Dog People by Jennifer Weiner

Author:Jennifer Weiner
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Atria
Published: 2020-10-12T00:00:00+00:00

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His son and his daughter both came; Chris for two weeks, Chloe for a month. By the time Chloe finally left, Michael was relieved. He appreciated that his daughter wanted to be a comfort and that she intended his grandchildren to be a distraction, but the truth was, spending his days with a weepy young woman daughter, a bored four-year-old who kept whining, “When can we go home?” and a preverbal toddler who had to be watched every second, lest he pull poor Lady’s tail or try to eat her kibble, was exhausting.

“We’ll be okay, won’t we, Lady?” he’d asked as he began putting his house back in order, washing the sheets from the guest bedroom, sweeping crumbs off the kitchen floor. Then there’d been a knock on the door. Lady’s ears had swiveled, and she’d gotten to her feet.

Michael opened the door to find a small, determined-looking woman standing there, a baking dish in her hands and a hopeful look on her face. “Michael? I’m Suzanne. Your down-the-hall neighbor?”

Michael nodded. He knew Suzanne, to say hello to at the mailbox or to chat about the weather in the elevator. She’d sent a card after Tina’s funeral.

“I’m sure you were flooded with food last month, but I thought that maybe you’d appreciate something now.” She handed him the dish, which smelled of meat and cheese and oregano.

“Oh! And this is for Lady.” She reached into her pocket and pulled out a rawhide bone. Lady sniffed at it delicately, but when Suzanne bent down to extend it toward her, Lady turned away.

“Sorry. She’s a little shy,” Michael said.

“Oh, don’t apologize. I completely understand.” Suzanne pressed her hands against the skirt of her dress and said, “I hope you like the lasagna. Just bring the dish back when you’re done.” She’d cocked her thumb toward the opposite end of the hall. “I’m 7-J.”

“Would you like to come in and have some with me?” asked Michael.

“Well, if you’re sure I’m not intruding,” she’d said.

“Of course not,” he said, and held the door. Between her smile and the whiff of her perfume, he almost didn’t hear Lady give a low, warning growl.

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