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Gently, she adjusted Sadie, who was already on a pillow. She slid under the covers and pulled them up to her chin.
I kicked off my boots, pulled my sweater over my head, and shoved my jeans to the floor. Pepper watched my every move like she’d never seen anyone undress.
The bed creaked when I sat on the edge. Ash inched toward my lap.
“Wanna let me in?”
She licked my hand in response.
“She’s glad you’re here,” Pepper said quietly.
I twisted. “Are you?”
She nodded and I finagled my way under the covers. A wall of dogs separated us.
“This isn’t going to work.”
I climbed back out of bed, eased three dogs to the spot I’d just occupied, and rounded the foot.
“Scoot over,” I said to Pepper when I reached her side.
We smushed together in our half of the bed. One of my ass cheeks and part of my leg was hanging off, but I didn’t care.
I pulled her against me and kissed the side of her hair.
She snuggled into my chest, her body a perfect fit.
“You smell like fire.”
I fingered her hair. It was as soft as it looked. “No matter how much I shower, that scent lingers.”
“I like it . . . except I guess it represents destruction.”
She was more right than she probably knew. I wanted to shield her from the unpleasant. Have this moment where we held each other and didn’t have to think about anything beyond these walls.
But that wasn’t how real life worked.
“The fire . . .” I fiddled with a strand of her hair. “It was the park.”
Her brows dipped. “The park?”
“Down the block.” I pulled her closer, needing to cocoon her as I broke the news. “The one we met in a few days ago.Theirpark.”
A strangled noise escaped her. “Is it . . . bad?”
There was fear twinged with the heartbreak. Those dogs loved that park. It may have been small but that was their special place.
“It’s gone.”
She covered her mouth, and I eased her head to my chest. Her shoulders moved up and down, not with tears, but heavy breaths . . . like she couldn’t catch hers.
We lay like that for I didn’t know how long. She’d had a long day. A hard one, even if she hadn’t said the words. And I’d just added to it. While I wished I could’ve kept the news from her, no way was I going to let her find out when she took the dogs tomorrow.
She lifted her head. Pain seeped from every line on her face. “How?”
I hesitated. She deserved more than my cowardice.
“Arson.”
