“Hey, sis. How’s it going?”
“Don’t you ‘hey sis’ me. How come you didn’t tell me that someone broke into your apartment last night?”
Sophia winced and pulled onto her street. “Honestly? It slipped my mind. I’ve been having a busy few days since then.”
“Are you okay? Did they catch the guy?”
“They haven’t caught him yet, but Ian said he’s going to mess up sooner or later, and he’s now known in several towns around the area.”
“Do they have a description?”
Sophia pulled up into the driveway and killed the engine. “No, unfortunately, they don’t, but I’m sure someone is bound to see something.”
Lily exhaled. “I can’t believe you beat him up with a baseball bat.”
“Most little girls wanted to take gymnastics or ballet. I wanted to do karate,” Sophia revealed with a quick look in the rearview mirror. She patted her hair down and then gathered itinto a bun on top of her head. “Dad caved, and I ended up only going to a few classes. The baseball bat belongs to Zac.”
Lily burst into laughter. “I thought you were going somewhere with that story, and I started to get really confused.”
“I just got lucky,” Sophia replied. “And I’m fine; don’t worry. Who spilled the beans anyway?”
“Ian,” Lily admitted. “I wish you’d have told me. Do you want me to come and stay with you for a few days? I can work on the book while I’m there and do online sessions with my clients.”
“No, I’m fine; don’t worry. Besides, I think Ben would miss you too much.”
“He can handle himself for a few days.”
Teddy tilted his head in my direction and barked.
“Who is that? When did you get a dog?”
Sophia scratched behind Teddy’s ears, and he panted, his lips lifting into a sloppy grin. With a smile, she reached for the purse in the middle of the backseat and let him out. He pressed his nose to the ground, sniffed the grass, and made a beeline for her dad’s bushes.
“That is Teddy. Darren went to the shelter and got him. He’s staying with me till I can find him a forever home. In the meantime, Darren thought it was a good idea to have him for protection.”
“I want pictures and lots of videos. He sounds like a cutie.”
Teddy lifted his head up and barked again.
Both women erupted into laughter.
Teddy was still sniffing the bushes and rolling around on the grass when Zoe rolled up in her yellow bug, bringing it to a stop behind her mom’s car. She pushed the car door open and bent down to reach for something. When she spun back around, she had a bag of plastic toys in one hand and her purse in the other.
Teddy jumped up as soon as he saw her and nearly tackled Zoe to the ground.
With a laugh, Sophia ended the phone call and offered her daughter a sympathetic smile.
Zoe crouched low, took his face in her hand, and pressed a kiss to the center of his head. “Aren’t you a sweet little boy?”
Teddy’s tail thumped hard.
“There’s nothing little about him,” Sophia muttered, shaking her head. “What do you got there?”
“I got him a few more toys.”
Zoe reached into the bag, pulled out a ball, and threw it across the lawn. Teddy darted off, a blur of color and movement, his bark slicing through the air. As soon as his teeth closed around the ball, he trotted back to where they stood, looking very pleased with himself.
“You’re going to spoil him rotten,” Sophia pointed out, pausing to fold her arms over her chest. “He deserves it, though.”
