Diamond in the Ruff Read online

  Diamond in the Ruff

  Cora Jay

  Contents

  1. Ellie

  2. Harika

  3. Ellie

  4. Harika

  5. Ellie

  6. Harika

  7. Ellie

  8. Harika

  9. Ellie

  10. Harika

  11. Ellie

  12. Harika

  13. Ellie

  14. Harika

  15. Ellie

  16. Harika

  17. Ellie

  18. Harika

  19. Ellie

  20. Harika

  21. Ellie

  22. Harika

  23. Ellie

  24. Harika

  25. Ellie

  26. Harika

  27. Ellie

  28. Harika

  29. Ellie

  30. Harika

  31. Ellie

  32. Harika

  About the Author

  Copyright © 2017 by Cora Jay. All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author's imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  This book is intended for mature readers ages 18+, and is not suitable for younger readers.

  Created with Vellum

  1

  Ellie

  Gotta turn it just right… There we go. And then apply this filter…

  Ellie was so close to finishing this assignment. It had been fun, but exhausting, because the client was the biggest pain in the ass she’d ever met. But that was fine. The income from this project was going to cover several overdue bills. She’d jumped on it as soon as she’d seen the opportunity. If she missed paying rent one more time…

  There was just something a little off about what was on the screen. It needed that final polish. Ellie could tell there was a gap between what she saw in her mind and what she saw in herscreen, but the image in her head was nebulous and seemed to grow fuzzier the more she tried to pin it down.

  What was the secret ingredient?

  She tried moving some of the shapes on the side around, and changed the font of the main body copy. But that didn’t help much. There was a certain sparkle—the very thing that made Ellie proud to call it her project—that was still missing.

  A whine came from the direction of the living room.

  “Hold on, honey,” said Ellie, eyes fixated on the screen. “I just gotta… I just gotta finish this.”

  She barely heard Bella’s footsteps padding across the hardwood floor. Her eyes were starting to feel a little funny, and her fingers were tight on the tablet as she worked on the outline of this one shape. There was an empty feeling in her stomach; had she eaten lunch, or had she forgotten? She could have sworn she’d eaten a pita pizza, but maybe that was yesterday…

  She was getting too distracted now. There was no way she’d be able to complete the assignment once the drudgery of having to enter the real world fell on her. She’d pushed herself for hours, for the whole workday, and now, she had to actually take a moment to take care of herself.

  And Bella. With a sigh, she turned from the screen and toward the dog, who was sitting next to her chair. Bella rested her head on Ellie’s thigh and looked up at her with beseeching eyes.

  It was Bella who reminded Ellie to have a life. She needed to be walked, after all, and Ellie liked to take her to the dog park so she could stretch those long, greyhound legs. She was a couch potato most of the time, sleeping during the day when Ellie was working, but in the evening, she lit up as she realized she would get more of Ellie’s attention.

  “I know, I should sleep on it,” said Ellie, getting up from her chair and stretching. Her knuckles cracked, and so did a couple bones in other places. She really ought to buy a more ergonomic chair so she didn’t fuck up her spine or something like that, but she kept forgetting.

  “Bella, honey, you ready for the dog park?” she asked.

  Upon hearing the words, she perked up, her ears twitching. She practically danced around the room, now that she realized that Ellie was truly done with work for the day. Ellie loved watching her like this. She was like a fawn, simultaneously graceful and lithe, but also awkward. She’d twist around the furniture to avoid running into it, her long legs looking like they’d get tangled if she wasn’t careful. And her comically long snout was always ahead, sniffing.

  Ellie got up and grabbed a sweatshirt; she did know that it was getting cooler now that it was evening, and she was a little shy about sharing her tattoos, which curled down to the base of her palms. People asked enough questions about the greyhound; she didn’t like to attract even more attention with her ink.

  She put the leash and harness on Bella. She was a strong dog, very excitable, always eager to peel off after every squirrel and small dog she saw. Ellie didn’t blame her. She was a former racing greyhound, and if the instincts weren’t enough, the training certainly was. She’d expected Bella to be a lot more energetic, but she seemed to want to live out her retirement lazily, sleeping in the sun and cuddling at night.

  Ellie flipped the lights off and they headed out, into the lights of Redwood Crossing. Redwood County was one of those odd places which was mostly rural, with pockets of a more cosmopolitan nature. You couldn’t call Redwood Crossing a city, by any means, but there was still plenty to do, and a surprising number of young folks. The place even had distinct neighborhoods.

  Ellie lived in a quieter, more residential district. She had a neighborhood coffee shop and a neighborhood grocery store and a neighborhood salon. She didn’t feel much of an impetus to leave it very often, except to visit family, as she often got so absorbed in work. But every so often, she liked to wander further into the other neighborhoods. This was usually upon Bella’s initiative.

  “So, honey, where do you wAaron go today?” she asked.

  The greyhound trotted along beside her, glancing at Ellie with soulful brown eyes. Her mouth hung open and she panted with excitement. The evening walks were the highlight of the day for both of them.

