“Why not?”
“Because he’s spoiled.”
“That isn’t his fault. Blame Mrs. Frances for that.”
“Oh, I do,” Thad said. “I can both blame herforhim being spoiled and continue to dislike himbecausehe’s spoiled.” He shrugged. “Though, he’s not half bad when it comes to watching sports on TV. Doesn’t crowd me. Eats the kettle corn when it falls to the floor. So I guess he has some redeeming qualities.”
“He’s also going to bring more attention to your new business than you could have ever imagined,” she reminded him.
“The jury is still out on that, but if you’re right, I’ll upgrade that collar to cubic zirconia.”
Ashanti was still laughing by the time they pulled up to a nondescript building two blocks from the Hudson River.
“No need to get out,” she told the cab driver when he opened his door.
He got out of the cab anyway, phone in hand. “Can I get a selfie with Puddin’ and Duchess?” he asked.
“You gotta be kidding me,” Thad muttered.
“Of course,” Ashanti said.
After their impromptu photo shoot—the cabbie turned out to be one of those people who took a dozen selfies before he was satisfied that he’d gotten the perfect shot—they entered the building and took the elevator to the third floor. Ashanti was disappointed that there wasn’t a view of the river, but she was determined to make her way to one of the piers before she left New York.
They were led into the podcast studio and introduced to their hosts, Beth and Seth. Ashanti was excited to learn that the husband and wife duo had started the podcast to help people with a fear of dogs overcome their phobia.
“I’ve held events at my daycare to help kids with phobias,”she said. “Duchess has the perfect temperament for it, but Puddin’—” She wiggled her hand. “He can be a bit high-strung at times.”
The poodle immediately illustrated her point by jumping two feet when Seth pulled the microphones into place.
“Calm down, Puddin’,” Thad said, dropping to one knee and rubbing under the dog’s chin.
It wasn’t until Thad mouthedclose your mouththat Ashanti realized her jaw had gone slack. What had gotten into him?
Thad stood and whispered to her, “I figured I should at least pretend that I like the dog.”
“You like the dog,” she whispered back. “Just admit it.”
“Are we ready to get started?” Beth asked.
“No, I don’t,” he said against her ear as he pulled her chair out for her. Awareness shot down her spine.
Ashanti’s nerves ratcheted up even more when they were informed that today’s episode would be livestreamed on the podcast’s YouTube channel.
“We could not have Puddin’ and Duchess in studio and not stream it live,” Seth said. “Our audience would show up with pitchforks.”
“Well, if there’s one thing Duchess and Puddin’ are used to, it’s being livestreamed for all the world to see,” Ashanti said.
“Our eight million subscribers are ready!” Beth said.
Ashanti’s knees nearly gave out. “Eight million?” she asked. “Really?”
“You’ll do fine,” Thad said, covering her hand with his own. Ashanti looked down at their hands and then at him. She nodded.
It turned out that was right. Once the podcast started, her anxiety began to melt away. It helped to have Duchess in herlap. Puddin’ stood between her and Thad’s chairs with his chin on Ashanti’s leg. According to Beth, the YouTube channel’s chat box went berserk whenever Puddin’ and Duchess rubbed noses.
The conversation was funny and lighthearted, though heavy on the dog puns. She cringed every time Seth asked for another “round of a-paws” as they went into a commercial break. But at least she tried to hide her low-key embarrassment for their corny host.
Thad, on the other hand, was as transparent as fine vellum. He barely cracked a smile.
