She tilted her head. “Small prices to pay for the kind of love you probably received. What happened to Monsieur Claude?”
“He lived to a ripe old age of sixteen before he passed away. Clara made us have a funeral. I didn’t get a funeral for Jaws.”
She choked back another laugh. “Your fish was named Jaws?”
“Yep. And he lived in a paradise tank.”
Sky threw her head back and laughed. If Becket was trying to distract her, he was doing a good job. “Well, his life might have been short, but it sounds like he was loved.”
She was still smiling when she spotted a shadow of movement behind a tree.
She stopped. “Did you see that?”
“What?”
She waited. Another slight movement.
She took off. Becket cursed from behind, but she ignored him as she raced forward, weaving around trees and jumping over branches.
Then she saw Bella. The poor thing was whimpering and trying to move, but her collar was stuck on a branch.
Sky dropped beside her. “Oh, Bells, what happened?”
Bella dug her head into Sky’s chest.
Becket dropped beside them and carefully untangled Bella’s collar from the branch
“There you go.” Sky lifted Bella as she stood. “Want us to take you home for dinner?”
Bella’s ears perked up, and Sky laughed as they headed back to Rosemary’s house.
“I’ll take her if she’s too heavy.” He reached forward to take the dog, but Bella growled at him.
Sky laughed. “I think she knows you don’t like dogs.” She handed him the flashlight instead.
“And people wonder why.”
She grinned as she snuggled Bella closer to her chest.
As they neared the house, Sky scanned the dark patches of grass. “You said there was a fire here?”
“Yeah, Rosemary was burning off some old stuff. I asked her not to do it again.”
Absolutely. This property was far too close to the forest.
The front door opened, and Rosemary gasped when she spotted them with Bella.
When Sky reached her, she handed Bella to the older woman.
Rosemary buried her face into Bella’s furry head. “Oh, darling, are you okay?”
“She got her collar stuck on a branch,” Sky explained.
“I think she’s hungry,” Becket added.
“Well, of course you’re hungry. It’s steak night.”
Sky could have laughed. The dog ate better than most fully grown humans.
