Read Online Tiny Glitches: A Magical Contemporary Romance by Rebecca Chastain - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Rebecca Chastain
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didn’t have a collar that I noticed,” Sofie said. “How do you plan to get her to follow you?”
The open side gate to the backyard stood ten feet away. I lifted a plastic bag of baby carrots I’d raided out of Sofie’s fridge when I’d locked Dali in the house. “Bait.”
“Ready?” Hudson asked.
I nodded. An enormous great white shark loomed behind Hudson, maw agape, then disappeared to be replaced by the sombrero. The Monopoly pieces were gone. I glanced at Sofie. I would have really loved to confer with her about Hudson’s images, but we didn’t have the time. The elephant was restless.
When Hudson popped open the back door, Kyoko didn’t hesitate. She tottered off the soggy carpet onto the table. The SUV squeaked; the table groaned. Kyoko plunged to the coffee table. It bore her weight silently. Then she had all four feet on solid ground and she swung straight toward Sofie.
“Watch out! She—”
“Whoa, there!” Sofie said, scooting back a step to avoid a trunk to the crotch.
“She really is a pervy elephant,” Hudson said.
I shook the plastic bag of carrots and poured some into my hand. Kyoko trotted to me and snatched them from my palm, stuffing them into her mouth. Her attention wandered to the landscaped flower beds, and I grabbed for another carrot. Three more bribes, and she ambled through the gate. Hudson and Sofie closed the latch behind us, reinforcing it with a dead bolt. The wall to Sofie’s yard was stucco, matching the Tuscan-style house. Only the gate was wooden. If Kyoko planned to escape, it’d be through there. Fortunately, the little elephant showed no interest in the way back. She trotted straight to the eggplant-shaped swath of lawn, dropped to her knees, flopped to her side, and rolled.
“Would you look at that,” Sofie said.
Dali’s whines pierced the back door of the house, where we’d shut him inside before releasing Kyoko. Seeing an elephant in his yard broke through the usually mannered dog’s restraint, and his claws scrabbled at the sliding glass window.
“Uh-oh. I’d better—”
The glass door inched open and he shoved his nose through the gap, using his feet to widen the opening.
“Shoot. He just learned how to do that.” Sofie rushed up the patio steps, but Dali was quicker. He wriggled through the opening and shot across the patio, clearing the five steps to the lawn in a single leap. Kyoko pushed to her feet and trumpeted. Skidding to a halt, Dali barked. Kyoko reached for him with her trunk, ears flapped forward.
“Should we stop them?” Hudson asked.
“Too late.”
Dali sidled up to Kyoko, his whole body wriggling with happiness, and sniffed her trunk, her ear, her grass-stained stomach. She, in turn, prodded at him with the tip of her trunk, which he didn’t seem to mind at all. Standing side by side, Dali came to the middle of Kyoko’s barrel, yet he looked huge, being only a few feet shorter than an elephant.
Once the preliminary introductions were completed, Dali bounded away several yards, then raced back, ears and tongue flapping. Kyoko bugled and trotted after him. She followed him in circles while he did excited puppy pounces, lowering his front feet, leaving his hind end in the air, then darting away when she got too close.
I couldn’t help but smile.
“Dali’s a good host,” Sofie said, coming back down the stairs. “I can’t wait to hear the story behind . . . What did you say her name was again?”
“Kyoko.”
“Ms. Sterling, can I—”
“My friends call me Sofie,” Sofie interrupted.
“Ah, Sofie, can I use your phone? It seems the salesman lied about this burner’s reliability.” Hudson held the little flip phone open in his hand, its screen black.
“Of course.” Sofie shot me an amused look. “Let me show you where it is.”
Sofie led Hudson into the house. I settled into a lounge chair near the pool, well out of the way of the game of tag. The soft lawn wasn’t made for safari animals, and
The open side gate to the backyard stood ten feet away. I lifted a plastic bag of baby carrots I’d raided out of Sofie’s fridge when I’d locked Dali in the house. “Bait.”
“Ready?” Hudson asked.
I nodded. An enormous great white shark loomed behind Hudson, maw agape, then disappeared to be replaced by the sombrero. The Monopoly pieces were gone. I glanced at Sofie. I would have really loved to confer with her about Hudson’s images, but we didn’t have the time. The elephant was restless.
When Hudson popped open the back door, Kyoko didn’t hesitate. She tottered off the soggy carpet onto the table. The SUV squeaked; the table groaned. Kyoko plunged to the coffee table. It bore her weight silently. Then she had all four feet on solid ground and she swung straight toward Sofie.
“Watch out! She—”
“Whoa, there!” Sofie said, scooting back a step to avoid a trunk to the crotch.
“She really is a pervy elephant,” Hudson said.
I shook the plastic bag of carrots and poured some into my hand. Kyoko trotted to me and snatched them from my palm, stuffing them into her mouth. Her attention wandered to the landscaped flower beds, and I grabbed for another carrot. Three more bribes, and she ambled through the gate. Hudson and Sofie closed the latch behind us, reinforcing it with a dead bolt. The wall to Sofie’s yard was stucco, matching the Tuscan-style house. Only the gate was wooden. If Kyoko planned to escape, it’d be through there. Fortunately, the little elephant showed no interest in the way back. She trotted straight to the eggplant-shaped swath of lawn, dropped to her knees, flopped to her side, and rolled.
“Would you look at that,” Sofie said.
Dali’s whines pierced the back door of the house, where we’d shut him inside before releasing Kyoko. Seeing an elephant in his yard broke through the usually mannered dog’s restraint, and his claws scrabbled at the sliding glass window.
“Uh-oh. I’d better—”
The glass door inched open and he shoved his nose through the gap, using his feet to widen the opening.
“Shoot. He just learned how to do that.” Sofie rushed up the patio steps, but Dali was quicker. He wriggled through the opening and shot across the patio, clearing the five steps to the lawn in a single leap. Kyoko pushed to her feet and trumpeted. Skidding to a halt, Dali barked. Kyoko reached for him with her trunk, ears flapped forward.
“Should we stop them?” Hudson asked.
“Too late.”
Dali sidled up to Kyoko, his whole body wriggling with happiness, and sniffed her trunk, her ear, her grass-stained stomach. She, in turn, prodded at him with the tip of her trunk, which he didn’t seem to mind at all. Standing side by side, Dali came to the middle of Kyoko’s barrel, yet he looked huge, being only a few feet shorter than an elephant.
Once the preliminary introductions were completed, Dali bounded away several yards, then raced back, ears and tongue flapping. Kyoko bugled and trotted after him. She followed him in circles while he did excited puppy pounces, lowering his front feet, leaving his hind end in the air, then darting away when she got too close.
I couldn’t help but smile.
“Dali’s a good host,” Sofie said, coming back down the stairs. “I can’t wait to hear the story behind . . . What did you say her name was again?”
“Kyoko.”
“Ms. Sterling, can I—”
“My friends call me Sofie,” Sofie interrupted.
“Ah, Sofie, can I use your phone? It seems the salesman lied about this burner’s reliability.” Hudson held the little flip phone open in his hand, its screen black.
“Of course.” Sofie shot me an amused look. “Let me show you where it is.”
Sofie led Hudson into the house. I settled into a lounge chair near the pool, well out of the way of the game of tag. The soft lawn wasn’t made for safari animals, and
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