Текст книги "The Taming of the Billionaire"

Автор книги: Jessica Clare

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His gaze focused on her face. “Something tells me it all isn’t about the cat, is it?”

Psychoanalysis? From him? Please. She gave him an irritated look.

He ignored her withering expression and put his arms out. “Can I hold it?”

“Do you even know how?”

“It’s a cat, not a porcupine. I’m sure I can figure out the basics.”

“You’ll let her get away.” She leveled him an unhappy look. “I can’t chase her down if you let her get away.”

“She won’t go anywhere. And I’ve been practicing my cat mojo with Lady Cujo.” He winked at her. “Got her purring at the touch of my fingers.”

“It’s a cat, not a hooker,” she sniped at him. “Don’t make it sound so lewd.”

He clutched his chest with a mock-shocked look. “You’re just jealous that I’m talking about her and not you.”

Edie rolled her eyes at him. “I’m not jealous of a cat.”

“Then let me hold that one.”

And because she couldn’t think of a good reason to deny him, and because Peggy was watching her closely, she lifted the cat toward him so he could take it.

Magnus took the cat from her with gentle hands and cradled it against his chest, scratching its back idly. He gave her a triumphant look as if to say See? Which made her just shake her head, biting back a smile. Then he nodded at her. “Looks like you only gave me half the cat.”

She looked down at her black sweater and groaned. White long-haired cat plus black sweater meant tons of cat hair. “It’s a look I’m used to,” she admitted, plucking at a few of the worst tufts. “And it’s a look you’d better get used to if you’re going to keep holding Purrletta.”

“Purrletta?”

“That’s what I’m going to name her.”

“That’s a terrible damn name.” He leaned in to the cat. “She’s going to torture you with that name, isn’t she?”

The cat simply lifted her chin and he obligingly scratched it as the cat settled into his lap as if she were born there.

Traitor. Edie crossed her arms over her chest, half out of annoyance, and half to hide the cat hair on her sweater. “So what would you call her, then?”

He thought for a moment. “You know who was a blind badass? Daredevil.”

“It’s a girl cat.”

“Lady Daredevil, then.”

“It’s a white, fluffy girl cat,” she felt the need to point out.

He just kept petting the cat’s head, and the cat seemed to be eating it up, the little minx. “Which is why they’ll never see her badassery coming.” He scratched the side of the cat’s face. “She’ll be like a ninja.”

The thought of a blind, fluffy Persian having any kind of badassery or ninja moves made her lips twitch with amusement. “A ninja, huh?”

Magnus looked over at her, and amusement was etched into his features. “No? She can be whatever she wants to be. Just don’t tell her otherwise.” He made a motion to cover the cat’s ears up.

And Edie couldn’t help it—she laughed at that. “I’m starting to see where all your creativity comes from.”

“I told you, I’m not the creative one. That’s Levi.”

“And I told you, I’m not sure I believe that.” She gestured at him with the cat in his arms. “Any man that can make a ninja out of that cat is more creative than most people.”

“Lady Daredevil just needs someone to believe in her,” he said, stroking the cat’s head. “So are you really going to take her home with you?”

“Well, I’m certainly not sending her back to the shelter.”

He nodded and handed her back carefully. “Can you get away for a bit? I thought we might grab a deep-fried chocolate bar and chat a bit.”

She hesitated, glancing over at Peggy. At Peggy’s nod and beaming approval, Edie slipped the Persian cat back into her cage. “Only for a little bit, though. I’m needed to help man the booth.”

“Of course,” Magnus said solemnly. “I know there are people completely lining up to rescue these poor cats.”

“All right, all right,” she said testily. “No need to be a dick about it.” She grabbed her purse, gave her sweater a futile brush with her fingers, and then stepped out from the booth with him. “Deep-fried chocolate bars, huh?”

“Yeah, I figure if you’re going to go for fair food, you might as well go all in.” Magnus rubbed his hands boyishly. “News is that they have funnel cake here, too.”

