Chapter 6 - Henry
SIX
HENRY
YOU’RE A CAT DADDY.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Hayes asked as he scratched his stomach with a yawn. “We got back super late last night. Do you ever sleep?”
After our away game in Toronto, where Coach Sloane kept his promise once again and had me warming the bench, and we lost 2-1, we caught a red-eye flight to make it back for a home game scheduled for tomorrow.
Even though I didn’t play, I was completely drained.
The anxiety from the whole Kennedy situation hadn’t let me sleep a wink.
Thank God she didn’t travel with us this time around, because I wasn’t sure how I was going to face her and my bold lies.
I pushed him to the side, strode in, and shoved a cup of coffee in his hand. “We have to go adopt a fucking cat today, because thirty years ago you were born for the sole purpose of making my life hell. Get dressed. You have ten minutes.”
Hayes and I lived in the same building, except I was one floor above. Something I was going to start reminding him of to annoy him, sponsored by the mess he got me in.
“I can’t believe you’re going through with this.”
“It’s your fault!”
“You could have said you had it covered,” he pointed out before sipping his coffee.
“You put me on the spot,” I shot back.
“Please. I did you a favor.” The bastard dared to look smug while he said it.
“It sure doesn’t feel like it right now,” I retorted. “Go. Get. Dressed.”
Honestly—and I would deny this until the day I died—I wasn’t mad Hayes had cornered me into adopting a cat.
I liked those cute little fuckers. I had been thinking of getting one for a few years now, but with how much I traveled, it didn’t make sense.
But my apartment was too big, and most of the time, I felt lonely.
Having a little companion was a nice thought.
Well, two companions. I couldn’t forget about my new roommate.
Four hours and eight animal shelters later, we were still empty-handed.
“You just had to say the cat had white paws, didn’t you?” I scoffed.
“Seemed fitting,” Hayes said as he opened the passenger door of my pickup truck and hopped in.
I opened the driver’s door and followed suit. “Of course it did. Why did you do this? And don’t you dare—”
“I saw an opportunity to get back at you for what you did with those puck bunnies and I took it.” The asshole didn’t even hesitate, like he had that response locked and loaded.
“This is so not the same,” I groaned as I rested my head against the head restraint. “Your pranks are either too small or too big. You’re quite literally the worst prankster ever. I might as well call you Winston from New Girl.”
“That’s not the insult you think it is. Winston carried that show. And he was a great prankster, thank you very much.” He laughed to himself. “You remember when he got Jess and Nick evicted as a joke? Man, that was epic.”
“God, help me,” I murmured to myself as I hit my head against the steering wheel a few times.
I was defeated and ready to call it, but I still turned on the engine of my truck and drove to our last shelter of the day.
If we didn’t find a cat to adopt, I didn’t know how I was going to get myself out of the situation. If Kennedy ever found out we lied to her, she would probably kill me and make it look like an accident.
I shivered at the thought.
It was insane to say yes to this arrangement.
But something shifted in me when I saw how uncomfortable she looked when Hayes and Val brought up her living situation.
Kennedy was the type of woman who had her shit together and never showed any vulnerability.
She was meticulous and a pain in the ass planner.
Needless to say, seeing her so uncertain was unsettling.
After one long hour in traffic, we arrived at the last shelter. This one was in the suburbs, and the place looked run-down, with chipped paint and a sign that needed a serious upgrade. As my eyes took in the rundown shelter, the little confidence I had left flew out the window.
I pulled open the door, and the doorbell jingled.
The inside, though still decades old, had a homey feel to it.
There was soft rock music playing in the background, and there was an enclosed playground with beds, toys, and anything you could think of with some cute-looking pups.
Some were playing, while others were chilling in their beds, not even aware of our arrival.
“Coming!” someone yelled from the back.
After a few minutes, an old, small lady came out of the back room. “What can I help you with, gentlemen?”
“Hi, ma’am.” Hayes smiled at her. “We’re looking to adopt a cat today!” he announced eagerly.
