by J. J. Howard
I hugged him so hard we fell over, and then we knocked over at least one of the cacti. Luckily the floor was tiled, but I probably wouldn’t have cared either way just then. Potato came bounding up to us and I hugged him and cried on his fur, but this time they were happy tears. When I’d calmed down from the rush of joy, I looked up at Eric.
“Are you sure? I can’t ask you to do that …” I realized in that moment it was too much to ask for him to give up his pet.
“You’re not asking, C. I told you, Potato is yours. You two have always belonged together. Besides, I expect to have extensive visiting privileges.”
“Of course!”
Eric reached over to scratch Potato’s ears. “Also, he’s got zero future in show business,” he said, confirming what I’d known from the very start.
I couldn’t help but laugh. “Thanks to me. And a pocketful of cookies.” I looked down at the happy little dog in my lap. He’d taught me so much. Because he was brave enough to trust people, after everything that had happened to him, somehow I’d started to be just a little bit brave, too. I looked at the boy who sat beside me. And if it hadn’t been for Potato, I’d never have known how wonderful Eric was.
“I have to admit, that was pretty brilliant of you with the cookies,” Eric was saying.
“I hope your mom forgives me.”
Eric smiled. “She likes you. She thinks you keep me on my toes.”
“Thanks?” I said.
“That’s what you said when I gave you the cactus. The first one.”
I smiled. “About that. So I know I said no flowers. But … why did you choose a cactus?”
“I just thought … they’re sort of like flowers, but … pricklier.”
“The perfect plant for me,” I said drily.
Eric pulled me toward him. “Exactly. My little cactus.”
He kissed me, and when we pulled apart, Potato was looking from one of us to the other in that knowing way of his.
Just then my aunt Pam walked in and saw me sitting on the floor with a boy in a pile of cacti and dirt, with a happy dog bouncing around between us.
“Honestly, Cecilia,” she said, shaking her head.
It was a full minute before I managed to stop laughing.
Suzie Townsend and Danielle Barthel—you guys are the best! As always, thank you for being my coaches, cheerleaders, and all-around dream team.
Thank you to the amazing Jen Ung and Aimee Friedman for helping me cross over into MG land and bring Cecilia’s puppy-filled world to life.
Thank you to my mom and dad, Jim and Sally Howard. I’m so glad to have you guys to share this crazy journey with me.
My awesome friends—thank you for everything—for Nikki, who always listens (and has to hear everything); Gaby, who reads everything; Mandy, Beth, Carol, Sarah, and Allison—thanks for always listening and for being there.
To the whole LMP family—thank you all for your continued support. And finally for all my students, past and present, you guys make it fun. Keep on reading!
J.J. Howard teaches English in Lake Mary, Florida, where she lives with one very spoiled miniature dachshund named Willow (who does exactly as she pleases and ignores all commands … unless there are cookies involved). Sit, Stay, Love is her first middle-grade novel. Visit her online at www.jjhowardbooks.com.
Copyright © 2016 by Jennifer Howard
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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
First printing 2016
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e-ISBN 978-0-545-86159-5
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