‘Last night was rammed,’ Roddy said eventually. ‘Every room’s booked out for the event at the castle, obviously. But… let’s see… Hold on a second… Actually, a couple of folk’ve already checked out. So, yeah, we’ve got a single room.’
‘A single’s fine,’ Bex said.
‘I’ll need to get housekeeping to give it a once-over, but you could sit down and have a drink.’
‘Great.’ She turned to find a seat, debating when it would be best to go get Ruby. ‘Sorry.’ She turned back to Roddy. ‘Just to check, any chance I can have a dog in the room?’
‘Afraid not,’ Roddy said with a small shake of his head. ‘No-dog policy here.’
‘Right.’ Her face fell. Now she wished she’d never asked. She could have snuck Ruby in somehow and pretended she didn’t know the rules, if she’d gotten caught. There was no way she’d get away with it now.
‘Is it a big dog?’ Roddy asked.
‘Biggish,’ Bex admitted. There was no point in lying. If she said no, he’d probably expect a Chihuahua and be in for a shock when a large Labrador retriever turned up.
‘Does it bark?’
‘No, not ever really. Other than when I needed rescuing, that is.’
‘Oh, it’s that dog.’ Roddy pressed his lips together tightly, clearly considering something. ‘Look, you could probably sneak her in and out when it’s quiet. Before we open up for the day. And you could maybe let her out through the back, as long as the boss isn’t around.’
Bex’s face lit up with a broad smile, her heart bulging with gratitude. ‘That would work wonderfully. Thank you.’
‘Just as long as you know, if you get caught by the boss, I dinnae say you could have her in there.’
‘Gotcha,’ Bex said, grinning.
He glanced around the space, which was notably quieter than it normally would be at this time. Most likely, there were other people like Lorna who couldn’t handle the thought of another drink, let alone being in a space where alcohol fumes were overwhelming.
‘Why don’t you fetch her now? I’ll make sure the room’s sorted and then meet you around the back in half an hour?’
‘Thank you,’ Bex said again. ‘I really mean it.’
‘Hey, if you cannae help a friend out now and then, you’re dinnae doing life right,’ he replied.
As Bex headed out of the pub, she mulled over Roddy’s last comment. He was right, of course. Life was about helping other people, wasn’t it? Particularly those close to you. Of course, whether Duncan would want her help would remain to be seen.
3
Back at the cottage, Lorna was still fast asleep, but Ruby was wide awake. She bolted across to Bex the moment the front door opened, her tail wagging so hard it smacked against the wall.
‘You know, I really wasn’t gone that long,’ Bex said as she bent down to stroke the dog. ‘But guess what? I’ve found a place for us to stay. The only thing is, you have to be very good. No barking. No scratching. You think you can do that?’
Ruby tilted her head to the side, her tail momentarily pausing, before it continued again at an even more rapid pace than before.
‘Of course you can, I know. You’re such a good girl, aren’t you? Well, we should get going. We’ll give Lorna a ring later, just so she knows where we are. Now, can you carry your pheasant for me, or do I have to carry that too?’
Understanding exactly what had been asked of her, Ruby dashed into the living room and picked up her well-chewed pheasant cuddly toy, while Bex grabbed the dog bed. She was bound to have forgotten something, Bex reasoned, but it wasn’t like they were far away.
Just like Roddy had suggested, when Bex arrived back at the White Hart, they went to the back door, where she placed the dog bed just inside in the dry before turning to Ruby.
‘You need to sit and stay. Okay? I won’t be long. I just have to make sure the coast is clear and get our room key.’
The dog opened her mouth as if to bark her understanding, only to stop before any sound came out. Obviously, she’d remembered the rules Bex had laid out about no barking. ‘Good girl. Now remember. Sit and stay.’
Confident that Ruby would follow the instructions and not run off, Bex slipped in past the kegs, up to where Roddy was standing beside the bar, serving.
‘Great, you’re back.’ He handed a patron a pint. ‘I’ll be with you in one sec.’
