“Oh my God, so much better! Thank you! And I’m totally impressed that you did the math in your head.”
“My dear, when you’re on commission, numbers are your life. I run percentages in my sleep. Now let’s get you rung up.”
Darnell walked toward the register and stared down an attractive woman in a short black shirtdress with a severe ponytail, geek glasses, and gladiator heels.
“Ugh,Emerson,”he sneered to Cora as they passed the woman.“Maggie’s replacement. I bet that’s not even her real name. She is the worst.” He shuddered.
“No one can replace Maggie, but that gives me an idea. Would you be willing to do my makeup for the gala? We can set it up so that you come to our apartment and we can catch Maggie off guard and doherintervention.”
“Oh, I love that idea! Like, I’m not coming over to seeyou,Maggie, I’m here to help my girl Cora, just slinging makeup, don’t mind me. Then I can woo her and make her my BFF again. And then all will be right with the world.”
“Thursday night, can you be at our place at about four? Does that give you enough time to rehab all of this?”
“You’re already a goddess, I’m just going to gloss you up a bit. Can I work on that crazy-ass hair, too?”
“I’m in your capable hands, D. In return I’ll broker the peace treaty. Oh, and pay you, too, of course.”
“Absolutely not. Get me my Magpie back, and we’re square. Deal?”
“Deal.” Cora leaned across the counter and gave him a kiss on the cheek. “Thanks again.”
Cora’s stomach twisted. Too late to back out. She had an expensive dress in a zippered garment bag slung over her shoulder. She was going to the gala. Cora closed her eyes and shook her head when an image of Charlie in a tux flashed through her mind.
Strictly professional. From now on.
THIRTY-FOUR
It had taken over two weeks but Cora had finally managed to snag a grooming appointment for Eli and Nell. Her friend Molly’s thriving business, Sniptastic, usually required a longer wait, but she agreed to slip Nell in for an 8:00 a.m. groom after Cora sent a pleading text with a photo of the bedraggled dog.
She had arrived a few minutes early so that she could chat with Molly, but the front door was locked when she got there. Molly thrived on self-created chaos, and would no doubt run through the first fifteen minutes of the appointment as if overdosing on caffeine.
Molly was far from the typical groomer. While most of her peers were gruff with both their human and canine clients, made bitter by the physical demands of the profession and the unrealistic expectations of dog owners, Molly’s sunny disposition never faltered. Her neon-pink pageboy and multiple tattoos set her apart as well, and gave her an edge that her soccer mom clients hoped would rub off on them if they hung around her enough. Her latest body art was a delicate pink ribbon that laced up the back of her neck like a corset.
Cora wanted to meet Eli and Nell at the salon to introduce them to Molly, but she was also eager to catch up with the duo. She sat on the dirty stoop in front of the salon scrolling through the old texts from Charlie, trying to decipher if what was happening between them was merely a bad idea, or a truly very bad idea.
The door behind her slammed open as if caught by the wind. “Hey, sweetie! Sorry I’m late! Actually, it’s one minute before my start time, so I’m technically not late.” Molly leaned down to give Cora a kiss on the cheek.
“Hey, been too long!” Cora followed Molly into the bright space, which was crowded with oversize photos of cute dogs and Pinterest-style inspirational quotes overlaid on photos of gauzy landscapes.
“So tell me about this dog and this dude. How do you know them?”
“Long story, but basically he’s a client’s colleague as well as a different client’s neighbor. He’s fostering Nell for now, but I’m hoping that he’s going to keep her.”
“Is he a good dude? Do you approve?”
“He’s, like, the best dude. So sweet.”
Molly cocked an eyebrow at Cora.
“No, no, no, stop it. We’re just friends. He’s really nice and totally perfect for the dog. Nell needs a ton of TLC.”
“Hm,” Molly answered as she folded towels at a breakneck speed.
The bell on the front door jingled as Eli and Nell walked in. He was wearing a blazer, plaid bow tie, and jeans. Cora realized that his geek chic thing wasn’t accidental; Eli had a well-defined look. He dropped Nell’s leash and she dashed to Cora.
“There she is!” Cora exclaimed, dropping to her knees to greet the little dog. She looked up at Eli as Nell wiggled an overjoyed greeting. “How is she? How are you? Tell me everything! And I’m being totally rude—Eli, this is Molly. Molly, meet the best foster dad around, Eli.”
Eli reached out to shake Molly’s hand, and Cora watched him for the telltale flicker of interest. Molly’s bright hair, tattoos, tight tank top, and pretty face made for an appealingly dangerous conquest that even the dude-est frat bro couldn’t resist attempting. The fact that she was a lesbian was usually lost on them until she broke out photos of her girlfriend, which made the most alpha of them pursue her even harder.