“They do,” she agreed, and when he offered her his arm, she took it reluctantly. “This is feeling suspiciously like a date.”

“Is that such a terrible thing?”

“I told you I didn’t want to date you.”

“No, you didn’t,” he said easily. She noticed he kept his steps slow to match her pace. “You told me you were unavailable today. You didn’t say anything about not wanting to date me.”

“I should have clarified, then.”

“Or you could stop lying to yourself,” he continued, as if she wasn’t protesting his presence with her. Instead, he pointed at a food truck parked along a nearby street. “You want to eat a deep-fried chocolate bar with me?”

Damn it, she kind of did. Any time she mentioned something like that to Bianca, her sister gave a little sniff and commented about the calories, so Edie never tried it. “I guess,” she said, trying to sound reluctant.

He just grinned at her with that boyish look again and led them to the truck. Little red-and-white-checked paper boats were handed to them as Magnus paid, and Edie gave her chocolate bar a curious look. It resembled a corn dog peppered with powdered sugar. The smell was entirely different. “This is ominous.”

“This is delicious,” Magnus corrected, and took a huge bite out of his. Powdered sugar puffed and covered his face, and then his expression changed from pleased to startled.

“What is it?” she asked, curious.

He worked his mouth for a minute, then murmured, “I fhink it glued my teefh together.”

Edie giggled and took a smaller bite. Sure enough, the concoction was chocolaty and gluey, and her teeth felt like they were molding together, too. But ooh, it was good. She licked her fingers and swallowed, then grimaced. “Drink?”

Magnus nodded and they went to the next truck to get a drink. A few moments later, they both had cider, and when they finished their chocolate bars, Magnus insisted on caramel apples. That was how the afternoon went—they visited food truck to food truck, trying a little bit of everything and laughing as they did.

***

In his pocket, Magnus’s phone vibrated with an incoming text. He ignored it, focused on the bright-eyed woman at his side sipping a cup of hot cider. Even though her clothes were covered in cat hair, she looked good enough to eat, the apples of her cheeks bright with the chill of the weather, her mouth naturally pink and smiling. She’d gone bite for bite with him on every disgusting thing they could get from the vendor trucks, from Scotch eggs to turkey legs to corn on the cob to funnel cakes, candy, and now a drink. She wasn’t prissy about any of it, and when they’d played a few of the midway games, she’d heckled him fiercely when he lost.

Even though he’d been reluctant as hell to participate in Levi’s stupid mind games today, the moment he’d seen Edie at the booth, a scowl on her face as people walked past, her arms full of long-haired cat, he’d been irresistibly drawn toward her again.

Levi’s instructions were for Magnus to distract her for a few hours. Then, Levi swore he’d work on at least the Huns. Maybe the scripts for Hyksos invaders. Maybe. Magnus knew he was being taken for a ride by his lovesick brother, but what were his options? Levi was the creative mind. Magnus needed him. So he had to dance to his brother’s tune, no matter how irritating it was.

“I’m going to run to the restroom,” Edie said, pointing at one nearby. “Can you hold my drink?”

Magnus nodded absently and took the cider from her, watching her move as she blended into the crowd. Well, not blended exactly. Her movements set her apart, as always. He watched her until she disappeared, then juggled the drinks in his arms, freeing a hand. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and checked the screen.

I need more time with Bianca tonight. Can you stall?

Could he stall? What the fuck was he supposed to do? Kidnap Edie and play charades? Drag her kicking and screaming to an all-day movie marathon? Even as he was filled with irritation for his brother, he actually didn’t hate the idea of spending more time with Edie. Her constant verbal jabs kept his mind going, and their sparring was fun . . . and a bit arousing. He liked that she never backed down.

Maybe he could figure out a way to get a few more hours in with Edie after all.

