I inched farther up into his hold. “Oh my God, there’s another one. There’s another one!”
I couldn’t see him, but I could hear the smile in his voice. “They are harmless, Sport.”
“It chased me.”
“That’s because you ran from her, screamed, and scared her.”
Elio stepped to the side, his arms still strong around me. I watched as the ginger cat came behind the black one, watching us too.
Surprisingly, the black cat—Mimi—had stopped growling, but it still watched us as Elio moved toward the kitchen until we were completely out of sight of both cats.
I released the breath I’d been holding, willing the pace of my heart to calm.
“Am I free to let you go now?” Elio asked.
I cleared my throat, releasing my hold on him as I managed a slight nod, unable to meet his gaze when he settled me atop the kitchen counter, his focus entirely on my face.
Pressing my lips together, I succumbed, and looked at him because I wanted to get the shame over with once and for all. “What? You don’t have your own embarrassing fears?”
“If I have an embarrassing fear, I am yet to be acquainted with it.”
“Yeah, whatever. I’m only human.”
“A human who fears cats.”
“So do a lot of people in the fucking world; get over it. And it’s not like I fear-fearthem. It’s just—they’re too soft, and there’s just something about their eyes and—and how they just look at you like they can see your fucking soul. This one scared me; that’s why I ran. Otherwise, I stay clear, even if I’m in the same environment as them.”
Elio nodded. “Good to know. I will make note of that,” he said. “Although, I must admit, seeing you in that state was amusing.”
“I know you get pleasure from my suffering; that’s an unspoken fact.”
He nodded. “Yes. I do derive pleasure from your suffering,” he agreed with a serious expression. “But this particular action of yours was pretty entertaining and cute. I never thought I would associate you with that word.”
I blinked at him and opened my mouth to supply a comeback, but nothing came out, so I just sat there and squirmed.
“You said you wanted coffee?” he asked.
“Yeah, I did, but this little incident has done the job. I’m wide awake.”
“I see,” he stated. “Would you still like me to make you one?”
I raised a brow at him and laughed. “You know how to make coffee?”
“Yes,” he said, and he didn’t appreciate my underestimating him. “I do.”
“Okay… sure, go ahead.”
He turned to the coffeemaker, and I saw the ginger cat approach, leaning against the wall while it licked its fur.
“Is there any other animal you do not like?” Elio asked as he worked his way around the coffee machine.
“No… I don’t know; I haven’t seen a lot.”
“Hm.”
“What about you?” I asked, watching his back muscles work as he placed my mug under the coffeemaker.
“I haven’t seen a lot either. But I suppose I would neither like nor hate them if I saw them. It is always neutral with me.”
