Chapter 19
— chapter nineteen
Jenna was walking down the driveway to the mailbox when Nelson pulled in. Pleased to see him since it was a Friday and not a Monday, she stopped where she was and gave him a little wave.
“Hey,” he called out as he rolled down the window. “Are you going for a walk?”
“Just to the mailbox.” She held up the three letters in her hand.
He waited until she’d deposited the letters in her mailbox and put up the flag before calling out again. “I have something for you. Want a ride to your door?”
She didn’t need one. After all, it wasn’t like her driveway was all that long. But it seemed rude to refuse his offer. “All right.” She opened up the passenger side door and climbed into his very large, gray pickup truck.
Even though she’d ridden in it when he picked her up in the rain, she’d been too upset to notice a thing.
Now, with clear eyes, she was able to take note of everything.
Nelson’s truck was as fancy inside as an expensive sports car.
It smelled good too. Like Nelson’s cologne and some kind of leather cleaner.
The combination was lovely. Even though she hadn’t seen the need for the ride, it was a nice break.
Leaning back with a happy sigh, she smiled at him.
“This is a mighty comfortable truck, Nelson.”
He grinned. “I’ve always thought so. When I first bought it, I was a little embarrassed.
It seemed like it was too fancy just to drive to work and such, but it’s turned out to be a good thing.
” He parked in his usual spot at the top of the drive.
“I’ve driven several clients and customers to different buildings and houses to see work.
No one wants to ride in a smelly old truck. ”
“I reckon not.”
“Stay there. I’ll come around and help you down.”
Help her down? The request seemed odd, but Jenna stayed where she was.
Then, of course, she got all flustered when Nelson opened the door and held out a hand for her to take.
After she took it, he placed a hand on her waist and practically lifted her out.
She gripped his arms as she let out a girlish squeal.
He laughed. “I guess you didn’t expect me to do that?”
“Not at all.”
“Sorry, but I couldn’t help myself. It’s a pretty big jump and you aren’t all that tall.” He winked. “Hearing you squeal was an added bonus.”
“No doubt.” She’d squealed like she was on a carnival ride. “I shouldn’t have screamed in your ear.”
He laughed. “You’re lucky I didn’t twirl you in a circle. For a second I was considering it. Maybe next time.”
She’d be lying if she said she didn’t want there to be a next time. The idea of being twirled in Nelson’s arms would be memorable.
But probably nothing she should ever think about.
Feeling the beginnings of a blush on her cheeks, she tried to pull herself together. “So . . . what did you bring me today?”
He was still smiling at her. “Hmm? Oh. Here. Let me get it. It’s in the back.” He strode to the back of the truck, jumped on the tailgate, pulled up a tarp, and then lifted a large, carpeted item. “What do you think?” he asked as he lowered it to the ground and then jumped down after it.
It was a monstrosity of a thing. It was several feet high and was covered entirely with tan carpet.
Honestly, it looked like an ugly carpeted tree.
“I don’t know what to think,” she said slowly.
Really hoping that Nelson didn’t think it was an interesting piece of art or a clothes hanger, she asked, “What is it?”
“It’s a cat tree.”
“A what?”
His smile widened. “It’s a cat tree for your kitten, Jenna.” Touching one of the tree’s carpeted limbs, he said, “See? Blue can climb all over it instead of on your couch. Cats like things to do, such as sharpen their claws.”
She supposed cats did, but did she need this in her cozy house? She walked over to inspect it more closely. “It’s mighty big, Nelson.”
“It is. The guy who sold it to me said it’s sturdy enough to hold two cats at a time. What do you think?”
“I’m not quite sure.”
Little by little, some of the enthusiasm in his expression faded. “Uh-oh. Do you hate it?”
Hate was a strong word to describe how she felt. But . . . “I don’t know where it could go.”
“How about in the living room? I’ll carry it in, and we’ll see what he thinks.” He lifted it right up and headed toward the door. Just as if he were carrying in a Christmas tree or some such item.
“Oh, Nelson.”
“If you hate it, I’ll take it back. I promise,” he called out.
He was so good to her . . . and he sounded so excited. Just as if it was Christmas in July. Hurrying to keep up, she said, “I don’t hate this, ah, cat tree. It’s very kind of you to get it for Blue.”
“And for you.”
“And me,” she said weakly as she followed him up the front steps. She opened the door, stepped to the side to let Nelson and the giant cat playground inside, and then led the way into the living room.
As she’d suspected, the cat tree looked sorely out of place.
