Page 25 of Saved By Love at Christmas
As soon as I spoke, the figure hesitated, then moved away. Fred’s growling lessened. I patted his head reassuringly, making sure his collar was firmly fixed to his lead. I certainly didn’t want him running after this person. It was probably someone taking a leak in the woods. I’d seen that before, but witnessing how spooked Fred was, I decided to head home.
* * *
BEN
The following morning, I packed up everything Fred would need for his awayday with Ruby and Tom. He was less than impressed about being roused from his cosy bed by the aga.
Fred kept grumbling when I put him in the car, and I laughed. “Not a morning person, are you, boy?”
I dumped his toys and food in his basket and plonked them on the backseat. It was freezing, and the grass crunched underneath my feet. Once I’d managed to de-ice the car, we were on our way. The lights were on downstairs when we reached Tom’s home, and he stood at the door, waiting for us. Fred barrelled past him, eager to get inside in the warm.
“I’ll just fetch his things.”
“Put his basket in the front room. There’s a good fire going.”
I did as Tom said, and it didn’t take Fred long to settle in his basket, sighing his contentment.
“Can I talk to you for a minute, son?”
“Sure.”
“Have you got time for something to eat?”
“No. I’ll grab something later. I’ll have a tea though, please,” I indicated towards the teapot. “How can I help?”
Tom poured the tea and handed me a mug; I nodded my thanks. We leaned against one of the kitchen counters, sipping in silence.
“I’m supposed to be going on a theatre break with the bowls group next week. It’s only overnight, but after the calls Ruby received, I think I’ll cancel it.”
“No, don’t do that. She can come and stay with me. Or I could stay here,” I offered. The words were out of my mouth before I could fully process them.
“I don’t know.” He frowned and rubbed his chin. He seemed to be warring with himself about what decision to make.
“She’s suffering from enough guilt about what she thinks she’s put us through, even though she’s the one who’s been hurt. This will only make her feel worse.”
“Hmm, I guess you’re right. Look, do you want some dinner after work tonight when you come to pick up Fred? Then we can bring the subject up.”
I smiled. “Sounds like a plan. And I like the idea of not having to cook after my long shift. Thanks.”
The creaking of floorboards sounded. Ruby was up. Fred barked, and then galloped up the stairs. Ruby’s giggle reached my ears shortly afterwards.
“Hello, Fred. It’s lovely to see you,” I heard her say.
She came down the stairs, closely followed by Fred. She was still in her dressing gown and PJs. Ruby looked what I could only describe as beautifully dishevelled. My heart clenched in my chest and my body burned. The way Fred stuck by her side while she scratched his head made me jealous of him.
“Morning, Ben.”
“Hey, Rubes. Sorry if we woke you up.”
“I was already awake. It was so warm under my duvet; it was a struggle to get up. But then I heard this beautiful boy.” She scratched Fred’s head some more while his eyes rolled back in ecstasy. “And I thought I should get up.”
I drained the last of my tea and stood up. “I’d better get going. I need to prepare to remove a cancerous lump from a cat’s stomach.”
“Oh, poor thing. I hope it goes well.”
“See you this evening, Ben. Roast chicken dinner, followed by sticky toffee pudding. Sound good to you?”
“Yes, please. I can’t wait.”
