Jack opened the plantation shutters and looked out at the miserable late-afternoon weather. The promised rain, which had held off until now, was a steady downpour that almost obliterated his view of the Bagel Emporium across the street. Did he really want to drive all the way back to the farm in the downpour? Or should he just hunker down and spend the night in the BOLO Building? He looked down at Cyrus and posed the question to the 140-pound shepherd. “Here’s the deal. Either we drive back to the farm, which in this weather will take us well over an hour if we leave now, or we call Mr. Domingo Lopez across the street and order one of his specialty dinners. One bark for going to the farm, two for calling Ding.” Cyrus barked twice. Jack laughed. “Okay, that means we need to decide what we want to eat. We can chow down and feel guilty, or we can eat healthy. I vote for chowing down and working out twice as hard tomorrow.” Cyrus barked once. Jack pressed in the digits of the Bagel Emporium and placed his order—a double hot roast beef sandwich with coleslaw and cranberry sauce for himself, and a triple order of chicken nuggets and a double order of the vegetable medley, which consisted of carrots, zucchini, and string beans, for Cyrus.
