Bijou Needs a Home Read online

  When they went back inside and told the Fernandez family the news, Kat saw Megan’s face light up.

  “Thank you,” she said to Aunt Jenn and Maya.

  Megan approached Kat and Grace. “Thank you,” she said to the two girls. “Very much.” She hugged Bijou close. Her voice was shaky again. “I never thought I’d be able to have my own puppy, especially one as sweet as Bijou.”

  Kat sighed with relief. Bijou had a home and a best friend. And Megan actually seemed like she would take really good care of him.

  Maybe this girl is different than she seems on the outside. Just like another girl I know, Kat thought, thinking of Grace. She grinned. And just like a sweet little bichon frise puppy I know, Kat thought, thinking, of course, of Bijou himself.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  Maya, Grace and Kat sat on the floor of Kat’s bedroom.

  Grace was sticking photos of the bichon frise puppies into the Puppy Collection scrapbook. Kat was drawing a picture of them.

  “How’s this?” Maya stuck the pencil behind her ear and read aloud: “Chantal, Aimée and Bijou are bichon frises. They are two months old. Chantal and Aimée are sisters. They are lively and outgoing. They like to be together! Bijou is their brother. He likes to take his time getting to know people. He is quiet and very sweet.”

  “Nice,” said Kat. “Just right.”

  “So, which of you is going to tell me what was going on this afternoon?” Maya asked. She raised her eyebrows.

  Kat looked at Grace.

  “Go ahead,” Grace said, grinning.

  So Kat told Maya the whole story. “That was your Megan?” Maya asked. “Megan from your class?” Maya’s mouth dropped open as she listened. She knew Megan had been mean to Kat but she didn’t know Megan had been mean to Grace, too.

  “She’s so annoying,” said Maya, shaking her head. “I can’t believe you both agreed to give her Bijou! You could have told Jenn that Megan was mean. She’d never have given Bijou to her.”

  Grace grinned. “Yeah, I know,” she agreed. “But I thought we should give her a chance. Not just judge her because of the way she is to us. She was able to see right through to the sweetness inside Bijou. I thought we should try to do the same for her. I have a feeling she’ll be wonderful with this puppy.”

  “Maybe,” Maya said, slowly. “Maybe you’re right.”

  But Kat said, firmly, “Well, I know you are. Good call, Grace.”

  Grace began to blush. So Kat quickly said, “And now, you lucky, lucky friends, I have a special treat for you.” Her eyes twinkled. “Not only are you invited to have dinner with me tonight, but you also get one more joke for today!”

  Maya rolled her eyes. “Oh no!”

  Grace laughed. “Really. It’s not necessary,” she protested.

  “It is absolutely no problem. I know how much you both like these,” Kat insisted. “Here goes: What kind of dog loves to take bubble baths?”

  “No. No,” Maya said, groaning. “I refuse to listen.” She slapped her hands over her ears.

  Grace giggled.

  Kat tried to look offended. It was difficult when her mouth kept wanting to smile.

  “Okay, okay, put us out of our misery,” said Maya. “What kind of dog loves to take bubble baths?”

  “Why, a shampoodle, of course!” announced Kat.

  “So, so bad!” moaned Maya.

  “So, so, so bad!” groaned Grace.

  ALSO AVAILABLE

  For more Puppy Collection fun, check out these other books in the series.

  The Puppy Collection #1: Bailey’s Visit

  Paperback ISBN 978-1-4431-2409-6

  eBook ISBN 978-1-4431-4686-9

  Kat and her best friend Maya are totally dog-crazy! They can’t have dogs of their own, but that doesn’t mean they don’t dream about their favourite puppies.

  When Kat’s aunt opens a dog-grooming salon, and they meet Bailey, a chocolate Labrador retriever, it’s love at first sight. Can they convince Aunt Jenn to let them help out?

  The Puppy Collection #2: Riley Knows Best

  Paperback ISBN 978-1-4431-2410-2

  eBook ISBN 978-1-4431-4688-3

  Everything seems to be going great. Kat and Maya are having fun with their Puppy Collection, and they’ve just met a new puppy — Riley, an adorable golden retriever!

  But then Kat meets a new girl who seems really mean. Could Kat be wrong about her? Maybe Riley can help her figure it out!

  The Puppy Collection #3: Murphy Helps Out

  Paperback ISBN 978-1-4431-2411-9

  eBook ISBN 978-1-4431-4695-1

  Kat, Maya and Grace are excited to meet a new puppy — Murphy, a shy little Shetland sheepdog. But when the girls set out on their first afternoon together, Kat notices some tension between Maya and Grace.

  Then they find a lost cocker spaniel named Tawny, and the girls can’t seem to agree on what’s best for her. Will Tawny find her way back home? And can Kat be friends with both Maya and Grace? Maybe Murphy can help them sort it all out.

  The Puppy Collection #5: Piper’s First Show

  Paperback ISBN 978-1-4431-3360-9

  eBook ISBN 978-1-4431-4699-9

  Kay, Maya and Grace have a special assignment. Aunt Jenn has asked them to work with Piper — a four-month-old Bernese mountain dog who will soon be in her first puppy show. The girls head straight for the park to practise some simple commands. There they meet Robert and his dog Baxter. Baxter is amazing! But training Piper isn’t as easy as it seemed. Kat gets frustrated and blames Robert and Baxter for distracting Piper.

  Will Piper be ready for the puppy show in time?

  The Puppy Collection #6: Cricket’s Close Call

  Paperback ISBN 978-1-4431-3362-3

  eBook ISBN 978-1-4431-4801-6

  Kat, Maya and Grace are on puppy duty once more. This time they’re helping Aunt Jenn look after a Yorkshire terrier puppy named Cricket. Cricket is tiny but he’s full of energy. He gets into all sorts of things and tries to eat anything he comes across. Will the girls be able to keep him out of trouble?

  Scholastic Canada Ltd.

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  Scholastic Children’s Books

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  www.scholastic.ca

  ISBN: 978-1-4431-4697-5

  Thank you to Dr. Stephanie Avery, DVM, for her puppy expertise.

  Cover Credits:

  Cover: bichon frise © Dreymedv/Fotolia.com. Jewel border: © olia_nikolina/Fotolia.com. Logo: © Mat Hayward/Shutterstock.com; © Michael Pettigrew/Shutterstock.com; © Picture-Pets/Shutterstock.com. Background: © Anne Precious/Shutterstock.com. Back cover: pendant © Little Wale/Shutterstock.com.

  Text copyright © 2014 by Susan Hughes.

  Illustrations copyright © 2014 by Scholastic Canada Ltd.

  All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read this e-book on-screen. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of the publisher, Scholastic Canada Ltd., 604 King Street West, Toronto, Ontario M5V 1E1, Canada.

  First eBook edition: October 2015