address could we give? Not this one. Not Aunt Alice’s.”
“It’s the middle of November,” Andi said. “We get our allowances on December first. We can use those to buy dog food. This time I won’t spend a penny on anything else.”
“What about Christmas?” Bruce asked her. “Aren’t you going to buy any presents for anyone?”
“I’ll write everybody poems for presents,” Andi said recklessly. Then she paused. For a moment she had forgotten that she was through with writing poetry. “I’ll sew things,” she continued determinedly. “Pincushions and neckties and stuff like that.”
“You’ll have to buy material,” Bruce reminded her. He sighed. “Face it, guys, it just won’t work.We’re getting in deeper and deeper. The leaves are finished falling now, and there isn’t any snow to shovel yet, and Tim and I are about through earning money. What are we going to do?”
A soft voice spoke. “What about charging room rent?”
Everyone turned to stare at Tiffany. They had almost forgotten she was there.
“Room rent!” Bruce said. “How can the dogs pay rent? The whole reason they’re here is that they don’t have owners.”
“But lots of dogs do,” Tiffany said. Her voice seemed to gather assurance as the idea took hold of her. “People go out of town and don’t have anywhere to leave their pets. I know when we went on a cruise last summer, we had to leave Ginger in a kennel. They charged thirty dollars a day.”
“Thirty dollars a day!” Tim let out a low whistle. “That’s over two hundred dollars a week. If we charged half that, it still would be a huge amount of money!”
“Think how many cases of dog food that would pay for!” Andi’s eyes were shining. “Oh, Tiffany, that’s a great idea!”
“And I know just who to get for the first guest,” Debbie said excitedly. “Delaney Belanger’s dog, Preston. The Belangers are going out of town for Thanksgiving. They’ll have to leave Preston somewhere. Why not with us?”
“You’ll have to make it sound as though it’s just with
you,”
Andi said. “They can’t know that Preston is going to be staying at a hotel.”
“Of course not. But I know the Belangers,” Debbie said confidently. “I’ve been to Delaney’s house lots of times. I know they’d rather leave Preston with me than at a kennel where he’d have to stay in a cage and wouldn’t have anybody to play with him.”
Tiffany was standing quietly with her hands clasped in front of her, but there was an expression of pride on her face.
Bruce smiled at her and then at his sister. For the first time in weeks the worry lines had smoothed out of his forehead, and he looked like the brother Andi had always known.
“You know, this just might work,” he said. “Our new partner, Tiffany, might have come up with a plan that will keep us from going out of business.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
Delaney Belanger’s dog, Preston, was a beagle.
Debbie brought him over on Wednesday, the day before Thanksgiving. School had let out at noon as a prelude to the holiday, and the rest of the hotel staff was waiting to greet their first paying guest.
Preston was a lively dog and terribly strong for his size. He raced up the ramp so fast that Debbie, who was holding his leash, nearly fell on her face.
“He’s a hunting beagle,” she explained, handing the leash to Bruce with obvious relief. “I guess there are two kinds of beagles, the hunters and the stay-at-homes. Delaney’s father is training Preston to hunt rabbits. That must be why his legs are so strong.”
Preston was so excited at the sight and smell of so many other dogs that he tore around in circles. He ran from one room to another, giving shrill yelps,and bounded up the stairs and came tearing down like a wild thing.
“He sure is a lively one,” Tim commented. He looked a little worried. “I hope he doesn’t upset the others.”
“The other dogs are used to each other,” Andi said. “Friday and Red
“It’s the middle of November,” Andi said. “We get our allowances on December first. We can use those to buy dog food. This time I won’t spend a penny on anything else.”
“What about Christmas?” Bruce asked her. “Aren’t you going to buy any presents for anyone?”
“I’ll write everybody poems for presents,” Andi said recklessly. Then she paused. For a moment she had forgotten that she was through with writing poetry. “I’ll sew things,” she continued determinedly. “Pincushions and neckties and stuff like that.”
“You’ll have to buy material,” Bruce reminded her. He sighed. “Face it, guys, it just won’t work.We’re getting in deeper and deeper. The leaves are finished falling now, and there isn’t any snow to shovel yet, and Tim and I are about through earning money. What are we going to do?”
A soft voice spoke. “What about charging room rent?”
Everyone turned to stare at Tiffany. They had almost forgotten she was there.
“Room rent!” Bruce said. “How can the dogs pay rent? The whole reason they’re here is that they don’t have owners.”
“But lots of dogs do,” Tiffany said. Her voice seemed to gather assurance as the idea took hold of her. “People go out of town and don’t have anywhere to leave their pets. I know when we went on a cruise last summer, we had to leave Ginger in a kennel. They charged thirty dollars a day.”
“Thirty dollars a day!” Tim let out a low whistle. “That’s over two hundred dollars a week. If we charged half that, it still would be a huge amount of money!”
“Think how many cases of dog food that would pay for!” Andi’s eyes were shining. “Oh, Tiffany, that’s a great idea!”
“And I know just who to get for the first guest,” Debbie said excitedly. “Delaney Belanger’s dog, Preston. The Belangers are going out of town for Thanksgiving. They’ll have to leave Preston somewhere. Why not with us?”
“You’ll have to make it sound as though it’s just with
you,”
Andi said. “They can’t know that Preston is going to be staying at a hotel.”
“Of course not. But I know the Belangers,” Debbie said confidently. “I’ve been to Delaney’s house lots of times. I know they’d rather leave Preston with me than at a kennel where he’d have to stay in a cage and wouldn’t have anybody to play with him.”
Tiffany was standing quietly with her hands clasped in front of her, but there was an expression of pride on her face.
Bruce smiled at her and then at his sister. For the first time in weeks the worry lines had smoothed out of his forehead, and he looked like the brother Andi had always known.
“You know, this just might work,” he said. “Our new partner, Tiffany, might have come up with a plan that will keep us from going out of business.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
Delaney Belanger’s dog, Preston, was a beagle.
Debbie brought him over on Wednesday, the day before Thanksgiving. School had let out at noon as a prelude to the holiday, and the rest of the hotel staff was waiting to greet their first paying guest.
Preston was a lively dog and terribly strong for his size. He raced up the ramp so fast that Debbie, who was holding his leash, nearly fell on her face.
“He’s a hunting beagle,” she explained, handing the leash to Bruce with obvious relief. “I guess there are two kinds of beagles, the hunters and the stay-at-homes. Delaney’s father is training Preston to hunt rabbits. That must be why his legs are so strong.”
Preston was so excited at the sight and smell of so many other dogs that he tore around in circles. He ran from one room to another, giving shrill yelps,and bounded up the stairs and came tearing down like a wild thing.
“He sure is a lively one,” Tim commented. He looked a little worried. “I hope he doesn’t upset the others.”
“The other dogs are used to each other,” Andi said. “Friday and Red
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