Page 20 of Maid in Heaven

Skidding on a patch of black ice on the walking path, Ava caught herself on something hard in the air just before she fell.

“Easy there. You okay?” Will asked.

“Yeah,” Ava sucked in a deep lungful of ice-cold air, shocked at the near-fall and the actions of her unruly dog.

It was onlythenthat she looked down and realized what she’d latched onto during the fall…

Will’s arm was outstretched, flexed in her grasp, hard as a two-by-four. She stood straight and let him go slowly, trying to hide her shock at how strong and unwavering his forearm was.

“Thank you. That could have been bad.” She felt her cheeks grow beet-red, hoping he would attribute it to the frigid air.

Will snatched up his pug by the armpits and held the fat little thing up for Ava. “Say hello to my little frien’,” he mocked in his best Pacino voice. “This is Gremlin.”

The dog looked like it was tiptoeing in the air like a ballet dancer, and Ava laughed, petting the thing softly on the head. “Nice to meet you, Gremlin.” She looked back at Will. “I suppose you can’t get her wet or feed her after midnight?”

Will chuckled and put the dog down in the snow. “Something like that.”

Gremlin bee-lined for the Pit Bull once released. She reared back, raised a paw,and bopped Kuda on the snout. In that instant, it was like a snare trap had been sprung. They were off, frolicking with carefree abandon through the snowy path up ahead. Kuda sprintedup the slick, shoveled walking pathafter Gremlin.

Then, as if a switch had been flipped, Gremlin was on the offense, chasing the Pit Bull inhuge, circular laps through the snowy field.

Ava and Will snickered, watching the two dogs play as though they’d always been long-lost friends.

“Wow.” Will laughed. “Your boy’s got a lot of energy. Gremlin’s gonna sleepsogood later.”

Suddenly, the furry duo stopped cold, looking into each other’s eyes, bodies board-stiff. Kuda took off running. Gremlin trailed behind, huffing and wheezing as she tried to keep up.

“It’s nice to see Kuda have a friend. Not a lot of people trust Pit Bulls.”

“Never met a mean one.” Will smiled.

“Same. They’re misunderstood.”

“Don’t get me wrong. Piss off a pitty, and they’ll do some damage. But, then again, so will just about any dog.”

Ava laughed as the racingcanine missiles made another flurried lap around them.

“Thanks for comin’ out.”

“Thank you for the invite.” Ava could feel herself blush again as she stood beside Will, staring out at the slow-roiling water beyond the dog’s play area. “I’ve been meaning to check this place out for a while. Kuda seems to love it here.”

“Yeah, Gremlin gets so excited whenever she goes for a car ride. She always knows we’re comin’ here.”

“I’m definitely going to have to bring Kuda more often.”

“So…” Will tucked his chilled bare hands into his back pockets,“besides bein’dragged around by him, what do you usuallydo for fun?”

“Fun… hmmm, fun… I feel like I know that word from somewhere,” she joked, tapping a gloved finger against her chin to think.

Will snickered.

“I read. And I paint.”

“Youpaint?” Will seemed genuinely impressed.

“Don’t get excited. I mostlyjust do those silly little paint-by-numbers.I enjoy letting my mind sort of go on autopilotand then having something beautiful to show for it.”

“Those paint-by-numbers still take skill. Ever tried painting anything original?”

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