Total pages in book: 115
Estimated words: 111980 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 560(@200wpm)___ 448(@250wpm)___ 373(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 111980 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 560(@200wpm)___ 448(@250wpm)___ 373(@300wpm)
“You mean you’ve never had to tell a client, ‘When all else fails, bring a dog?’”
“No, but that’s basically a slam dunk,” he says, hopping out, then coming around to the sidewalk and quickly opening the door as I gather my bag.
Hmm. The gentleman is strong in him today. I don’t hate that. Sawyer then opens the door for my dog. I don’t hate that either. When it’s open, my boy looks to me. I pat my thigh. “Download,” I tell him.
He jumps out.
“You taught him download to get out of the car?” Sawyer asks, with some delight.
“I found it amusing,” I say.
“Same. Also, he knows…everything,” Sawyer says, impressed, but…do I hear a note of temptation in his voice?
“You can ask him to say hi,” I offer.
Those brown eyes of Sawyer’s widen. His lips curve up in a rare smile. He turns to the dog. “Captain, say hi.”
My German Shepherd mutt lifts a paw and gives a little wave.
“Holy shit,” Sawyer says, mind clearly blown as he drags a hand through his hair.
Like a lightning strike, another idea hits me. I spin around on the sidewalk, excitement radiating off me. “That’s it! That’s what we can do at the meeting!”
“Have him say hi?”
“Yes, and other things. What better way to show them what I can do than to have someone else give Captain a cue? That shows he responds to me—his trainer—but also to another person. If I’m going to land this gig, they need to see I’m flexible. Their dog actors will have handlers, but they’ll still need a trainer to teach the actions from the script. This isn’t exactly the same, but it shows my work is transferable. Let’s start with you.”
“I’m in,” he says without hesitation.
I run him through a couple more tricks just to be safe. Sawyer and Captain practice for a few minutes outside the library. It breaks my heart a little, how cute he is with my dog. How a new side of Sawyer emerges—one with a boyish charm—when he interacts with the pup.
Then we head into the mayor’s office, which looks more like a haberdashery than a place of business thanks to the coat hook overflowing with hats.
The door to his office swings open and a woman I know steps out. It’s Hallie, and her gray hair is pulled back in a severe bun. She’s a no-nonsense dog trainer, so it’s all the more surprising when she flashes me a smug smile as she exits.
My stomach drops. Did she get the gig?
But I’ve no time to stress about that since Linus scurries to the doorway and calls us in.
When we step inside for the five-thirty meeting, I learn I’m not the only one who had the idea to bring a dog.
17
DOG EXTRAS
CHLOE
I know this dog. I didn’t know she’d be here though.
I point, slack-jawed, chills running through me. “Jubilee is on the show?”
The woman holding the famous rescue Pomeranian-Chihuahua-Papillon mix parts her plum-painted lips and strokes the dog’s soft head. I don’t need to pet the seven-pound Jubilee to know she’s soft. The Pom-Chi looks soft, like she has angel fur.
“We’re announcing that later today,” the woman says. “It’s our final casting notice for Happily Maybe After.”
I look up from the dog in her lap. Sleek hair. A silk blouse—the color of pewter. And that signature snakeskin purse. She’s the woman I saw Linus having coffee with the other week. Of course. That makes perfect sense.
But I only have eyes for the four-legged furball. “Jubilee,” I breathe, reverently. “She’s the world’s cutest dog.”
I stride over to the cutie pie, giving a quick stay command with the back of my hand to Captain so he remains put. “I follow her on social. She has her own clothing line. Her own food line. Her own leashes. And her very own dog hotel in Los Angeles.”
The woman beams, pleased, it seems, with my knowledge. “She does. She’s kind of like magic.”
“May I pet her?”
She gives a regal nod of her chin. “You may.”
I stroke Jubilee’s soft little head, and the dog sits up, inviting the attention. “It’s like petting a lamb’s-ear plant,” I say, since those leaves are softer than pillows.
“Isn’t she amazing?” the woman says.
“Are you her handler?” I shake my head. “Excuse my manners. I’m just starstruck.” I stick out a hand. “Chloe Rivers. Chloe’s Paw-sitive Dog Training. And this is my colleague Sawyer Dumont. He runs the Dog Tails dog daycare centers. All eight of them.”
Sawyer strides over and extends a hand. “Pleasure to meet you. You must be Alexandra Bourbon.”
How did he know that? Holy shit. He’s good.
“Yes, I am,” she says with a trace of a smile that she erases quickly. “I’m the producer of the show. But Jubilee’s been spending time with me here and there. We really wanted you to meet her.”