“Okay,” Jilly said, “Don’t be a tease now, Jace.”
“I won’t,” Jace said. “When I first went to get Rusty, I had misheard the price on the phone, and was short by two hundred dollars.”
“Oops,” Cody said as he picked up Redmond.
“Exactly,” Jace said.
“What did Grandma say?” Liza said.
“She saw how Rusty and I had bonded,” Jace said. “So, she made me a deal. I could earn the two hundred by painting her house and fixing some things for her.”
“Grandma was sharp like that, and quick on her feet,” Liza said. “But painting the house alone should’ve paid off the two hundred.”
Jace laughed.
“It was all okay. Macon gave me a hand with the painting, and we were fed like kings. Your grandma could cook, Liza. God, her chicken was fantastic, as were her biscuits.”
“Grandma was a great cook,” Liza
