JOSIE
SIX
“Mouse,” I call, walking through the hallway of my family’s Hamptons home. We got in yesterday, and while I thought Mouse was good with the location change, him hiding from me tells me that might not actually be the case.
“Mouse!” I yell out, trying to figure out where he could be. I’ve looked all over the large house, and I can’t find him anywhere.
I groan. I need to get some writing in this morning.
I received the notes from my editor, and I’m ready to get started on making the changes, but I can’t focus on my manuscript without knowing where my cat is.
His self-preservation skills are lacking, and I can’t focus on new words if I’m wondering if he’s found himself in trouble somewhere.
“Stupid, stubborn cat,” I mutter under my breath.
He should be happy here. The house is even more gorgeous than I remembered.
There are tons of extra rooms and places for him to explore.
I even made sure to fly with some of his favorite toys, and I’ve been giving him extra treats to help appease him, but he still isn’t listening to me and coming when I call his name.
I pull my robe tighter around my body as I walk into the living room and look around. I’m scanning the room for Mouse when my eyes land on the open window.
“Shit,” I mutter, my eyes fluttering shut.
It was a little warm in the house when we arrived yesterday, so I opened the window above the kitchen sink to let some fresh air in.
I forgot to close it before going to bed last night.
Mouse loves to sneak outside when we travel because he learned the hard way in Manhattan that the outdoors aren’t as good as he thought them to be.
I groan. Mouse could be anywhere outside. He loves to go exploring, but since he’s an indoor cat, his survival skills aren’t the greatest. If he got out—which I’m sure he did—there’s no telling where he could be.
I make sure the knot around my waist for my robe is tight as I push my feet into my shoes.
I open the back door and step outside. If I weren’t looking for my missing cat, I might take the time to appreciate how beautiful it is this morning.
There’s an orange glow over the trees and pool as the sun rises in the sky.
Unfortunately for me, I don’t have the time to appreciate the view because I need to find my cat and get started on work.
“Mouse!” I huff, scanning the pool to make sure my cat hadn’t ended up inside it.
Luckily, based on the other times he’s escaped, even outside, he avoids water at all costs, and I don’t see him anywhere near the pool.
I look across the yard to the pond that sits behind the house.
I let my gaze track over the space around the water, not finding any trace of Mouse at the pond either.
I step into the yard and keep looking around. He’s got to be around here somewhere. Typically, he never stops meowing. He’s always trying to boss me around somehow, but of course, when I actually want him to answer me, he’s silent.
“Mouse!” I whisper-yell. It’s early, so I’m trying not to be too loud.
I don’t want to wake up anybody in the house next door to mine.
When I got in yesterday, it looked like there was a car in the driveway, but I didn’t see any people over there.
The car’s now gone, but that doesn’t mean that nobody’s home.
There could be people sleeping inside, and the last thing I want to do is upset the neighbors on my first full day here.
I don’t know how long I’m searching through the yard when I finally hear a meow from a distance.
My head shoots up as I look in the direction of the sound. It sounded like it came from the neighbor’s house.
“Mouse?” I say, making sure I don’t call out for him too loudly.
Meow.
The good news is, I can hear him. The bad news is, he’s definitely somewhere at the neighbor’s.
“This freaking cat,” I whisper as I make my way through the side of the yard toward the home next door. I should be working right now, but instead, I’m trespassing into the yard of a complete stranger to get my cat that’s gone rogue.
I stifle a groan as I make my way through their yard.
I feel guilty coming to their side, but I also need to get my cat.
My eyes scan the space around me, hoping I can get in and get out without being noticed.
I still can’t see Mouse, but another meow lets me know I’m heading in the right direction.
“You’re in big trouble when I find you,” I scold as I make my way to the sound of his voice. Unfortunately for me, it sounds like it’s coming from the back porch.
A groan leaves me as I get closer to the house.
It’s absolutely beautiful from the outside—and massive.
I thought my grandfather’s house was large, but this one might be even bigger.
I slowly climb the stairs that lead from the backyard and up to the porch, mentally cursing my cat’s name with every step closer to a house my family doesn’t own.
“You know we have a perfectly good porch at our house, right, Mouse?” I keep going as if Mouse can actually understand anything I’m saying.
I climb the stairs and finally find Mouse perched on a cream-colored outdoor couch.
“Dang cat,” I scold, closing the distance to my cat. “What do you think you’re doing?”
Mouse’s only response is to lie down on the cushion as if he has no plans of leaving.
I sigh and shake my head. “Nope. We’re going back home before we’re spotted. Get up, Mouse.”
