Chapter 12
12
Jackson: I did it. I crashed her date with Jeff.
Noah: I heard. I texted him last night saying you wanted to crash a date soon, and he told me you had. A little heads up would have been nice. You’re welcome, by the way.
Jackson: For?
Noah: Giving Jeff a fake reason to leave so Mia had to ride with you.
Ethan: Wait. What happened?
Jackson: I showed up at Antonio’s with a date and crashed it. We ended up doing a double date.
Miles: Let me get this straight. You crashed her date with a date?
Jackson: Yeah. It would be kind of weird to crash it solo.
Ethan: *face palm*
Noah: Oh boy.
Miles: Why would you think that was a good idea?
Jackson: You guys told me I needed a grand gesture and to crash the date.
Ethan: To tell her how you feel. Not to bring another date with you and flaunt that you’re dating.
Noah: Dude, you fucked up.
Miles: I don’t understand why bringing another woman with you would ever be a good idea.
Jackson: You are not helpful. I do what you say, and now you’re telling me I did it wrong.
Noah: Did you even tell her how you feel?
Jackson: Shut up.
Ethan: Why do you suck at this?
Jackson: Me? I did what you said to do.
Miles: Not what we said to do.
Noah: Not at all.
Ethan: Nope.
Jackson: I’m getting her a cat.
J ackson was at the humane society, a town over, staring at the small kittens. There were four sharing the cage, all from the same litter, and were a range of colors from white to orange to black.
“Goddamn it. They’re so cute,” he murmured, with his arms crossed and his thumb and forefinger resting on his chin.
“Can I help you with something?” a lady asked. She couldn’t have been more than nineteen years old and wore an apron with the humane society logo across the front.
Jackson smiled. “I’m thinking about getting a kitten for my girl…” he trailed off. “For my friend. But I don’t know how to choose.”
She reached forward and opened the cage, pulling a fluffy white cat out and handing it to him. “The best way to decide is to hold them and decide which kitten’s personality you like best. Do you have a preference on gender?”
Jackson held the cat out in front of him. He had never had a cat growing up. Dogs, yes, but not cats. “I don’t think so?”
She giggled. “Hold her closer to your body. You can cuddle her. Like this.” She pulled another kitten out of the cage and held it close to her chest. It nuzzled into her neck before attempting to climb onto her shoulder.
He imitated her and the small kitten stared up at him with large blue eyes, slowly blinking and snuggling into his arms. He slowly pet her small head and soon her little body rumbled with her purr.
“I think she’ll want this one.” He dragged the back of his knuckle over her head. He huffed out a laugh. “Hell, maybe I want this one.”
The worker giggled. “Heck, you could get them all!”
Jackson looked up. That was an idea. What would Mia think if he came home with four kittens? She’d think it was amazing!
“I think that’s a good idea. I’ll take them all.”
The girl’s eyes widened. “I was just joking.”
“But it’s brilliant. Mia will love it!”
She would know exactly how much he cared about her. His mind whirled with possibilities. He would have to get a large enough box for all four kittens to sit comfortably, with enough breathing holes, and a large red bow on top. Each kitten would have to hold a red rose in its mouth for presentation.
Genius. It was all genius.
An hour later, Jackson’s truck was loaded with two cat carriers, each containing two kittens, a large bag of food, dishes, collars, tags for the collars, ten different toys since he couldn’t decide which ones they would like best, a large scratching post, litter boxes, and several bags of different litter in case the cats had a preference.
They meowed nearly nonstop the entire drive. By the time Jackson pulled into his driveway, he was questioning his life choices. He shut the truck off and took a deep breath. The little meows didn’t stop, so he hopped out of his truck and rounded it, opening the passenger side door and taking out the two carriers, one from the seat and one from the floor.
“It’s okay, babies. We’re home.”
Mia would be at work for at least another hour, which gave Jackson enough time to get everything out of his truck before she got back. He carried the kittens inside and set the carriers on the ground. Then he ran back outside and quickly carried everything else inside. He set the litter boxes up and added litter before sitting on the floor in front of the carriers and opening them.
