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Henry reached for the phone at the desk. “I’ll give her a quick call to let her know you’re here.”
Alejandro held his breath, but Fatima hadn’t changed her mind and invited him to come up. She let him in at his first knock. He was relieved she wasn’t holding a knife.
“I’ve worried Romeo and Juliet are here alone too much of the time, or I’d not be giving them to you. There’s a piece of paper on the dining table. Go ahead and sign for them.”
“I’ll be happy to.” He pulled a pen from his pocket, and after addressing the note to his darling Ana, he promised to take excellent care of the kittens and return them if she so desired. “There. Pin it up in her office so she’ll be sure to see it.”
“Don’t worry, she will. The real challenge will be to corral Romeo and Juliet and put them into their carrier.”
“I’d love a cup of coffee. If I sit here for a while, they should come to me, and it will make everything easier.”
Fatima rested her hands on her ample hips. “All I’ll give you is a glass of water.”
He took the chair at the head of the table. “That would be nice too.”
She plunked the glass down in front of him. “We both know the cats are an excuse to see Ana again, but you shouldn’t be sure it will happen.”
“Even if she hates me now, I still have hope.”
A perplexed frown crossed her brow. “You don’t understand.” She sat down beside him. “She’s more angry with herself than with you. She’s cautious about letting men into her life, and she’s furious to have made such a gigantic mistake with you. She blames herself for being gullible. I shouldn’t have told you, but I want you to see just how much damage you’ve done.”
He stared at his water. Even if he told Fatima about the baby, she’d see it as an excuse to trick Ana into marriage. Plenty of women had done that to men, but it didn’t justify his actions. “You’re right. I should have told Ana the truth. I didn’t have a choice about coming home early, but I should have taken her with me rather than leave her alone on the Siren.”
“And what, continued your lies? That’s not the right answer, Mr. Vasquez.”
“Maybe not, but it would have given me time to straighten out things before she discovered the truth on her own.”
“Well, it didn’t happen.”
Romeo brushed against his leg, and he picked him up to cuddle. “One down. Where’s the carrier?”
“I put it in the guest bathroom. If you’ll carry him in there, he won’t see us sneaking up on him with it.”
“Good plan.”
“Well, of course,” she scoffed. “I think things through.”
He scratched under Romeo’s chin. “Good advice, but I doubt cats plan anything at all.” The kitten stared up him as he carried him into the bathroom, and Alejandro pushed him into the carrier and closed the door. Romeo pushed his nose against the wire grid in the door and meowed to get out.
“When we get home. Now where’s your sister?”
“She’s the hard one to catch,” Fatima opined.
Just like her mistress, Alejandro thought.
Cats captured and all their gear stacked out in the hallway, Fatima leaned against the open door. “I was supposed to tell you Ana has gone to Brazil for a bathing-suit shoot.”
He smiled in spite of himself. “Fatima, you know that isn’t true.”
She shrugged. “I work here and pass on whatever messages I’m given.”
“I’ve always wanted to see Brazil.”
“I wouldn’t leave too soon.”
That was all the help she was likely to offer, and he thanked her for it.
Ana ate a delectable croissant her stepfather had baked that morning and licked the butter from her fingers. “This is the absolute best croissant ever baked, Claude.”
