“Well, I’m volunteering. Today I’m volun-told-ing.” She danced a little in her seat. “They told me to figure this out. And I knew just the person to ask.”
“Whatchagot?” Em asked, leaning in to get a better look.
“Well, you are a graphic artist and I need a logo for a local cat rescue.” Barbie blinked her mascaraed lashes like she had a secret. “I need something unique andsupercute.”
When Em went to art school against her parents’ wishes, she’d hoped to break out as a children’s book illustrator and prove everyone wrong. She could be successful doing what she loved.
That hadn’t gone to plan. Much like her life in general, actually.
She’d proven them pretty correct, unfortunately.
But Barbie knew about that history. Had a front-row seat to Em’s decision to go to art school.
“I can do a logo, sure, but I mean, I have other work to do.” She gestured to her laptop, though Barbie probably didn’t really care about what she worked on. It’s not like it was a fire truck, something seriously interesting to look at that got everyone excited.
“Oh, c’mon. Freelance?” Barbie asked, again with the heavy blinking. “I need you.”
Those were the magic words, weren’t they?
“Let me see what you need.” Em took the piece of paper with a stick figure sketch on it.
Worst case, she’d have to say no. Best case, she’d get a reprieve from her current drag-and-drop.
Barbie tossed her hands in the air. “Okay, it’s called Kitty’s Cat House and—”
“Hold up.” Emmaline squared her shoulders. “A cat house?”
Because there was only the one kind, right? The Vegas electrical tape on breasts kind? Yes. Definitely. But that wasn’t entirely legal in Colorado. Unless…had things changed since she’d moved away?
But then why would Barbie be volunteering?
“A kitty cat rescue for cats…who need homes.” Barbie tilted her head to the side and studied Emmaline like she’d just lit something else on fire with a sex toy. “The lady who runs it is named Kitty.”
Em closed her eyes and screwed up her face. “I knew that.”
She hadn’t known that.
“We’re a non-profit. We’ve got our tax-exempt status and everything,” Barbie announced.
Actually, doing a little charity work wasn’t a bad idea. It’d give her brain an opportunity to have a little fun without the worry of another full-time gig. Making something super cute sounded like the brain break she needed.
“Okay. I’m going to do this for you,” Em said, because with Barbie involved, there would be nothing mundane about it.
“Yay!” Barbie rat-a-tat-tatted her long pink fingernails on the joggers she paired with heels. “Now here’s what I propose. A little squid toe quota so everyone gets their happy ending.”
“Quid pro quo…?” Because the other thing Barbie had said didn’t make a bit of sense.
“Yep. Tit for tat. You do something for me, and I do something for yo-o-ou.” Barbie sang the last note as she grinned wide.
“Or I could just do it as a donation?” Emmaline suggested.
Barbie made apf-shawsound. “You get something in return, sweet cheeks, I insist.”
“But I don’t need anything. I have you.”
Barbie made a kissy face. “Oh, but there’s still something I really want to give you. It’d be easier if you just agreed to the quo.”
This was going to get interesting. Barbie loved giving extravagant and totally ridiculous gifts. Like the time she hired celebrity impersonators for Fiona’s first birthday party as a surprise—which was funny because the actual celebrities were there. Or the time she sent a life-sized cardboard cut-out of herself to Em, so Em would feel closer to her.