Mouse doesn’t get up. And I’m so focused on getting my cat off a stranger’s porch that I don’t even notice there’s someone else out here until a person clears their throat.
I scream and immediately back into the hydrangea bush behind me in an attempt to hide from whoever’s spotted me.
My eyes meet the stranger’s just as he opens his mouth to talk. “I guess my surprise visitor this morning isn’t a stray after all,” he declares, his voice deep and smooth as velvet.
I place my hand over my racing heart as I try to regain my composure.
I use the time it takes me to gather myself to take in the man sitting a few feet away from me.
He sits on a couch opposite where Mouse is.
He wears a pair of black sweatpants and has one ankle crossed over his knee while a laptop sits in his lap.
He’s got a black hoodie on and holds a coffee cup to his lips as he stares at me, waiting for me to respond.
“Of course he isn’t a stray. Look at him.” I rip my gaze from the handsome stranger’s and focus on Mouse. I brush his fur religiously and make sure his white-and-light-gray fur always stays clean. He doesn’t look like a stray at all.
The man lets out a low laugh, and I try to ignore the way it sends shivers down my spine. Something about his deep voice is intoxicating. I blame the early morning hour and the fact that I haven’t had caffeine yet. From the moment I woke up this morning, I’ve been searching for this dang cat.
“No, he doesn’t. What’s his name?”
I walk over to my cat and snatch him in my arms before he can run. I make the mental note to never accidentally leave the window open again. Mouse lets out one small meow of protest before he relaxes in my arms. “His name is Mouse,” I answer as I cautiously stare back at my neighbor.
It’s almost as if the stranger is actually taking me in for the first time because his eyes go wide as they trace my body from head to toe.
I shift awkwardly on my feet, wondering why heat blooms across my chest. I’m wearing a plush robe, covered for the most part, and yet I swear I feel the warmth from his gaze through my entire body.
I hold Mouse closer to my chest, needing to focus on anything else besides the way my entire body feels hot underneath this stranger’s intense gaze.
He clears his throat, his eyes snapping to mine. “I’m…uh—”
Mouse lets out a long meow, the sound making me jump because of how loud it was. He begins to squirm in my grasp, and I tighten my hold to ensure I don’t lose him for a second time this morning.
I give the stranger a smile. “We’ll get going before he manages to escape again. Wouldn’t want him trespassing on your lawn twice in one morning.”
The stranger rubs his lips together before the corner of his mouth twitches ever so slightly. “I wouldn’t mind.”
My cheeks feel hot, and I don’t know if it’s because I’m embarrassed by my cat and our trespassing, or if the heat is because of the way my neighbor is looking at me. Either way, I don’t want to spend any more time here to find out.
“Sorry again for my cat.” The words come out awkward and rushed as I begin to back away from the man and in the direction of my house. “He won’t be trespassing again.”
Before the stranger can respond, I’m turning around and running back down the stairs that lead to his lawn. Mouse lets out meows of protest as I hurry back to the house, but I ignore him.
I rush into the house and hold Mouse in one hand as I pull the window shut.
My chest rises and falls in quick breaths as I try to push the sound of the stranger’s voice from my head.
I came to the Hamptons to work. I need to finish my book.
The last thing I need is a distraction. A neighbor who happens to be one of the most handsome men I’ve ever laid eyes on, with a voice that had my entire body breaking out in goosebumps, is a distraction I can’t risk.
Mouse wiggles in my grasp, and I loosen my hold to let him jump to the ground. He immediately runs over to the back door and paws at it.
I shake my head. “No, Mouse. No more escaping to the hot neighbor’s house.”
Meow.
I narrow my eyebrows. “You’re not allowed back over there. It’s been a long time since a man looked at me like that and got a reaction out of me, and that’s the last thing I need while I’m here working. You’re stuck inside.”
Mouse’s tail swats through the air. He stares at me for a few seconds before he turns around and races out of the room. I sigh and retreat to my bedroom, needing to get ready for the day so I can start working.
It isn’t until I look in the mirror that I realize I’m still in my robe. And picking up Mouse had led to the knot at my waist loosening, showing more of my chest than I realized.
My cheeks heat all over again as I stare at my reflection.
Suddenly, my eyes go wide as a question dawns on me.
I think through the moment I picked up Mouse and held him to my chest. His body was warm against mine, and I hadn’t even realized that his fur on my bare skin meant I was more exposed than I thought.
Oh God.
I close my eyes and groan.
Did I accidentally flash my hot neighbor?