‘I… ah…’
‘If she goes to the SPCA, she’ll get locked in a cage. And there’ll be older cats who might be mean to her. And they’ll turn all the lights out at night and leave her all alone and she’ll get cold and?—’
‘Oh, stop it.’ A snort of laughter escaped Kate. ‘All right. I suppose she can stay here until we find the owners. You can sort out the food and whatever toilet arrangements small cats need.’
She turned away with a sigh. ‘It’s just as well I’m not going away with you for the weekend, isn’t it?’
‘Mmm.’ Bella gave her aunt a brilliant smile. ‘You’ll fall in love with her, you’ll see. She’ll fill the gap in your life.’
‘I don’t have a gap in my life.’
Bella’s voice softened. ‘Yes, you do, Kate. You just don’t see it.’
It was Kate’s turn to scowl. Any minute now and this was going to turn into an argument. Except that Bella was showering kisses on the kitten. And then she held it out towards Kate.
‘This is the boss,’ Bella informed the kitten. ‘You’ll have to behave yourself and earn your cat bikkies by keeping her company when I’m not here. We don’t want Auntie Katie getting lonely at night, do we?’
* * *
It wasn’t the company of a kitten to keep her from getting lonely at night that Kate had in mind, but she had to admit the distraction of the unexpected arrival had been welcome to keep nerves at bay.
Bella had found a pet shop open late on a Friday and they’d taken Kate’s car and brought it home loaded up with pet food and bowls and a basket. Kate found the almost enclosed cat box that guaranteed to keep the house hygienic and added a stock of organic kitty litter to go with it. Bella found toys. A stick that had a string with feathers attached to the end. A tunnel that opened like a concertina. A scratchy post and a small laser light pointer.
‘Ridiculous,’ Kate muttered when they got home. ‘All this stuff for just a few days.’
Bella, wise for once, said nothing.
On Saturday morning Kate had taken her to the airport and then gone home via some specialist food and wine shops. She had a busy day planned. The house needed cleaning, including changing her bed linen. The dinner she was going to make would showcase some of her culinary skills. She had even planned to set aside some time to choose the perfect music to put on.
Kate was doing something she hadn’t done in a very long time. She was hosting a dinner party.
And only one guest had been invited.
The kitten was a nuisance. It leapt onto the bed and got caught up in the sheets Kate was pulling off to put in the washing machine. She untangled it and put it on the floor. A corner from the armload of linen she carried out of the room was dangling and the kitten made a leap and swung from the sheet like an oversized pendulum.
‘Oh, for heaven’s sake!’ But Kate found herself smiling. And if she hadn’t had to deal with the kitten’s determination to get involved in the task, she might have been left wondering what on earth she thought she was doing when it was highly debatable whether Connor would even get the chance to find out whether she had clean sheets on her bed. He hadn’t responded to her casual invitation via text that she’d sent the moment she’d walked out of the airport terminal that morning. And why would he? The last time Kate had seen him had been when he’d walked out of the morgue, having revealed so much of himself. Had he regretted being so open? She hadn’t seen him at all yesterday so maybe he was avoiding her.
The need to be close to him had preoccupied her all day after an almost sleepless night. She had gone over and over the things he had said and the implications his words had contained. And the more she thought about him, the surer she was of how much in love she was with Connor. And the more sure she was becoming that there could be a future for them.
It was a glorious day, this Saturday. Kate threw open the French doors to her living area in the heat of the afternoon and swept the courtyard. The kitten chased her broom.
‘You’re quite free,’ she informed it. ‘You’re welcome to go back home if you want. I can always donate your accessories to a worthy cause.’
The kitten rubbed its head on her ankle. Kate went to make sure the barbecue’s gas bottle wasn’t empty. The fillet steak was already marinating in a mix of spices, including garlic and ginger. The potatoes were peeled, ready to cook and then crush and roast so that they would be hot and crispy and delicious. The food was going to be deceptively simple and hopefully irresistible to a large, hungry man.
Because Connor had finally responded to her text message with one of his own.
You bet. I’ve been waiting for a chance to taste your food ever since Bella said you were the best cook in the world.
No pressure, then.
On her cooking or any other skills.
Kate had a quiet glass of champagne at 7p.m., just before Connor was due to arrive.
The nerves were kicking in now. Kate was planning on testing a skill when she had no idea whether she even possessed it.
She had never even considered the notion of seducing a man before.
