Unbidden, his mind flashed an image of Tanya standing before him last night—arms folded, lips pursed, tension radiating from her like mist from a pond on a frosty morning. She hadn’t looked as if she was enjoying life much at that moment, either.
The two of them had had a lot of fun at one time. He recalled one evening, not long before graduation. Her parents had driven to California with her brother, Ian, who was reporting to Marine boot camp, leaving Tanya home alone with the family dog for protection and company. Tanya had invited Jack to spend the night with her, a wholly illicit and thrilling invitation. They’d sat in the hot tub under a soft fall of late spring snow, then made love in her bedroom by the light of a full moon pouring through the window.
He shook himself out of his reverie. Not one month after that magical night, Tanya had gone off to Hollywood to live her dream. He’d stayed home and worked hard to rebuild his.
And now she was back. Her dream had apparently changed. He told himself he didn’t care, but the fact that he was brooding over it proved he did. Memories of the girl she’d been and curiosity about the woman she was distracted him from mundane paperwork.
So what did he do now? Did he go back to avoiding her? Did he confront her about what had happened between them years ago? Or did he risk making a fool of himself and seek her out again, to see if there was any spark left in their old flame?
“MOMMY, I REALLY WANT to get a puppy!” Annie tugged on Tanya’s hand as they made their way Saturday morning past refreshment booths and games of chance at the Gunnison County Humane Society’s Summer Festival.
“Annie, we’ve talked about this before,” Tanya said. “Grandma and Grandpa already have a dog. It wouldn’t be fair to Misty to bring another dog into her house.”
“But Misty’s old,” Annie said. “I want a puppy. And I bet Misty would like a puppy.”
“No, sweetheart. No puppies.”
“We can at least look, can’t we?”
Tanya thought “just looking” at the cute, cuddly puppies the Humane Society had for adoption was a very bad idea. She was as susceptible as the next person to the allure of furry fuzz balls, but having to depend on her parents for a place to live was bad enough without introducing anything else into the already crowded house.
But it was too late for her protests to have any effect on Annie. The little girl had already spotted the large wooden booth with the banner that proclaimed Adoptions: Take Home a New Best Friend Today.
Annie let go of her mother’s hand and raced to the booth, where she almost collided with Angela and her boyfriend, Bryan Perry, who was the assistant manager of the Elevation Hotel. “Whoa! Annie, Fo-Fanny, where are you headed in such a rush?” Angela asked.
“I came to see the puppies.” Annie flashed a shy smile at Bryan. “What are you doing here?”
“We’re thinking about adopting a dog,” Bryan said. He nodded to Tanya as she joined them.
“Bryan wants a big dog he can take hiking,” Angela said. “While I’d like something small and fluffy that could be a mascot for my shop.” Angela ran the Chocolate Moose, a candy shop on Elk Avenue.
“I’m telling you, a chocolate lab would be the perfect dog,” Bryan said. “You could name him Cocoa or Hershey.”
“I was thinking of a little bichon,” Angela said. “I could call it Sugar.”
Bryan looked nauseated at the idea. “It doesn’t have to be a chocolate lab,” he said, “but please—we have to get something I’m not ashamed to take out with the guys. It has to be a dog that can get dirty.”
Angela laughed and slipped her hand into the crook of his arm. “Maybe instead of us choosing the dog, we’ll let it choose us,” she said.
“I want a puppy,” Annie said, “but Mama won’t let me have one.”
“Oh?” Angela’s eyes met Tanya’s.
“I’m sure Angela will let you play with her puppy all you want,” Tanya said. She stroked the top of Annie’s head. As a baby, Annie had been practically bald; Stuart had made fun of the little hair bands and ribbons Tanya had insisted the baby wear. Even then, strangers had sometimes mistaken her for a boy. No chance of that now—pink was Annie’s favorite color, and she never met a ruffle she didn’t like.
“All you people lingering on the outside of the booth, come in here and see what you’re missing.” A woman’s voice on the PA startled them. Tanya looked over and saw a petite woman with a cap of platinum hair waving at them.
“Casey, are you trying to embarrass us into adopting a pet?” Angela called.
“Hey, whatever works.” Casey Overbridge held up a ball of brown fluff. “These guys need homes.”
“Ohh! Let me hold it!” Annie ran forward, and by the time Tanya and the others had followed her into the booth, she had two puppies snuggled under her chin.
Tanya watched in dismay, anticipating the meltdown that was almost guaranteed when she tried to separate the pups from her daughter. Just then, something wet and icy cold touched her hand. She flinched, and looked to see a large, shaggy white dog grinning up at her.
“That’s Marshmallow,” Casey said. “The pups’ mom. She’s up for adoption, too.”
“Oh, Bryan!” Angela dropped to her knees beside the white mutt. “Isn’t she sweet?”
“She’s certainly big.” Bryan patted the dog’s side. “What kind is she?”
“Maybe part sheepdog or Great Pyrenees?” Casey shrugged. “All mutt. But very sweet. She’s only two and very healthy.”
“Marshmallow would be a good name for a candy-shop dog,” Angela said.
“I thought you wanted something small.” Bryan eyed the animal skeptically.
“But you wanted something big. You could take her hiking.”
“She’s white. And all that curly hair…”
“White dogs clean up great. And I’ll bet she loves the snow…”
Tanya drifted away from the debate to the other side of the pen, where Annie now sat with four puppies squirming around her. Tanya thought of her mother’s prized Persian rug, and of the dark green ultrasuede sofa. How would they look with a nice coating of dog hair—or worse? Her parents’ old dog, Misty, spent most of her days lying in the sun on a dog bed at the foot of the stairs. The old girl wouldn’t appreciate an annoying young interloper interrupting her naps.
“I didn’t know you were thinking of adopting a dog.” Austin Davies, a member of the Mountain Theatre Group, joined Tanya at the edge of the booth.
“Hello, Austin. I’m not.”
“Are you sure? I’d say your little girl definitely has her heart set on a dog.”
One of the puppies was enthusiastically licking Annie’s cheek with a little pink tongue while the girl giggled with glee. Tanya watched the exchange with a sinking feeling. Once more she’d get to play the heavy, with no partner to back her up. Then again, if she had a nickel for every time she’d cursed Stuart for his neglect of her and his daughter, she’d be able to afford a pricey home and all the dogs Annie wanted.
Tanya sighed and stepped over the low barrier into the pen with the puppies and Annie. “It’s time to go, Annie,” she said.
“Mommy, can’t we take him home, please?” Annie clutched a brown-and-white ball of fluff to her chest and gave her mother a beseeching look.
Annie