The four little furballs walked out and looked around. They all immediately took off in different directions to check out their space. Jackson watched them for a bit before deciding to put together the cat tower. He moved the box to the living room and pulled it open and then went about assembling it. While he attached a pole to the base, one kitten came up and immediately started climbing it. He laughed and picked her up, moving her to the side before continuing. She again jumped on it and started climbing.
“Hey, little one, let me finish it first.”
He moved her, but she came back instantly. He chuckled and sat back, watching for a few minutes, waiting for her to get bored. When it seemed like she wouldn’t, he turned around to check on the other kittens and his eyes widened.
Two of them had climbed their way up his curtains and were hanging near the curtain rod. He sprang up and ran over to the window, trying to pull them down. Once one was safely on the ground, he grabbed the other, but he clung to the curtain like his life depended on it.
“Let. Go.”
He pried his claws off it just as he felt a stab to his leg. Another kitten was attempting to climb his pants.
“What the hell?”
He shook his leg, but it clung harder and meowed at him.
“Can’t you see I’m busy getting your brother off the curtains?”
The kitten only meowed in response. He worked toward getting the kitten’s claws out of the curtains before setting it on the floor and then pulling the kitten off his leg.
The two kittens began tackling each other, so he moved to go back to the cat tower when he found another kitten climbing the side of his couch.
“What in the actual fuck? Did you all multiply?”
He gently pulled the kitten off the side of his couch and held it against his chest. It immediately began climbing him until it was perched on his shoulder. It wobbled, and he tried to pull it off, but it clung to his shirt.
“Come on, kitty. I don’t want you to fall.”
He attempted to pry its claws off his shirt, and when he turned to find the other kittens, two of them were climbing the curtains again.
He dropped his hands in defeat as the kitten clung to his shirt, and he sat down on the couch.
Mia pulled up to her place and parked her car in the driveway. Jackson’s truck was already in the driveway, surprisingly. She had expected him to still be at work. She glanced up at his living room window, where the curtains were moving. But he wasn’t standing there.
She stepped out of her car and tilted her head as she watched the curtains. They continued to sway and eventually she saw a little body climb around the back side. Her eyes widened, and she rushed over to Jackson’s front door, knocking before letting herself inside.
“Jackson?”
“In here,” he said.
She moved to the living room to find him sitting on the couch, an array of kitten items all over the floor. A kitten was perched on his shoulder and two were climbing the curtains. Another sprinted across the floor, batting a ball.
A laugh burst out of her. “What happened here?”
She walked to the curtains and gently took the kittens off before setting them on the floor and dangling a toy in front of them. They both pounced on it.
“I made a mistake.”
“And that would be?”
“Trusting that the cute little furballs would stay cute little furballs once I brought them home. They tricked me. Instead, I have four demons disguised as kittens.”
Mia laughed. “How can you call these cute little things demons?”
He looked at her, his eyes wild. “You saw them climbing the curtains! They were also climbing me and the couch. It’s been an hour and I’m already wondering why people voluntarily get cats.”
Mia snorted. “Because they’re excellent companions.”
“Dogs are excellent companions. Cats are terrorists.”
Mia stood and moved over to the couch, sitting down beside Jackson and gently tugging the kitten off his shoulder. She stroked its soft fur for a minute before setting it down on the floor where it joined its siblings in chasing a ball.
“Do you want to tell me why you purchased four kittens?”
He dropped his head against the back of the couch and let out a heavy sigh. “This isn’t how this was supposed to go.”
“What do you mean?”
“There was supposed to be a large box with a bow and four little kittens holding red roses in their mouths. The presentation was going to be immaculate.”
She furrowed her brows. “I’m confused.”
Jackson sat up straight and took her hands in his, turning toward her on the couch. “These past few weeks have been hard. Watching you date other guys…” He shook his head. “It’s been torture.”
Mia’s heart rate picked up, but she couldn’t speak.
His thumbs smoothed over the backs of her hands. “I wanted to show you how much you mean to me. To show you I know you. That I am the only one who can give you what you need. The only one who can treat you the way you deserve to be treated.”
