He pointed to Thistle’s muzzle coming through a hole in the wall. “She bit me!” He reached down to rub his leg.
I suddenly grasped the absurdity of the moment. We were making out like horny teenagers in agoat barn. Andrew almost put his hand in my panties in agoat barn. I started giggling helplessly.
“Goat-us interruptus,” I managed as my cackling grew more unhinged.
Andrew laughed with me, still rubbing his shin. Thistle bleated a warning and we knew the moment was over.
“We, uh, we should probably get back,” he said in a thick voice.
I tilted my head and went quiet for a few seconds. “Yeah, sounds like the rain stopped.”
We stared at each other as the music of Thistle chewing plywood ruined any chance of us ending on a romantic note. Andrew took a reluctant step backward and pushed the door open, still watching me.
“Look!” I said, pointing beyond him.
The rain had been transformed into a swirling snowstorm. Three of the neighbor kids that had been at lunch came tearing down the driveway as Andrew and I stepped out of the shed, squinting in the brightness. Luckily there were no adults to witness our guilty exit.
“Thanksgiving is dead. Long live Christmas,” he said.
And long live whatever we’d just kicked off in the goat barn.
•••
Karen Foster wasn’t getting the hint.
I’d wrapped up the third session of my adult beginners class fifteen minutes prior and was trying to prep for Andrew and Dude, but she hadn’t budged from her chair. Her chubby beagle Bella was rightfully exhausted, dozing at her feet.
“I really think she’s got dominant tendencies,” she said, flicking her hands toward Bella. “How else would you explain her still pulling on her leash after all of these classes?”
Karen was one of those students who tested my diplomacy skills each week. She drove a giant black Cadillac and was quick to mention the fact that her husband, Dr. Glen Foster, had run the most successful ear, nose, and throat practice in the tri-county region for the past twenty years. She liked to complain about the fact that Bella wasn’t making progress, but I could tell by her confused expression and endless questions during class that she hardly ever worked with her dog.
“It’s all about consistency,” I replied in an even tone. The trick was to frame her lack of effort in a way that didn’t directly call her out. “Three lessons might seem like a lot of time tous, but the reality is it’s just three hours in a week consisting of one hundred and sixty-eight. And if Bella doesn’t get a chance to practice her homework”—again, I kept the blame out of the equation even though I totally wanted to throw her under the bus—“her progress will be slow.”
“Hm,” she sniffed. “Well, I still think it’s her dominance.”
I’d already spent a good part of our first class debunkingcanine dominance theory with her and I didn’t have the time to debate it again. Andrew and Dude were about to show up and I needed a few minutes to hide in the bathroom and do deep breathing exercises since it was going to be our first time seeing each other since the goat barn. The rest of Thanksgiving had been a blur, and he’d told me that his entire weekend was full of family commitments. Our texts firming up our training schedule had ended with him saying that we could talk when we were together, which could mean anything.
“We can get into it more at our next class, okay? I have a private lesson in a few minutes,” I said, hoping that she’d take the hint and leave. “It’s a deaf dog so I really have to focus.”
She perked up. “My nephew in Tulsa just adopted a deaf dog! Perfect, I’m going to stay and observe what you do so I can give him pointers.”
I had to fight to keep smiling at her. “I’m so sorry, Karen, private lessons are just that: private. My clients pay a premium to have one-on-one sessions with me.” I neglected to tell her that Andrew was an exception to the rule.
She made a pouty face. “Please? Maybe I can ask your client if I can stay and watch?”
There was absolutely no way I wanted Karen hovering around while Andrew and I tried to figure out what the hell we were doing with each other. Not that I wanted to hash out the details of the kiss with him while we worked with Dude, but still. It was going to be hard enough to focus on the work without her interrupting the whole time.
“I’m sorry, Karen, I can’t agree to that.” I backpedaled at the last second. “It’s up to my client.”
“What’s up to your client?”
Andrew had taken advantage of my prop-rock to let himself in the back door, striding into the room with Dude on a leash beside him. I glanced at Karen and saw her posture shift into coquette mode when she spotted him, breaking into a smile and crossing her legs prettily. Bella barely glanced at Dude and for the first time ever I actually wished for a canine confrontation so I’d have a reason to kick them out.
“Well,hellothere!” she cooed in a syrupy voice I’d never heard before. “Chelsea said you have a deaf dog and I was hoping I could stay and observe your lesson. My nephew just adopted one too.”
Andrew took her fawning in stride. But then again, he probably didn’t even notice it.
“Sure, that’s fine.” He glanced at me a second too late and seemed to realize his mistake. “That is... if it’s okay with Chelsea.”
