“I’ll see you at dinner?”
“Yep.”
But Georgia and Crazy Cassie would be seeing me a little fucking sooner.
Game on.
“Fantastic. But before you go…”
“Yeah?”
“I just need to ask you one little favor.”
He sighed. “Jesus, save us all.”
“Oh my God. Do you think Kline called Thatch?” Georgia asked with panic in her eyes.
“Stop freaking out,” I said and continued to run my fingers through one last rack of my second favorite vintage boutique. Bella’s had always been my favorite, but fluffing hell, Stan’s barking episode made it impossible for us to go back. And I was pretty sure the store clerk saw me flash that lady on the sidewalk, so, yeah, Bella’s was a no-go for at least another few months.
“He called him,” she rambled. “I know he did. God, how did I let you talk me into this? I’m the world’s worst dog mommy.”
“Seriously, Georgia, calm down,” I encouraged with my eyes fixated on the gorgeous silk blouse in my hands. “And tell me if this shirt would make my boobs look too big?”
“I can’t calm down!” She looked out the window to check on Stan for what felt like the millionth time. “And what kind of ridiculous question is that? Everything makes your boobs look big! Especially now! One of your boobs is the size of my head!”
Lord almighty, she was amped up.
But she was definitely right about the shirt. And, I had a feeling I’d need it to get Thatch to forgive me later. You know, once I’d called it quits on the whole pranking bit and he found out that I’d been the one to remove Stan from the nursery this afternoon.
A rush of anxiety filled my veins at the thought of telling my husband what I’d managed to pull off. Had I taken the prank too far? I mean, Thatch wouldn’t be too mad about it…right?
“What if Thatch called the cops? What if I get arrested for kidnapping my own dog? Oh my God! I’m going to go to jail!” Georgia exclaimed. “For kidnapping my own dog! The only way I’ll be able to have another baby is during conjugal visits in the slammer!
Oh my goat cheese, she’s a horrible accomplice.
Note to self: Stan and I can’t invite Georgia along for the ride for any future pranks.
“Just relax,” I encouraged, even though I knew it probably wouldn’t do a bit of good. Sane Georgia had officially left the building, and only panicked, losing her ever-loving sneakers Georgia was left. “We’ll give it another ten minutes—enough time to finish browsing this rack and buy this shirt—and then I’ll call Thatch.”
“Ugh,” she groaned. “I hate you. I honestly think I hate you right now.”
I smirked. “No, you don’t. Plus, I’m going to buy you this—” I started to say but paused when a rush of discomfort filled my stomach.
Something felt out of place or off or just not right. I didn’t know what, but something was different. I almost felt like I was being watched.
Immediately, I looked out the front window and found Stan resting comfortably on the sidewalk. Thank God. It would’ve been horrible if I’d actually managed to lose Stan while trying to make Thatch think he’d lost Stan.
But after a few paranoid glances around the store, I didn’t see anything out of the ordinary. Well, besides the back and shoulders of a beast of a woman wearing a pink shirt and a giant frilly white hat.
God, she’s big. And honestly, making me kind of horny…
That was weird. I’d never thought of myself as into women, but holy hello, pregnancy had been wreaking havoc on my normal pranking skills. I guessed it was possible it had the power to change my tune to the same sex.
“Hello? Cass? Are you listening to me?” Thankfully, Georgia called my attention before I could wander toward thoughts of bisexual curiosity. Not that I was opposed to being bisexual, I’d just never considered it.
But there was something about that woman…
“Cass!” Georgia whisper yelled.
“What?”
“Make the call.”
“It’s only been like two minutes,” I said with a wave of my hand. “Chill out, and let me buy this shirt.”
But she wasn’t going to let up. “Make. The. Call. Now. I can’t handle it anymore.”
I groaned. “Ugh. Fine.”
I pulled my phone out of my pocket and hit Thatch’s number before holding it against my cheek. The boring rings on my side of the call filled one ear while the “Thong Song” filled the other.
Wait a second.
I know that ringtone…
I started to look around the store again, but before I could process what was happening, I felt a tap to my back. The hairs stood up on the back of my neck as the hot air of someone close buzzed it. “Game. Over.”