Seaglass Summer Read Online Free PDF Page B

ever had a pet?”
    I lean on the mop and shake my head. The truth comes out. Hawk looks at me, clearly surprised. “Never? Not even one? And you want to be a vet?”
    I blush. “So sue me. My mom’s allergic to anything with fur.”
    “That bites. Couldn’t you have, like, a turtle or a snake?”
    “I don’t like the idea of keeping them in glass terrariums. Once, when Uncle Sanjay visited us, we heard about a pet chimpanzee that tore off a woman’s face. Uncle Sanjay said wild animals are meant to live in the wild. That goes for snakes and turtles, too.”
    “Okay, you could get a hamster. I had a hamster once.”
    “They have fur.”
    “You could have fish. Fish are cool.”
    “My dad gave me a goldfish when I was four, but after a few days, it died. I don’t know why. I was so sad, I never wanted to have another fish. Maybe that’s partly why I want to be a vet. I want to help the fish, too.”
    “I can just picture it: Poppy Ray, Goldfish Veterinarian. If you want to save the fish, you’ll have to learn to scuba dive.” Hawk grins at me.
    “I’m up for it.” I grin back at him. “But I’m going to focus on dogs and cats, mainly.”
    “You could have a hairless dog, like maybe a Mexican Hairless. Or a sphynx. That’s a hairless cat.”
    “My mom is also allergic to the saliva. Besides, she’s afraid of having another allergic reaction. Once, I …” I look at the floor. My stomach twists when I remember.
    “Once you what?” Hawk steps closer. “You have to tell me.”
    I sigh. “Okay. Once, when I was seven, I found a fluffy Pomeranian wandering down the street. I smuggled him into my bedroom closet. I wanted a pet so badly.”
    Hawk’s mouth drops open. “You did not.”
    “I did, but I couldn’t keep him quiet. My mom came in, and she had a terrible allergic reaction. She got a rash, and she sneezed up a storm.”
    “Whoa. I bet you got in big trouble.”
    “I had to scrub my room, and all the floors, and we washed everything in the house. My dad found the dog’sowner, a lady who lives at the end of our street. I felt really guilty.”
    “Hey, we all make mistakes.” Hawk sprays cleanser on the window and wipes it clean.
    Duff pops her head in, her face shiny with sweat. She wipes her forehead. “Hawk, Poppy, come on! Sheesh, this must be puppy day. Things happen this way sometimes. Everything hits at once. You’re not going to believe this. We have
two
litters at the same time. One litter is in the dog exam room. But come to the treatment room first. Hurry!”
    My heart skips, and Hawk raises his eyebrows at me as we follow Duff down the hall. The treatment room is a sea of puppies, ten in all. They’re not small and fluffy. Each puppy is the size of Lulu, a full-grown cocker spaniel, but these are short-haired white dogs with black splotches, gigantic paws, and knobby legs. They totter around carefully, with their legs spread out, trying to keep their balance on the slippery tile floor. They’re timid, trembling a little. Their owner, a tall woman with a long face and straight hair, tries to herd them onto a blue carpet. I recognize the paisley pattern—Uncle Sanjay’s office rug.
    “What a splendid idea to bring in the carpet,” the lady says in a strong English accent. “Come, my babies, off the floor. Oh, perhaps they’re too nervous.” The puppies slide around, trying to avoid the mat.
    “It’s all right,” Uncle Sanjay says. “Let them go where they want.”
    “They look like newborn colts, don’t they?” Duff holds a puppy while Uncle Sanjay kneels to examine the paws.
    “Great Danes!” Hawk says. He pets the puppies and they wag their tails.
    “Thirty pounds each,” Uncle Sanjay says. “Healthy specimens. Poppy, Hawk, do you want to help hold them? Gently.”
    Duff huffs as she lifts a puppy into her arms. “They’re only eleven weeks old.”
    “Only eleven weeks?” I can’t believe it.
    “They’ll grow to over a hundred pounds each,” Duff