Chapter 10

Caleb held back the chuckle. “That Maltese Terror of yours is going to grow up and be a real dog yet. He’s getting the hang of it, showing off for Cheyenne. She’s acting out a little, too. She knows better than to beg before I’m done.”

With that, he set the plate on the floor, allowing the old Heeler to have several bites of bacon and eggs and a few crusts of toast. She licked it shiny clean. “I’ve got the best automatic dishwasher around,” Caleb boasted. “She never misses a crumb or a swipe of grease.”

Nick shook his head. “I don’t know. I was told not to feed a dog at the table and I never let Cedric lick my dishes. It just doesn’t seem civilized.”

“Maybe it isn’t, but what the hell?” Caleb met Nick’s gaze, almost challenging him to respond. “Neither are a lot of other things some folks do as a matter of course. Who’s to say what’s right or proper or anything else really?”

Nick looked away first. “I don’t know,” he mumbled. “You may be right.”