Pawliday Love

Chapter 3

CHAPTER THREE

CHLOE

W hen morning comes, I rush around to get ready for the day. Every little thing excites me and I can’t wait to get to the adoption.

As soon as I’m dressed appropriately for the chilly weather, I step outside the house with my small purse in tow and prepare for today.

The air has bite this morning and feels even colder than yesterday.

“Well, I guess it has officially become winter,” I say, my breath coming out in a swirl of smoke.

The sweater, though thick and warm, suddenly feels like it’s paper thin. I vigorously rub my hands up and down my arms to try to bring some warmth to my bones. It seems like something is in the air and it’s not just the incoming snow.

I look around the area at all the different houses, but nothing seems to be going on. “Weird.”

As my foot meets the next step, there’s another chill, almost as if someone is watching me, but when I turn to look behind me, all I see is the cute little door to my new home.

“It’s just nerves,” I say as I walk down the steps and land on the sidewalk.

I make it to my car without any more issues and head into town, without worrying about what I just felt at home.

The park is packed, but lucky for me, I find a parking spot close to where they have the puppies. I slowly get out and take a look around. There are so many food and craft vendors that I know I’m going to have a blast today.

As soon as I shut my car door, I look back to the puppies and want to desperately check them out, yet I know as soon as I have a pet in hand, I will be leaving to take them home.

“One look around before I choose a companion won’t hurt, will it?”

A grin spreads across my face as I set off toward the craft vendors. The first booth has several tables full of jewelry, while the next has herbs. Neither catches my eye, but then I look further down and find the man from yesterday.

He’s dressed in a dark wash pair of jeans and a white shirt. His black boots look like they’ve been recently cleaned and shine in the sun.

I slowly drag my eyes up from his boots to his face, only to find him staring back at me. He has a sly grin that makes him look more mischievous than yesterday.

I quickly look away, wishing he hadn’t just seen me.

“You,” he says as I try to turn and escape.

It’s too late now, though, so I turn back around and pretend I just wasn’t staring at him like I might devour him at any second. “Oh, hi. I didn’t see you there.”

“Really?” He asks as he walks over toward me. “I thought you were staring at me for a moment. That means I must have been mistaken.”

“Must have been,” I say with a laugh.

I keep looking down, hoping he’ll just let me go yet, not wanting him to at the same time. Something about him makes my heart flutter and my stomach do little flips. It’s probably just a crush, and it’s slightly embarrassing.

“What pet are you adopting?” He asks, his voice deep and low.

“Oh, I haven’t decided. The puppies look cute,” I say as I look off, but then I find some holding kittens. “Oh, I love kittens, too.”

When I glance back in his direction, I catch him smiling at me again.

“What is it?” I ask, wondering why he’d look at me like that.

“You look so happy when you see animals. You really love them, don’t you?”

I look back and find more little creatures to love. It feels as if my heart might explode. “Yes. Though my family loved animals and I’ve worked around them my entire life, I’ve never had one to call my own. Now that I have the house, I know what I’m going to do. I just have to decide which one, but that will be hard.”

“Why don’t you walk around with me until you make your decision? I plan to check out all the vendors, especially those serving food. There is something tantalizing in the air today.”

I almost agree, but stay silent for a moment before giving him a nod. “Let’s go.”

Over the next couple of hours, we walk over the entire park, visiting each and every vendor. There are so many things that catch my eye, yet I only buy one thing, which is a long necklace with a snow globe on it. It’s a flat piece of a little black cat and tan dog in the globe with a little house.

When it comes to food, though, I buy a little something from almost every vendor there is. What’s even funnier is he does the same and in larger portions. I have never seen a man put away the food like Bastian does.

Once again, thoughts of what he could be come to mind, but I quickly shove them to the back of my mind because we’re walking straight to my favorite part.

It’s time for me to adopt a pet.

As I ease closer to the little pen where all the puppies are, I forget everything around me and stare into those sweet, innocent eyes.

“Oh, how am I ever going to choose?”

The lady working the area comes toward me with a warm smile. “I hate to tell you, but all the puppies are taken. Some already reserved them.”

“What? Do you have any kittens or cats left?”

She looks over her shoulder toward where the cats are as she rubs the back of her neck with her hand. Her lips pull into a frown. “Well, there is one cat left, but she is a little aggressive.”

“What do you mean by aggressive?” I blink a few times in disbelief at the fact all the animals but one have been claimed in such a short amount of time.

Her eyes meet mine and I can tell there is something she’s not wanting to say. “Well, she is only a couple of years old, solid black, and has an attitude. I’ve never met such a sassy cat.”

I automatically fall in love with every word she says. “Can I meet her?”

She nods and motions for me to follow her, but I look back to find Bastian just standing there. He glances up and there’s a slight tug on my heart. His expression changes quickly, almost as he feels it, too.

“Something has come up. I hope you find your cat.”

I give him a warm smile, wishing he didn’t have to go, but I want to meet this sassy cat she spoke of.