  Ellie would just have to see where she wanted to go this time. Bella was ridiculously smart, she’d learned—she had a mental map of the town and would lead Ellie to the dog park whenever she felt like going there, or to the neighborhood over, when she felt like seeing something new.

  And she’d just let her take her along. It wasn’t like Ellie had much else to do, anyway. At home, streamable movies and a couple of video games that went with a dusty console were all that awaited her. As well as frozen pizzas and a bottle of wine.

  She had friends, but she hadn’t spoken with them in a while, and it had gotten to the point where it would be a little awkward to ping them again. The most social interaction she got, usually, was from her parents checking up on her, and her clients, many of whom were regulars.

  Ellie was happy that way. It was the perfect, quiet life. It wasn’t one she’d built for herself; rather, she’d fallen into it the way other people fell into life paths that presented themselves. But what mattered most was that she got to do what she wanted to do without having to deal with a shitty boss, and she could spend time with her beloved dog.

  Bella stopped and sneezed. Now that they were entering the commercial district, there were more people out and about. Ellie could clearly see couples and groups of friends and families all setting out to enjoy dinner or a night at the bar.

&n
bsp; For a brief moment, she wondered what it would be like to join one of them, see what the people in the group were like, find out what their shared history was. She had had a group like that once. But it had gotten stifling.

  The shops and other establishments here gave way into the commercial district of the next neighborhood, Lane Estates. It was a little nicer here, with fancier restaurants and fewer dive bars than Ellie’s neighborhood, Candlewood. But she didn’t feel out of place.

  The antique stores were closing up for the evening, and as always, her eyes were drawn to the tchotchkes sitting in the windows. She had a bit of a collection herself, but like any dedicated collector, she was always on the lookout for more, that perfect piece to round out the collection. Lately, she hadn’t had the extra funds, though, so it was just window shopping for her.

  Of course, her collection would never be complete anyway. And it wasn’t even clear what she collected. Furniture, funny old clocks, vintage posters—anything that seemed even vaguely inspiring to her graphic design sensibilities. Like most designers, Ellie liked to surround herself with aesthetically pleasing objects, but her taste skewed more toward the previous century.

  Bella tugged at the leash; Ellie was getting distracted and she was trying to bring her back to the most important thing—her walk. But where was she going? She’d taken Ellie this way only a couple of times before.

  There weren’t as many people here, now that more old rowhouses were showing up, rather than commercial buildings. Ellie didn’t recognize this part of the neighborhood, since she had little reason to come here. It seemed that Bella was feeling extra adventurous.

  She always welcomed these moments, because it meant that she had more time to think. Even though she worked from home, she didn’t have a lot of time to herself because she worked on so many projects. With Bella leading the way, she could focus on goals for the near future. These were almost always personal finance-related, because she had to get herself out of the hole she was in.

  So, lost in her own thoughts, she continued, listening to the steady padding of Bella’s feet on the sidewalk, and the occasional rumble of a passing car. The sun was getting lower in the sky, throwing a gold shade on everything. It was nearly 6 pm. Time for dinner. Ellie ran through the inventory of her fridge in her head, wondering what she could cobble together.

  Just then, the typically silent Bella barked.

  2

  Harika

  Thistle’s ears were super soft, but not as soft as Betsy’s.

  Harika bent down to the cheerful Maltese mix, who licked her face as soon as she was able. Harika had a spot soft for her, because it wasn’t often that one of her patients actually liked her. They usually liked to get the hell out of there as soon as possible. But Thistle was such a sweetheart, and seemed to have unending patience for all the indignities Harika put her through, including the dreaded nail clipping.

  Harika scratched her behind her ears and laughed when she tried to put her paw on her hand. “All right, Thistle, I’ll see you next time, okay?” she said.

  “Thank you so much, Dr. Knowles,” said Thistle’s owner, Mary. The elderly woman was a regular at the clinic, not because her dog got sick often, but because she needed help with stuff like nail clipping.

  “Of course, Mary,” said Harika, feeling a little embarrassed that someone far older than her would refer to her as ‘Dr.’ She didn’t think she’d ever really get used to it.

  She helped Mary out, and the vet tech, Bowen, handled billing while Harika went to check on Betsy. She really had to get a receptionist, and fast. Maggie had left because her fiancé was moving out to the city for a new job, and Harika had procrastinated because she and the vet techs were managing.

  She waved goodbye to Mary, then turned to Bowen, who was being besieged by Betsy’s affections. The feisty Shih Tzu mix—Harika’s baby—loved the vet tech, who was calm no matter what she threw at him. Right now, she was trying to clamber up onto his lap.

  “Betsy, leave your Uncle Bowen alone,” said Harika sternly.

  Bowen laughed out loud. “I’ll never get tired of hearing that.” He bent down and helped the little dog up in his lap, where she curled up and perched like a princess, surveying her kingdom. Right now, there wasn’t anyone in the clinic, though, so she turned to Bowen and tried to solicit affection.

