You were at the kitchen sink, rinsing off dinner plates, when you caught the blur of movement in the corner of your eye.

“No. Don’t you dare…” You muttered, but it was too late. Your dog had already slipped through that gap in the fence - the one you'd patched with everything you could think of, but every time, she managed to sneak through straight into your neighbor’s yard.

You groaned, drying your hands as you rushed out the back door in your socks. “Come back here!” you hissed through clenched teeth, crouching by the fence. “We talked about this!”

You were still whisper-yelling through the fence when a familiar voice drifted over from the other side. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think she likes me more than you.”

You froze, forehead resting against the wooden slats in quiet defeat, before standing up on a chair to see over the fence. And there he was - Sheriff Beau Arlen, standing on his back porch, stroking your dog who was sitting proudly at his feet.

“Oh my god,” you muttered, already flushing. “I’m so sorry.”

Beau looked up, that signature easy grin tugging at the corner of his mouth. “You really don’t need to apologize,” he said, scratching behind your dog’s ears. “She’s practically a regular at this point.”

You sighed, rubbing your forehead. “This is getting embarrassing. I swear I’ve patched that fence five different ways.”

Beau chuckled. “Don’t worry about it. Honestly, I don’t mind the company.”

“I’ll come get her,” you muttered, stepping down from the chair and making a beeline for his gate. As you rounded the corner, he glanced down at your socks and grinned. “It’s a good look.”

“Shut up.” You laughed. “I panicked.”

He held up his hands, still grinning. “Hey, no judgment. I’ve seen worse.”

You bent to clip the leash on your dog’s collar while she yawned, completely unbothered. “She’s going to keep testing that fence, you know.”

“Oh, I’m counting on it,” he said, leaning back against the railing, casual as ever. “Gives me something to look forward to.”

You raised a brow. “She’s that charming, huh?”

His smile softened, eyes holding yours just a little longer this time. “I wasn’t talking about the dog.”