Lisa huffed. “What’s with all the questions? You’re awfully curious for someone who took zero interest in me when I needed you.” She couldn’t resist the dig and frankly, Sandrine deserved it.
“True,” Sandrine admitted. “And you’re right. I wasn’t a good partner to you. I shouldn’t have been unfaithful, and I shouldn’t have ignored you the way I did. I’m very sorry.”
“I appreciate the apology,” Lisa said. “And I think we should leave it with that.” She stretched out her legs on the coffee table, relieved to put an end to the conversation and leave the past behind her. Truthfully, it was the sincerest Sandrine had ever come across. Three months ago, she may have fallen for it, but she was a different woman now. She really, really wanted to move on and move forward, and Sandrine did not fit into that picture. She smiled when the puppies started barking; a sign that Stella had just come home from work.
“Are those dogs I hear? Don’t tell me you have dogs.”
“Yes, they’re mine,” she said, watching their tails wag in excitement. “Listen, I have to go but I wish you all the best, Sandrine, I really do. And good luck finding that perfect candidate for the job.”
“Are you sure? You’re not going to get another opportunity like this.”
“I’m sure. I’ve been making my own opportunities for a while, and it’s worked out pretty well, so I’m just going to have a little faith and go with the flow.” Lisa hung up and smiled when Stella came through the door, getting down on her knees and holding her arms wide for Butters and Meatball who jumped up to lick her face. She played with them for a while, then picked up Pablo who wedged himself in between them.
“Come on, guys, give him a chance. Pablo wants some love too.”
“Hey, what about me? I’m always going to be last now, aren’t I?” Lisa joked, walking up to her.
“Last but not least, babe.” Stella wrapped an arm around Lisa and kissed her while she held Pablo on her shoulder with her other hand. “I’ve missed you. How was your day?”
Lisa kissed her back and grinned widely. “Great. And even better now you’re here,” she said in a sappy tone, batting her lashes. “Want to take the kids to the beach? I bought them leads today. I think it’s okay for them to go out as long as they’re not around other dogs until they’ve been vaccinated.”
“The kids?” Stella laughed, glancing at Butters and Meatball. “Is that what we’re calling them now?”
“I just want to enjoy their company while I can. Now that you’ve put the word out, it probably won’t take long until someone adopts them. I even took them to work this morning; the builders loved them.”
“Why am I not surprised?” Stella shot her a loving smile and put Pablo down. “Did they behave?”
“Yes and no. Butters peed on someone’s toolbox, but he immediately apologised by licking the man’s face. Then Meatball went missing for about three minutes and I found her gobbling up someone’s lunch behind the bar, so I had to go out and buy the carpenter a new sandwich. It was all a bit chaotic; I think I’ll leave them home next time.”
“You two…” Stella chuckled as she pointed a finger at the puppies. “Did you go to work with mummy? Did you misbehave? You did, didn’t you?” They looked up at her, tilting their heads. “Do you think you deserve to go to the beach after that? Do you?”
Meatball barked, and they wagged their tails, making Lisa laugh out loud as she went to get their leads. “Right,” she said. “I think that’s a ‘yes’.”
59
“How was your trip to Seville? Lisa came along, right?” Manuel opened the poolside gate to let the first guests in.
“Great. Couldn’t have gone better.” Stella grinned. “It was eventful too; we found two puppies on our way there and brought them home with us. Any chance you want one? I’ve been asking around but no luck so far.”
“Seriously?” Manuel laughed. “No, my friend. I don’t have time for dogs.”
“Too bad. They’re incredibly cute.” Stella opened a picture on her phone and showed it to him. It was a picture her mother had taken of her and Lisa, holding a puppy each.
“Who is cute? The pair of you or the dogs?” Manuel joked. “Why don’t you keep them?”
“Can’t do that. I don’t have time for them either and I don’t want them to be alone all day.”
“What about Lisa?”
Stella shrugged. “We’re not sure what will happen with her work situation, but she’s going to look for a job nearby, so fingers crossed she’s able to find something before her contract with the Calvo Group runs out.”
“Madre de Dios.” Manuel’s eyes widened. “This is serious, isn’t it?”
Stella nodded. “Yes, I love her.” She realised her smirk couldn’t have been wider. The past days had been a lot of fun. They’d spent hours getting the puppies accustomed to their new environment, then slowly introduced them to the cats who were far from amused with the new additions to the household.
“And where is ‘the hot girl’ now?” Manuel asked.
“She’s over at Sunset. They’ve been finishing the outside space over the past days so she’s checking it out.”
