secret houseguest on many occasions that this was exactly the kind of curiosity that killed the cat, but Queenie paid no heed.
“Oh, no, you don’t,” Merilee said, putting her foot between Queenie and the dangerous freedom she coveted. “We have dogs around here and last week someone saw a coyote. You’d be dinner in no time.”
Queenie wheeled around and trotted toward the kitchen—always her second destination when the great escape failed.
Merilee hurried in after her and dished up some canned kitty food, all the while trying to decide if she should invite Zach in for some eggnog when he brought her back home. It was light eggnog. Hmmm. What else could she give him? She didn’t have any Christmas cookies sitting around. She had cheese, though, and Rye Crisp. Cheese and Rye Crisp and light eggnog. He’d take one look at that holiday snack and ho-ho-ho. The apartment looked festive enough. She’d hung red tinsel garlands across the top of the windows and put up a tree with all the ornaments out of reach of little white paws.
Really, she didn’t know why she was even entertaining the idea of entertaining. A handsome fireman like Zach wasn’t going to be interested in hanging out with her. She probably couldn’t even lure him into her apartment with the promise of a Christmas goose and a red velvet cake. All he wanted her for was to whisper to his cat.
Still, she wasn’t about to whisper with day-old breath. She dashed to her bathroom to give her teeth a quick brushing.
The girl in the mirror had flushed cheeks and bright eyes. But they were plain, like the rest of her face. Why hadn’t she bothered with mascara today? Or any day, for that matter?
She spat out toothpaste and then scrounged around in the vanity drawer for mascara. She’d had this for … how many months? Years? Millennia? Oh, good grief. It was all dried out. Still, she poked the wand around, mining for what she could find, and applied it. Not much, and not much of an improvement. She added pink lip gloss, which Liz had convinced her to get last time they were at the mall. Okay, better.
Who was she kidding? She was never going to look in the mirror and see a pretty girl. Old high school wounds had produced scars that had left Merilee blind to her good features. Even now, though her family assured her she was indeed pretty, she groped unsuccessfully for a positive self-image.
She shoved the makeup back in the drawer, and then grabbed cat treats from her kitchen cupboard. Then she hurried back outside to meet Zach. Okay, so she wasn’t the most beautiful girl on the block, and maybe cat whispering wasn’t on a par with looking like Heidi Klum, but right now it was what Zach needed. And having something he needed … well, it was a beginning.
“Sorry to keep you waiting,” she said, as she climbed into his SUV.
Unlike hers, this vehicle was in mint condition and still had its new-car smell. She’d once bought an air freshener that produced the same fragrance, but the contrast between the smell and the appearance of her car had been enough to confirm what she already knew: new-car air freshener scent does not a new car make. Next time around she bought a vanilla air freshener.
“No problem,” he said. “Thanks for dropping everything to help me.”
Like she’d had anything to drop. She wisely kept this information to herself. “I’m happy to help. I love cats.” Woman who lived alone and loved cats—did she sound like some sort of cliché? Well, if she did, too bad. There was nothing wrong with loving cats. And there was certainly nothing wrong with living alone. It showed independence. So there.
Zach shook his head. “I can’t figure out what his problem is.”
“We’ll figure it out,” Merilee assured him. Together . There was nothing wrong with togetherness, either. Just this small dose of it, sitting within reaching distance of this hunky man was sending a buzz running through her.
They turned onto Lavender
“Oh, no, you don’t,” Merilee said, putting her foot between Queenie and the dangerous freedom she coveted. “We have dogs around here and last week someone saw a coyote. You’d be dinner in no time.”
Queenie wheeled around and trotted toward the kitchen—always her second destination when the great escape failed.
Merilee hurried in after her and dished up some canned kitty food, all the while trying to decide if she should invite Zach in for some eggnog when he brought her back home. It was light eggnog. Hmmm. What else could she give him? She didn’t have any Christmas cookies sitting around. She had cheese, though, and Rye Crisp. Cheese and Rye Crisp and light eggnog. He’d take one look at that holiday snack and ho-ho-ho. The apartment looked festive enough. She’d hung red tinsel garlands across the top of the windows and put up a tree with all the ornaments out of reach of little white paws.
Really, she didn’t know why she was even entertaining the idea of entertaining. A handsome fireman like Zach wasn’t going to be interested in hanging out with her. She probably couldn’t even lure him into her apartment with the promise of a Christmas goose and a red velvet cake. All he wanted her for was to whisper to his cat.
Still, she wasn’t about to whisper with day-old breath. She dashed to her bathroom to give her teeth a quick brushing.
The girl in the mirror had flushed cheeks and bright eyes. But they were plain, like the rest of her face. Why hadn’t she bothered with mascara today? Or any day, for that matter?
She spat out toothpaste and then scrounged around in the vanity drawer for mascara. She’d had this for … how many months? Years? Millennia? Oh, good grief. It was all dried out. Still, she poked the wand around, mining for what she could find, and applied it. Not much, and not much of an improvement. She added pink lip gloss, which Liz had convinced her to get last time they were at the mall. Okay, better.
Who was she kidding? She was never going to look in the mirror and see a pretty girl. Old high school wounds had produced scars that had left Merilee blind to her good features. Even now, though her family assured her she was indeed pretty, she groped unsuccessfully for a positive self-image.
She shoved the makeup back in the drawer, and then grabbed cat treats from her kitchen cupboard. Then she hurried back outside to meet Zach. Okay, so she wasn’t the most beautiful girl on the block, and maybe cat whispering wasn’t on a par with looking like Heidi Klum, but right now it was what Zach needed. And having something he needed … well, it was a beginning.
“Sorry to keep you waiting,” she said, as she climbed into his SUV.
Unlike hers, this vehicle was in mint condition and still had its new-car smell. She’d once bought an air freshener that produced the same fragrance, but the contrast between the smell and the appearance of her car had been enough to confirm what she already knew: new-car air freshener scent does not a new car make. Next time around she bought a vanilla air freshener.
“No problem,” he said. “Thanks for dropping everything to help me.”
Like she’d had anything to drop. She wisely kept this information to herself. “I’m happy to help. I love cats.” Woman who lived alone and loved cats—did she sound like some sort of cliché? Well, if she did, too bad. There was nothing wrong with loving cats. And there was certainly nothing wrong with living alone. It showed independence. So there.
Zach shook his head. “I can’t figure out what his problem is.”
“We’ll figure it out,” Merilee assured him. Together . There was nothing wrong with togetherness, either. Just this small dose of it, sitting within reaching distance of this hunky man was sending a buzz running through her.
They turned onto Lavender
Similar Books
