Ginger would be able to look after him just fine.
Thea’s thoughts strayed as she began to knead her dough.
Guinevere had been so insistent on teasing her about Nathaniel, and she’d been aware of how defensive she sounded when she told Guinevere that there was nothing there.
Because if she was being honest, it was a lie.
There was something between her and Nathaniel, even if it wasn’t something particularly recent or particularly strong at the moment.
She didn’t like feeling like she was lying to her friend—but at the same time, how could she admit anything when there was nothing there at the moment?
She and Nathaniel were like two ships in the night, passing by each other without any acknowledgment.
There was interest on his part, yes—but that was all they had, and that was not enough to form a relationship worth confessing to Guinevere.
If Beatrice were here, she knew she’d never hear the end of it.Beatrice would probably see them married within a week.There was nothing her friend loved more than a challenge—and even more than that, the opportunity to see two people fall in love.
But just because Beatrice had found her happy ending didn’t mean that she and Nathaniel were destined for the same thing.
The smell of cinnamon and ginger filled the room as she prepared a batch of gingersnaps for the next day and laid out what she would need to bake more blueberry muffins in the morning.
She was almost at the end of her evening routine, starting to wipe everything down, when she looked over and saw the two cats curled up by the fire next to each other.
Her eyes softened as she took in the picture they made.
They almost looked like a family.
Her eyes widened at the thought.
Would Ginger have kittens?
If she was left with this new cat, was Thea prepared to have kittens running around the café?
She would probably be able to find homes for them with her patrons…but still.The idea was oddly terrifying—
And somehow comforting at the same time.
But then her mind conjured up an image of a tiny, redheaded child holding a wee orange kitten, and her heart constricted.
If she and Nathaniel had a child, they would no doubt love cats, too.
She shook her head at herself as she fetched the broom.She didn’t need to be thinking this way.She had made it more than two years without entertaining thoughts of Nathaniel Alder.
She didn’t need to start now.
She finished and went upstairs to collect her current project.It was not lost on her that she spent her little free time knitting blankets for the orphans at the orphanage that Nathaniel had founded.
Almostallhertimewas spent in ways that included Nathaniel Alder, whether or not she included him in her life.
But she knew what it was like to be cold and alone.She’d trekked from Riyel to the Northlands, alone, in the height of winter.
Perhaps not the best decision…but it had led her here.
And she’d been welcomed by Dietrich and Gertrude, and she’d found her place here.
But she wouldn’t wish being cold and alone on anyone, and knitting blankets for orphans kept her fingers busy and allowed her the excuse to sit in front of the fire with her cat.
When she went back downstairs, she noticed that the new cat hadn’t eaten any of the food she’d given him.
