A good enough friend to know that Fiona and Bill love each other very much,” Misty continued.

  “I am sure of it, but things change, and if we look logically at the situation, it makes perfect sense.”

  “Bill’s her guardian.”

  Catherine brushed the bangs from her face. “Yes, but in a legal challenge…” She shrugged, and the truth hit home to Misty. Catherine was right. If she brought the matter to court, what judge would rule in favor of a single man who couldn’t read? Anguish nearly closed off her throat, and she watched Bill’s eyes change as he came to the same conclusion.

  He looked at Misty. “Thanks, Misty, I appreciate it, but nothing Catherine has said is untrue.” His throat convulsed. “She is the better choice for a parent.”

  “No, Bill. You are,” Misty said from a brave place inside her she hadn’t known was there.

  He shook his head, eyes glistening. “If she goes with Catherine, she’ll get everything she needs. Maybe she’ll start talking again soon, and she won’t live in a tiny room above a candy shop.”

  Catherine nodded. “I’ve already spoken to a wonderful specialist in Georgia about her mutism.” She put her hand on Bill’s arm. “And you will always be her Uncle Bill. You’re welcome to come anytime. I want her to have a close relationship with you.”

  Misty was paralyzed at what was taking place.

  He watched Fiona play, mouth tight. “You’ll want to spend some time with her, get to know her better before you”—he cleared his throat—“before you take her.”

  “Actually, I’d like to fly back home on Friday. With Fiona.”

  “Friday?” he croaked. “So soon?”

  “I think it would be best to make the transition quickly, don’t you? Easiest on Fiona?”

  Bill didn’t answer.
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  “Is it okay if I spend some time with her now?” Catherine asked.

  “She has to go to preschool,” Bill said after a moment. “She has school from one to four today. It’s important for her to be in school every day, Miss Dina says. She’s smart,” he said desperately. “She knows all her letters, and she can write her name with a capital letter in the right spot.”

  “All right. How about I pick her up from preschool, and we can play at the beach for a while? I’ll bring her back to the shop about six?”

  “But…but maybe we should both be there. She might be scared without me.”

  Catherine held up a hand. “Bill, let’s do what’s easiest for Fiona, okay? A couple of hours to reacquaint ourselves is going to help things along immensely. It’s not as though I’m a complete stranger, you know. She and her parents stayed at my house last time I was in town. I was at her christening and her last birthday party.”

  “I…I guess you’re right,” Bill said.

  No, no, no, Misty’s heart cried.

  Catherine called out, “Fiona, can you come here a minute, honey?”

  Fiona approached, a smear of dirt on her forehead. Catherine knelt next to her. “Do you remember me, Fiona? I’m Auntie Catherine, your mommy’s sister. You’ve stayed at my house before.”

  Fiona did not respond except to stick her two middle fingers in her mouth.

  “Remember my dogs, Buster and Charlotte? They loved playing with you in my swimming pool. I’d like you to come back to my house with me and stay with me and the dogs, okay?”

  Fiona blinked, unresponsive.

  “Tell you what. Today after your preschool is over, I’ll pick you up and we’ll go get ice cream and play on the beach for a while. How would that be? You like ice cream, I remember. Vanilla, right?”

  Fiona nodded.

  Misty looked on in absolute disbelief. This couldn’t be happening. Not to a good man like Bill.

  But Catherine was nodding, walking back out of the shop, and Bill was standing silent, watching her go.

  “Oh, Bill,” Misty said when the door closed. “I’m so sorry.”

  He was quiet for a long moment. She ached to comfort him.