Directly in front of me on the sidewalk, a massive wood carving of an eagle holding what looks to be a croissant stands in front of one of the cute shops. A light breeze picks up, and an incredible smell hits me. My mouth waters instantly, my stomach churning, reminding me I haven’t eaten a real, sit-down, full meal in almost a week.
Chocolate.
Sugar.
Cookies.
I would know that smell anywhere.
A memory flashes through my head, one of the very few good ones that resides there, of baking chocolate chip cookies in a small kitchen with flour on my cheeks and joy filling my heart.
With it, a smile starts to pull at my lips.
But it quickly vanishes, replaced by the reality of the situation.
There isn’t any time to stop for a snack. There isn’t any time to stop for anything.
If I don’t find him…
That burn returns to my eyes, blurring the sidewalk under my feet as I keep my head dipped slightly.
Don’t even think that way, Lucky.
You will.
He isn’t gone.
I know that, deep in my gut, but I haven’t been able to stop wondering if some wild animal got him in the night. Or if he could have run out onto the road and got hit and whoever did it grabbed his little body and took it with them.
A door opens to my right, and I jerk at the sound, spinning toward an older woman with her white hair tied back in a bun. She offers me a friendly smile, stepping out from below a sign that says “Claire’s Bakery” in hand-painted letters. “Hello, dear. You’re up early.”
Holy hell.
I press my hand over my chest, trying to calm my thudding heart as I force myself to smile back at her. “Hello. I, um…lost my dog. I’m wondering if you might have seen him, or if there’s a vet’s office where someone might have brought him to get scanned for a microchip?”
Her brow furrows. “A dog? What does he look like?”
“He’s a French bulldog. Mostly white with a dark patch over his left eye.”
The woman’s eyes brighten. “He sounds adorable, but I’m sorry, I haven’t seen him. Where did you lose him?”
Shit.
I am not about to delve into where I spent last night with anyone in McBride Mountain—or anywhere, for that matter—and the way she’s assessing me, sizing me up, I can already tell more questions are coming if I don’t get on my way. “Um…thank you for your help.”
She smiles, still watching me carefully as I take my first steps to move on down Main Street. “If you want to check with the vet, he’s all the way down and over a block north, but he isn’t open this early.”
Crap.
“You could wait at the diner just up the street. It’s near the vet’s office. Or you could step in here and have a cookie.” She motions back toward her bakery. “They’ll be done in a few minutes.”
My stomach grumbles again.
A cookie does sound nice, but I want to be as close to the vet as possible so I can get there first thing when he opens. And I can already tell Claire isn’t going to stop asking questions if I step into her place. “Thank you, I appreciate your help. I’ll head over to the diner now and wait.”
She nods. “No problem, dear. I hope you find him.”
Her eyes follow me as I walk away.
