It feels like only seconds and the elevator doors open to the little foyer. Colton moves out first, pressing his palm to the scanner and unlocking Micah’s door. As nervous as I am to be here, to be alone with him, I am also intensely curious to see how he lives. Kade’s apartment is sleek and industrial. It suits him. Will Micah’s be that way too? He seems to have such an appreciation for old things that I somehow can’t picture him living with concrete and steel.
As the door swings open, my attention is immediately caught by frantic meowing. I’m a long way from the floor, but I strain to look down, catching quick peeks of a small cat winding around Micah’s feet.
He. Has. A. Cat.
Suddenly, staying here doesn’t seem like it’ll be so bad.
“Minnie,” Micah calls, making little kissing noises. My eyes widen and I stare at him, unable to process what I’m witnessing. Micah has a cat. She’s tiny. Her freaking name is Minnie. And Micah’s calling her like she’s his baby.
He huffs out a laugh, shuffling slowly through the door so he doesn’t trip on the cat. “Colt,” he calls with a laugh.
“On it,” Colt says as he reaches down to scoop her up. He presses her to his face, her little body so tiny in his hands, giving her little kisses. She doesn’t look like a kitten, but she can’t be full grown, can she? My hands flex, desperate to hold her. Colton’s dancing eyes move from my hands to my face. Then he reaches out and drops that little ball of sweetness on my chest.
My hands come up reflexively. She’s so incredibly soft. Her little body is rumbling with purrs. She lets me stroke her a few times before turning to climb up Micah’s chest to his shoulder. She pushes her head against his jaw, and he turns his head to run his cheek over hers. When she seems satisfied with the attention, she settles against his neck, purring, looking perfectly at home. Micah’s still smiling when he focuses back on me. “Bed…couch?” he asks.
I take a minute to check in with my body. I’m exhausted, but I feel like I’ve just entered an alternate universe. No way can I sleep yet. “Couch,” I say quietly, briefly meeting his eyes before reaching up to scratch under Minnie’s chin.
Micah strides through the entryway, moving to the living room and placing me gently on a big, brown sectional. The cushions cradle me, and some of the tension in my body releases. I’m not used to being so close to a man, any man, for so long and despite Micah being a perfect gentleman, I was still anxious. He pulls a red blanket off the back of the couch and carefully covers me, tucking it around my waist and under my feet. I just watch, dumbfounded, as he takes care of me. His cat doesn’t move from her perch, just digging her nails in to hold on as he bends and twists.
Micah barely seems to notice she’s there. The ease they both seem to have with the position tells me it’s normal for him. I shake my head slowly, making Micah tilt his in confusion. “You have a cat,” I say. Clearly I’m a sparkling conversationalist. But I’m having trouble wrapping my head around this version of Micah.
He smiles again, then signs, “Yeah. I’ve had her a couple of years.”
“And you named her Minnie? Like Minnie Mouse?”
“The rescue named her. I didn’t want to confuse her by changing it.”
He didn’t want to confuse the cat.
I’m in the twilight zone. That’s the only explanation.
“Water,” he says suddenly, heading for the kitchen. I giggle a little, watching Minnie bounce on his shoulder, tail in the air as he leaves, then finally turn my attention to Micah’s apartment.
It is nothing like Kade’s.
Where Kade’s is modern and industrial, Micah’s is warm and homey. Wood floors, warm walls. Soft colors and fabrics. It’s like a…nest. Somewhere you’d want to hole up for weeks. The focal point in this room is floor to ceiling bookshelves. I’m green with envy, looking at his collection. There must be over a thousand books there, and I’m itching to explore them.
I slide myself to the edge of the couch, slowly pushing to my feet, keeping my weight off the air cast. I’m ok for a second, before a wave of dizziness hits me and I stagger backward, dropping heavily back to the cushions. I vaguely hear a shout, then feel Micah’s arm around me, carefully rubbing my back. I swallow back the bile, trying to breathe through my nausea. That was a bad idea.
I hear a groan of frustration before his guttural “Bed.” I reach out, tangling my fingers in Micah’s shirt, trying to ground myself.
“Ok,” I whisper. “Carefully.”
Careful he is. He picks me up like I’m a priceless treasure, carrying me delicately. He sits down on a bed, settling me in his lap. I freeze at the new position, breathing through a spurt of panic. But he does nothing more than rub my back, breathing quietly.
Finally, I open my eyes. I’m in a huge bedroom. It’s bigger than the whole main floor of my home with Brent. There’s a mound of pillows against the wood headboard, and I want to wiggle into them until I feel like I’m in a fluffy cloud. I see an attached bath, and my heart stops.
“This isyourroom,” I say, easing away from him. Of course it is. I don’t know why I’m disappointed. It’s exactly what I expected after all, but I guess I thought his promise that I would be safe with him would last a day at least.
Micah gently lowers me off his lap onto the bed before sliding to crouch beside me.
“It’s the main bedroom, but I don’t sleep here. My room’s on the other side of the apartment. Do you think you can be comfortable here?”
I’m stuck on the fact that he doesn’t sleep here. “Why don’t you sleep in here? Was someone else staying here?” And was it a woman? It’s none of my business, but I still want to know.
His eyes fall to the ground, then he tips back until he’s sitting on his bum, stretching his legs out in front of him. He looks sheepish. “I stayed in here when I first moved in, I just…couldn’t sleep.”He shrugs his shoulders, looking uncomfortable.
I shouldn’t push. He doesn’t look like he’s eager to talk about it, and I know better than most people that pushing can backfire. But I’m so intensely curious about this man. Far more than is healthy. “Why couldn’t you sleep?”
