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Evenas she responded to BrentSellhorn, her boyfriend ofthe pastyear, her gaze returned to the lamp. Annie wondered whathewouldsayifsheteasinglytoldhimsheâdbeendistractedbyabronzesiren âIthoughtyouâdbebackbynow.Istoppedbyyour cubicle,butKarleewouldonlysayyouwereout.âFrustrationfilled Brentâstone âWhenIaskedifyouâdtakenalatelunch,sherespondedbyaskingifIwantedtoleaveamessageâ Annie smiled. Brentknew better. Heâd beenaround longenoughto understand thather coworkers were a closemouthed group.Karlee,whoâdbeenhiredsixmonthsagostraightoutofcollege,hadfitrightin.
âYoualreadyknowmyschedule,sowhyask?â
As she and Brentworked for the same company, theyusuallymetfor lunchateleventhirty. ButBrenthad informed her earlierintheweekhewouldnâtbeabletomeetonFridaybecauseofaworkconflict Withnoplansforlunch,Anniehadstayedfocusedonworkuntilnearlyone.
While she and Brentbothworked under the same accountingumbrella atSensorTech, she was inTreasuryManagement, whichmanagedthecompanyâscashflow,amongotherduties,whileBrentwasinGeneralAccounting
âYes,seeyouatsevenâAnniedroppedthephoneintoherpurse,wonderingwhyheâdfelttheneedtoconfirmthetime It wasthesameeveryweek.Onlytherestaurantchanged.
Talking business, no matter how briefly, had Annie fighting the urge to head directly back to the office. She reminded herselfshestillhadagoodtwentyminutesleftonherlunchhour
Annie looked up into the smiling face of Sophie Wexman, the shopâs owner, who was sporting a bright blue Timeless Treasures T-shirt Withher full cheeks and long, darkhair pulled backinto a jauntytail, Sophie could pass for one of the studentsherprofessorhusbandtaughtatCollisterCollege.
Annie gestured with one hand. âI was on myway back to the office, but thenI saw your sign and all the goodies and couldnâtresist IthoughtIâdtakeafewminutestowanderandseeifanythingcatchesmyeyeâ
Sophiesmiled.âThebestwaytofindunexpectedtreasures.â âOh,miss,âanolderwomancalledout âCouldyouansweraquestionformeaboutthispiece?â âBe right there,â Sophie called to the woman, thenturned backto Annie. âIf youdo have anyquestions, please let me know.â
Annie wove her waythroughthe rows ofantiques to the boxand picked it up. Holdingit securely, she turned it inher hands Thewoodfeltsmooth,asifmanyhandshadhelditovertheyears Itsportedintricatescrollworkonthesides
Theairturnedthick,thewayitdidwhenastormmovedin,andallsoundsoflaughterandconversationdisappeared The sunmusthavemomentarilyslippedbehindtheclouds,becauseeverythingdimmed,includinghervision.
As Annie smiled at Hannah, hoping to alleviate her concern, she noticed Hannahwore a Timeless Treasures shirt like Sophieâs.âAreyouworkingherenow?â
âIâmjusthelpingSophie outthis weekend More ringingup items thanansweringquestions Iâmnotthatknowledgeable aboutantiques.â
âYouâre right No price tag anywhere That is so strange It must have gotten missed when we were tagging the merchandise.Sophiewillknow.âHannahliftedherhandandmotionedSophieover.
Brent had been in high spirits since heâd knocked on her door, precisely at seven. On the drive to Black Apron, heâd thankedherseveraltimesforlettinghimpicktherestaurantthisevening
Onthe drive toBlackApron,Annie hadagreedtobrieflystopinatthe bar once theyfinishedeating ThoughBrentkept insistingheonlywantedtosayhellotoScotandwishSandywell,Anniewasnâtfooled.
âOkayâ Brent blew out a breath âJeff Brown is retiring, and Scot will be the one appointing the new director of Accounting.â
This was old news to Annie Her mother had spokencasuallywithher aboutthe position, sayingitwas tailor-made for someonewithherknowledgeofthecompany,educationandstrongworkethic.
