She had to get the cats home and settled.
But of course he said no.
“Look you have to eat, I have to eat, and we have to talk to Esther.So… I suggest you put the cats in the back room and leave them for a bit.They will be fine.There’s only Charlotte there right now.Rhett is in the suite with Tilly.Besides, the special is seafood fettucine, and I know how you adore pasta.”
Her stomach clenched at the idea of food and before it growled out loud, she agreed.“You’ve convinced me.”And within fifteen minutes they were settling into a table by the window, a table that was fast becoming their table, and Lance left her to order their food from the counter.
“I asked Esther to come by when she gets a minute.”
“Meanwhile, tell me about your day,” she said.
“Well I spent most of my day on the planet Zorad, as you know,” he grinned at her.“And we had a bit of a lunch rush.We also got in a lot of cat related items.Books, cups, a few t-shirts, even some stuffies.I turned the job of ordering for the event over to Pinky and I think she may have gone a little overboard.”
“Pinky is nothing if not enthusiastic and I suspect she could sell sunshine in the desert.”
“Hah!”said Lance.“That’s Pinky all right.I don’t know where Aunt Betty found her or Ahmed, but I am so glad they work at the store.And the kids just love her.”
“She makes it fun.I think she should have been a teacher.She makes story time so special.I’ve been up there to watch her a few times.”She thought of Pinky and wondered how old she was.Somewhere between forty and sixty and always enthusiastic when it came to sharing books with kids.
“She’s tinted the ends of her hair pink this week,” said Lance, shaking his head.
“I bet it looks wonderful.”
“It does suit her,” he said.“And the kids love it.She’s enlisted the help of a face painter for the Pages and Paws event.To paint whiskers and paw prints on the kids.”
“That sounds like great fun.Do we have enough help?”
“Ahmed, Pinky, face painter lady, Zoey is coming over for the day.”He smiled at the thought of his oldest daughter, and she was glad, and a little envious, that they were so close after his divorce.She and Wren used to be like that.What had changed?
And why?
“How is Rosalyn?”asked Lance as he stuck his fork into a piece of roast beef and began to cut it.
“Busy.She has nearly a dozen new cats that had to be rescued from a hoarding situation.Which is why I’m taking home kittens tonight.”
“I wondered.But then I don’t really know enough about how your business is run yet.”He put the piece of beef into his mouth and chewed.
“What we really need in this town is a larger centre for rehabilitating cats.”
“You could do the expansion you’ve mentioned to me before,” he said.“Wouldn’t that work?”
She sighed.“I want to, but the whole idea is daunting.The fundraising.The design.The planning.Part of me just wants to curl up on the couch and another part of me just wants to fly away to Mexico or Bali or somewhere and lie on the beach.”
He put down his fork and knife and looked at her, “what if,” he held up his hand.“Let me say this before you object.”
“What makes you think I’ll object?”
“It involves asking for help,” he said.“And it seems to me that asking for help is one of those things you really dislike doing.”
“What are you proposing?”She choked the words out though she had to admit he was right.She did hate asking for help.Help nearly always disappointed by being either not enough, not the right kind, or withdrawn before it was of any use.
“Well, what I am proposing is this….”He pulled a pen out of his pocket and grabbed a nearby serviette.Then he began sketching a plan and listed what was needed to make it happen.When he was done, he asked.“What do you think?”
“Do you really think this could work?”
“It needs details and as you know that’s where you usually find the objections and obstacles but, yes, I think we can do this if we assemble the right team, and come up with a plan, then manage the plan.”
“But I don’t have the time to manage a contract, especially since it is now kitten season.And to hire a contract manager would be so expensive.”