***

As they walked and ate, they admired local vendor stalls, from knitted hats to handmade puppets. The Harvest Festival was more of a craft fair put on by Edie’s small town every fall, and so there wasn’t much exciting other than food and homemade goods. But Edie enjoyed herself just the same. And as they wandered, any time she showed an interest in something . . . Magnus automatically bought it. By the time the sun began to set, she was wearing a ridiculous hat, hand warmers, had a jar of homemade pickle jelly, three kinds of bath soaps, a puppet, and a stomachache from all the junk food.

She’d also had a wonderful time. It was so relaxing to just be silly and think about nothing but what was in the next food cart. She also loved that Magnus was willing to try anything, and she’d dared him on more than one occasion to eat something that sounded completely toxic. By the time they got back to the shelter booth, Edie was laughing and tired. Her leg throbbed like the dickens and she was wiped but she’d had fun despite herself.

Her guilt resurfaced when she saw Peggy’s truck pulled up by the booth, and Peggy putting away the last of the cages. She hurried forward, releasing Magnus’s arm (that she might have been clutching all afternoon) and rushed to help her put away the last few. “I’m so sorry! I should have been here to help!”

“No, it’s perfectly all right,” Peggy said with a pat on Edie’s shoulder. She brightened. “Actually, while you were gone, we managed to adopt all of the cats except one!”

“You . . . did?” Edie was dumbfounded. “Really?”

“Yep! It was wonderful.”

Magnus leaned in behind Edie. “It’s because you weren’t scowling at everyone,” he mock-whispered.

She elbowed him and focused on Peggy. “So which cat is left?”

“The Persian,” Peggy said, smiling. She pulled out the cage and hefted it for Edie to see. Sure enough, there was that sad, smooshed face surrounded by all that white fur. “Back to the shelter with her.”

Edie suppressed a shudder at that poor, sweet cat returning to those cold metal cages. “Actually I want to take her home with me—”

“I’ll take her,” Magnus said, interrupting Edie.

“You will?” Peggy’s face lit up as if she’d been given a gift. “Truly?”

Edie frowned at him. “You already have one cat you barely know how to handle, dude. I’m not sure a second one will be the answer. You—”

“You can come by and help her settle in,” Magnus said, grinning. He reached over and plucked the Persian cat’s cage out of Peggy’s hands.

“But . . . what about your other cat? You can’t just throw them together!”

“I’ll keep Lady Daredevil in the office until they’re ready to interact.” He wiggled a finger at the cage. “I know you said you always have room for another, but I’m guessing your sister will bitch, right?”

He had a point. “Well . . .”

“And you don’t want her to go back to the shelter, right?”

Edie licked her lips, hesitating. She didn’t want the cat to go back to the shelter, no. But she couldn’t help but feel like there was an ulterior motive here. Like if she gave in, things were going to suddenly go out of control. “I guess not.”

“Then I’ll take her home with me,” Magnus said. “I like her.”

“If you’re sure . . . Getting a cat is a big commitment,” Edie said. “And this is number two in a week. I just don’t know—”

“I need to go,” Peggy said. “You two figure it out.” She shut the tailgate of her truck and moved to the front. “Thanks for volunteering, Edie.”

“Sure,” Edie said lamely, and then Peggy drove off. Now it was just her and Magnus and the cat. She glanced around awkwardly, watching vendors pack up their booths and people heading back to their cars. “I don’t suppose you’ve seen Bianca anywhere, have you?”

“Nope,” he said, looking rather pleased at that. “You need a ride home?”

“I’ll just text her,” Edie said, pulling out her phone.

“Before you do, you wanna come to my place?” Magnus held up the cage and gave her his most winning smile. “Help me tuck Lady Daredevil into her new house?”

Chapter Seven

Did a gorgeous man just ask her to have an adult sleepover? Edie hesitated. “It’s a bit of a long drive.”

“A few hours. Not so bad when you have good company.” When she arched a brow, he held up the cat cage. “I refer to feline company, of course.”

“Of course,” she said, smiling. He was hard to resist when he was like this, all playfulness and fun. “But I really can’t. It’ll be too late at night to drive back—”

“Then stay at my place,” Magnus offered. “Like I said, you can help me settle the cat in, and you can check on Lady Cujo.”

