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“You’re not afraid of enormous dogs, are you?”
There was a glint in her eyes when they widened. “Love them.”
Cate raised an eyebrow when Malachi kept his hand on the knob after unlocking the front door. “Everything okay?”
“I’ve tried to train him not to jump, but he gets excited on the rare occasion we have company, but if you sit right down, he’ll likely put his head on your lap and let you pet him without knocking you over.
“Don’t worry about me.” She grinned. “Let me at him.”
He swung the door open and a giant black, white, and rust-colored dog jumped on the glass storm door. She let herself in and knelt to the dog’s level, burying her face in his soft fur. “Aren’t you a beauty?” She cooed at him while petting him.
“Cate, meet Titan.” He scanned the living area. “Pixie is here somewhere.”
“Titan and Pixie?” She laughed. “Cute. Is Pixie a poodle?”
He darted his gaze around the room. “She’s my cat. Probably hiding on top of the refrigerator. She’s not as fond of company as Titan is.”
“You don’t strike me as a cat person.” She surveyed the area hoping to spot her.
“I’m not, but she decided to adopt me. I didn’t get much say in the matter.” He chuckled. “She showed up one day and never left. And she’s grown on me.”
She stood and brushed dog hair from her slacks and glanced back at her truck. “Is there another way into the pantry, so we don’t have to bring the bear cubs past Titan?”
“No, but he’s a good boy. He’ll get in his crate if we ask nice.”
Once the dog was secured, Malachi wrestled the crate through the house and deposited it in the pantry area. Cate squatted and watched as the three cubs snuggled up together, their bellies full from their earlier meal. This was her dream job, and she was grateful to be doing it. Having colleagues like Malachi made it even sweeter, but leaving wouldn’t be easy. She’d see him Friday, but after that it could be a long time before they ran into each other again. It might never happen. Part of her wanted to make the most of the time they had left and get to know him better, but another part wanted to wall herself off to keep safe from the heartbreak that was sure to come if she let him in.
The room was larger than Cate’s kitchen and lined with linoleum tile. “I was expecting a small area filled with canned goods when you said it was a pantry.”
“There’s some canned cat food up there.” Malachi’s gaze traveled to the top shelf where a Munchkin cat with a tabby coat peered down on them, her golden eyes laced with suspicion.
She made noises to encourage the cat to come closer, but the feline didn’t move from her perch, so Cate turned her attention back to Malachi. “Never saw so many blank shelves outside of grocery stores at the start of the pandemic.” They lined three of the four walls and the only thing on them was a thin layer of dust.
“Ha ha. I have food on the shelves in the kitchen. It’s only me, so I’m not shopping in bulk at Sam’s Club,” he said.
“In that case, you can make dinner. I’m starved.”
Malachi grabbed a bag of frozen stir-fry vegetables from his freezer and added some to the pan sizzling on the stove. Honey-garlic chicken and vegetables. There were few dishes he could make in a flash that were as delicious as they were quick and easy. This was one of them.
“Smells spicy.” Cate joined him in the kitchen.
“Do you like your food with a little kick, or should I make it milder?” He stirred the concoction.
“I’m sure it’ll be fine the way you usually make it.” She leaned back against his counter and made eye contact. “Can I help with anything?”
“You could set the table.” He showed her where the plates and silverware were kept.
“Minute rice?”
“You said you were starving, so I didn’t think you’d want to wait for me to make rice the old-fashioned way.”
She smiled. “You were right.”
Once the rice sat for five minutes, he fluffed it with a fork, then put the meal together in a serving bowl. He wouldn’t have bothered with the extra dish if he’d been eating alone, but for some reason he wanted everything to be perfect for Cate.
After carrying the food to the table, he sat down beside Cate and took her hand. Her eyes searched his. He grinned. “I’m going to ask the blessing on our meal.”
“Okay.” A pink hue tinged her cheeks, making him wonder if it was his touch affecting her or if she was uncomfortable with prayer.
