“Why the fuck would we do that?” Angelo splutters.
“Because you’re both criminals and this cat could be a witness.”
My husband rolls his eyes at my stupid theory. “He belonged to our CFO, who passed away two nights ago.” Ah, the hospital visit makes sense now.
“Oh, I’m sorry for your loss,” I say automatically.
“He was our CFO, not my father.” Angelo stares at me like I’m an idiot, while Kane mutterspityunder his breath.
“Fine, you gave no fucks about the poor man who died.” I glare at my husband before gasping. “Oh god, I hope you didn’t murder him!”
It’s not beyond the realm of possibility because we all know my husband is no angel. If the dead man did something bad, he might have paid the ultimate price. But Angelo rolls his eyes.
“Ronald suffered a fatal heart attack, princess. His death is a major hassle for us since he was in the middle of auditing our accounts.”
My jaw drops in shock. “Wow, such empathy.”
From the way a vein throbs in his temple, my husband’s on the verge of losing his shit with me.Again. Reluctantly deciding that acting like a judgmental bitch is bad for the cat, I smile serenely.
A poor orphaned kitty deserves a calm, happy home, not a dysfunctional one where Mommy and Daddy want to stab each other.
“So this was the man’s cat?”
“Yeah. We went to check on his house and found the cat home alone,” Kane explains. “The neighbor refused to take him, so we brought him here.”
“I’m surprised you didn’t drop him off at the nearest shelter.” It turns out playing nice is harder than I thought.
“Angelo thought you might like him.” I blink, genuinely surprised my husband had a selfless impulse, but I resist the urge to say so.
“I would love to take this pretty little kitty,” I coo some more at the cat, who has settled in his carrier. “Have you picked up food and a litter box?” My gaze flits between Angelo and Kane, but my husband has lost interest in our new family member and is too busy stabbing his phone to bother replying.
As Kane nods, Angelo stalks away without a backward glance.
“He spent a fortune at the pet store,” Kane informs me with a grin. “Insisted on the best of everything.”
Color me shocked. “What’s the cat’s name?”
“Felix.”
I carry the pet carrier upstairs to my room while murmuring nonsense to the cat. Kane appears a few minutes later, loaded up with cat supplies. He gets the litter box ready while I scoop some food into a bowl and fill a cat fountain with water.
My new buddy has resumed yowling, but I’m hopeful he’ll calm down soon.
“Enjoy your new friend!” Kane saunters off whistling. When the door shuts, I open the cat carrier. Felix stalks out and surveys his new temporary kingdom like he owns the place, and I sigh.
Leaving is going to be impossible now that I’ve adopted a cat.
Was this Angelo’s plan all along? If so, he’s way more manipulative than I gave him credit for.
Angelo returns alone the following day. I’m busy making myself a sandwich after spending the morning cuddling Felix, who’s now fast asleep on my bed, even though he has a luxe cat bed of his own.
“Is the cat alright?” he asks while I spread mayo on one side of the bread.
“Do you care?” I don’t bother looking up to check his reaction.
“I’m not a monster, Chiara,” he huffs irritably.
“Debatable.” The weight of his glare sits heavy on my shoulders as I layer turkey breast and swiss cheese with pickles and sliced tomatoes. A final dollop of French mustard and my snack is complete.
