Hooked Up: Book 3 by Arianne Richmonde Page A

all over Alice and her friends. In fact, through the decades, thousands of hands and feet had literally polished parts of the statue’s bronze surface completely smooth. I observed Alice now, sitting on a giant mushroom, reaching toward a pocket watch held by the White Rabbit. Peering over her shoulder was the Cheshire Cat surrounded by the Dormouse, Alice’s cat Dinah, and the Mad Hatter, and yes, I saw Rex and Sally not far off, just behind this landmark, Rex sniffing a fellow mate.
    Sally loved to pass by here every day. With her shocking pink pigtails and punk rocker outfits, Sally was an eternal child. Alexandre had found her walking dogs with one of the dog walking companies that roamed the Upper East Side. The handlers typically walked ten dogs at a time, all leashed, making sure their right hand was free for picking up dog poop, with wads of newspaper stuffed in their back pockets. But Sally made three times the money now, being Rex’s personal nanny.
    “Hi Sally,” I shouted, rushing over to Rex to hug him.
    “I wish you’d come home, Pearl,” Sally grumbled with a sad pout. “Alexandre is a bit mopey without you there.”
    “Really?” I asked, thrilled to know he was suffering a little (obviously not enough, though, to stop seeing Laura).
    “Yes, really. He’s always on the phone doing business . . . doesn’t smile much these days, his temper’s short; he seems to have lost his sense of humor.”
    “Have you seen Laura?”
    “No, who’s she?”
    I tried to sound casual but failed miserably. “Do you ever hear him speaking to a woman on the phone—you know, sweet-talk.”
    “The only person he’s been talking to more than usual is his mother. I know it’s her because he has one voice for his mom and one for Sophie. You know his ‘mom voice’ is super-protective—it’s very cute. Not that I understand French, but I can hear the tone.”
    “No lovey-dovey talk with other women, then?”
    Sally shuffled her big biker boots along the muddy grass. “No way! He obviously misses his precious Pearl. Sometimes I hear him say so to Rex, discussing how lost they are without you. Not that Rex can talk, but you know, I think he understands. And the other day, Alexandre gave me a whole bunch of photos of you—I was asked to drop them off at the framers. Like I said, he’s either working, or moping about you all day long. Rex is sleeping in his bed now.”
    “You’re kidding?”
    “I know! Alexandre snuggles up with Rex everywhere. He’s now allowed on all the couches, even the bed. Since you’ve gone, all Alexandre wants to do is be with his dog.”
    “Has Alexandre been traveling lately? To London?”
    “Yes, he went to London last week.”
    “I see.” I was now reminded of my mission. To forget about Alexandre for good and let him go . . . move on with my life. He had Laura now; he couldn’t have us both. Be strong, Pearl. “Oh, Sally, I have something for you.” I brought out my Smartphone and handed it to her. “A gift for you. It’s already unblocked.”
    She jumped up and down, and her pink pigtails swung from side to side as if in celebration. “Wow! Really! But this is like, brand new! This Smartphone is the best!”
    “It’s a great phone. It has advantages. You can keep your gloves on when you dial a number, not all Smartphones let you do that. Handy here in New York with the cold winters.”
    Sally’s Cheshire Cat smile spread across her whole face. “This is the greatest gift ever.”
    “Don’t let Alexandre know I was asking about him.”
    “Okay, sure.”
    “And if you hear any information about Laura, pass the word along.” Oops! I had just broken my own resolution to put him out of my mind. I added hastily, as if to excuse myself, “I just worry about him, that’s all.”
    “Of course. You have my word, this is just between us.”
    Sally, Rex and I meandered about the park for a good half hour before I wended my way back home.
    I was cell phone-less and