Mindy took Evelyn’s hands in her own. “But like you said, you won’t be busy forever. I made a mistake, Evelyn. I was frustrated, but that’s no excuse. I know that. Please, don’t let one mistake ruin our future. Please.”
It felt like the universe was having a laugh at her expense today. All Evelyn wanted was to be left alone to get on with her work. Was that so much to ask for?
“Look Min, can we table this? I’m not saying no, but I need to get through today and then I’ll have some space to think about it some more.”
“But you’re saying there’s a chance we can try again?” The hope in Mindy’s eyes was soul crushing. Mindy wasn’t her forever person, but she was nice enough, if you discounted the whole cheating thing. Had Evelyn been too rash?
“I’m saying I need to think on it, okay?”
“Okay, okay, that’s fine. I’ll leave you to think. Not too long though, Evie. I’m not sure how long I can go without touching you,” Mindy purred next to Evelyn’s ear. Not giving her a chance to react, Mindy skipped out of the room. Evelyn wasn’t impervious to Mindy’s charms. The woman was hot, but the effects weren’t as strong on Evelyn anymore. Mindy had broken the trust between them, and there was no going back. How was she going to get that through to Mindy, though?
With the office finally silent, Evelyn took a second to breathe. There was still a full list of things she needed to attend to, but she just needed a few seconds of calm. Walking over to the window, she dropped down to her knees next to the little dog. Resting her head against the cool window, she gazed out upon London, her hand stroking gently across the dog’s back.
As the minutes ticked by, Evelyn felt her stress slowly dissipate. The beep of her email notification signalled the end of their time together, though. Evelyn looked down into the soulful eyes of the pup. Smiling, she gave him one last pat and went back to her desk.
“Mags, can you bring Terry back in, please?”
“Ms Crawford,” Terry nodded.
“Right, Terry, sorry about that. Let’s get back to why that little one and twenty-five others like him are in the building.”
“I think you need to talk to Ms Fox,” he replied.
“Okay, and who is that?” Evelyn knew all her employees by name and there was no Ms Fox among them.
“She runs the dog sanctuary.”
“Right, and which dog sanctuary is that?” Good Lord, it was like pulling teeth.
“The one that’s here,” he said matter-of-factly. Evelyn was about to burst, her frustration with this particular conversation was driving her insane.
“Okay, can you send Ms Fox up here then?”
“Certainly, Ms Crawford.”
Evelyn watched him leave before addressing Maggie. “Have you any idea what the fuck is going on?” Evelyn was completely exasperated.
“Nope, I tried to get an answer, but he just repeated what he said to you.”
“Christ, I hope whoever this bloody Ms Fox is has some sodding answers. I’m about ready to commit murder.”
“I hope I’m not the one you’re going to off,” a low velvety voice said from Evelyn’s doorway. Jumping in surprise, Evelyn nearly fell out of her chair. “I’m Ms Fox, the one with some sodding answers.”
Evelyn could feel her cheeks burning. Not only had this woman overheard Evelyn grumbling, she’d also just witness her nearly pole vault out of her chair.
Excellent.
6
Escape Artists and Condescending Arseholes
Alyssa
The morning had started off wonderfully. All of Alyssa’s worries were for naught. The team overseeing the handover of the dogs did a great job with no cockups. A minor miracle in Alyssa’s eyes.
The one and only doozy of an issue arose before lunch. With all the dogs successfully buddied up, Alyssa was left with one pup. Bug, a three-year-old English Cocker Spaniel, whowas supposed to have been partnered with Cyril Jones again. Unfortunately, Cyril had taken a nasty fall the night before and was in hospital, having his hip replaced.
“Bugger,” Alyssa muttered when she heard the news. Cyril Jones had been paired with Bug specifically. “What shall we do with you now?” she asked Bug, who sat by her feet looking into her eyes. Alyssa would never admit this out loud, but Bug was her favourite dog. There was just something about him that made him special.