Her living area was small, and she already had a couch, a coffee table, and an easy chair in the space.
“See, Nelson? There’s just not much room in here.
” She exhaled. Surely he would see how inappropriate the .
. . the furry tree thing was and take it right back out to his truck.
But he didn’t.
“How about if I moved everything over a couple of feet and then we put Blue’s tree over against the window?”
“The window?”
“That way Blue could look out the window when you’re busy and Katie is at school. He’ll love it. What do you think?”
He was making it sound as if she truly did sit around and think about activities for a kitten to do. She did nothing of the sort. But instead of correcting him, Jenna bit her lip and nodded.
“Okay, can you lift that side of your coffee table?”
“Sure.” Together they moved it several inches to the side. Then Nelson scooted the couch and Jimmy’s chair over. Finally, after everything was arranged to his liking, Nelson picked up the cat tree and carefully set it down in front of the window.
She bit her lip again in dismay. The kitten now had the best view in the house. Plus, he would probably never use it. Katie would think it was a jungle gym for herself.
Still looking pleased, he said, “I think it looks pretty good in here. What do you think?”
“I’m not sure, Nelson.” And now she was a liar, because she was very sure she did not like it.
“Blue? Blue, where are you?”
This man! This silly, incorrigible man. “Nelson, Blue doesn’t really come when you call—”
“Hi, kitty,” he said gently as Blue strode right to his side and stretched his paws on a calf. “Look what we got for you.”
“We?” Jenna rolled her eyes.
Neither the cat nor Nelson paid her any mind. Instead, Blue gazed up at Nelson adoringly, then practically went limp when Nelson picked him up and carried him over to the climbing tree.
Blue meowed when Nelson put him down on one of the little resting nooks among the branches. The kitten’s sweet little body was tense.
“I think he’s afraid, Nelson. Get him down.”
“Hold on. We’ve just got to give him a second.” Lowering his voice, he scratched the top of Blue’s head, right between his ears. “What do you think, kitty?”
Blue stretched, ran his kitten claws along a carpet-covered branch, then seemed to suddenly notice the window. He meowed again.
Next thing she knew, Blue climbed to another branch, batted a section of it playfully, then became completely obsessed with his view.
He froze, then resituated himself a bit .
. . all before contentedly perching on the branch and gazing out the window.
Seconds later, his tail was resting limply at his side.
“Look at him now, Jenna!” Nelson grinned. “I think my gift is a hit. What do you think?”
“I think Blue likes it very much.” And she, unfortunately, now had a very large cat playground in her living room.
“You don’t seem very thrilled about it.”
That was because she wasn’t. She was starting to feel a little bit out of sorts too. Nelson had a lot of nerve to act hurt because he’d gotten her something huge for a kitten she’d never asked for in the first place.
“You took me by surprise, Nelson. This tree is very big. Plus, I didn’t even know you were going to stop by today.”
He stuffed his hands in his pockets. “Okay, I get it. You don’t want this at all.”
“It’s not that I don’t want it, it’s that you should’ve asked me first. Don’t you see the difference?”
“Yeah. Yeah, I do. I’m sorry.” He ran a hand through his hair. “You’re exactly right. I shouldn’t have decided to bring you something for your house without checking with you first.”
He was listening to her. Really listening. It seemed as if he understood her point too. She was so pleased that she’d spoken her mind and had been honest with how she felt. She’d never done that with Jimmy and was often frustrated with him. She was getting stronger.
But . . . Nelson wasn’t Jimmy. He wasn’t anything like Jimmy. He never lost his temper. He was always calm and caring and gentle with her and Katie. He was even gentle with kittens.
“Nel—” She stopped mid-word because he was now holding Blue in his arms and obviously attempting to remove his new favorite spot in the living room. “Wait.”
He looked at her from over his shoulder. “What’s wrong?”
“You can’t pick it up and take it out of here.”
Nelson still wasn’t meeting her eyes. He was acting like it was because he was busy trying to navigate the toy, but she knew better. He was upset.
“I said I would abide by your wishes. I meant it. You are right.”
“But—”
“No, it’s not a problem,” he continued. “As soon as I put this on the front porch, I’ll come back in and move all of your furniture back. I’ll be out of here in five minutes.”
He was going to leave in a hurry because she was being ungrateful.
She felt terrible.
“You don’t need to do that,” she said in a rush. “I can keep it.”
“No, that’s not what I told you,” he reminded her again. “I told you that if you didn’t like it, I’d take it back. I meant what I said.”
“I know you did.”