And the hardest one she would have to swallow: She would never have gotten the promotion if SensorTech wasnât a family-ownedbusinessandhermotherwasnâttheCEO.
âIâmgoodwithpeople,thoughmaybenotas goodas you,âBrentacknowledged Itwas almost,Anniethought,as ifheâd read her mind. âBeingthe director of Accountingwill give me management experience. I also want more moneyand more control IenjoyworkingatSensorTech Icertainlydonâtwanttolookelsewhere,butIwantmoreâ
Annie figured he could be excused for notremembering This would be onlyher second time âIâmtakingpetphotos at PawsHaven.â
Asateenager,Anniehadfalleninlovewithphotography.Everyonesaidshehadmadskills.Recallingthatinterestandher talentwitha camera, her friend Olivia had approached her abouttakingpictures ofadoptable pets for Paws Havenâs social mediaposts.
âIhad mydoubts as well. Iwondered ifitwould make a difference.â Awarmthflowed throughAnnie as she thoughtof whatherfriendhadtoldher âOliviasaidtheywereflooredbytheresponseâ
âOlivia said to thinkofitas lookingyour bestfor a job interview,â she said to Brentwhentheywere alone again. She smiledatthethought.âTheybatheandgroomtheanimalsbeforethepictures,thenbringouttheclothingandprops.â
âI donât understand why they asked you.â Brent appeared clearly puzzled. âNo disrespect, but itâs not like youâre a professionalphotographer.â
âTheycanâtaffordaprofessional,âAnnietoldhim âOliviarememberedmyloveofphotographywhenIwasyoung When brainstormingwithherteamoverwhomighthelp,shethoughtofme.â
âInever saidanimalsaredirty.Iagreedwithyouaboutnotlikingcathair onmyclothes.IdidnâtsayIâmopposedtocat coffee shops or cafĂŠs.â Annie toyedwiththe stemofher wineglass.âIthinkyouandIshouldcheckoutthatnew one before makinganydecisionsâ
As if sensing her sadness, Brent reached over and laid his hand over hers. She let it rest there for several seconds, absorbingthewarmthofthesimpletouch,thenliftedherhandtopickupherwineglass âIâmconsideringgettingacat Thereâs aSiameseattheshelterwhostaresatmewithsuspiciouseyes.Ikindoflikethatabouther.Shehasspunk.â
âIâmallergictocats.âBrenttookthebillfromthewaiter.Afterpullingouthiscreditcard,hewaitedforAnnietoaddhers. Earlyintheir relationship, Brent had brought up the fact that, since theybothworked and likelyearned about the same amountofmoney,thefairthingwouldbeforthemtopaytheirownwaywhentheywentout.
Seeingthe logic, Annie had agreed Thoughshe did find itamusingthatiftheywere outwithBrentâs friends, he always insistedonpickingupthetab.
âYouâve got a lot onyour plate, what withthe new fiscal year startingJulyfirst Have youevenfinished your forecast analysis?â
Anniewaswellawareofherjobdutiesandresponsibilities Shecertainlydidnâtneedhimtoremindher âDonâtworryaboutme. Iâmwell aware whatneeds to getdone.â Her voice now held a hintofcoolness thatshe found impossibletowarm âIâllbereadyâ
Now, she watched Brentstealthilymake his wayto where the CFOstood Brenthad nearlyreached his targetwhenthe CFOâseyeslandedonAnnie.AsmileliftedScotâslips.Inlongstrides,ScotstrodeovertowhereAnniestoodalone. âThisisanicesurprise.âNowinhismid-fifties,ScothadbeenwithSensorTechsinceitsfoundingbyherfather.
Oncetheyreachedherfrontdoor,Anniesaidgood-byetoBrent.Sheknewheâdexpectedtocomeinside,buthehadnâtpushed when sheâd told himher headache had only gotten worse He often spent the night after their Friday night dinners In the morning,heâdsetthetableandmakecoffeewhileshewhippedtogetherham-and-cheeseomelets,afavoriteofbothofthem.
