“Well. . . I. . .” Savannah began, then stopped. She didn’t know what to say. Not even her parents were standing up for her, protecting her, but this little town she’d visited as a child enveloped her as one of their own.
“You just eat up now,” Ethel suggested softly before shuffling back behind the counter, leaving Savannah to her thoughts. The telephone game was notorious in this town, gossip spreading like wildfire. Her grandfather had to have said something.
Maybe she had made the right choice after all.
As she sat enjoying her breakfast, smiling at patrons as they passed by her booth and patted her shoulder, treating her far better than a stranger, Savannah thought about the man she’d been secretly hoping to see.
He was attractive all right, and Savannah knew that she should probably apologize for how she had treated him when he brought in the animal he had officially adopted the day before. Trisha had made sure to call her with that information.
From outside her window, a rumbling sound brought her attention to the street where an old pick-up truck made a turn down an alley. Her heart instantly sped up, knowing that he was behind the wheel. Savannah had instantly recognized the truck.
Maybe she could apologize sooner rather than later.
***
Beau arrived at the auto shop an hour later than normal with his new companion. He lifted the animal in his arms as he closed up his truck, then made his way to the office where a brand new dog bed waited in the corner.
After settling Belle, the name he had chosen for the beautiful canine, in her bed and making sure her bowls were filled with water and food, Beau made his way out to the crowded bays.
It didn’t take him long to find Tate leaning over Fred Fitzgerald’s ancient sedan. Only her lower half was visible beneath the raised hood and as she grunted, Beau wondered if Landon, her fiancé, was close by.
The two of them had recently opened Landon Racing on some property Tate acquired a few years ago and it was already turning into a huge success. Her work in the shop was rare since they got the new business off the ground.
He’d missed seeing her. They’d been best friends since they were thirteen and luckily, after one failed attempt, they realized that friendship was all that there would be.
Suddenly Tate’s body shifted and she started falling forward into the car’s open engine bay. She was small as it was, so it didn’t take much for her feet to leave the floor.
Beau hustled over and grabbed the back of the well-worn coveralls that Tate insisted on wearing. She yelped as Beau heaved her up in the air by her clothes and carried her away from the car.
“Dammit,” she said with a growl as she spun around to face him, shoving her hand against his chest, attempting to cause harm. Tate was such a tiny little thing; there was very little chance of her even causing Beau to budge an inch.
“Hey. You know you’re not supposed to work on cars unless a second person is in the shop. And I know for a fact that Hugh is out today.”
“Yes, I know. . . and well, you were late. I’m going to dock your pay for that.”
“No, you’re not. Don’t you want to meet your goddog?”
Instantly Tate’s face lit up. She had been curious when Beau had showed up the day before when they were closed to drop off the oversized, fluffy dog bed but hadn’t asked any questions.
“I’m a godmother?”
Beau chuckled as he nodded. “Sure. Now, she’s still healing, so she’s tired.”
“Okay. Oh my gosh, I’m so excited.”
“It’s a dog, Tate,” he said as he led her to the office and grabbed the handle to open the door.
“It’s your dog, Beau. What’s the sweetie’s name?” his best friend asked as she scooted into the office and knelt by the sleeping animal.
“Her name is Belle. She found me the night of your engagement party wrapped in barbed wire. The vet helped fix her up.”
“Doc. Sullivan? I thought he was on an extended vacation? At least that’s what he said when he had his Jeep looked over.”
“It was a woman filling in for him, I think.”
“Oh, that’s good. Wow, she’s such a sweetheart, Beau.”
He immediately thought of the woman that had treated his dog, but then he realized Tate was referring to the dog.
“Yes, she is. You don’t mind if she stays here while I work, do you? I’ll stay an hour later to make up the time.”
Tate brushed off his comment as she settled on the floor and leaned her body against the dog, who barely moved but lifted an eye and seemed to wink in Beau’s direction.
“Should I expect to find you in here the rest of the day in case Landon asks?”
“I’ll walk her when she wakes up, but yes, I’ll be here with this darling dog. And Landon had to leave for a few days. He’ll be back on Friday.”
He could hear the sadness in Tate’s voice, and he suspected that she needed Belle’s comfort as much as the dog needed hers. Tate was severely in love with her fiancé, as he was with her, and the two were rarely apart. So for him to be gone for a few days, most likely with his racing team as a champion race car driver, Tate would be a grumpy person to be around.
“What needs to be done today?”
“The usual. A couple of oil changes, a check engine light in Kerry’s SUV, she’s dropping it by this morning, and a tire mount and balance for Mr. Connelly’s old truck.”
“Alright. I’ll check the books and get to work. Anything particular you’d like me to start with?”
“If you want to start those oil changes, that would be great. That way, we can focus on the engine issue when Kerry gets here.”
“We? I thought you had designated yourself as Belle’s sitter today.”
Tate contentedly sighed as she rested her head on the new bed where the dog was resting. “I did. So by we, I meant you.”
“Of course, boss. I’ll get started.”