Return to Pelican Inn (Love by Design) by Dana Mentink

teddy bear stiffened, ears and hind legs rigid. Rosa thought she detected a certain narrowing of the canine eyes.
    “Er, is Dragon friendly with other...?” Rosa didn’t get to finish her sentence. Dragon broke into a sprint and dove for Baggy who did his own imitation of a fast run, circling and zigzagging around their legs to avoid the chow chow’s snapping teeth.
    Eva screamed. “Stop, Dragon! Down.”
    Dragon continued to lunge at Baggy, who showed excellent agility as he avoided becoming an afternoon snack. Rosa tried to snatch Baggy up, but the dog was panic-stricken. Pike finally succeeded in grabbing Dragon’s collar. The muscular dog lunged and pulled against the restraint, but Pike held fast as sprays of sand filled the air.
    Rosa caught up to the exhausted Baggy, who lay trembling in her arms, emitting the pitiful whines of a creature that realizes it has been close to being consumed. “It’s okay, Bags.” She pressed her cheek to his lopsided head. “I’ve got you.”
    Eva clipped on a leash and pulled Dragon close to her side. “I am so incredibly sorry. He’s never done anything like that before. I don’t think he recognized your dog as being...well...a dog,” she finished lamely.
    Rosa drew herself up. “Baggy is a very rare breed.”
    Eva’s eyes rounded. “Really, Rosa, I am so sorry. Please forgive me.”
    Rosa’s anger and fear subsided a notch. “No harm done. He’s fine.”
    Baggy continued to tremble, and she cradled him.
    Eva gave one more apologetic wave and pulled the slavering Dragon away.
    Rosa considered Pike, who was staring after the departing Eva.
    “Is that thing really a rare breed?” he said to Rosa.
    “The rarest. And don’t call him a thing.”
    “That was close,” he said, wiping his brow. “What are you doing here?”
    “We were shopping, and Baggy wandered off. For some reason, he headed down here to the beach.” She flicked him a look. “She’s nice. Eva, I mean, aside from her poor taste in pets.”
    He didn’t answer, just gazed at her in that intense way that made her insides wiggle. The wind toyed with the neat collar of his button-down shirt, revealing the perfect arc of his collar bone. Was he out for a romantic walk on the beach with Eva Lassiter? He was a young, unattached male. Why shouldn’t he have an eye for the lovely Eva? And why should Rosa even worry her brain cells about it? Eva had always been every man’s perfect girl, and Rosa realized she didn’t feel the adolescent prick of envy, but a sense of sadness when she thought about Pike and Eva.
    But something else in the conversation nagged at her. “Are you interested in doing business with her Uncle Sterling?”
    He sighed. “I’m interested, all right, in working for him. Most prestigious outfit in California, and I’d give my right arm to get in with them. Played my share of golf with Foster. He mentioned you. Said you dated for a while.”
    Her face went hot. “Yes, dated for a short while, but not short enough.”
    His lip quirked. “Care to elaborate?”
    “No,” she snapped. “Are you busy wooing Eva, when you’re not golfing with Foster?”
    He jerked. “Wooing? No, we’re just friends. And don’t look at me in that holier-than-thou way. You’re every bit as ambitious as I am.”
    “I’m not so sure about that. Why didn’t you want her to know about our decorating project?”
    He sighed, scrubbing a hand over his face. She hadn’t noticed the shadows under his eyes or the slight stubble on his chin. “Rosa, I told you. The inn is going to be sold. I have a possible buyer in the works. Stop getting yourself all worked up over this ridiculous contest.”
    His tone stung her. “It’s not ridiculous to me,” she snapped. “Decorating is what I do. It may not be as prestigious as being a lawyer, but it’s not ridiculous.”
    “That isn’t what I meant. I wish you would listen.”
    “Maybe you’re the one who should listen. Bitsy doesn’t want to sell.