Duke stiffened, looking to see what had caused my reaction.
A light-cream ceramic cat with big disturbing blue eyes stood probably four feet tall on a table opposite the stairs. His mouth was open, with his tongue painted a soft pink, and his head cocked at just the right angle to be disturbingly creepy.
“What, Fluffy?” Duke asked, motioning to the devil incarnate.
“What is that thing?”
“That’s their pet cat.”
“Holy crap.”
“Do you need another shower?” Duke asked.
I elbowed him.
“How dare you. My sweet grandmother made that thing out of love for all of her family to enjoy.”
“You do not enjoy that thing. Look at its eyes.”
“Before she turned into a wood master, my grandma made dolls and scary cats out of porcelain.”
My hands flew to my mouth. “She has dolls?”
“Cabinets full of them,” he whispered, eyes big and serious.
I smacked his shoulder and moved past him, giving the cat a wide berth as I passed, ignoring the deep sound of Duke’s chuckle.
* * *
“You kids seeany snakes out there?” Bart’s voice from the rocking chair on the front porch greeted us as we stepped outside, my purse and laptop bag in hand, along with a slew of ideas for creating a logo, business name, and website for Bart and Birdie.
At his statement, I sent a scathing look Duke’s way. “What?”
He just smiled and continued on toward the truck. “Nora thinks she felt one, but we never saw any.”
“You told me there weren’t snakes in the pond.”
Bart chuckled in his rocker. He was eating an ice cream bar in his overalls, the squeak of his rocker creating a picture I’d never forget in a million years.
Birdie rocked next to him, an ice cream sandwich in her hand. “There are snakes all over that pond. Consider yourself lucky if you didn’t see one.”
Before I could scold Duke, he leaned down and gave his grandma a big hug goodbye, melting my heart into a puddle. She squeezed him tight, giving him a kiss on his cheek and leaving the faintest smudge of lipstick across his skin. I hugged Bart, surprised when I felt his whiskery lips on my cheek in a sweet kiss.
“It was a pleasure to meet you. Next time, come here as Duke’s girlfriend.” He nudged my arm. “Or at least make it official.” Duke’s low chuckle gave me the confidence to laugh off my embarrassment. “And will you make sure Duke comes and visits us more than every six months?” he added.
“You came down to visit my parents three weeks ago. I saw you then, old man.” Duke leaned down to hug his grandpa affectionately.
“Well, it feels like a long time ago.”
I leaned down to embrace Birdie, taking one last whiff of her floral scent. “I wish I could have chatted more with you,” I told her honestly.
She patted my cheeks affectionately. “Same, dear. You come on back with Dukie next time.”
“I’ll bring her,” Duke said. I ignored the tiny shiver that ran down my spine at those words.
“Dukie?” I whispered as he nudged me toward his truck.
“You are never to repeat that.”