Thoughher Victorian-era townhouse was nowhere near as grand as the home sheâd grownup in, itsuited her She also likeditsproximitytothebusinessdistrict.
All the homes onher blocksported prettycolors commonto the late 1800s and early1900s. She considered hers to be particularlyattractive,withits yellow siding,whitetrimandredaccents Houses inthis areawererarelyfor sale,butwhen thisonehadcomeonthemarketfiveyearsago,sheâdsnatcheditup.
Atthis moment,Annieconsideredher lifetobepracticallyperfect Shehadacareer sheenjoyed Shecamehomeevery nightto a house sheâd personallyfurnished withitems thatbroughther joy. Whenshe walked throughthe frontdoor and the warmthofthehomewrappedaroundherlikeafavoritesweater,anyworriesfromthedayslippedoffhershoulderstopoolat herfeet
Annie also loved thatsheâd devised a schedule thatkepther ontrack. She spentFridayand Saturdaynights withBrent, volunteeredonSaturdayafternoonsandenjoyedSundaybrunchwithfriends OnSundaynights,shehaddinnerwithhermom
Whensheâdarrivedhomethisafternoon,sheâdbeeninahurrytogetreadyforherdatewithBrentandhadsimplyplacedit on the burled walnut parlor table. The location seemed appropriate, considering the table had also come from Timeless Treasures
Likehim,Annielovedthesmellofrainonafreshlymowedyard Itwaftedinthroughthescreendoor Her mother andbrother were outwithfriends this springafternoon,soitwas justher andher dad.Theyâdspentthe day hikingandtakingpicturesinthewoodsontheedgeofGraceTown.
Heâd shownher some new tricks withthe digital camera, and theyâd gottenseveral amazingshots Theyâd arrived home justastherainhadbegun.
Privately,shethoughtitprobablyhadtodowithherfatherâsfootissues.Maybeheneededsurgeryorsomething.Ateleven, she wasnâtsure whatkindofsurgerywouldfixankle weakness,butshe knew the ankle splint her dadcalleditanAFO hadnâthelped.
The sadness inhis eyes had tears fillingher own. She loved her dad, loved himso verymuch. ThoughAnnie and her motherwereclose,itwasherdadwhodancedintherainwithherandwhosharedherpassionforphotographyanddogs. HerdadhadbeentheonewhoâdheldherwhenthedecisionhadbeenmadetoputErniedown.
âImightas well sayitâ Her dadâs voice remained softbutsteadyevenas his eyes the same vivid blue as her own filled with tears. âI have ALS. Thatâs why my ankle is weak, and it explains some of the other symptoms Iâve been experiencingâ
âIs thatwhyyouhave problems withyour foot?â Annie found her eyes droppingto the AFObefore theyreturned to her fatherâsface âWillitgetbetter?â
âYesandno.â
This time,Annie saw the profoundgriefinher fatherâs eyes,the same sadness sheâdseeninhis blue depths whenErnie died.
Despite his cool demeanor,the thickeninginErikâs voice hadher suspectinghe was nowhere near as unconcernedas he appeared.Overthepastyear,theirfatherâsconditionhadprogressedfarmorerapidlythaneventhedoctorshadanticipated. âYouneedtostoppretending,Annie.âErikâs tonesoftened.âNothingyouâredoingis goingtochangeanything.Heâs still goingtodieâ
âHe knows Iâmhere for him. He knows he can count on me.â She sneered. âGo on. Go with your friends. Iâll do the therapy Iâllbehereforhimâ
Shewouldbethereforherdad. Until the end. Just like Ernie.
There had beena time whenone ofher duties had beento charthis blood oxygenationlevels. Lastweek, theyâd grown alarminglylow WhenAnniehadbroughtthattohermotherâsattention,hermomhadeliminatedthattaskfromAnnieâslistof duties.
