8. Chapter 8 #2
Rafael sighed. “All right, sorry, it’s snobbish, you’re right.
I just have such grand plans and dreams for you, girl.
But everyone has to start somewhere, or so the cliché goes.
” He clasped my hands, pulling them across the table towards him.
“You’ll be amazing at this, and before you know it, you’ll be running the place. Or, like, starting your own.”
With a playful tilt of my head, I flashed a brilliant smile at him and then Joel. “Oh, heck yes.”
“Bye, Fatima!” I called out to the receptionist while swinging the door open to leave.
I’d just finished teaching a grueling advanced ballet class, and for the second time this week, I felt chastened that I was far more out of breath than the teens in this class.
I was heading home to shower because even though Rafael’s studio had a shower that the teachers and a select few dancers could use, I much preferred bathing in my own home.
Besides, it wasn’t a long walk home, maybe a mile.
I slid my sunglasses over my eyes and felt an ache in my legs, so I stopped to do a quick quad stretch.
Once I started walking in the direction of home, my mind started drifting to Rafael’s happy news.
Despite sharing a love of dance, not to mention talent, he and Joel were so different.
Sometimes it was hard to see how they’d found love, but I was so glad they had.
Rafael deserved that. So did Rainn, and I hoped that he’d find it someday.
A pang of guilt stabbed me in the chest as I remembered how I’d refused to help with the wedding planning.
Not my kindest moment, but Rafael deserved the best and more, including from me.
I resolved to talk to Rainn later that night to see how we could help Rafael with the wedding.
I didn’t know a thing about wedding planning, but I’d thrown many amazing parties, so surely that would count for something.
With a self-satisfied smile, I started to round the corner at the end of the block.
I’ll plan the most gorgeous wedding, and they—
The upper half of my body slammed into something solid, unforgivably hard, and then it bounced back, and so did I.
Trying to catch my breath, I glanced upward with wide eyes at the thing—no, the person—I’d collided with.
Upward because he was tall. And panting, just like me.
As my eyes traveled upward above his wide neck, a slightly tingly feeling pulsed through me.
I noted first his strong set jaw, covered in at least a few days’ worth of stubble, and his tanned skin, complementing his head of short, dirty blond hair.
He wore a winter hat pulled low over his eyebrows, almost concealing his eyes, whose color was in shadow.
“I’m sorry,” I managed, still out of breath, putting my hand on my heart. “I was a little lost in thought.”
As soon as I started speaking, the man froze in place, his full lips open slightly as if he’d been about to speak. Then, before I could blink, he mumbled a curt apology and brushed past me.
I’d never seen a man run away from me so fast.
Or at all, actually.
What the …
I turned to stare at him as he speedwalked away. Sure, I was a little sweaty from dance class and maybe not looking amazing, but surely I didn’t look horrific .
Ignoring the tight feeling in my chest, I shrugged, about to turn back and continue on my way when I saw his steps slow, and he turned around.
Time … stopped.
It can’t be.
I’d know those steel-grey eyes anywhere.
Kylan.
This time, with his face out of the shadows, I could see his features more clearly even though he was farther away.
The full lips I’d kissed, so many times.
The fluff of hair at his neck that I’d always liked running my fingers through.
The nose he thought was too big. The eyes …
I could drown in their beauty, shining with the love he’d had for me.
Past tense.
Oh, Kylan.
My throat made a sound.
His eyes were on me.
I moistened my dry lips and tried to form a thought. Anything coherent.
It’s him. And he’s looking at me.
The next thing I knew, I was nearly tripping over the icy front steps into a store, my senses instantly overwhelmed by the smell of cats and dogs. Dazed and desperate, I glanced around. It was a pet store. I walked in slowly, seeking a place to hide where I could still see out the window.
What the heck am I doing? Why did I run in here like an idiot?
The cats for adoption were arranged near the front windows, so I pretended to be looking for a new pet while watching until the coast was clear outside.
Probably a stupid plan, but the only one I’ve got .
When I found a place that seemed relatively safe where he wouldn’t likely see me unless he came really close (and why would he?), I peered outside. From here, I couldn’t spot anyone, but I’d keep watch for a while until it was likely he’d moved on.
Smooth plan, you lunatic .
My self-recrimination was rudely interrupted by a young man’s voice nearby. “Hi, can I help you?” he asked, startling me. “Interested in adopting a kitten?”
I turned to the man, more of a boy. He couldn’t be more than 18 or 19 years old. “Oh, I don’t know. Maybe just looking today.”
“Looking … for a cat?” he said hopefully.
So this kid fancied himself a salesman, did he? “I’m not sure yet,” I mumbled, a hint of irritation in my voice as my eyes darted back toward the window.
“You look like you’re window shopping, but from the wrong side of the window,” he said with a laugh.
I turned back to him with narrowed eyes, but when I saw the friendly look on his face, I sighed with a slight smile. “You know what? That’s actually more reasonable than the truth, sadly.”
The young man smiled back. “I won’t ask. As long as you take a moment to look at these adorable little guys and girls. Maybe just hold one of them? Then if you still want to walk away and go home kitten-less, I’ll let you.”
I raised an eyebrow. He was shrewd.
“I’m Franco, by the way. Would you like to meet Charlie?” he asked, pointing to the little cat in front of me.
I nodded reluctantly, anxiously eyeing the window again before turning to the cage.
Franco handed me the kitten. “He’s a Siamese, healthy as can be, and he’s just four months old.
He won’t last more than a day or two before someone adopts him because he’s just so cuddly and—” Charlie started purring and immediately climbed up to my shoulder to tug at my ponytail.
“Well, you can see. He’s freaking adorable. ”
I rubbed Charlie’s fluffy cheeks and gazed at his little face as he rubbed it against mine. For a moment, I forgot about the threat outside; I forgot everything except this adorable ball of fur.
“I’ll take him back now,” Franco was saying as he tried to take Charlie out of my arms.
I clutched him a bit tighter before realizing what I was doing. “Oh, of course. ”
“I’m sure you want to get back to your window shopping in reverse,” Franco said. Then he lowered his voice. “I won’t tell anyone.”
I looked at Charlie, back in the cage and gazing at me with his gorgeous little blue eyes, his paw against the cage wall closest to me. Franco turned to leave.
“Wait.”
He turned back, a grin spreading across his face. “Should I get the paperwork?”
I narrowed my eyes. “Man, you’re good. And yes. Go.”
Am I really doing this?
Apparently I was. As I waited, I stepped back over to get a clearer view out the window but saw nothing.
Kylan was surely gone by now. He’d probably left as soon as I weirdly disappeared.
Maybe he hadn’t even recognized me in the first place but merely turned around to make sure the woman he’d nearly knocked over was still standing up.
But I felt it, something in his gaze even from a distance … he knew it was me.
How could he not?
Before I could dwell on it further—there would be plenty of time for that later—Franco returned. “If I can tear you away from the window, we can go to the table in the back of the store to go over the paperwork.”
“Wait, can we bring Charlie back there with us?”
“Sure,” he answered with a smirk. “Do you have a pet carrier to bring him home in? I’m guessing not …”
I blanked. “Oh, uh … no, I have nothing. No pet supplies whatsoever. Oh, this is going to be a great day of commission for you, isn’t it?”
He grinned again. “It’ll all be worth it when Charlie is snuggling up and purring in your lap tonight.”
A smile tugged at the corners of my lips. “I’ve always liked cats, actually—”
“And then chewing on your toes tonight while you’re trying to sleep.”