Chapter Eleven
“Ramon doesn’t hate you,” Ryleigh said firmly. “You’ve been his person for nearly thirty years. He’s upset, but he’ll get
over it.”
Jax, huddled in her office chair, shook her head. “He’s so upset and I can’t blame him. He could have been killed. If she’d
gotten ahold of him, she could have maimed him for life. Everyone said not to get a cat, but I didn’t listen. I thought I
knew everything.”
Ryleigh reached across her sister’s desk and grabbed her hands. “Stop,” she said softly. “Beating yourself up doesn’t fix
anything.”
“But I deserve it.”
“You did what you did out of a full and loving heart. You would never purposefully put Ramon in danger. You love him and he
loves you.”
“Not today.”
“Today was a mistake. One you won’t repeat.”
Jax drew back and wiped her eyes. “I feel sick to my stomach.” She sniffed. “Thanks for coming by.”
“Always.”
Jax had texted, asking her to drop by the store after school.
After finding out what was wrong, Ryleigh had rushed through her end-of-day to-do list and had driven right over.
She hadn’t seen Ramon on her way into the store, but knew that when he got in a mood, it could take a while for him to recover.
“He’s going to pout for a bit,” she said. “Don’t take it personally.”
“As I’m the one who nearly got him killed, I’m pretty sure it should be personal.”
“Now you’re being dramatic. Besides, Lucy wasn’t acting out of malice—she was just being a cat.”
“I know that in my head, but in my heart, I can’t forgive her.”
Ryleigh didn’t say anything to that. She had a feeling her sister found it helpful to channel some of her regret into disliking
the cat.
“I’m going to try to rehome her,” Jax added. “I know I can take her back to the shelter, but I’d rather find someone who wants
her. Do you know any teachers at school who might be interested?”
Ryleigh thought about her coworkers. “No one’s said anything, but I can ask around. She’s a sweet cat and very pretty. Someone
will want her.”
Jax stared at her. “How can you say she’s sweet?”
“Because she’s very affectionate.”
“Not to Ramon or me.”
“I don’t know why you two didn’t get along, but she’s always been friendly to me.” She’d enjoyed hanging out with Lucy during
her settling in period. She’d never had a pet as an adult. She’d thought about getting one but had always wanted to wait until . . .
A concept so unexpected and limiting popped into her brain. She immediately tried to dismiss it but couldn’t because it might
be the truth. And if it was, well, she didn’t know what but it was bad.
“Ryleigh?” Jax’s voice sounded panicked. “You just went white. Are you sick? What’s wrong? Tell me!”
“I’m fine.” She was. Nearly. Or she would be.
“You don’t sound fine.” Jax straightened in her chair and stared at her. “You’re scaring me.”
Ryleigh forced herself to relax and smile. “It’s okay. I’m not sick or anything. I was just thinking about Lucy and how I’ve
wanted to have a pet. Given my work schedule, a cat makes more sense than a dog. But I never took the next step.”
Jax frowned. “I don’t understand. You could have a cat. Your place isn’t huge, but it’s a nice-sized one bedroom and you have
that big laundry room with the storage. You could easily put a litter box there.”
“It’s not about space,” Ryleigh admitted. “It’s about waiting for a man. I didn’t get a cat because what if I found a guy
and he didn’t like cats?” Just admitting her newly discovered truth made her a little sick to her stomach. “I’ve been limiting
myself based on falling for a guy who I haven’t even met. I may never meet him. I’m one of those women.”
“You’re not.” Jax stood, walked around the desk, then bent over and hugged her. “You’re not. You’re wonderful.”
“I know you don’t want to think about me moving, but seriously, can’t you see how I’ve gotten stuck in waiting? I want what
I want and I need to make it happen. I have to do something.”
Jax returned to her seat. “You’re right,” she said firmly. “You do. Obviously moving today is impractical.” She paused. “Let
us all admire how easily I’ve said the M word—which is a true sign of support.”
“You’re only saying it because you’re right, I can’t do anything about that until the summer.”
Jax flinched as if she didn’t want to think about Ryleigh ever moving, then bravely went on.
“My point is you can’t do that, but you can do other things.”
“Like take Lucy.”
“What?” Jax’s voice was a yelp. “You want to adopt the parrot-killing cat? You can’t. Then she’ll be part of the family.”
“She didn’t kill Ramon and if anyone has blame for what happened earlier, it’s not her.”
Jax stared at her. “Low blow.”
“I didn’t say the words.”
