He turned off the light, and the second he was beneath the sheets, he curved an arm around her waist and pulled her back against him. At first she was tense. Then he kissed the back of her neck, and whispered, “Sleep. You’re safe.”
A second passed, and she relaxed into him. But he still didn’t feel okay. Something was going on in her mind that she didn’t feel she could share. He needed to know what…and he needed to know soon.
CHAPTER24
“Oh, hello, my darling,” Ivory Hanks said as she scooped her Shih Tzu off the floor and into her arms. “Did you have a nice day today?”
The Shih Tzu licked her face.
Ivory was in her forties, never married and no kids, and her dog was her entire world. She looked up at Sky and Dolly. “Did Miss Penelope enjoy her cooked liver today?”
Sky nodded. “She did. I think liver’s her favorite.”
“I do too,” Ivory agreed. “It used to be chicken thighs, but we’re not such a fan of those anymore.”
Ivory sent Penelope to doggy daycare with home-cooked meals labeled with very specific heating instructions, and as such, Penelope had to be the best-fed dog in the place. Probably the best fed in Montana.
“Did she play with her friends?” Ivory asked.
“Oh, yes,” Dolly answered. “Penelope is the most popular dog at daycare. She plays with everyone.”
Ivory beamed at them while Sky bit back a grin.
Dolly was good at her job because she knew what dog owners wanted to hear, which was basically that their dog was the cutest, best-behaved and most-loved animal ever.
“Is that right?” Ivory asked Penelope. “I did watch you on the doggy cam.”
Sky’s lips twitched again. She knew the woman watched the live-stream feed of the outdoor area obsessively. In fact, Sky had heard through small-town gossip that Ivory kept the dog cam on all day beside her computer while she was at her desk job.
“Well, we’ll see you tomorrow.” Ivory walked out just as Rosemary walked in.
Sky smiled at the older woman. “Hey, Rosemary. I’ll go get Bella.”
“Thank you, dear.”
She turned, and the second she was away from the desk, the smile dropped from her mouth. Her cheeks hurt from pretending she was okay. In fact, her entire head hurt.
She hadn’t been able to get the nightmare out of her head all day. The vision of Becket in those flames…the words he’d said to her.
Dread twisted in her belly as she opened the back door. She didn’t even need to call Bella. The Chinese Crested ran straight up to her and jumped into her arms.
She chuckled. “Hey, girl. Mama’s here to get you.”
Pearl looked up from the other side of the yard. “Hey. Are you finishing soon?”
“Yeah, Becket’s coming to get me. We’re going to walk to The Tea House.”
“Oh, I’ve been dreaming of their coffee. I might grab one on my way home. Enjoy.”
Shewouldenjoy it. She’d be ordering the largest freaking cup the woman had…maybe two. “Thanks.”
She took Bella back to the front, only to stop abruptly at the sight of Tony standing beside Rosemary.
He straightened when he spotted her. “Hey.”
“Tony…I’m working.”
Dolly cleared her throat and stood behind the front desk, taking Bella from her hands and giving her to Rosemary. “Here you go. Now, I’m going to check on our dog shampoo order on the office computer.”
