28. Mallory
MALLORY
Iwaited.
That was key.
Timing was everything.
Mom was in the basement finishing her workout while I sat cross-legged on my bed with the kitten curled in my lap.
She was still damp from her bath, the water I’d used turning brown with grime, but she was impossibly soft now and clean.
I’d already bathed her in the bathroom sink, dried her as best as I could until she stopped shivering, and given her a little dish of milk that she’d attacked with desperate hunger.
Now she looked like an entirely different creature—clean, fluffy, her gray fur puffed up around her tiny body like a cloud.
Irresistible.
Exactly how I needed her.
“Okay,” I whispered, scratching gently under her chin, and she tilted her head back, exposing the white patch on her throat. “You’re my secret weapon. Don’t mess this up for us. I want you to stay, but we need to convince the hard-ass herself. Deal?”
She blinked up at me with those enormous eyes, promising nothing.
I scooped the kitten up and headed downstairs, sitting on the couch until Mom wandered up. She had a towel draped around her neck, catching sweat, a sheen of it still on her skin, making her face glow. Her black hair was pulled back in a messy bun, loose strands sticking to her temples.
She paused when she saw me on the couch, the kitten snuggled contentedly against my chest, shielding behind my arm. Her eyes narrowed. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
I put on my sweetest smile. “How much do you love me?”
She didn’t even hesitate, twisting off the cap on the water bottle in her hands. “Is that a question?”
“I think so.”
She took a long drink. “What are you up to, Malibu?”
I moved my arm, carefully revealing the kitten. “You know how you said someday we could get a pet?”
“What is that?” she asked, moving deeper into the room toward where I sat on the couch.
“Well…” I lifted the kitten slightly, adjusting my grip so Mom could see her face better. Those eyes. That tiny pink nose. “I think that someday is today.”
“Mallory Iris Hales.” My full name. Not a good start, but I had my defense locked, loaded, and ready.
“I found her in the alley, Mom,” I rushed on, the words tumbling out faster now, needing to get them all out before she could form a concrete no. “She was abandoned, wedged between boxes, and so dirty I could barely tell what color she was. I couldn’t just leave her there to starve.”
The kitten yawned, her front paws stretching out on my chest.
Mom sat on the edge of the couch, her gaze flicking from the kitten to me and back to the little fluffball, her deep blue eyes softening.
The kitten let out a well-timed, adorable little mew. She pressed her tiny face into my hand, her whiskers tickling my palm.
Mom’s lips twitched, fighting a smile as her shoulders loosened.
This was the time to strike, get her when her defenses were weakened. “I already bathed her. And fed her. I’m totally responsible.”
“Hmm.” Her lips pursed as she gave the kitten’s head a gentle stroke. “Is that so?”
“For girls my age, I’d say I’m above average.” I hadn’t meant to point out that my upbringing hadn’t exactly been conventional, but maybe it would work in my favor. Still, I hated seeing the flash of guilt in Mom’s eyes, even for a fraction of a second.
“Fine.” She sighed.
I blinked, certain my ears were playing tricks on me. “Wait—what?”
“You can keep her, but she’s your responsibility. Including the vet bills, which means you might have to get a part-time job.”
My grin broke free before I stopped it, spreading across my face until my cheeks hurt. “Seriously?”
She nodded. “You deserve her.”
I squealed undignifiedly, but I didn’t care, suddenly feeling like a kid again. I pulled the little nugget to my chest, who squirmed in protest as I leaned over and hugged Mom. “Thank you.”
Her arms came around me for a long squeeze before we both pulled away to glance at the new addition to our family. “She needs a name.”
I looked down at the tiny gray fluff in my arms, studying her while she studied me back with those unblinking eyes. “What about Shadow?” I offered, thinking of how I found her in the nearly dark corner of the alley.
Mom made a face, her nose wrinkling. “Too predictable.”
“Storm?” I tried again.
“Too dramatic.”
“Okay, rude.” I shifted the kitten, adjusting my grip as she squirmed. The kitten pawed at my shirt, her tiny claws catching in the fabric with soft scratching sounds.
“Jade,” Mom said after a second of contemplation, her head tilting slightly as she studied the small creature.
I paused, looking down at her again and really considering it.
Jade.
Beautiful but not fragile—like the stone jade. Strong enough to survive the alley, the cold, the hunger…and still keep going.
“I like that,” I said, the name settling right in my chest. “It fits her.”
Mom nodded, smiling. “It does.”
“Welcome to the family, Jade,” I whispered, leaning down to press a soft kiss to the top of her fuzzy head.
Mom pushed up from the couch, wisps of her hair falling to frame her face. “Don’t forget about dinner this weekend,” she reminded me.
“I haven’t.” How could I? The mysterious boyfriend and his family. I was both excited and terrified at the changes happening in our lives. It was what I always wanted, but now that it was happening, it wasn’t as easy a transition as I imagined.
