Page 10 of Shallow Remains

She hadn’t had fun in too long. And everything about Sheriff Rafe Torres told her he’d be a whole lot of it.

FOUR

This was Rufus’s first party. He did not like it.

Noisy in here. Too many strangers.

He stayed close to Nice Lady as more people came into the room. He licked his lips and shifted his weight on his paws.

A few people stopped and tried to pet him. He shrank back against Nice Lady’s leg. No touch. Rufus not trust.

“Sorry. He’s come a long way already, but he’s still a little skittish of people.” Nice Lady put a hand on his head and rubbed one of his soundflaps. “You’re okay, buddy.”

Rufus wagged his sweeper a little bit because he liked the way Nice Lady talked to him.

He sniffed the air some more. Yummy smells came from the food room.

Old Lady was in there. Rufus liked her. Sometimes she gave Rufus treats when he did something that made her face crinkle.

The smells were so good he left Nice Lady and crept along the wall to the food room. Ohhh, the smells. Yisss.

Old Lady was in the food room talking to Nice Lady’s fren with the crazy hair. They didn’t notice him at first. Rufus did a mlem with his taster and paused near the tall table in the middle of the room to sniff.

Oh boy, meats! So. Much. Meats.

He knew just how to get some. Rufus smart.

He stood in front of Old Lady.

She stopped talking when she noticed him. “Rufus, what are you doing in here?”

Rufus sat politely and stared at her, soundflaps up. Showing his best manners. Then he lifted a paw, because humans liked that.

Old Lady’s face crinkled. “Oh, you smart, handsome thing. I know you’re manipulating me, but I don’t even care. Here.”

Oh, boy! Rufus wagged his sweeper, tried very hard to sit still when he saw her take a treat in her hand.

Meeaaats! Yiss…

“Nicely, now,” she warned.

Rufus wanted to snatch the meats in his teefs and run to another room so no one could take it from him. But then the fuzzy gray caterpillars above Old Lady’s peepers would slant down, and she would say Rufus was bad.

So he did not snatch the meats. But he wiggled as she brought it close to his snoot while his sniffer quivered.

Old Lady laughed. “Look at him. Shameless.” She held it out close to his sniffer. “Gently.”

Dis very hard for Rufus. He opened his teefs a little bit. Stuck his taster through them. His chops trembled as he took the meats. He glanced up at Old Lady to make sure he was doing it nicely.

Her face crinkled more, and the gray caterpillars did not move. “What a good boy.”

Rufus slurped it down and licked his chops. Aww, yiss. Meats delishus.

“Here, buddy. But don’t tell your mom,” Nice Lady’s crazy hair fren said, and held something out for him in her fingers.

He sniffed. Oh, boy! Cheeeese.

He lunged for it.