“You implied them. Fine. It’s my fault. I was wrong and now Ramon won’t even look at me.” She slumped in her seat. “I was
so wrong.”
“You made a mistake and you regret it. You won’t do it again. That’s all it was. And as I’ve said eighteen times, Ramon will
come around.”
“Eventually. But he can hold a grudge for a long time.”
Her sister shook her head.
“I have to deal. But are you serious about taking Lucy?”
Ryleigh considered the question. She liked the cat and Lucy seemed to like her. Having another heartbeat in her place would
be nice. There were times when she felt a little lonely. She was also a responsible person and knew she would be a good kitty
parent.
“I want her,” she said firmly. “I’ll take her home right now.”
“Don’t you want to think about it?”
“No. I’m doing this for me. I’m a cat owner.”
Two hours later Ryleigh sat cross-legged on the living room floor in front of Lucy’s carrier. She’d collected all the cat
supplies from her sister and brought them home, along with her new pet. Now the litter box was in the laundry room, a water
dish sat on a mat in a corner of her kitchen and the bedroom door was closed so that Lucy had a little less space to explore
as she adjusted.
“Hey, pretty girl,” she said, her voice soft. “This is your new home and I’m your new mom. I hope you’re happy here. It’s
going to be scary at first, but you’ll get used to everything. We got along before, so maybe we can build on that.”
She opened the carrier door, prepared to wait while the cat gathered the courage to come out.
But Lucy surprised her by stepping into the living room and looking around.
Her blue eyes were huge, her nose quivered from her sniffing.
She moved close to Ryleigh, as if confirming it was her, then she began to walk around the condo.
Ryleigh stayed where she was, letting the cat find her way. After checking out the living room, she moved into the kitchen,
then the bathroom and laundry room. About ten minutes later, Lucy returned and rubbed against her.
“Hi.” Ryleigh petted her and was pleased to hear her start to purr. “So this is it. Any thoughts?”
Lucy climbed up on her thigh, then put her front paws on her shoulder before rubbing her face against Ryleigh’s chin. Immediately
any last, lingering concern faded.
“So you like me. That’s a relief. I like you, too, sweet girl.”
She picked up the cat and carried her to the sofa, where she settled next to her. Lucy immediately climbed into her lap. Ryleigh
laughed, then pulled her phone from her pocket and took a picture. She texted it to Alex with a quick, I have a cat!
Seconds later her phone rang.
“Lucy, I presume,” he said with a chuckle. “Does this mean the intro with Ramon didn’t go well?”
“Apparently it was a disaster.” She recounted what Jax had told her about the meeting. “Jax feels terrible.”
“I think it’s more interesting she thought it would go well. So you’re a pet mom, huh? Good for you.”
“I thought you’d tell me getting a cat is going to make it harder for me to move.”
“I don’t think so,” he told her. “She’ll want to be with you wherever you are. Noah’s going to go crazy when he finds out
you have a pet.”
She smiled. “I apologize in advance for any pressure that puts on you.”
“He’s going to be relentless, but I’m a hard no on a dog. We’re not home enough. I’m not sure how I feel about cats. Hey, would you mind bringing her over from time to time? If you tell me what to have here, I’ll get everything in place.”
“Sure. I want to give her a few days to settle, but after that, let’s get her used to both places. That way if I’m going to
be watching Noah or something, I can bring her with me.”
While Alex didn’t travel without his son very often, he did have occasional business trips to conferences. With Kim gone,
Ryleigh was the one who stayed with Noah.
“She’s going to get cat hair on my work clothes, isn’t she?” he asked, his voice more teasing than grumbly.
Ryleigh stroked Lucy’s soft coat. “Absolutely. She’s a shedder for sure. Get used to it, old man.”
“I will. Congratulations.”
“Thanks. Bye.”
She hung up and tucked her phone into her pocket, then smiled at Lucy. “So it’s about dinnertime. Any interest in eating?”
Lucy looked at her for a couple of seconds before offering a quick meow, which could have meant anything but which Ryleigh
decided to interpret as a very interested yes.
She carefully lifted the cat off her lap, then went into the kitchen. Lucy followed. Ryleigh didn’t expect her to eat for
a day or so but even a few bites would be a good sign.
She dished out half of the small can, then set it on the floor next to the water dish. Lucy sniffed it a couple of times,
then started eating. Ryleigh stayed where she was, afraid to move or make a sound. After a few minutes, Lucy had cleaned her
plate. She walked out of the kitchen and back into the living room where she began to groom.
“Wow,” Ryleigh murmured, rinsing out the cat dish. “That went well.”