  “You got any candidates for the receptionist position yet?” asked Bowen, reaching into a drawer and pulling out a bag of treats. Realizing what was happening, Betsy stood up on her lap and leaned over, trying to get the bag. Bowen held it up high.

  “No,” said Harika, with a pang of guilt. “I really need to update the listing. Try to get a college grad or something. Not many experienced receptionists around here who want to work at a vet’s office.”

  Bowen idly flipped through some brochures on the desk while Betsy worked on her treat, and Harika gazed at them. She’d cobbled them together quickly on her own, along with the logo, which a design student had offered to make for her portfolio. It was good enough, but now that the Lane Estates Animal Clinic was growing, it needed a stronger brand. A business couldn’t grow if it had half-assed brochures made by the vet herself.

  “I’m also going to hire a graphic designer,” said Harika, mind whirring with possible improvements.

  “Yeah? We could use one,” said Bowen. “These brochures are okay, but…”

  “No, they’re shitty. They really are. I mean, I made them myself,” said Harika, chuckling.

  Bowen frowned. “You’ve got a typo here…”

  Harika sighed.

  “It shouldn’t be hard to hire a designer though, right? You can even hire someone online. And there are plenty of design firms in the city,” said Bowen.

  “No, it’s not hard. But I like hiring people I can actually meet in person. I don’t like the idea of having our only contact be online,” said Harika. “I’m sure there’s a designer in this town, somewhere.”

  “Yeah. I’ll keep my eye out,” said Bowen, standing up and holding Betsy, who was sitting smugly in his arms. That was what she liked best—finding a place to perch and staying in it as long as possible. Except when there were people in the clinic—then it was a race to soak up as much attention as possible.

  Bowen deposited Betsy on the floor, and she walked right up to Harika, expecting her to pick her up—which she did, of course. Betsy’s long hair in shades of brown, cream, and white trailed like a gown, and the pink bow on her head completed the diva look. Doing her hair like that always gave Harika a chuckle.

  “It’s time for you to head out, isn’t it?” asked Harika.

  “Yeah,” said Bowen, running a hand through his red hair. “Quiet day, though. I still have a lot of energy.”

  “That’s good. It’s the weekend. You should do something fun,” said Harika, realizing that despite working with Bowen for a couple years now, she still didn’t know that much about the man’s personal life.

  “I’ll probably take my girlfriend out,” Bowen said, picking up his jacket and other things from the lower drawer. “She’s been itching to try sushi for the first time.”

  Well then. So he had a girlfriend. That was a start. “How long have you guys been together?” asked Harika.

  “Just a year,” said Bowen, shrugging and swinging around the side of the counter.

  “Have fun,” said Harika, taking the receptionist’s seat so she could close the account and shut down the computer.

  “Will do.”

  And then, Harika was left alone. Bowen didn’t volunteer that much information about his girlfriend, which explained why Harika hadn’t known, but she still felt bad. After working so closely with someone for so long, she ought to have known that they had what appeared to be a serious partner. She made a mental note to ask Bowen more questions about himself.

  And what was she going to do with her weekend? She sat back in the chair, delaying. Betsy curled up on her lap and closed her eyes; the street outside was getting a littl
e loud, as people filtered out to enjoy the cool weather and nightlife.

  She could take Betsy on a walk, or to the dog park. But she did that so often. She could call up Shalini, one of the vet techs with whom she was friends, and ask her if she wanted to hang out. She reached for her phone, about to shoot her a text, when she remembered that she’d actually taken the second half of the week off to entertain her parents, who were visiting from India. She’d be busy the whole time, though she’d almost certainly bring sweets back to the office.

  Harika really needed a social life. She’d spent the past two years working so hard to build up the clinic that she’d slacked on going out and finding friends. Of course, she had plenty of social interaction on a daily basis, thanks to the clinic, but emotional intimacy was something she lacked.

  And that was hard for a person like Harika. Ever since she was a kid and had seen her fair share of Disney movies, she’d known that she’d wanted something more than the superficial depictions of love she’d seen. She wanted more than a soulmate, if that was possible, since the word had been cheapened. At least that was what she thought.

  What Harika really wanted was someone to merge herself with. She’d tried, in the past, to see if previous partners were up to snuff, but they never were. For one thing, many of them had been commitment-phobes, uncertain of whether they even saw a future with Harika. And those that were in it for the long haul either hadn’t worked out, or hadn’t achieved the depth of intimacy Harika sought.

  It was difficult for people like her to date, and she knew it. Most of her past relationships had grown from friendships, and with good reason. There was something irresistible about the idea of forming a romantic bond with someone who already knew you so well. But now that her friends were scarce, it looked like Harika would have to go dating like everyone else did if she wanted to find a mate.

  At least she had Betsy. The Shih Tzu mix had been one of the first friends she’d made when she moved to Redwood Crossing, and she loved her more than anything. She’d been by her side during all the difficulties she’d faced—the occasional bit of racism, financial issues when the clinic started up, heart-rending medical cases. Betsy was her best friend, there was no doubt about that.