Her dad refused to consider a ventilator Her momhad said there was no reasonto chartsomethingthatwould onlyget worsebecauseoflung-muscleweakness.
Anniecouldnâtstop.
Secretly, she continued to keep track, the simple actofchartingmakingher feel more solid, more incontrol evenas the saturationlevelscontinuedtodrop.
âIwantyouhere withmeâ Her voice rose,thenbroke Tears slippeddownher cheeks ina steadystream âIwantus to takeourcamerasandgosearchinginthewoodsfortheperfectpicture.Iwanttodanceintherainwithyouagain.Iloveyouso much,Daddy.â
âIwantedsomuchtowatchyougrow andseewhatdirectionyourwonderfullifetakesyouâSadnessblanketedhisface, and she could see the effort it was takingfor himto speak. âI couldnât have asked for a better daughter. Thankyoufor all youâvedoneforme Butplease,please,whenyourememberme,donâtremembermesickandinthisbed Thinkbacktothelife wehadbeforeand â
Not onlyhad she lost her father, sheâd lost the closeness withher brother theyâd once enjoyed. She and Erikhad been friendsbeforetheirdadhadbeendiagnosedwithLouGehrigâsdisease Notsomuchafter
Evenatthememorialservice,heâdwalkedoutwhiletheyweregreetingthosewhoâdcometopaytheirrespectstoagreat man. Her mother had had no clue where heâd gone, and neither had Annie. One second, Erikhad beenwiththemas theyâd enteredthechurch,andthenext,heâdbeengone.Shortlybeforetheservicehadbegun,heâdslidintothepew,hiseyesdry,his faceastonymask.
Photographyhadbeentheirthing,thesamewayanintenseloveofsportshadbeensomethingheandErikhadshared She couldnâtremember the number ofnights sheâd watched her brother and her dad shoothoops inthe driveway, or do lacrosse drillsintheyard.
Whenhe picked up a basketball or a lacrosse stick, was Erikhitwiththe same bittersweet pangshe feltwhenever she pickeduphercamera?
Heâdneversaid,andshehadnâtasked
She didnât resent being the one whoâd been around the most those memories were precious to her. ALS might have robbedPeterLaggettofhismotorskillsandmadehisbodyashell,butthemanhewashadstillbeenthere
Conscious of the tears now slippingdownher cheeks, Annie brushed themawaywiththe pads of her fingers. Her dad wantedhertobehappy,ofthatshehadabsolutelynodoubt.
After strippingoffher runningclothes, Annie tooka quickshower Since this wasnât her first time at Paws Haven, she knewwhattoexpect lotsofupsanddownsinordertogetthebestphotos.Whichmeantthatdressingcasuallyinleggingsand ateewouldbethesmartchoice
Whenshe drove up, she saw thatthe shelterâs parkinglotappeared to be close to halffull. Annie hoped the number of vehicleswasanindicationthatlotsofanimalswouldbeheadedtotheirforeverhomesthisweekend
the staffand manyofthe volunteers. Everyone appeared busy, so she slipped throughthe staffdoor withjusta smile and a wavetoDelbert,thegrizzledseniormanningthefrontdesktoday.
âOh,AnnieâZara,oneoftheadoptioncounselors,stoppedherinthehall âIhavesomebadnewsâ Annie inhaled sharply, and her heartskipped a beat. She shifted the canvas bagthatwas slungover her shoulder. âIs it Olivia?Issheokay?â
âAcouple whoâd losttheir Siamese earlier this year. She was justwhattheywere lookingfor.â Zaraâs tone gentled. âI knewyouwereinterested,butyouhadnâtdecidedifyouwerereadytocommittoapet â
âUm, not today.â She glanced at his khaki pants and leather shoes. âI assume you donât feel like climbing trees after lightning-quickfelineseitherâ
âThisbrickwallwillmakeagorgeousbackdrop,andtheconcretewillreflectthelight But âAnnieputherhandsonher hips.âThelawnchairsandtablewillneedtobemoved.â
Once the furniture was outofthe way, Annie pulled a pale greenfleece blanketfromthe canvas bagsheâd brought. She placedthepreciselyfoldedblanketonthetable.
