The Doggy Divas: Roxy’s Rules (8 page)

Was Kim adopted at the local shelter like I was? She sure is a different breed from her parents. Kim is sort of
...
well, like a mutt. And her mother is a regal top breed!

So what if Kim isn't perfect. Like all mutts, Kim has a heart of gold. She takes exceptional care of us and never gets mad when we do things like poop on the couch. We don't mean to
-
sometimes we can't help ourselves!

Kim has to put up with so much from the bullies at school that we don't want anyone else making her feel worse
-
like her parents. We like to protect her whenever we can, just like she protects us.

The next morning, Roxy popped up out of bed almost a full hour before her alarm clock rang. She was so anxious about managing five dogs—including little Roxie—that her dreams during the night had been filled with images of ten-foot-tall Yorkie-Poos that all looked like little Roxie.

She stretched her arms over her head and tried to decide on the perfect dog-walking outfit. At least she didn't have to worry about running into Jessica dressed in anything similar. And there was no way that Jessica would be out and about before the sun was up.

Roxy was trying hard not to think about showing up at Liz's house in about an hour. She could picture the smug and satisfied look on Liz's face when she opened the door and saw Roxy, the “hired help,” standing there. Liz had the same superior look plastered across her face whenever she tormented her housekeeper by forcing the poor woman to make Liz's grilled-cheese sandwich over and over until she got the crust just crispy enough. Roxy was nervous enough about walking five dogs; it would be a lot easier if little Roxie wasn't one of them.

She glanced at the clock. It was now 5:30 a.m., and she was expected at the Goldman household by 6 a.m. to pick up Tyler, a St. Bernard. Roxy looked at the rest of the carefully organized and printed-out schedule she had made for herself and the rest of the girls. After picking up Tyler, Roxy had to retrieve Chloe the Pomeranian, Precious the cocker spaniel, Horton the corgi, and finally little Roxie.

Guess I'm saving the best for last today
, Roxy sighed as she pulled on a pair of cropped, hot-pink yoga pants, a gray hoodie, and sneakers. She didn't have any experience in dressing for dog walking—even with all the time that she had spent with little Roxie. Liz did very little to take care of little Roxie, other than dressing her in ridiculous outfits, toting her around, and loving all the attention the tiny dog attracted.

Roxy grabbed Kim's canine kit and was about to head out the door when she decided that, as vice president of public relations, it was her duty to update the Doggy Divas Twitter feed first thing every morning.

@MissDoggyDiva: Just out for our morning walk! What R U waiting for? Call us! Ur dog will thank u!

Then Roxy flipped open her cell phone to text her business partners and pump them up in honor of their first official morning of dog walking.

To: Georgia cell, Kim cell

From: Roxy cell

“Good morning, divas! I can feel it—this morning will put the Doggy Divas on the map! But, if U want to walk little Roxie for me, I'll pay you $1,000. XO, R”

Roxy quietly shut the front door behind her so she wouldn't wake anyone. She had casually mentioned to her mom that she was helping out the neighborhood by walking dogs during the strike. Eventually her mom would realize that her daughter was a full-fledged business owner, but for now Roxy didn't want to have to explain her new friends and the lack of her old ones.

Maybe I'll wait to tell her when we make the cover of
Entrepreneur
magazine or Warren Buffett buys a stake in the Doggy Divas
! Roxy laughed to herself as she ran up the walkway of the Goldman house and tried to stop from shaking with nerves. Tyler started barking before she even rang the doorbell.

“Tyler, quiet!” Mrs. Goldman commanded. She was wearing a yellow-and-blue kimono that was too short. Roxy tried to keep her focus on Mrs. Goldman's face. “Roxy, you're a lifesaver. He's been going nuts ever since Carla decided to strike. The whole thing is just a mess!”

Roxy stood there paralyzed with fear. Standing on all fours, Tyler was almost as tall as she was and probably weighed twice as much. Her dream seemed to be coming true as a real-life nightmare. This dog was going to drag her all over the neighborhood!

“Um, no problem, Mrs. Goldman,” Roxy said brightly and hoped Mrs. Goldman couldn't hear her heart pounding through her chest. “I'm going to pick up the other dogs for a nice little walk, and I'll bring him back as soon as possible.”

“Roxy, dear, is Chloe one of the dogs you'll be walking this morning?”

Roxy nodded but couldn't understand why in the world Mrs. Goldman would care.

“Okay, well, no problem, but just make sure that they're separated. Don't let them walk side by side, and you'll be fine.”

