“Biscuit?” Alyssa tried not to smile.
“My daughter named her. She’s eight. Obsessed.” James looked slightly embarrassed. “Anyway. We’re doing the paperwork in January, yeah? Making it official?”
“Absolutely.”
“Good. Because my wife says if I even think about bringing her back, she’ll divorce me.”
Alyssa laughed. “I’ll make a note in the file.”
The afternoon unfolded with the pleasant chaos of any gathering involving dogs and humans in close quarters. There was barking, some minor squabbling over treats, and one incident involving a Labrador and someone’s abandoned handbag. Bug supervised it all with the air of a disappointed headmaster.
Evelyn appeared at Alyssa’s elbow, sliding an arm around her waist. “How’s it going?”
“Good. Really good, actually.” Alyssa leaned into her. “You’ve done an amazing job with this.”
“We’ve done an amazing job,” Evelyn corrected. “Though I’ll admit, I may have gone slightly overboard with the catering.”
“Slightly?”
There were three tables of food. Sandwiches, sausage rolls, mince pies, and what appeared to be an entire cheese board.
“I wanted it to feel special,” Evelyn said quietly. “This partnership…it’s meant something. To the staff. To me.”
Alyssa squeezed her hand. “To me too.”
They stood there for a moment, watching the organised chaos. Bug had somehow acquired a small following of admirers and was accepting tribute in the form of sausage rolls.
“Speech time,” Maggie announced, appearing with a microphone that Alyssa was certain hadn’t been there five minutes ago.
“Oh, I don’t think—” Alyssa started.
“Non-negotiable,” Evelyn said, gently pushing her forward. “You’re the expert. They want to hear from you.”
Alyssa took the microphone with the enthusiasm of someone being handed a live grenade. Public speaking had never been her forte. She preferred dogs to people for a reason.
“Right. Well. Thanks for coming, everyone.” She cleared her throat. “I know this partnership was a bit unconventional. Bringing dogs into an office isn’t exactly standard practice, but you’ve all been brilliant. Patient, kind, and genuinely committed to making it work.”
A few people clapped. Bug barked, which Alyssa chose to interpret as encouragement.
“These dogs—” She gestured to the room. “—they’ve had rough starts. Some of them were abandoned, some neglected, some just unlucky. But they’re here now, and they’re thriving, because of you. So thank you. Really.”
More applause. Alyssa handed the microphone back to Maggie like it was contaminated.
Evelyn stepped up, taking the microphone with considerably more confidence. “I’ll keep this brief. This partnership has been one of the best decisions Crawford’s has made in years. Not just for morale, though that’s been a lovely side effect, but because it’s reminded us what we’re actually here for. Connection. Community. Purpose beyond profit margins.”
She paused, scanning the room. “As a thank you, everyone here today gets an extra day of leave in the new year. Because if we can manage this level of chaos and still hit our targets, we’ve earned it.”
The room erupted in cheers. Someone started a chant of “More dogs! More dogs!” which Evelyn shut down with a single raised eyebrow.
“Now, if you’ll excuse us,” Evelyn said, handing the microphone back to Maggie. “Alyssa and I have some matters to discuss.”
She took Alyssa’s hand and led her out of the break room, through the office, and into her private suite. The door closed behind them with a soft click.
“Matters to discuss?” Alyssa asked, amused.
“Very important matters,” Evelyn said seriously. Then she smiled, and it was the kind of smile that made Alyssa’s stomach flip. “Like how we’re going to survive the next three days without completely losing our minds.”
“I thought we were doing quite well, actually.”