During the short time he was gone, Annie took out her camera, checked the lighting and reviewed in her head the suggestionssheâdreadongettinggreatbullypics.
No props or clothing for this dog Minimize distractions Let him wander a bit first Snap a pic from eye level Sawyerbroughtthedogtotheareaonaleash,talkingtotheanimalasiftheywerefriends.âYouâlllikeitouthere.Thereâs lotsofsun,butshade,too.Ibetitfeelsgoodtobeoutside.â
Annie, whoâd beenseated, rose. Sheâd read thatthe Englishbulldogâs pure white color was desirable amongthose who knewandlovedbullies Whichlikelymeanthistimeintheshelterwouldbeshort âHeâsacutieâ
Keeba was a short-haired,medium-sizeddogwithwide shoulders,a shorttail anda low,sturdystance.There were too manylooseskinwrinklesforhertocount Shewasnâtsurewhichdrewherattentionmore hisunderbiteordroopinglips
It was the moment Annie had been hoping for She took numerous shots, not caring about the chain link fence in the background,knowingshecouldblurthat.Hergoalwastogetsomephotosthatdidjusticetothismajesticcreature.
âOh,weâllbringthebowintoplaybeforethesessionisdone,âAnnieassuredhim TheMaltesespentthefirstfew minutesofthesessionbarkingatherandSawyer.Iftheshrill,incessantbarkingbothered the man, it didnât show He continued to talk softly to Cupcake and offer her treats The treats sat in the palmof his flat, extendedhandashepatientlywaitedforhertocalmdownandcometohim.
Once Cupcake hada few treats inher,she appearedtorelax.Or maybe itwas because the area theywere inwas quiet, withnootherbarkingdogsordistractions
âHelenKeller once said,âWhatwe have once enjoyed,we cannever loseâŚAll thatwe love deeplybecomes a partof us.ââSympathyblanketedSawyerâsface.âErniewillalwaysbeapartofyou.â
Glancingatherwatch,Annierealizedthat,unlessWinnieproveddifficult,theyshouldfinishrightontime She realized somethingelse todayhad beenfun. Partofthe reasonwas itfeltgood to have a camera inher hand once again Some ofitwas knowingshe could be makinga difference inthese animalsâlives And Sawyer, well, he was a good partner.
âNever came up.â He shrugged. âBesides, I got the distinct impressionyouwere more interested inmyabilityto tie a bandannacorrectlythanmyskillingivingavaccinationâ
Though if there were, sheâd have thought Olivia would have mentioned it. Of course, Sawyer could be married. Or involved.Otherthantheirtalkaboutanimals,theyhadnâtdelvedintothepersonal.
âLocumtenens.âOliviapaused,asifsearchingfortheeasiestwaytoexplain.âItâsLatinforâholdtheplace.âDoctorscan be locums andsocanvets Aveterinarylocumcomes inandtakes over whenanother vetneeds extended time awayfroma clinic.Oncetheothervetreturns,thelocummovesontoanotherassignment.â
âIhadnâtdecided, and Iâmglad she found a good home. Brentwill be glad to hear it, too.â Annie regretted bringingup Brentagainwhenherfriendâseyesnarrowed âWhatâsittohim?â
She liked knowingwhatto expectfor the weekso thatshe could prepare mentally. Twenty-four hoursânotice was better thanfindingoutatthelastminute,butthatwasstillnotenoughtimeforhertogettheplancenteredinherhead
âIwanted to introduce youto George, butâŚâ Zara made a face. âHe isnâtathis besttoday. We gave himIVfluids and thoughtthatwouldperkhimup,butithasnât notsofar,anyway.â
âThat was Dr. Moorheadâs call. We thought maybe heâd do subcutaneous hydration, but after he examined George, he decidedtheIVwasabetteroption.â
As ifseeingthequestioninglookinAnnieâs eyes,Zarawavedahand.âIâmgoingtotrytoseeifIcangetavolunteer to comeinandbewithGeorge,butwiththislatenoticeonaweekend,itâsdoubtfulâ
âSpirits canbe as easilybrokenas bones and as challengingto healâ Sawyerâs lips tightened âThis little guywas cast asidelikeyesterdayâstrash.ShihTzusaresensitive.Youknow.Youhadone.IthinkGeorgeisindangeroflosinghiswillto liveâ
Ernieâs blackandwhite hair hadbeenlongandflowingandalways brushed.Frequenttrips tothe groomer hadkepthim looking his best. Her mother had loved to pull his long hair into a topknot and tie it with what sheâd deemed a suitably masculineribbon
The animal inAnnieâs arms looked more like a skinned rat exceptinthe face and inthose intelligentbrowneyes that measuredandassessed
Itbrokeher heartthatsomeonehadhurthim.Whether ithadbeenactual physical abuseor dailyneglect,this animal had beenhurt,inbodyandinspirit.
