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“Have you ever been in love?”

I had just been in the process of gobbling up the last piece of kibble in my bowl, and Dooley’s question kinda took me by surprise. So much so that the kibble shot into the wrong pipe and I ended up coughing it up again.

“Well, have you?” he insisted when I didn’t immediately respond.

“What brought this on all of a sudden?” I asked, taking a sip of water to clear my passageway and buy myself some time in the process.

“I don’t know. Just thinking about this and that. Life, you know. I mean, Harriet and Brutus are in love, and have been in love forever. And Odelia and Chase are in love, and now they even have a baby, so there’s that. And so I was just wondering about us, you know. When are we ever going to find love, Max? Or maybe we’ll never find it? Maybe we’ll spend the rest of our lives alone? Is that what you think is going to happen?”

“I don’t know, Dooley. It’s very hard to make predictions about the future.”

“Yeah, but you’re smart, Max. In fact you’re the smartest cat I know, so you must know something, right? Something very important?”

He gazed at me with keen expectant eyes, and I felt compelled to say something deep and wonderful like,‘Life is a long journey, and we’re all fellow travelers on the same road.’ Or, ‘The key to happiness is to let go and simply be.’ Okay, so I have been taking the odd glimpse at the calendar that hangs in the bathroom, which is full of inspirational quotes. As it was, I didn’t know how to respond to my friend’s heart’s cry. So finally I said, “Maybe we should ask Gabi.”

“Who’s Gabi?”

“Don’t you remember Gabi? She writes the advice column in theHampton Cove Gazette. And she always has an answer for everything. I decided not to mention that Gabi is actually Gran and Scarlett, who take turns penning that much-beloved column in our local paper.

“Oh, that’s such a good idea!” said Dooley. “Let’s ask Gabi. She’ll know. Gabi always knows, doesn’t she?”

“Yes, she sure does,” I said, and took another chance at gobbling up that last piece of kibble. This time it went down well, even taking the appropriate route.

Dooley’s question did set off a chain of thought in my own noggin, though. My friend was right: were we ever going to find love? Or was love going to pass us by, as it has passed so many people by? Statistics, if they are to be believed, frequently point out that there are more and more people living alone, and that relationships in general are on a decline and have been for years. Coupling, it seems, and certainly matrimony, has gone out of style. Or at least the kind that is in it for the long haul, like Odelia and Chase. Or Marge and Tex. Or Harriet and Brutus.

So that night I sidled up to Gran, as she was watchingJeopardy, which she never misses, come rain or shine, and posed the question.“Gran? I have a question for Dear Gabi. You are still writing the Dear Gabi column, aren’t you?”

“You bet I am. Dan has been trying to wrestle it away from me, but I told him it’ll be a cold day in hell when I quit.” She yelled, “Matt Damon!” when the show host read out, “The actor who played Ethan Hunt in the 1996 movieMission: Impossible.” She was momentarily distracted when the correct answer proved to be ‘Tom Cruise’ instead. Then she said, “So what did you want to ask me?”

“Well, it’s actually Dooley who’s been struggling with this, so it’s not my question at all, you see. I just wanted to make that absolutely clear from the start.”

“Okay, fine. You made it clear. Now what’s the question? Better make it quick.”

“Is Dooley ever going to find love? Or is he destined to spend the rest of his life alone, pining for his one true love?”

“I can give you an answer right now, if you want. Of course he’s not going to be alone for the rest of his life. He’s got you, doesn’t he? And me, and Odelia and Chase and Harriet and Brutus… In fact he’s got dozens and dozens of friends.”

“Yeah, I guess he does. But I think he was referring to love, not friendship.”

“Oh, and so he doesn’t think I love the little rascal with all of my heart?”

“Yeah, but that’s not romantic love, is it? Not what Odelia and Chase have. Or even Harriet and Brutus.”

“You know what?” said Gran, turning up the sound on her TV. “I think I’ll toss this one over to Scarlett. It’s her turn to write the column this week anyway.”

“Yeah, it’s a tough one, isn’t it? He asked me the question this morning, and I didn’t know what to tell him either.”

“Oh, I know what to tell him, all right, but Scarlett and I have agreed to divvy up the Gabi column, and this week is her week, so it wouldn’t be fair to take that away from her. Now get lost already, Max. You’re breaking my concentration.”

And so get lost I did, hoping Scarlett would have an answer for us—or rather for Dooley.

CHAPTER 2

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