“He’s totally house-trained,” I said, noting the way Benjamin watched the dog’s progress, body stiff and eyes narrowed, looking as if he was afraid to take a breath. “He’ll be fine.”
“I assume I can send you the cleaning bill if he is not.”
For a second, I could only stare up into his face, unsure whether he was joking or not. I let out a chuckle that sounded as though it didn’t quite know whether it should be amused, and said, “Oh, sure, if it’s necessary.”
Benjamin didn’t hasten to tell me that of course, it really wasn’t a problem. No, he just nodded faintly, then said, “And his food…?”
“I’ve got everything here,” I replied, glad we’d moved on to a safer topic. “I keep my dog’s bowls in the kitchen, so we might as well do the same thing here. Do you have an out-of-the-way spot where