The dogtookone sniff. His tail, skinnyand as hairless as anopossumâs, moved slightly. The tail wasnât the onlything skinnyonhissmallbody.Georgeâsribsshowed.
Tonight,itwasAnnieâsturntohostandBrentâsturntobringthepizza AsAnniehadstayedattheshelter far longer than sheâdintended,shehadtoscrambletogeteverythingreadybeforeBrentarrived.
She liked havinga salad to go withthe pizza Ittookher nearlythirtyminutes to prep and toss romaine withradicchio, cucumber, tomato, red onion, chickpeas and sun-dried tomatoes in her own special red wine vinegar and thyme dressing combination.
She considered telling Brent about the strange experiences sheâd encountered when opening the lid, then recalled how theyâdlaughedtogether over theideaofunexplainablehappeningsinGraceTown.Annietookanother sipofwineandstilled thetemptation
âIfheâsavet,whyishehelpingyoutakepicturesofanimals?Doesnâttheguyhavebetterthingstodowithhistime?â Thoughthe same thought had crossed her mind, the questionrubbed Annie wrong. âIâma CPA. Ifwhat yousayis true, shouldnâtIhavebetterthingstodowithmytime?â
Unlike manylocums, he didnâtworkthrougha placementagency He had atfirst, butover the pastcouple ofyears, heâd builtanetworkofclinicsthatkepthimbusy.
âHeâs in town filling in for his dad at Animal House. His parents are off on a European vacation, celebrating an⌠anniversaryâOliviaarchedaquestioningbrow Sawyernodded.âThirty-fiveyears.â
âOliviaismakingmycontributionsoundlikemorethanitwas.âSawyercouldnottakecreditforanyoftheamazingpics that Annie had gotten âI retrieved the animals, held themwhile Annie dressed themand thendid whatever other tasks she assignedme.â
Annie held George close, the softblanketwrapped around himas she rocked and he slept. Thoughthe temperature inPaws Havenwascomfortable,theShihTzudidnâthavemuchmeatonhisbones
Besides, the softfleece had to feel comfortingagainsthis skin. Thoughhe hadnâtbeenshaved, the extreme haircutheâd beengivenbecauseofmattinghadnâtleftmuchfurbehind
After Erniehadpassedawayandher father hadgottensick,therehadnâtbeenanymoretalkofgettinganother dog.Once herdadhadpassed,sheandhermomandbrotherhadbeenjustgoingthroughthemotionsofgettingthroughtheday-to-day.
Adding another pet to the household had never been brought up Then sheâd gone off to college Sheâd returned to GraceTownaftergraduation,startedworkingforSensorTechandsettledintoapet-freeroutine.
While Annie rarely worked late into the evening, she was still gone more than she was home Didnât this sweet boy
âItâs somethingto considerâ Sawyerâs tone remained offhand, displayingno judgment âShihTzus are amongthe breeds knowntoexperienceseparationanxiety.â