“And have a sleepover in your bed?” she mocked. “I don’t think so.”

“You can sleep on the couch.”

“I saw your couch. It’s shaped like a pair of lips.”

“Then I’ll sleep on the couch. Come on. Just as friends.” His expression didn’t seem to be that of a lecherous seducer. “We’ll settle the cats in, have a couple of beers, play some video games, and shoot the shit. Think of it as a sleepover, minus the hair braiding. Don’t girls like those sorts of things?”

It was the most ridiculous thing she’d heard of. She shouldn’t go. She really shouldn’t . . . but at the same time, she wanted to make sure the cats settled in well. This would just be an extension of her job, wouldn’t it? As a good cat behaviorist?

Oh, who was she kidding? A hot guy with forkloads of money was asking her to come hang out for the evening. Even in a platonic sense, it was a date. And she kind of hated herself for being so weak, but she wanted to go.

But still¸ Edie hesitated. She reached through the cage and scratched at Lady Daredevil’s ear. “I don’t have a change of clothes.”

“You can sleep in something of mine.”

“I have to be back at my house at noon.” The cats would need their meds and it was an easy out for her.

“I’ll have my driver come and pick you up first thing in the morning. Any other excuses?”

He made it sound so innocent, but she knew Bianca would have a fit. This wouldn’t work with Bianca’s utterly careful plan on how to manipulate a man. And that decided it for Edie. Because it had been so nice to be so utterly carefree for a few hours that afternoon that she wanted it to continue on into the night. “All right.”

“Excellent,” Magnus said, and gave her another one of those face-splitting grins.

“Let me text my sister before we go,” Edie said. She pulled out her phone and quickly sent Bianca a message. Hey. Going with a friend to a movie & to play some cards. Back super late, don’t wait up. XOXO.

So it was a tiny white lie. It wouldn’t hurt anything. Once Bianca heard cards she’d run for the hills. She hated Edie’s friends and thought they were boring.

Bianca’s response was immediate and brief. K.

Whew. No questions asked. All right. She was really doing this, then. Edie gave Magnus a nervous smile. “Good to go. Where’s your car?”

He gestured. “Driver should be somewhere over there.”

“Driver, huh?” She looked askance at Magnus as he moved to walk next to her, cat between them. The poor thing gave a confused meow and settled at the back of the cage. “You made a driver wait on you while you went and had fun at the festival?”

Magnus shrugged. “He’s paid to wait on me. Paid really well, I might add. And he could have had a corn dog if he wanted one.” Magnus paused and held out the cage. “Can you hold this for a moment?”

She took it and watched silently as Magnus texted for a moment, scanned the parking lot, and then texted again. Then he took the cat back from Edie and they both stood there awkwardly while they waited on the car.

It pulled up a moment later, a black sedan with tinted windows. A driver got out and, as he did, Magnus offered him the cat carrier. “Put this in the passenger seat, please.”

“Of course, Mr. Sullivan,” the driver said. He barely glanced at Edie, and gave her a nod, then opened the door for her.

She wondered if he saw Magnus take a lot of women home. Then she decided it didn’t matter, because this was about the cats more than anything else. Right? Right. So she got in the back of the car and winced as she slid over, the action hurting her knee.

The back seat was more cramped than she cared for. A normal person could fold their legs and have plenty of room, but Edie needed to stretch her leg, especially after today. Even as she sat, her muscles screamed. She clenched her hands tightly in her lap, determined to ignore it as Magnus slid into the back seat next to her.

Moments passed, the car pulled out of the parking lot and onto the road, and all was silent except for the occasional confused yowl of Lady Daredevil. After what felt like an eternity, the driver glanced in the rearview mirror. “I’m going to shut the partition and give you privacy, if that’s all right.”

“Thank you, Reynolds,” Magnus said, and wagged his eyebrows at Edie.