“Tomorrow we’ll go shopping,” she added. “Make it a girls’ day. Get this nugget a few essentials. Litter box, food bowls, and actual kitten food instead of cow’s milk.”
“Thanks, Mom.”
She smiled again. “Wait until she’s running around at three in the morning on a school day. She’s sleeping in your room.”
I rolled my eyes.
I was sure most of my classmates were out having fun, drinking, making bad decisions, or partying, Maddox included, whereas I was spending my Friday night at home with my kitten, chatting with Keegan online.
Mom was out with the mystery boyfriend again.
The amount of time they spent together was starting to become a little alarming.
She must really like him, but until I met this guy who occupied so much of her time, I was reserving judgment.
To date my mom, you had to be a special guy.
She had a past that she couldn’t share, and he had to be okay with that.
Or okay with dating a murderer, which was a label I didn’t like, because to me, she wasn’t a killer, not in the sense that she took lives for shits and giggles.
All of the men she eliminated were bad guys.
They deserved to die, but I wasn’t sure the world would see them as justified killings, regardless of her motives, and that was what always scared me.
I couldn’t lose her.
She was all I had.
Jade curled beside me on the bed as I sat cross-legged with my laptop open. Keegan’s messages lit up the screen, rapid-fire notifications pulling me from darker thoughts.
ToxicCharm: So you’re telling me you just casually adopted a kitten AND hooking up with a hot, morally questionable guy??
I huffed a quiet laugh, glancing down at Jade as she stretched. Her tiny claws caught in the blanket, pulling threads, her pink toe beans flexing.
Me: Not casually. The kitten chose me. Maddox…is complicated.
We hadn’t done much more than fool around, and despite it being the hottest and farthest I’d ever gone with a guy, I wasn’t under the delusion that we were anything.
But I had hoped it meant Maddox liked me and maybe things would progress into boyfriend material.
I learned quickly that wasn’t the case when we went back to school this week.
If anything, I felt as if Maddox had pulled away from me, instead of what had happened between us bringing us closer. It confused me. Fucking boys.
ToxicCharm: Is he a good kisser at least? I need a pic, and I will be judging him so hard.
I bit my lip, a smile tugging at the corner of my mouth as my fingers hovered over the keyboard.
I didn’t need experience to know that Maddox was skilled at kissing.
He was exceptional. Perhaps too good, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about knowing those lips had been attached to other girls’ mouths.
The thought produced irrational hot jealousy within me.
Before I typed a response, Jade lifted her head suddenly, her whole body going rigid. Ears twitching forward.
Ding-dong.
The doorbell rang through the house, making me jump, which made Jade jump. My fingers stilled on the keyboard. Who the hell would be here at—I glanced at the clock—10:47 at night?
My mind ran through a list of reasonable explanations, eliminating each one just as quickly.
Mom had a key. She wouldn’t bother ringing the bell.
Maddox would have texted me first.
Paisley or Atlas would have called.
I frowned at my bedroom door, trying to decide if I should ignore whoever might be outside or get off my ass and check. Mom had installed several security measures, including cameras at the front door. Rolling over, I pulled the app up on my phone, but the loading screen just kept spinning.
Ding-dong.
The bell rang a second time. Obviously, this person was impatient and not going anywhere. Groaning at the distraction, I quickly typed a message to Keegan.
Me: Someone’s at the door. brb.
I pushed off the bed, my feet hitting the rug with barely a sound. Jade watched me with wide eyes, pupils dilated in the dim light, her tail twitching with agitation. You and me both.
I crossed the room and peered out the window that faced the front yard, pulling the curtain back to check the driveway, but there were no cars. No delivery truck idling at the curb. So did this person walk to my house? Was it possible that it was one of my neighbors?
Weird.
I jogged downstairs. When I reached the door, I peeked out the glass pane, expecting to see someone waiting for me, but no one was visible from any angle. I flipped the locks and opened the door, surprised to see the porch empty. For someone so persistent, they hadn’t stuck around long.
“Hello?” I called out just in case they were within hearing distance, but my voice echoed into the night; only the evening air greeted me in return. I stepped out onto the porch, bare feet hitting cold wood. Glancing left, then right, I scanned the yard and the street beyond.
Empty.
No package on the welcome mat. No person retreating down the walk. No sign anyone had even been there.
What the fuck?
This was all too…bizarre. A chill slid down my spine, raising goose bumps along my arms.
“Okay…” I muttered, wrapping my arms around myself against the cold.
Ding-dong ditch? It had to be. Just kids messing around, thinking it was funny.
Right?
I stepped back inside and shut the door, engaging the deadbolt and then the chain. I was being overly paranoid. I did not need to worry. Yet.
Heading back upstairs, my feet moved faster than they should, taking the steps two at a time, but the second I reentered my room, I froze.
My breath snagged as my gaze fixed on the single black rose stretched across my white pillowcase.