Pepper

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“Nice dog,” said a voice just behind her.

Bella turned round. A tall girl with long blonde hair had appeared beside her. Bella recognised her. They were in the same class at school.

“Thanks,” Bella said shyly. “His name’s Pepper.”

“I’ve got a black dog,” the girl said. “He’s called Snowy.”

Bella giggled. “Seriously?” she said.

“Yes,” the girl grinned. She had smiley blue eyes. “I guess I have a weird sense of humour. I’m Amber. You’re Bella, aren’t you?”

Bella nodded.

“Have you just moved here?” Amber asked.

Bella nodded again. Then the words just came out.

“My mum’s got a dog-grooming parlour called Dream Dogs,” she said.

As soon as she’d said it, Bella wished she’d kept quiet about Dream Dogs.

“Wow!” Amber said. “You lucky thing. It must be brilliant. Do you get loads of dogs in all the time?”

“It hasn’t opened yet,” Bella admitted.

Amber’s face fell. “Oh!” she said.

Bella really didn’t want Amber to be disappointed. She had high hopes that Amber could be her new best friend. “It’s opening on Saturday,” she said quickly. “We’ve got a bath for the dogs and special hairdryers and potted plants and music. Everything’s pink, and our sign lights up. It’s like a hairdresser’s, but better.”

What was she doing? Bella knew she was telling lies, but she couldn’t stop.

“Fantastic,” Amber gasped. “Have you given Pepper a makeover yet?”

“Not yet,” Bella tumbled on. “But we’ll give him one soon. Mum’s ordered this special lavender dog shampoo.”

“Can I bring Snowy one day?” Amber said eagerly.

Bella felt sick. “Come to the opening party on Saturday,” she said. Why couldn’t she stop? “It’ll be fantastic. There’ll be loads of people there. And snacks for dogs too, of course.”

“Brilliant!” said Amber, her eyes sparkling.

“Amber!”

A woman with blonde short, spiky hair and a large black spaniel was waving at Amber.

“Hurry up!” the woman called. Her voice got a bit lost in the wind. “We’ll be late!”

“Gotta go,” said Amber, starting to trot away. “Mum needs to get to the shops before school. Dream Dogs sounds really cool! I hope we can come on Saturday! See you in class. I’ll save you a seat!”

Bella watched Amber run off down the beach. She had a funny mixture of feelings in her tummy. She was pleased that Amber liked her. But at the same time, she’d never felt so worried in all her life. She’d made Dream Dogs sound amazing, but Amber was going to be really disappointed when she found out the truth…