“You’re gonna need help with this.”
“She’s a sweetie. There’s no way that she’s gonna be anything but good.”
He snorts and his green eyes dance. “We’ll see.”
I grab the dish soap out of the kitchen and set up the station to wash the kitten. By now, she’s looking a little less happy and when I dip her paws in the water, she growls and hisses and scampers up my arm, her nails digging into my skin.
Hissing in pain, I grab her gently by the scruff of the neck and tuck her into a towel so she can’t claw me anymore.
“Give her to me.” I gently hand her to him and he grins at the outraged cat.
“Okay. We’ll try it this way.” Before I know what he’s doing he grabs the towel off of her and wets it with water and the dish soap. Then he scrubs at her while she wails like he’s either breaking her heart or killing her.
But by the time he’s done, she’s clean and a soft pearl gray. Her mouth opens on another yawn and he wraps her up in another towel to dry.
Then he hands her to me and she purrs softly, her eyes closing as she falls asleep.
Glancing up at him, I smile. “Thank you.”
He shrugs and towels off his wet arms. “No problem. But I better be getting home.”
Before I can second-guess myself, I ask, “You wanna have lunch tomorrow?”
He pauses as he slips his coat back on. His green eyes study me closely. “Are we dating?”
“Fake dating,” I correct him.
He grins and then reaches over, settling his fingers under my chin. He lifts and then his lips brush mine gently. “Goodnight, fiancé.”
“Goodnight, Stone.”
He walks out and I watch him walk out the door. Glancing down at the kitten as it opens its eyes, I smirk. “You ready for some food there, sweetie?”
She meows like her stomach’s been cut. And then she wriggles until I almost drop her.
I carry her out to the living room and then set her on the floor, setting up her litter box and showing her where it is. She scratches at it and then squats to pee.
Grinning, I grab a can of kitten food. “I told him you were too smart not to know what to do!”
And then I set her up with her little plate of food and settle on the couch watching the little thing eating hungrily and feeling more at home than I’ve felt in a long time.
CHAPTER 9
Stone
“Picked the best seat in the place, huh?”
I’m not surprised when I see the kitten peeking out of her pocket. Everyone around here has a soft spot for defenseless animals.
“Did you order?” I ask, sitting down and trying hard not to stare at her. She’s so damn pretty. And she doesn’t even seem aware of it.
She’s a precious jewel in a sea of lesser gems. At least to me. The waitress pops up and smiles at me. “Hey, Stone. What can I get you?”
She leans over and I sigh, not really surprised when she essentially flashes her boobs at me. It’s happened before.
“Did you order, Posy?”
She shakes her head and her cheeks flush, her stormy eyes downcast.