She didn’t laugh. She was too busy resisting the urge to slam her leg straight out and massage her knee.

He must have noticed her tension. A frown creased his face. “You okay?”

She nodded tightly. “Just tired.” Edie forced a smile to her face. “I had a good time, though. And I think you’re really going to like the cat. She’s such a sweetheart, I—”

“Edie,” Magnus said in a low voice, and goose bumps flicked over her skin. “You’re pale. Is it your knee?”

She tried to shrug it off, and then winced. Damn it, she hated feeling like an invalid. “I just need to stretch it a bit, that’s all.”

“Why didn’t you say so?” He leaned back and then patted his knee. “Put your leg up here.” At her hesitation, he gave her an exasperated look. “I’m not going to fondle your damn knee, Edie. I’m just trying to help you out.”

Reluctant, she slowly stretched her leg and placed it over his knee. The muscles were screaming in protest, and her breath hissed out from between her teeth.

“Does rubbing it help?” he asked.

“A little. I should—” she leaned in to massage her leg.

He batted her hand away and placed his big one on her knee, rubbing gently. Pain flared, and then slowly began to ebb. She leaned against the car seat sideways, some of her tension easing. Edie closed her eyes. “Mmm, thank you.”

“Feel better?” His hand kept moving over her knee, gently kneading the overworked muscles around her old injury.

“Much, thank you.” The touch of his hand on her leg was soothing. Relaxing. She’d forgotten how nice it was to be touched by someone else like that.

“So,” Magnus said, sliding his fingers along the side of her knee. “Can I be nosy?”

“As long as you keep rubbing, yes.”

“How’d you hurt your knee?”

Of course he’d ask. It was obvious that she’d injured it—that was clear in every step she took. He was bound to be curious. “Skiing accident. I T-boned into a tree. My leg went one way and I went the other. I nearly severed it in the fall.”

“Sounds nasty.”

“It was.” She kept her eyes closed, her tone light. Even now, though, she could still see the tree rushing up on her, the slam of the wood and the intense pain. Drake screaming her name. Ambulances. Surgeries. Recovery. Drake finding that they had a lot less in common now that she was a couch potato on a crutch and couldn’t jog or mountain climb or run marathons or any of the things they used to enjoy doing together. She dropped all of her college classes in kinesiology and focused on animal behavior instead, since she couldn’t become a personal trainer or a phys-ed teacher, not when it was painful to walk. She’d started collecting cats, instead.

And she’d started letting Bianca do all the difficult shit for her. Bianca, whose goal in life was to become a Trophy Wife, and who didn’t like to plan further than what colors would be “in” for fall.

“Don’t like to talk about it?”

“Not much,” she admitted. “I had three reconstructive surgeries and the thing still hurts me every damn day. If I think about it too much, I feel like it takes over my life.”

“I get that,” Magnus said, but his fingers kept massaging. “I won’t pry.”

“Thanks,” she said softly, relaxing under his touch. A yawn escaped her and she grimaced. “I might have to keep my leg in your lap for the next few hours while we drive back.”

“I don’t mind,” he said. “Why don’t you relax and take a quick nap or something?”

Edie gave him a suspicious look, but when he pulled out his phone and began to flip through it, his other hand rubbing her stretched-out leg as if it were the most normal thing in the world, she closed her eyes again.

The next thing she knew, Magnus was patting her leg. “We’re here. Wake up.”

She started awake with a jerk, running a surreptitious hand along her mouth to make sure she wasn’t drooling. “Did I sleep the whole time?”

“You did,” Magnus said. “Which was okay. You must have been pretty damn tired.”

“I’m so sorry,” Edie said, sliding out of the car after him awkwardly. “I usually never sleep in the car. I—”

“It’s fine,” Magnus said, offering her a hand as he stepped out onto the curb. “You almost kicked me in the balls twice, but no harm no foul.”

