I exhale and nod, following him. He pushes the cart while I take the food off the shelves and place it inside. I would usually scan the items for the cheapest available, but I don’t bother because if it’s cheap, the men may not like it. Plus, my mind keeps drifting back to the dog.
As we go through the aisles, Viper gives a seductive smile to a few women who pass us by. They stop and talk to him, so I take over the cart and keep moving along, not interested in listening to their conversation.
Viper jogs up to me at the checkout and assists with placing the last bags into the trolley. “You’re quick. One minute you’re there and the next you’re gone.”
“We have frozen food in the cart. I didn’t want it to defrost.” That wasn’t the only reason, but I decide against mentioning anything else.
“That’s $402.05. Will that be cash or card?” the cashier asks.
“Cash,” I reply and pull out my purse.
Viper snorts and puts his arm across me, giving the cashier $100 notes. She giggles and says, “Thank you, Viper.” He smiles at her as she gives him the change, and she blushes profusely.
I push the cart along to the truck. We place the groceries in the back.
“I’ll push the cart back into the bay,” I tell him, since it’s closer to the dog. The dog watches me and barks once, but as I get closer, its tail is wagging.
“Ava!” Viper yells out with warning in his tone, but it only makes me fasten my pace.
The dog’s tail speeds up,wap,wap,wap. My heart beats faster as I approach, but when it reaches me, it sniffs my hand, my shoes, and around my legs, then leans into me, so I pat its head. The dog’s coat is smooth, but when I glance at my hand, it’s dirty.
“Where’s your water?”
He licks my hand, lapping up the attention.
There’s a red bucket tipped on its side.
Heavy footsteps approach, and I hesitantly turn to see Viper. He runs his hand through his hair. “Ava! What were you thinking?”
I wasn’t thinking. I watch the dog, who’s frozen, his tail no longer wagging. “I’d step back if I were you.” His eyes go wide, and he jumps back, out of reach of the dog.
“Can you get some water? The dog doesn’t have any.”
He groans. “Only if we go home afterward because your sister and Reaper will skin me alive if you get hurt.”
Why would Reaper care? I think to myself. I frown at the dog, and he looks up at me with his big, sad, brown eyes.
“Don’t even think about it,” Viper clips.
“But he’s dirty, and he’s got no water. The owners obviously don’t care about him.”
Viper’s jaw drops. “You seriously want to steal a dog right now? Just because I wear this”—he gestures to his MC cut—“it doesn’t mean I’m a criminal.” He smirks but turns serious. “And anyway... it looks like it wants to bite me.”
I laugh but stop once I hear a voice.
“What are you doing?” a man asks. I turn to see a man wearing a dirty white tank top and small shorts approaching us.
Viper rushes to step in front of me with no sense of safety for himself. I suck in a breath, but the dog doesn’t go for him. Instead, his eyes are trained on his owner. A deep growl resonates from next to us.
“What’s going on here?” the man asks.
I step to the side, but Viper moves with me, blocking my view. “We are leaving now,” he says.
But I move again. “Hi.”
Viper hisses at me.
“We were appreciating the beauty of your dog. My friend here,” I say as I glance at Viper, who’s giving me the death stare, “was just going to get water to fill his bucket.”
