“Definitely haven’t seen anything like that. I do have a very nice ring I’ve been assured is genuine topaz, if that’s something I can interest you in,” the blond man responded.
“No, I really need the brooch.” Silence followed, and I could practically sense Horst pacing back and forth in front of the counter. “Look, if you get a brooch that looks anything like what I’m describing, please call me.”
I emerged from the shadowy maze of antiques to see Horst handing the blond man his card. He glanced my way, his eyes falling to the stack of plates in my arms. “There you are,” he said, leaning against the glass of the counter as though he hadn’t just been begging the proprietor of Yesterday’s Treasures to produce a very specific item.
“I thought you were staying in the car with the rats,” I said.
“I was, but then I thought you might need some help if you found something. And it looks like you did.” He sprang forward,scooping the top half of my stack into his own arms. “You’re lucky I’m such a thoughtful guy.”
It was hard to pin down exactly what was off about him. On the surface, he looked like the same man who’d hopped through the window of my kitchen holding a bag of tacos. But underneath was a restlessness that disappeared if I tried to focus on it too hard.
Something was bothering him.
“Everything okay?” I asked him.
“Glory O’Bryan,” he chided gently. “I’m here with you buying vintage plates, and I have two rats and a rat cage waiting in my car. What could possibly not be okay?”
I had no idea. That was what worried me.
Chapter Eight
“This is a bold choice,” Horst said as he fit the panels of the cage together. I was supposed to be reading the directions to him, but once we got started, it all seemed pretty intuitive. Besides, the way the sinews in his arms shifted as he got everything put together was more than a little distracting.
What was it about men doing handy things that made them so irresistible?
The only thing that would have made this moment better was if he had taken off his shirt, but apparently, he didn’t feel that was necessary.
Much to my disappointment.
“What’s a bold choice?” I asked, trying very hard to focus the conversation.
“Putting a cage with rats in it here.” He waved his free hand, gesturing at the room around us. “You know—in a cat café.”
“I didn’t really have much of a choice, did I?” I said, picking up the next panel and handing it to him. “It can’t go in the kitchen, or in the café area where people eat.”
I didn’t say it, but I also didn’t want the cage in my apartment, ostensibly because I didn’t want to annoy my cat Pancake with unexpected roommates.
The real reason was I didn’t want rats in my apartment.
“You don’t think this is going to make the cats insane? I mean, seeing the rats but not being able to get to them?”
“Emma seemed to think it would be fine,” I said, although frankly I had some reservations about this arrangement.
“Ah, yes. Emma. The rat expert.” Horst got the four sides of the cage together, and I handed him the top.
