Kennedy had direct orders from Vickie to stop at the main house for a snack basket she’d packed for him and Jen to enjoy during their ride. He left Jen in the side-by-side while he ran in to collect their food. Vickie had to give him a rundown on the basket’s contents, of course, and Kennedy had to act appropriately grateful as she told him about each item. She was describing the brownies when Kennedy heard someone scream outside.

“Four Toes!” Vickie cried.

Kennedy dashed through the house, threw open the front door, and dashed out onto the porch. Jen was no longer in the vehicle. She was standing on the roof of the cab. Slade’s pet bear had climbed into the cargo area, where he sometimes rode with Kennedy while he moved wheel lines.

“It’s okay!” Kennedy cried. “He’s not a wild bear!”

Jen was screaming so loudly Kennedy doubted she heard him. He wanted to kick himself for not telling her the story about Slade rescuing Four Toes as a cub. It was a great tale with a happy ending. Only Jen had gotten hurt early on after they met, and their conversations after that had been mainly focused on her injuries, her physical therapy, and her fears.

Vickie ran down the steps, her curly red hair dancing in the breeze. Four Toes had snuggled down in the back of the vehicle, looking like a ginormous marshmallow perfectly roasted to a golden brown. “Get out of there, you big galoot!” Vickie yelled. “You’ve frightened that poor girl half to death!”

Four Toes moaned. That was the bear’s answer to almost everything. Kennedy climbed up onto the roof to kneel beside Jen, who stood upright and was still shrieking. He wrapped both arms around her thighs, afraid she might tumble to the ground and break her arm again. She might never regain the use of her right hand if that happened.

“Jen!” he yelled. “He’s a tame bear! A rescue bear, just like the ones you worked with last summer at the shelter. He won’t hurt you.”

Jen stopped midshriek with her mouth yawning and her big blue eyes bugging. “A rescue bear? But he growled at me! And then he climbed in!”

Kennedy tightened his hold on her. She was wiggling around, and he sure didn’t want her to fall. “Listen to me. He’s tame. He growls a lot. It’s how he talks. He wasn’t threatening you.” Kennedy glanced around. He had to get Jen down to safety. “We need to get off this thing before you take a tumble.”

“Down there? With the bear?”

Vickie let loose with, “You are so spoiled, Four Toes. Get out of that side-by-side.”

Kennedy felt Jen go from being as taut as a piano wire to limp as a dishcloth. “Sit down, Jen. Can you do that for me?”

She lowered herself to the roof with Kennedy keeping a firm hold on her all the way down. Then he leaped to the ground and turned to lift his arms to her. “Come on. I’ll catch you. Just scoot over and dangle your legs off the side.”