And then he had a thought.“Did you eat dinner yet?”
She shook her head.“I didn’t have a chance.I went over to Merry’s right after I closed the shop.”
“How about I pick up a pizza?”When her eyes lit up and she nodded, he asked, “Pepperoni?”When she nodded again, he said, “I’ll be back.”
He headed out the door, into the snow.This certainly wasn’t the evening he’d thought he’d be having, which consisted of a frozen pizza on the couch, surrounded by his dogs and cat while he watched television.
Instead, Merry’s phone call had led him in an entirely new direction.It was a chance for him to reconnect with Holly.It seemed as though she could use a friend.He wanted to be that friend.
Chapter Five
Thiswasnothowshe expected her evening to end up.
Holly sat at the kitchen table and sighed.She couldn’t believe Colin had been in her apartment and had seen the mess.Just the memory had her face warming with embarrassment.
And the fact that he’d helped pick up stuff only caused her to feel utterly mortified.This was the guy she’d crushed on so hard in her teens, and the one time he visits her place, it looks like a bomb had blown up in it.
The truth of the matter was that ever since she’d lost her grandmother, she’d been struggling: struggling to pay the medical bills, struggling to move and sell the house, struggling to keep the soap company running just like her grandmother had done.And so when it came to this apartment, it fell last on her list of priorities.
The puppy whined, drawing her attention back to the present.Before Colin left, he’d brought in the boxes Merry had packed for her.
But first, she made walls out of boxes to keep the puppy in the kitchen.Once that was done, she turned her attention to the bag of puppy stuff.At this point, she didn’t have a clue what was in it, but it looked stuffed full.
Who knew puppies needed so much stuff?It was like he was a tiny human.She dug through the items until she found a bag of kibble.Merry had been thoughtful enough to write a note for her, telling her when and how much to feed Tater Tot.
Holly got out his bowls.She washed them and filled one with cold water and the other with a quarter cup of kibble.Once the bowls were on the floor, she opened the crate.Tater Tot didn’t come rushing out.
Instead, the pup sat there, looking at her like he wasn’t sure what to do.She called to him, but he still wouldn’t exit the crate.
Then she got an idea.She retrieved his food bowl and waved it near him.His nose started to go.However, when she called out for him to follow her, the pup wouldn’t move.
After trying a couple of times, she finally gave up.She moved both of the bowls inside the crate.That seemed to do the trick because he immediately started to eat the kibble.She breathed a sigh of relief.
While the puppy ate, she cleaned and set the kitchen table for two.It was something she’d never done before in this place.She hadn’t even had her friends Belle and Felicity over.She had a new friend, Candi, but she hadn’t had her over either.She was too embarrassed about the place to have anyone over.
She had been so busy taking care of her grandmother’s estate.She was appointed the executor.It wasn’t that she was the only family her grandmother had.There were also Holly’s parents, but they’d been MIA Holly’s whole life.
Her grandmother had been angry with her parents for abandoning their nine-month-old baby and never looking back.But her grandmother had wrapped Holly up in love and been the best parent.She could be firm when needed, but she was also compassionate, and she had been Holly’s biggest cheerleader.She always said that together they could accomplish anything.Holly would suppose that was true.
And now that the estate was settled except for a few legal steps, she could turn her full focus back on the soap company.
Buzz-buzz.
It was the doorbell.Colin must be back with the gates.She rushed over to the stack of boxes.She shoved them aside to reach the top of the steps.By the time she made it, Colin had let himself inside and was making his way up the steps with his arms full.
When he reached the top steps, she offered to take the pizza box from him.She inhaled the aroma of tomatoes and oregano.Her stomach rumbled in anticipation.It appeared she was hungrier than she’d thought.
She squeezed past the boxes.“Sorry about those.I was using them as a wall so I could let the puppy out to eat, but he had other plans, so I let him have dinner in his crate.”Then she wondered if she’d done the right thing.“That’s all right, isn’t it?”
Colin leaned the gates against the wall.When he turned to her, he had a smile on his face.“It’s fine.Just relax.You have good instincts.Trust them.”
“I don’t know…” She worried her bottom lip.How could she have good instincts when she’d been abandoned by her mother and father?At that moment, her instinct was telling her she was doing everything wrong.After all, she’d never had a pet in her life.
“Seriously.You’ve got this.”His voice had a reassuring tone.
She wanted to believe him, but she had so many questions and no answers.She supposed that when she curled up in bed that evening, she’d be conducting internet searches to answer some of those questions.But it was only for a day, two tops.It was like a mantra she kept repeating in her head.
“I’ll just set up these gates.”Colin’s voice interrupted her thoughts.