Roxy's eyes widened as she grabbed Tyler's leash. He was sweet at first and actually let Roxy take the lead. But when they approached Chloe's house, Tyler began whimpering in fear and refused to budge. Finally Roxy managed to drag him up to the door, where she knocked lightly.

“Who is it?” asked a high-pitched voice.

“It's Roxy Davis with the Doggy Divas!” Roxy sang. “Is Chloe ready for her walk?”

The door swung open, and a tiny Pomeranian bounced outside. Her owner, Mrs. Rogers, scooped her up before she got too far.

“Oh, look, Chloe! Tyler is here—you have a friend for your walk!” Mrs. Rogers cooed.

Tyler whimpered, and Roxy started to panic. Tyler was a giant in comparison to little Chloe, so why was he so scared of this little puff of white fluff?

“Roxy, you take good care of my sweet little princess!” Mrs. Rogers begged. “Chloe, you be a good girl for Roxy, and Mommy will have a treatie-weatie waiting for you when you get back!”

The minute Mrs. Rogers closed the door, angelic little Chloe turned into an evil little devil—with her sights set on tormenting poor Tyler. Chloe growled and nipped at Tyler's feet. At first, Roxy thought it was funny to watch such a little dog intimidate a giant one. But when she broke a nail trying to keep them apart, she stopped laughing.

Roxy barely managed to drag them along to pick up Precious and Horton. After that, it was better having two dogs between to keep Tyler and Chloe separated. But the next stop was Liz's house, and Roxy couldn't let Liz see that she was having any problem controlling the dogs. Roxy needed Kim's expertise and texted her in a panic. How was she going to get Tyler and Chloe to follow her commands
before
arriving at Liz's house?

To: Kim

From: Roxy

“SOS! Dogs won't behave!. Can't let Liz see! Help!”

Roxy waited a few minutes, but there was no response from Kim. Closing her eyes, Roxy let her mind go blank.
Then she inhaled deeply from her belly—just like she had watched her mom do when she practiced yoga in the living room.

I need to get zen—stat!

Roxy opened her eyes and pretended that a pair of invisible hands were pushing her up the front walk to the Crafts' mansion. Roxy was overwhelmed with pangs of nostalgia. She had spent so much time there over the years that the house had practically become her second home.

And now, she and Liz were like strangers, Roxy thought sadly as she rang the doorbell and prayed Mrs. Craft would come to the door instead of Liz.

The Crafts' doorbell played a high-pitched melody that lasted until the front door swung open. The noise was too much for Chloe, Tyler, Precious, and Horton to bear, and they all started howling and crying while trying desperately to run away. Roxy had officially lost control.

“Stop it, now!” Roxy begged.

Without missing a beat, Tyler lifted his leg and peed all over the Crafts' front mat.

“
Tyler!
” Roxy screamed. “
Bad dog!
”

As if on cue, Liz flung open the front door with little Roxie nestled in her arms. Liz looked Roxy up and down, but her eyes went wide with shock when she noticed the growing puddle under Roxy's feet.

“Um, wow. Isn't it your job as a dog walker to make sure the dogs
don't
pee on the house?” Liz scoffed without even saying hello. “There are paper towels in the kitchen.”

Roxy stared at Liz as if Liz had just told her that little green men were cooking breakfast in there. “I can't leave all these dogs here to go get towels—unless you want to watch the dogs?”

Liz stomped off to get the paper towels and threw them at Roxy when she returned. “I'm already docking $5 off your pay. You just destroyed my personal property.”

Roxy wanted to slam the door shut and tell Liz she could just shove it. Wasn't the mat her parents' personal property? Roxy managed to clean the pee up with no stain left behind and remembered what Kim said yesterday about “training” Liz.

“Well, if that's what it'll take to give you a satisfactory experience with the Doggy Divas, then okay,” Roxy said as she took little Roxie from Liz's arms. “Is there anything special I need to know about little Roxie before we get going on her walk?”

“Just know that I have spies, and I know everything,” Liz raged with her blue eyes lit up in anger. “Every mistake you make—everyone at school will know all about it. And don't think I won't dock another dollar for every minute you're late to bring her back. You have fifteen minutes.”

Liz slammed the door in her face, and Roxy stuck her tongue out in a fit of rage. She walked so angrily that she wasn't paying attention to the dogs when Tyler stuck his big nose in her pocket and pulled out all of the dog treats. Immediately, the dogs tackled them—and pulled Roxy down in the chaos.

