Charlie turns on her phone’s flashlight. “The landlord didn’t install any. He said it wasn’t necessary since the customers use the front entrance.”
I’m not sure who her landlord is, but I plan to find out and give them a piece of my mind for putting my wife in unnecessary danger.
Holy shit.
It hits me that we’re legally bound together for better or worse. I’m hoping the better outweighs the worse, though Charlie’s determination to keep her distance may prove to complicate things. I’m prepared to show her how good things could be between us with a little effort. Let’s just hope shedoesn’t smother me with a pillow or take me out in this unlit alley before I get the chance.
“Why don’t you use the front entrance then?” I question.
Charlie slows, navigating around a tall stack of boxes. “There’s a rear door with stairs up to the apartment. I use it so I don’t have to go through the shop after hours.”
“Sounds reckless if you ask me,” I mutter.
“Good thing I didn’t ask,” she fires back.
I clench my hand, resisting the urge to push the issue further. The last thing I need is to fuel her stubbornness and give her a reason to do something reckless, like walking around here alone in the dark.
“If you’re going to keep using the alley, I’m going to install a few—”
Charlie’s sudden shriek cuts me off. The alley goes black as her phone clatters to the ground, and she ducks behind me, fisting my shirt.
“We had a deal, mister. You’d better stay where you are,” she hisses into the void.
I bristle, ready to confront whoever’s been harassing Charlie. I fish my phone out of my pocket and switch the flashlight on as I slide my arm around her waist, tugging her tight against me as I scan the shadows for threats.
Relief hits when I find the alley empty, but I do a double take on my second sweep when I spot a tabby cat perched on a nearby dumpster. Its eyes glow in the flashlight beam before it leaps down and prowls toward us.
“No,” Charlie warns sternly. “Don’t you dare come any closer. You promised.” The cat flicks its ears and keeps coming, paying her no mind.
Charlie lets out a squeak and darts behind me again, using me as a human shield. Meanwhile, the cat drops to its haunches in front of me, rubbing its head against my shin with a loud purr.
I scan the rest of the alley before looking back at the cat. “Just so we’re clear, you’re terrified of the cat and not its scary owner waiting to jump out from behind the dumpsters and murder us, right?” I ask Charlie.
“Hilarious,” she deadpans, inching farther behind me. “I’m allergic, and this furry freeloader showed up at my door begging for scraps. Despite the risk of ballooning up like a pufferfish, I still gave him several cans of tuna. All I asked was that he bother literally anyone else the next time he got hungry.”
I lift my duffel out of the cat’s reach. “And did he?”
“Did he what?”
“Land himself a new meal ticket?”
“Obviously not, since the little gremlin showed up again, determined to send me into anaphylactic shock,” Charlie says, exasperated. “I literally gave him directions to the best scraps in town, but he’s clearly got zero survival skills since he came straight back. Too bad for him, I’m all out of tuna.” I glance over my shoulder just in time to see her stick her tongue out at the cat.
My lips twitch upward. “We’re picking fights with strays now? Noted.”
I swear I can feel her sharpened gaze on me. “Watch it, mister, or you’ll be camping out here with your new buddy. Actually, that’s a brilliant idea since you’re basically a walking fur magnet, and we’d have to incinerate your clothes before you set foot inside.”
I wonder how Charlie handles visiting Birdie at her place with all the kittens she takes in. She’s constantly got a new litter, and I can’t imagine how Charlie manages to avoid an allergic reaction when she’s over there.
Her furry stalker takes advantage of our distraction and zips around me, heading straight for Charlie. I’m pretty sure he just wants affection, but the way Charlie shouts, you’d think he wasstaging a full-scale attack. Thankfully, the shops and restaurants in the area are closed for the night, so no neighbors come running to check on the commotion.
I stand, spinning around just as Charlie desperately dodges the cat and launches herself into my arms. She collides with my chest, her hands locking around my neck and her legs wrapping around my waist.
I’m acutely aware of her soft breasts pressed to my chest and how perfectly she fits against me, clinging tight like I’m the only one who can protect her from the cat swatting at my boots.
“If you wanted to start the honeymoon early, all you had to do was ask,” I taunt.
“You’re supposed to carry me across the threshold. I’m only pointing out your oversight,” Charlie counters with a cheeky smile. “You’re welcome.”