She smothered a laugh at that, and took his hand to get to her feet. The sidewalk still had people on it despite the late hour, and the city was lit up so brightly that it was a wonder she’d slept at all. She rubbed her eyes as Magnus took the cat carrier and headed for the door to his place.

“Hold her while I unlock?” he asked, and Edie took the cage. She watched as he undid the locks and then typed in the alarm code, disabling it. Then he took the cat from her and ushered her into his strange house once more. She was starting to get used to the stark appearance of the place, which was kind of amusing, Edie thought as she stepped inside and set down her purse.

“Why don’t you put on a pot of coffee while I take Lady Daredevil here up to the fourth floor and get her settled into my office?”

“All right,” Edie said. “Don’t forget cat litter and food for her. She’s probably hungry and needs to use the bathroom.”

“Got it,” Magnus said, his voice disappearing as he clomped up the stairs. “Be right back.”

She crossed the massive room to the kitchen area, poking around in cabinets and looking for coffee mugs. Unlike everything else in the house, the mugs were a nice normal shape, and she set up the pot of coffee. And then because she was nosy and he still wasn’t back, she continued to poke around, examining the contents of the fridge and pantry. Lots of chips in the pantry, lots of sodas, and the fridge was empty of everything but beer, leftovers, and condiments. Typical guys.

She poured two mugs and waited, sitting at one of the counter stools. Just as she was taking her first sip of coffee, Magnus came jogging down the stairs. She appreciated the way he moved. It was kind of funny to think about admiring the way someone took the stairs, but Magnus went down them like an athlete, hands clenched as if he were about to do a set of reps, body flexing.

Yeah, she could pretty much watch that for hours.

He bounded down the last steps and crossed the big, open floor toward her. “Got the coffee?”

She held up the mug she was drinking from.

“Excellent.” He rubbed his hands together and moved toward her. As he did, she set the mug on the bar next to her and he sat down on the stool beside her own. He picked up his cup, chugged it, and then set it down with a flourish. “Good coffee.”

Edie blinked at him. “How would you know? You barely tasted it.”

Magnus just grinned and tipped the mug back to finish his drink. “I’m not one for lounging around and savoring. I prefer to get shit done and done fast.”

“Maybe that’s why you’re single,” she couldn’t resist jibing back.

His eyes widened, and then he gave her a speculative look. “Only with coffee, Edie. Only with coffee.”

Annnnd now she couldn’t finish her coffee. Blushing, she put it aside. “So how is Lady Daredevil settling in?”

He gestured at the stairs, all energy. “You want to go up and see her? I got the litter and the food set up, but she seems scared.”

Edie nodded. She slid off her stool and went around the long bar to take her mug to the sink.

They headed up the four sets of stairs to Magnus’s office, and Edie’s leg protested the entire time. By the time they got to the top of the stairs, her knee was throbbing a reminder that she wasn’t supposed to do those kinds of things to it, and she tried to hide her limp as they walked, remembering his ease as he went up and down the stairs. It sucked to be her sometimes.

The office was just as she remembered it, all sterile neatness on Magnus’s side, and all chaos on Levi’s. Papers were strewn about on Levi’s desk and the small garbage can under his desk overflowed with more wadded notes. Other than the two desks and a file cabinet, there wasn’t much to recommend this room as a haven for a frightened blind cat.

“Perhaps we should have started with a smaller room, like with your bathroom,” Edie commented, searching the room for Lady Daredevil. She found her huddled by the file cabinet, pressed against the wall. She moved closer and squatted, ignoring the screaming pain in her knee, and clucked gently at the cat, outstretching her fingers.

“Can we just stick her in with Lady Cujo?” Magnus asked, coming up behind her.

“Not right away,” Edie told him. “Cats are territorial so they’d fight, and I imagine Lady D here is having to go through enough trauma at the moment.”

“Should we move her, then?”

Edie nodded. “Why don’t you sit here and hold her so she can learn your scent and I can move the litter and the food into your bathroom?”

“Why don’t I move the litter and you comfort the cat?”