Is it possible that he was telling her everything she had wanted to hear her entire life? That he had finally developed feelings for her?
She tried to push down the excitement, worried she’d get her hopes up only to find out he meant something else entirely.
“So you got me four cats?”
He chuckled. “I went intending to get one. I wanted to surprise you since I know you’ve been wanting a kitten for a while. But then when I got there, they were all so cute. I couldn’t pick just one.”
“So you got four.” She laughed.
“Yes. But no one told me they were demons!” As if on cue, a kitten ran over to them at full speed and climbed the side of the couch. He widened his eyes and gestured at it.
“This is just how kittens are. They mellow out when they get older.” She watched as an orange kitten jumped on the partially assembled cat tower before springing off and running full speed toward the wall. He jumped mid-air and clung to the curtains before climbing it. “Well, except that one. Orange cats are a whole other story.”
Mia looked back at Jackson, who was gazing at her. She shifted her eyes and blushed. This was unfamiliar territory, and she didn’t know where they went from here.
Jackson tipped her chin until their eyes met. He scooted closer until their thighs were touching, and then his head dipped and he pressed his lips to hers.
Fireworks exploded around them. The kiss was tentative at first and then he increased the pressure. Her hands came up and cupped his face before moving around to the back of his head. She threaded her fingers through his hair and pulled him closer.
He groaned and settled his hands on her waist. He easily picked her up and hauled her into his lap.
She had never seen her best friend naked, but she had pictured them being together and always wondered how big he was. She no longer needed to wonder. His cock strained against his pants and pressed against her center.
Mia moaned into his mouth and pressed down on him. His hips met hers with a shallow thrust. She continued to grind down on him, for she didn’t know how long, until a small meow came from beside them.
They pulled back and the white, furry kitten stared at them with wide eyes.
Jackson gestured at it before rubbing a hand over its small head. “See? Now it’s cock blocking me.”
Mia pulled her lip between her teeth and giggled. Jackson ran a hand down his face and huffed out a laugh. She stared at him, wondering if things were about to get awkward. If maybe he would change his mind after kissing her. But he only wrapped his hands around her waist and toyed with the hem of her shirt.
Jackson leaned forward and pressed his face into the crook of her neck, pulling in a deep breath. “I feel like I owe you an apology.”
“For?”
“The date.” He pulled back and looked into her eyes. His hands stroked her waist, spiking her heart rate. “The truth is, I met Natasha last minute on that app and told her I wanted to try Antonio’s. She agreed to go with me. I had no intention of crashing your date.”
“So why did you?”
“I just wanted to see if you and Jeff were hitting it off.”
She raised an eyebrow. “So you wanted to spy?”
He blushed. “Yes.”
She laughed. “Then what brought you to our table?”
“We got into the restaurant, and I saw you both sitting there. This jealousy came over me. It was like my feet had a mind of their own and just took me there. I couldn’t help it. I didn’t want you there with him. It should have been me.”
She looked down into his eyes and leaned forward, pressing her lips to his again. This felt right. It was what she had always wanted.
“I understand. I probably would have felt the same way if the roles were reversed.”
He leaned forward to kiss her again when a little meow came from the kitten who still sat beside him. They laughed against each other’s lips.
“I think we need to name these little babies,” he said. “And give them some attention.”
Mia nodded. “I think you’re right.”
She reluctantly scooted off his lap and picked up the little white kitten. It rubbed its face all over Mia’s, and she giggled. “This one is so sweet, like a little angel.”
“We could call her Angel.”
She nodded. “I like that.”
At that moment, the little orange kitten ran by and climbed up onto the couch at warp speed before diving across Jackson’s lap onto Mia’s and tackling Angel.
“I’m thinking Blitz for the crazy one,” Jackson said.
Mia laughed. “Blitz it is.”
That left a kitten with black and white patches and another with orange and grey streaks.
“Oreo for the black and white,” Mia said.
Jackson nodded. “How about the last?”
“Blaze?”
“Blaze. I like that.”
They watched them play for a few minutes before Mia whispered, “Are we really keeping all four kittens?”
“I didn’t know there was an option not to.”
“You’re right. There isn’t.”