Page 38 of Valentines In The Presidential Suite

She pulled him into her arms and hugged him before putting on his harness and attaching his leash.

Wiggling with excitement, he allowed her to pick him up so she could carry him down the stairs.

Outside, he did his business and then eagerly trotted beside her as she headed down the driveway and onto the sidewalk.

Morgan quickly discovered that having a dog was an easy way to meet people. Neighbors waved at her. Some came over to her to pat the dog.

By the time she returned to her apartment, she felt as if she was becoming a real part of the neighborhood. Blue had loved all the attention, but now lay down in his bed in the kitchen.

Morgan fixed herself a cup of coffee and then began her usual Saturday routine of cleaning the apartment and doing laundry.

Her cell rang. Brad. “Hi. Do you want to bring Blue out to the house to play with my dogs?”

“Thanks, but I’m meeting Simon for our reading session,” she said.

“I meant after that. We could have dinner here and, uh, watch the dogs,” Brad said, sounding a little unsure of himself.

“That sounds lovely,” said Morgan. “It’s been a busy week at work, and it’ll be nice to relax with you. I promise not to talk business.”

He laughed. “Me, too. I’ll grill steaks.”

“Okay. I’ll make a salad to go with it,” she said, feeling the heat of pleasure on her cheeks.

She was still beaming as they ended the call. At work, she’d been as formal as he when they’d conducted their business. But now she knew he’d missed her as much as she’d missed him.

###

Standing outside of Simon’s house, Morgan quietly talked to Blue. “I need you to be a good boy. Not a lot of barking. Okay?”

Blue looked up at her and wagged his tail.

Morgan rang the doorbell and was surprised when Simon’s grandson answered the door.

“Hello, Jake. Do you remember me? I’m Morgan Riley, your grandfather’s reading partner. And this is Blue, my new dog.”

“Come in. My mother has gone on an errand, but she’ll be back. She won’t like the dog being here.”

“Simon knows I was bringing him,” Morgan said, suddenly worried about what was going on.

She stepped inside and saw Simon stretched out in a reclining chair. He lifted his hand. “Ah, here you are at last. I’ve had another fall, prompting Constance to arrive. Will you please phone your boss and ask him to come here right away? Constance is out of the house, doing some errands, and I want to be able to speak to him frankly. And I want him here when Constance returns.”

Morgan saw the worry on Simon’s face and heard the plea in his voice. “Okay, I’ll call him right now.” She handed the leash to Jake.

“Here, Blue,” said Simon, patting the chair beside him.

Morgan watched as the dog easily jumped up and sat beside Simon, wagging his tail.

“You can call your boss in the kitchen,” said Simon. “Jake knows I’m asking you to do this for me.”

Morgan went to the kitchen and phoned Brad, hoping he was home. He answered on the sixth ring.

“Hi, Morgan. Everything all right?” he asked.

“I’m at Simon’s house, and he’s wondering if you’ll come here right now. His daughter-in-law, Constance, is out doing errands, and he wants you to be present when she returns. He knows you handle family law issues. Something must have happened for him to be so upset.”

“It’s highly unusual, but I’ll do it for him and for you,” said Brad. “I have his address. You told me where he lives.”

“Pull right up to his house. It’s number 23. The last in the row of them. Thank you. See you soon,” she said.