Today was a special day. Just the day before Luann had been thirty-eight, and suddenly here was her birthday, and she was thirty-nine. That morning an early sun was sneaking through the window as she made ready for the day. As she stood in front of her mirror she watched with pleasure as the sun played on her hair, the sunlight bringing forth hints of coppery red here and there.

I am really still good looking, she admitted to herself. I am trim and slim, she added, maybe a bit too slim for some, but I like myself the way I look. And I am finally at peace with the way fate played my cards.

She smiled at Tommy as she walked past him to the kitchen. He was awake, his eyes following Luann. And she knew that it would not be long before he would join her to watch her prepare breakfast.

Since it was a Sunday, and her birthday, it called for something special, she thought. Maybe some Swedish waffles with syrup? Why not, she decided, they both liked them.

As she busied herself with breakfast her thoughts drifted back to when she tried so desperately to meet the man with whom to share her life. Why, she wondered, couldn’t I click with any of them? Maybe there is something wrong with my personality, or maybe my sights are set too high.

Her family and her friends had introduced her to plenty of guys, but not one of them had kindled a spark in her. Dating agencies had not helped either.

But then her friend Louise changed the picture. She told Luann about Tommy. Tommy was from Texas, a veterinarian who had recently moved to the city. Now here was a good omen, Luann said to herself, as a little girl Tommy had always been her favorite boy name.

Louise had suggested that they meet at their favorite little breakfast grill for a cup of coffee on Saturday. But it was not to be. Louise came down with a bad cold and Tommy phoned to apologize for not being able to come either. He had to make an emergency call at the Humane Society kennel.

Maybe they could meet there and later have breakfast together, he had added; his emergency call shouldn’t take more than ten minutes.

Luann remembered that morning well; the tall figure in a white smock moving slowly along the aisle, and she talking to the dogs in their pens. Most were barking or whining, except one who was silently pleading with his eyes.

Luann turned to talk to Tommy just as Tommy got up and went to the hallway. He reappeared seconds later with his leash between his teeth, which was his way of saying ‘let’s go for a walk’. Luann nodded. Tommy the vet hadn’t made the grade, but Tommy the dog had.