Susanne stumbled back and protectively threw up her arm. But instead of teeth piercing her skin, a wet tongue licked her hands, and two equally wet paws were planted on her thigh.

“Gino!” A sharp whistle pierced the air.

The dog dropped down and trotted back to its owner with a whine.

Susanne gazed down at the muddy paw prints on her slacks. What was it with the pets in this city? First, a cat decided to move in with her, and now a dog greeted her as if they were long-lost buddies.

“I’m so sorry.” His owner rushed over to her. “He doesn’t get that from me. I usually introduce myself to a woman before I jump her.”

Susanne stared at the stranger. The woman was tall, so Susanne could look into her twinkling hazel eyes without having to tilt her head up or down. The stranger ran a hand through her very short, dark hair and gave Susanne an impish grin.

Frau Lamm groaned. “This is my impossible best friend, Miriam Blattmann. Miri, this is Susanne Wolff, whom I work with.” She stressed the word work and glared at her friend.

“Oh.” Miriam’s grin fell. “Oops. Sorry. I didn’t mean to… I thought you had finally taken my little nudges to heart and had decided to ask someone out on a date.”

Date? Did that mean…? Susanne’s gaze flicked back and forth between them. Anja…Frau Lamm was gay?

At the moment, she seemed to be mostly embarrassed. Her cheeks were as red as a fire hydrant. She disappeared into the other room and returned with two towels. One she wet at the sink and pressed into Susanne’s hands while she started to dry the dog with the other, bending over him in a way that hid her flushed face.

Susanne watched her for a second, then dabbed at the mud stains on her slacks.

“Sorry,” Miriam said again. “But hey, I brought Indian food for our Netflix night—which you apparently forgot, Anja. It should be enough for three.” She held up two white plastic bags with a logo that said Kashmir and sent Susanne an inviting look. “Can I tempt you?”

“Miri!” Frau Lamm groaned from her kneeling position.

“What? I didn’t mean it that way. Get your mind out of the gutter, woman!”

Susanne couldn’t help it—she burst out laughing. She hadn’t expected Frau Lamm to have such an irreverent friend…a friend who very obviously was a lesbian or bi. No matter what her own sexual orientation might be, Frau Lamm apparently didn’t have a problem with women who were attracted to women. Why then that weird reaction when they had first met? If it hadn’t been Susanne’s sexual orientation, what had thrown her for a loop?