A little dog that was heading straight in her direction, its eyes fixed firmly on her.
Grace braced herself, the animal’s speed and excitement making her think it was preparing to launch itself at her. But at the last moment, the dog came to an abrupt halt beside her, let out a wheeze and then just stood there panting and smiling and wagging its tail.
“Um, hello there,” Grace said to the little dog.
The dog answered with a muffled bark as it gazed up at her.
“Are you lost? Where’s your owner?”
The dog panted and looked around, as if searching for the person it belonged to. Grace looked around too, but Foxglove Street was quiet this evening. There were a few kids playing on the pavement further along, and beyond them she saw a man walking in her direction.
Did the dog belong to the kids who were playing, or perhaps to the man? The dog had run from the opposite direction, so maybe it had got too far ahead and was retracing its steps when it ran into Grace.
The man had passed the kids who were playing further along the street and was now drawing close to where Grace was standing. He didn’t appear to notice either her or the dog as he peered at his phone in one hand while hefting a shopping bag in the other.
“Is this your dog?” Grace asked when he got closer.
The man looked up from his phone and blinked in surprise, his gaze switching between Grace and the dog sitting at her feet. He didn’t look much older than Grace, maybe somewhere in his early thirties, and wore a smart grey blazer over a navy blue shirt and dark jeans. A small smile lifted the corners of his mouth when he saw the dog, but it wasn’t a smile of recognition.
“No, sorry, the dog isn’t mine.” His smile vanished as a frown appeared. “He’s not lost, is he?”
“I’m not sure,” Grace replied. “He just ran along the street and sat down beside me.” She looked back at the dog, which was panting happily at her feet. “He doesn’t have a collar, and he looks a bit scruffy and dirty, to be honest. Actually, I’m not even sure if it’s a he or a she.”
They stood for a moment, the two of them staring at the scruffy dog who looked back at them, tongue lolling as it continued panting.
“Maybe it belongs to those kids who are playing over there?” Grace suggested.
The man turned around towards the kids he’d passed on the pavement just a moment ago. “Hey, kids!” he called out. “Is this your dog?”
The kids, two girls and a boy, grabbed the ball they’d been bouncing between them and ran along the street towards them.
“We don’t have a dog,” the older of the two girls announced.
“Is it lost?” the smaller girl asked, leaning over to pet the animal, who lapped up the attention.
“Won’t it be sad if it’s lost?” the little boy asked, looking worried as he too petted the animal.
“It’s okay, little dog,” the smaller girl said. “We’ll look after you. We’ll take you home with us!”
“It’s not our dog, Lizzie!” the older girl admonished her. “Mum will kill us if we come home with a dog!”
The bombardment of chatter from the three children left Grace feeling a little stunned. The dog, still enjoying the attention and the pats, appeared to be in a state of bliss.
Across the street, a front door opened and Grace looked up to see a woman emerging onto the front step.
“It’s bath time, you three!” the woman shouted.
“We don’t want a bath, Mum!” the smaller girl shouted back. “We want to cuddle the dog!”
“Leave that dog alone and come inside right this minute!” the woman shouted. “I mean it!”
Their mother’s tone left no room for debate. The three children patted the dog one last time before darting across the road and inside the house. Before Grace could think to call out and ask the woman if she had any idea who the dog belonged to, the woman had followed her children inside and closed the door.
With the children gone, the dog got up from the pavement where it had been lying on its back in order to receive the tummy rubs being dispensed by the kids and gave itself a good shake. It glanced around a few times before sitting down again beside Grace and smiling up at her.
“Are you sure this isn’t your dog?” the man laughed. “He seems to really like you.”
“I’ve never seen this animal before in my life. He just appeared out of nowhere.”
