Page 53 of For the Love of Art

I knew what he was referring to. Don. Heat crept into my cheeks as I thought about my reaction.

“He’ll do good things for the gallery.”

I hated admitting it… again. I also needed to learn to exist in a city where Don did.

“For the hell he’s already put me through, he better be.” Nathan winked at me, and my stomach flipped.

“I’m sorry I was so upset about it.”

“I understand why.” Nathan wet his lips. “Divorce. It can’t be easy.”

“Is that why you never enter relationships?”

The question was out before I could stop it.

“It’s a little more complicated than that,” Nathan said, tapping the side of his beer. “Let’s just say I’ve never seen a functional relationship. To me, they seem like something made up by Harlequin.”

I wanted to ask more, but a small meow caught our attention. We looked down to see Hamburger sitting on the floor between us. I smiled and pulled him up onto the couch. He rubbed his body along my leg before turning his attention to Nathan. He casually strode over and sniffled along him.

“Who is this?”

Nathan scratched between Hamburger’s ears, eliciting a low purr.

“Hamburger.”

“Hamburger?”

I shrugged. “I was eating a hamburger when I saw him, and it just kind of stuck.”

Nathan laughed.

“When did you get him?”

“Not long after I moved here. A lady had a box with cats, and I thought, hey! I’m just depressed enough to buy a cat.”

Nathan furrowed his brows. “You bought a cat because you were depressed.”

“And lonely.”

Nathan didn’t look any more convinced that randomly buying a cat was a good idea.

“It’s New York.”

Still nothing.

“She had a box of cats she didn’t want anymore. He needed a loving home.”

“It doesn’t strike you as odd that a woman sold you a previously used cat she didn’t like?”

“Oh, it struck me as extremely odd,” I admitted. “But look at him! He’s perfect!”

Hamburger had curled up like a donut on Nathan’s lap.

For all his protests about Hamburger, he seemed to enjoy petting him. I titled my head. There was something about watching this handsome man smiling down at my cat.

Nathan drained the rest of his beer, shifting forward to put the empty bottle on my coffee table. Hamburger scampered off him as soon as Nathan’s body pressed against his. Nathan looked a little disappointed but took his newfound freedom as an opportunity to stand up.

“I better get going.”