You may be wondering why I hadn’t killed him yet. And honestly, your guess was as good as mine. He may have been my childhood best friend, but the dude was annoying as fuck.
“Anything in mind?”
“What do you have?” I asked.
She walked to the back door and beckoned us with her finger to follow her.
The room was spacious and full of cages with dogs of all sizes, most of them barking and wagging their tails excitedly.
The lady continued to the back, where there was a private room with three cats hanging around a fluffy tower.
“Dude!” Hayes slapped my chest with the back of his hand and nodded at the top of the tower, where a big, fluffy black cat was curled up sleeping. And what do you know? It had white paws.
“That one.” I pointed at it. “Is he available?”
“He is, but…” She grimaced. “He has been returned a few times. He has a bit of a separation anxiety problem.”
“Our prayers have been answered!” Hayes clasped his hands, looking up at the ceiling.
The woman stared at Hayes like he’d lost his mind. To her credit, she was probably not far from the truth.
My shoulders sagged in relief. “I’ll take him.”
“Welcome home, Captain Sushi.” Hayes placed the cat crate in the foyer entrance and opened it.
The cat exited his crate, taking slow steps as he looked around, unsure of his surroundings. I left Hayes to deal with our new furry friend as I strode into the kitchen and dropped all the pet store shopping bags on the counters.
“You need anything else?” Hayes asked, striding into the kitchen with Captain Sushi in tow.
I cringed at the thought of the poor cat’s name. I should have changed it. But it suited him. His eyes were this beautiful, strange orange color. I swear, it was like the cat dropped from heaven itself to do me a solid.
“A time machine to go back in time and never meet you,” I grumbled as I took all the toys and food out of the bags.
“The way I see it, you’re a cat daddy now.” He leaned against the kitchen island and crossed one ankle over the other. “Cats are cute as hell, and you get to live with your crush.”
“A cat I did not ask for!” I shouted as I pointed to the pet in question. “And can you stop spreading lies around? I don’t have a crush on Kennedy.”
Hayes gasped and picked Captain Sushi off the floor then blocked his ears.
“He’s your baby, and he can hear you.” He brought the cat to his chest in a protective hug.
“And please, if you want to live in denial, that’s fine by me.
But you do have a crush, and I did do you a favor,” he replied with a shrug as he gave me an I’m-right-and-you-know-it look.
“You can thank me when you read your vows at the wedding.”
“What fucking wedding?”
He stared at me with a blank expression. “Yours and Kennedy’s, of course.”
I closed my eyes and rubbed my temples. I was over the ridiculous conversation. “Get the fuck out before I kill you, Hayes. You’re giving me a pounding headache.”
“That’s no way to talk to the godfather of your child, you know.”
I gaped at him in disbelief. “Godfather? Ha. You can barely take care of yourself, idiot.”
He kissed Captain Sushi’s head. “Don’t listen to your daddy, he’s just nervous because your future mommy is moving in here.”
I took the cat from him and pushed him toward the exit. “Out. Now.”
I finally pushed him out the door and started to close it, but Hayes pushed it back, his head popping inside as he talked to the cat. “Don’t worry, baby. Uncle Hayes will be back in no time with treats and toys.”
“Get out, Hayes,” I growled, frustrated.
“Good lu—” He didn’t get to finish his sentence because I shut the door in his face. He pounded the door once as he shouted, “Dick!”
I rolled my eyes and looked at my new friend. “It’s just you and me now, buddy.”
How was my life even real? I still couldn’t believe I was a pet owner.
The big, fluffy cat looked at me with his majestic, orange eyes and tilted his head like he was trying to decipher my words, or potentially plot my murder.
“Please don’t kill me,” I mumbled and bopped his nose softly. “You’re kind of cute, and I don’t want to die.”
He simply meowed and jumped out of my arms.
“I hope that meow means you agree,” I shouted once he was out of sight then rubbed my face and muttered, “Fuck.”