Page 25 of Wag More Bark Less

If I’d been in charge of casting for the Hallmark movie this town clearly was, he was exactly the man I’d pick to fill the role of local hardware store owner. He looked every bit the part with his thick, gray swept-back hair, a yellow carpenter’s pencil tucked behind his ear, a red and gray flannel shirt, and worn jeans.

“Anything I can help you find?” he asked.

I was about to admit I was looking for a particular glass doorknob when I heard a familiar voice behind me.

“Are you lost?”

“Lost?” I repeated.

“Really, Luke?” the older man scolded, smacking him with a clipboard.

I bit back a grin.

“Ignore him. He’s not housebroken,” the other younger man said, approaching with the little girl in tow.

Luke scowled at that comment, which only made it harder to hide my smile. So I didn’t this time.

“I like your dog,” the little girl said.

I focused on her so I wouldn’t look at Luke. The last thing I needed was to be assaulted with another unsolicited image of the man shirtless and feeding my dog bacon. Especially since I’d apparently drawn a crowd. I’d chock it up to small-town friendliness if Officer McGrumpy weren’t part of the equation.

The little girl wore pigtails, a blush-pink sweatshirt that read nine is a vibe, and a pair of leggings decorated with paw prints. She was cute as a damn button.

“Do you want to pet her?” I asked since Ellie’s attention was already fixated on the girl—she’d probably be offended if she didn’t get pets.

“I’ll be gentle,” she promised, reaching out a tentative hand for Ellie to sniff.

“My daughter’s obsessed with dogs,” the other man explained. “And she’s really good with them. Sometimes, I swear she can read their minds.” I offered him a smile in response, and he added, “I’m Connor—the nice Mason brother, fully equipped with manners.”

“Brother?” I glanced back and forth between the two, trying to pick out the similarities. They were both on the taller side, definitely over six foot, but Luke had two, maybe three inches on his brother. Whereas Luke’s hair was a dirty blond, Connor’s was a deep brown, like espresso. Luke had light blue eyes, and his brother brown. I’d never have pegged them to be related, let alone siblings.

“As you can see, I got my dad’s good looks,” Connor said, as though reading my mind. “Luke was adopted.”

“I’m staying out of this.” Joe raised both hands in mock surrender. His grin said he was enjoying this almost as much as I was.

“Assholes,” Luke mumbled under his breath.

It took me a moment, but finally it dawned on me that the reason Luke might be at the hardware store in plain clothes this morning was because it was a family business. His family’s business.

“You willingly work with this guy?” I asked Joe, hiking my thumb toward Luke.

“Willingly is a loose term.”

“I don’t have to be here,” Luke piped up.

“I tried to get you to take the day off,” Connor said.

The nonchalance of his tone seemed to grate on Luke, as his frown deepened. I stole another glance at those icy blue eyes, ready to add another jab of my own about stubbornness until I spotted bags under those eyes. I started to ask how long it’d been since he slept, but the little girl cut me off.

“Ellie’s a really good girl. Aren’t you, Ellie?”

My pup lifted a gentle paw to either side of the girl’s shoulders for a hug, as if to prove her goodness.

I stared, dumbfounded, as words lodged in my throat. Did I mention her name? I glanced up at Luke, catching his eyes for a split second before he looked away, and considered he might have told her. Or maybe the girl simply read the name etched into her bone-shaped tag dangling from her collar. Duh, Maggie.

“She’s the bestest girl,” I agreed.

“Were you here to pick out something for your dog?” Joe guessed.