To make it even worse, the bag of poop she had been collecting throughout the walk went flying. The smell of doggy doo wafted toward her, and she started to gag. Roxy willed herself not to throw up.

“Uh, missing something?” a deep voice asked from above.

Roxy opened one eye. A hand was stretched out in front of her.

“Roxy? Are you okay?” The voice was a lot more urgent and worried now. “Let me help you up.”

Roxy slowly opened both eyes—it was Matt Billings!

“Matt, what are you doing here?” Roxy rubbed her eyes and looked around. She was so confused. “Where are the dogs?”

“Don't worry, Roxy,” Matt laughed. “The dogs are fine. This troublemaker Chloe is torturing Tyler while everyone else is enjoying their treats. I see Chloe and Tyler get into it at the dog park all the time.”

“Where did you come from?” Roxy asked.

“I'd just started my morning run when I noticed a doggie pileup over here. I thought that was you underneath them all, but I wasn't sure,” Matt said while helping Roxy get untangled. “Did you kidnap all these puppies?”

“Matt! I didn't steal these dogs. Don't you remember that I have a dog-walking business?” Roxy blushed.

“I'm kidding. Remember when we used to be able to joke?” he asked softly, and his eyes clouded over for a second. “I still have to hire you to walk Banjo.”

“I don't know…you may want Kim to take care of him instead of me,” Roxy said while quickly taking a head count to make sure none of the dogs had escaped. “She's much better at handling these guys.”

“I don't know about that,” Matt said. “I want you.”

Roxy smiled and didn't say anything in return. She felt lighter than air.

“Well, well, well! What do we have going on here, Roxy?” Liz's voice boomed out of nowhere. “Flirting and socializing is
not
what I pay you to do. I think that's at least another five dollars off my walk this morning”

Liz and Jessica were standing on the street corner with their hands on their hips. They had obviously been spying on Roxy and had heard the entire exchange between her and Matt.

“Didn't we discuss that Matt is off limits?” Liz asked curtly. “When will you ever learn?”

“Is Matt your personal property?” Roxy demanded. She was sick of being nice. She didn't care anymore how mean Liz could be. “I think he can speak for himself.”

“I know that Matt didn't kiss you on purpose. I know that you made him do it because you were jealous,” Liz sneered.

“Jealous of what?” Roxy asked.

Matt just stood there and stared at the ground. He didn't say a word. The silence was deafening until someone yelling in the distance caught everyone's attention.

“Roxy! Hey, Roxy! Wait up! Rooooxxxxyyyy!”

It was Kim and Georgia. Georgia had on a Mets baseball cap, black yoga pants, and a red T-shirt. She was walking Melody, a big, shaggy white dog that looked like a giant mop. Kim was right behind her, and Roxy could barely look at her ensemble.

Kim was wearing a stained T-shirt with a faded picture of a Labrador retriever ironed onto it. A tool belt hung from her waist and held all her doggie supplies. To complete the look, a whistle—like the gym teacher's—dangled around Kim's neck. Roxy was dumbfounded. She wanted to pretend she didn't see Kim and Georgia, but it was too late.

“Roxy, what's going on here?” Georgia asked breathlessly as she ran over. Kim barely said hello. Instead, she dashed over to Chloe, stroked her head, and whispered in her ear. In less than thirty seconds, Chloe sat obediently for the first time all morning.

“I thought you guys were dog walkers, not plumbers!” Liz said while laughing hysterically at Kim's outfit. Jessica pulled out her phone and snapped a picture.

Kim pretended she couldn't hear and just continued to calm down the dogs. Roxy was sure she saw a flash of hurt cross Kim's face.

“Oh, so do our outfits not meet beauty-pageant standards?” Georgia lashed back. “Or sorry, my bad, did we forget to consult the Fashion Bible this morning?”

“That's it. You're walking my dog for
free
from now on,” Liz insisted. “Insulting your clients? Wasting valuable time when you could have had little Roxie home by now? You're lucky I don't tell Principal West…and I can't promise I won't tweet about this incident unless my walks are on the house.”

Roxy didn't move a muscle. She wanted to stand up to Liz. She wanted to defend Kim and Georgia. But she just couldn't get the words out.

“Well, then, I guess we agree. I'll bring little Roxie home since it would take you another eight hours at this rate and it's almost time for school,” Liz said as she grabbed little Roxie away from Kim. “This better not happen again.”