AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The point sobered Emily. She would have bent over backward to help Katrina, even when she had nothing herself. At the very least, she would have wanted to know what was going on, even if she couldn’t help.
“I’m really sorry. I am. I won’t keep you out again.”
“Good. Because you are nothing like your dad.”
“I love you, Em.”
“Love you, Kat.”
She did. She loved Katrina so much.
Which was why she needed to let this fantasy about Katrina’s dad go.
15
The Kitten
Damian
“Hi there, Emily!”
Damian froze in place where he was crouched beside Mrs. Martine’s trailer, trying to coax a tiny black kitten out of the thick azalea bush beside it. She’d heard the kitten mewing and had called Damian to come help her because she was allergic. From what he could see of it, it was old enough to be away from its mother but still a baby. It didn’t appear to be injured, just shy.
If it was hungry, it wasn’t hungry enough to come for the little saucer of milk he’d had Mrs. Martine bring out.
“Hi, Mrs. Martine, what’s going on?” Her voice came closer, and he could hear the small hitch at the end of her question, which must have been when she realized who else was there.
Act natural, act natural, act natural.
“Hi, Emily,” he said over his shoulder, careful to keep his voice even. Pleasant. It was the first time he’d actually said anything to her since that night.
“Oh, um, hi, Mr. Elliott.” Her voice didn’t squeak quite the same way it had when he thought she was Sunshine, but close enough, and the memory made his groin stir. “Is everything okay?”
“There’s a kitten hiding in my bushes. I’m allergic, so I can’t get near it, so I called Damian to come help me.”
And he’d come, knowing Emily had gone out and thinking it was a good time to stop by. He hadn’t expected her back so soon. But then, she didn’t always follow the same schedule. Still, she’d been pretty reliable about being out during certain hours, making it seem as though she was working.
It seemed Mrs. Martine’s thoughts were going along the same line as his.
“What are you doing home so early? You don’t have work today?”
“Oh, um, well, I’m not sure that place is going to work out,” Emily said. “But it’s okay. I actually got another job offer today I think I’m going to take!” From the sheer joy in her voice, Damian knew that this was a legitimate job and not just a cover for the money she now had.
“Oh, good for you, sweetheart. What are you going to be doing?”
“I’m going to be a receptionist at an accounting firm, and they offer education assistance if I want to take classes in accounting, and they pay more than my current job… plus overtime during tax season!” Her enthusiasm built with every word out of her mouth.
Damian had to smile. Knowing he’d played a part in her being able to get that kind of job, to take that worry off of her, made him feel damn good.
He wasn’t the only one who liked listening to her. The little black kitten he’d been coaxing for the past thirty minutes shot past him so fast, he jerked back in his crouch and fell on his ass. Turning to see where it had gone, somehow, he wasn’t surprised to see the little stinker rubbing his cheek against Emily’s ankle, purring loud enough, Damian could hear him from several feet away.
“Oh, aren’t you a cutie,” Emily crooned, bending over to pick up the kitten. The shirt she was wearing was a little lowcut and loose enough that Damian got a glimpse of the pale curve of her breast.
Fuck me.
Nope, his desire for her had definitely not been eradicated by their night together. His mouth watered, and his fingers itched to reach out and touch her. He shifted to keep the bulge in his pants from being too obvious.
“Oh, look, he’s chosen you!” Mrs. Martine said with delight.
