“I insist,” I said firmly. “It’s our mess. We should be the ones to clean it up.”
“Okay.” He hefted the box under one arm, whistled for Bruno, who jumped up to follow.
I called Lady—and picked up the end of Tramp’s leash before he could make a fool of me again—and we followed along.
For the next fifteen minutes, Hank and I took turns chasing down pieces of paper until we were relatively sure all of them had been collected.
“I’d hate to get banned from the park for littering,” he said with a rueful grin.
I cringed a little. “They’d ban me, not you. My fault.”
“Not with those delicious biscuits of yours.”
I laughed. “What do you know about my biscuits?”
He winked. “I know you give them out to dog owners as treats, and I am sure they’d all go to bat for you. Me? I’m just the new guy. I don’t even have friends here.”
I fell into step with him as we headed toward the park exit. “This dog festival will change that. You’re going to meet a lot of people.”
He snorted. “You sound like my boss. Meanwhile, my little brother thinks I’m a loser for spending my free time working on stuff like this instead of going out for dinner or drinks.”
“Well, you go out sometimes. I saw you at Taco Loco one time.”
“Yeah, I was with my brother, so I don’t think it counts.”
I laughed. “Whoops. Well, I tried.”
We reached his car, and he opened the trunk to deposit the box of paperwork.
“Well, thanks again for helping me out,” he said.
“After Tramp made a mess, you mean.”
He chuckled. “He does have a lot of energy, huh? Labs are tough.”
“Yeah, they have their run of the backyard, and I walk them twice a day and bring them over here as much as I can, but with work I can only do so much.”
Hank closed his trunk and turned to lean against the back of his car. “Have you considered doggy day care?”
“I wish. I can’t really afford to send two dogs five days a week, you know?”
“Well, how about just once or twice a week?” he suggested.
“Maybe…”
“Shit, listen to me. You probably think I’m trying to sell you on my business. I didn’t suggest it for the money.”
“I didn’t think that.”
“It just might do you and Tramp some good. He could play off some energy, and when you’re home together, you could enjoy each other more.”
“I’m sure he’d love it. They both would, but especially him.”
I glanced down at Tramp, who even now was straining at the leash as he caught sight of a squirrel in the nearby trees.
“Well, think about it. If you bring them in on Monday, I can give you a free trial.”
“Your boss would be okay with that?”