She frowned. “Because she’s supposed to learn your scent if she’s going to be your cat. Scent’s very important to a blind cat. I . . .” Her voice died as he began to strip his shirt off. She got to her feet, staring. “Wh-what are you doing?”

“You can wear my scent,” he said, shrugging his button up shirt off and handing it to her. That left him in nothing but a tight-fitting tank top that showed off sculpted muscles.

Oh dear sweet lord. Wasn’t the man supposed to be a video game nerd? How was it that he was built like this? She tried not to stare, even as she clutched the shirt he handed her.

“You need help putting that on?” he teased. “I’d be happy to help you with your clothes.”

“Huh? No, I’m cool.” She shrugged it on over her own shirt, and immediately the scent of his aftershave enveloped her. Oh, damn. He smelled so good.

This was so unfair.

“You look good in my things,” he said with a grin, reaching out and straightening the collar. The action brought him close to her, and she gazed up into his handsome face. His fingers brushed against her neck, and for a moment, she thought he was going to lean in and kiss her. Press his lips to hers and claim her mouth . . .

Nope. He winked and sauntered away, and she watched his tight ass as he left the room.

So, so unfair. Wrapping his shirt around her body, she moved to sit next to Lady Daredevil again. The cat hunched its body and gave a small hiss, and it took Edie a few minutes to calm her down again, then eventually pulled her back into her lap.

By the time Magnus returned to the office, Edie was curled up on the floor with the cat tucked against her front, purring and relaxed. He’d taken longer than she’d thought. “Everything okay?”

“Just setting up things for our newest resident,” he said, and she couldn’t help but watch as he moved forward to take the cat from her. He cradled the fluffy Persian in one arm and offered his free hand to her to help her up from the floor, and Edie was surprised at how easily he hefted her up.

“Thanks,” she murmured, and dusted some of the stray cat hair off her clothes as she followed behind him. Down the stairs and into his room, and when he opened the door, she was surprised (and pleased) to see Lady Cujo curled up on his bed, as if she owned the place. “I see someone’s made herself at home.”

“Yep,” said Magnus as he headed for the adjoining bathroom. “So far, so good. We’ll get this one settled in, too, don’t you worry.”

She followed him into the bathroom, well aware at how intimate the moment felt. Bathrooms were private sorts of rooms, because you knew how organized or clean a man was by the state of his towels and the ring around his bathtub. Magnus, she was happy to see, had a clean, claw-footed tub with a nice fluffy cream-colored towel hanging from a hook nearby. Inspection: passed. Not that she was inspecting him, of course.

There was a thick, shaggy bath rug on the tile floor, and in one corner next to the toilet, he’d set up the cat litter. On the other side, food and water bowls were laid out. Against the opposite wall, Magnus set up several boxes with additional towels for the cat to hang out in.

Magnus sat down on the floor and curled his legs underneath him, still cradling the cat in his arms. Since he looked as if he was settling in, Edie sat down, too, stretching out her bad leg.

They hung out in silence for a bit, watching as Magnus set down the cat and Lady Daredevil explored tentatively. She moved a couple of feet, then returned to Magnus and rubbed her head against his leg, demanding more attention. Edie’s heart gave a little squeeze when he chuckled and picked up the cat, pulling her back into his lap and petting her again. “She’s a little monster for attention, isn’t she?”

“She probably hasn’t had any in a long time,” Edie said softly.

He scratched under the cat’s fuzzy chin. “Don’t say things like that. You’ll break my manly heart.”

“It’s just the reality of shelter cats. Some zoom out the door right away and some never find another home. They’re too old, or not cute enough, or they’re unfriendly when someone shows up to adopt a cat, and it’s a death sentence for them.”

“And so you try to rescue them?” he asked.

“Just because they’re flawed doesn’t mean they don’t deserve love.”

“No one ever debated that,” Magnus said. His fingers rubbed one side of the cat’s whiskers and Lady D closed her eyes, clearly in bliss. “I think I’m pretty good at this cat-owner thing.”