Several hours later, the chipless but otherwise seemingly healthy cat was quarantined in my office with a litter box, food, and water. We were just waiting on the results from his FIV and feline leukemia tests. Dr. Matigan put him on the schedule to be neutered. I’d still try to find his owner, check around and see if anyone was missing him, but he’d be happy enough roaming around our barns.
I enlisted Mom’s help so I stopped at the house to pick up the bag of goodies she’d prepared. She waggled her eyebrows at me. When I didn’t react, she grabbed my ear. Not hard, but I didn’t move. She gently tugged me down so that we were eye to eye.
“I like Malachi. I adore Payton. I think you’re a good man who would make an outstanding partner. But if you mess this up….” She pointed at her own eyes, then moved her hand to point at me. I grabbed her hand and pushed it down, but leaned forward and kissed her cheek.
“Don’t worry, Mom. You know I’m not the kind to mess it up.”
Mom wrestled her hand away but then dove in for a tight hug. I squeezed her back until she was ready to let go. I always waited. Mom was a hugger; Dad swore it was her love language, and us kids hadn’t always been great about letting her. Eventually she was done, pulled away, and gave me a playful shove.
“Have fun tonight!” She said in a sing-song voice.
Good Lord. I waved and headed out. I was running short on time now and I had to set up quickly.
The knock on the door had me rushing over. I opened it to find Mal looking nice in a clean pair of jeans and a button-up shirt. Pay didn’t even hesitate to push inside, Mr. Raven dangling from one hand.
“Hi, Crew! Daddy said we’re eating here. And a movie. What movie?”
“Whatever you want, Pay. Come on in.” I stepped back and touched Mal’s hand as he walked in. I wanted to greet him with a kiss but wasn’t sure what Mal was ready for in front of his kid.
“I’m Payton! Also I wanna watch Mulan. Pizza!”
“Payton, slow down please,” Mal chastised gently, but he was trying to cover a smirk.
I had to laugh but I had the good sense to hide it in a cough. Payton ran into the kitchen and stood on his toes, trying to see the pizza crusts on the counter. The dough was one of the things I’d collected from Mom, because hers was amazing, and I’d separated it onto three different pans. That way we could all have exactly what we wanted.
I clapped my hands. “All right. What do you want on your pie, Payton? We have all the toppings to choose from.”
Payton cocked his head. “It’s pizza, Crew. Not pie.”
“Pie is another name for pizza. Please go wash your hands and then we can make them, okay?”
“Okay, Daddy!” Payton dropped Mr. Raven on a chair and ran down the short hall, assuming the bathroom was in the same place as in his cabin. Which it was. As soon as the water turned on, Mal whirled to face me.
“You set up a projector and screen.”
It wasn’t a question. I answered it anyway. “Yes.”
Mal narrowed his gaze. “And personal pizzas. And I see pop, without caffeine.”
I nodded. “Yes.”
Mal stepped right into my space. He didn’t touch me but he was close enough to kiss. I leaned forward, but Mal tilted his head just out of reach. Okay, I could have absolutely reached but he was definitely denying me.
“Are you trying to bribe my kid into liking you?”
I snorted a laugh and grabbed his hips. When I tugged, he came willingly enough. I kissed him quickly, deep, hard, and fast, because I knew we didn’t have much time.
“Please. Your adorable child already likes me. He said he would ride doubles with me and he doesn’t like to ride. I knew I was golden right there.” I winked. The water shut off and we stepped apart but still stayed close. “But dates are supposed to be fun, and a date with a kid means pizza and movies. I even have popcorn.”
“Do you have chips?” Payton had appeared out of nowhere, moving silently which I didn’t know he was capable of. But he was right there at our knees, leaning a little on Mal’s leg. “I like chips better than popcorn.”
“I might.” I narrowed my gaze at him then crossed my eyes. Payton giggled. “We’ll see what happens after pizza. Now, I know you must like cheese. So what else do you want?”
Payton ran back to the counter, and I slid a step stool over to him so that he could be tall enough to reach. The only reason I had it at all was to change the ceiling lights if the bulbs burned out. But I was glad because it came in handy when a little man needed to make his own pizza.
Mal grabbed my hand and squeezed. When I glanced at him, he mouthed, “Thank you.”
We watched Mulan while eating our pizza. And chips and popcorn. Mal cut his kid off after one pop and switched him to water. I expected Payton to fight, or at least whine, about it but he didn’t. He also got two cookies for dessert. After Mulan, he expertly navigated the streaming app until he found Big Hero 6 and then fell asleep halfway through.
