“Maricel is a bit of a hot mess,” Kamila said as they walked back over to the benches at the other end of the enclosure.

Asha chuckled. “It’ll be good for her to get her obedience school up and running. She’s so excellent with dogs. Did you see how quickly Xena calmed right down? She’s a total dog whisperer.”

Kamila smiled. “Imagine what she could do with Byte.”

Asha laughed. “Okay, I couldn’t see Maricel and Dane before, but now…I see your point. Do your matchmaking magic. Hey, is the puppy prom committee meeting this week?”

Kamila checked her phone. “I think Tim canceled it. Next week.”

“Your dad’s physical is Monday, right?”

Kamila nodded. “Yeah. I’m worried. If the news isn’t good…I just don’t want a setback, you know? Mental health–wise, I mean.”

Asha patted Kamila’s arm. “Whatever happens, you’re not alone. All of us are here for you and for your dad. Call me whenever you need me, okay?”

Kamila nodded. She was very lucky to have such great friends. She wouldn’t have survived without Asha the last time her father went through a depressive episode. Asha was right. Kamila had no shortage of people looking out for her family. But the thing was, the Hussains had always had a strong support network. And it hadn’t helped much the last time things got bad for Dad.

But there was no point in worrying until Dad met with the doctor.

Darcy showed up at her feet then. “C’mon, Darcy,” Kamila said, clipping on the dog’s leash. “Let’s go sit with Dad. Make sure he’s happy.”

Because making sure her father was happy and healthy was always Kamila’s first priority. Everything else came second.

Chapter 3

Chapter 3

On the drive home from work on Monday, all Kamila could think about was how desperately she wanted to take off her black-and-white gingham dress and matching heels and put her feet up on the coffee table. She was pretty sure there was pumpkin-pie ice cream in the freezer, and after a busy day at Emerald, she was all over the idea of Netflixing and chilling for the rest of the evening.

But Dad’s physical was today. She’d of course called him earlier to see how it went, but she couldn’t get much out of him. She planned to interrogate him now…and if he wouldn’t talk, she’d call Rohan, who’d taken Dad to the appointment.

She did not expect to see Dad’s chauffeur himself sitting on her couch with his feet on her coffee table, watching TV when she opened the door. “What are you doing here?”