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“Here, kitty kitty,” he called.
Kieran followed his lead but aimed his flashlight in the opposite direction. “We have a cat?”
Finley didn’t miss that he’d said we but didn’t dare point out his blunder. “We do now. It would seem someone recently dropped a cat off near the road, and it wandered down here like the sorry assholes had hoped.”
“How could you possibly know how long the cat has been out here, and why assume someone dumped him?”
Finley moved deeper into the woods. “Come on, sweetheart,” he said, doing his best impression of Kieran when he wooed Nellie. “Outdoor cats don’t survive out here long. There are too many predators. It’s a miracle the poor thing made it this far.”
“God, I hate people sometimes,” Kieran growled, then lowered his voice to call out, “Here, kitty, kitty.” Unsurprisingly, a calico cat slowly climbed out of a tree and headed right for Kieran. A quick look at her swollen belly explained why someone had dumped her. “Ireallyhate people,” Kieran corrected. Finley watched in awe as he knelt and picked the cat up, cradling her against his chest. The feline released another cry, but this one was of relief, not fear. “She weighs next to nothing.”
“She looks young, not much older than a year or two, and soon to be a mama herself.”
“Little Mama,” Kieran said, scratching her ears. “That’s what we’ll call you.”
“We can test out the camera equipment another night. Let’s take her back to the barn and check her over. Ivan has two house cats at the old homestead. I bet he can spare some litter and food, but I think we should keep her separated from the other kitties right now.”
“I’ll take her,” Kieran said. “She can bunk with me.” He looked at Finley. “Unless that’s against the rules.”
“Cash won’t have a problem with it,” Finley said.
They worked together removing burrs and washing the cat. If someone had dumped her as recently as he thought, her existence beforehand must’ve been pure misery. She was malnourished and filthy to the point she didn’t even resist a bath. Then again, who would when Kieran Sullivan was running gentle hands all over your body while telling you how pretty you were? Finley reminded himself to hold on to his heart. While Kieran was nothing like the assholes he’d fallen for in the past, he probably wouldn’t stay once he got his revenge on Ritchie. Finley couldn’t let himself forget that.
“Our vet will stop by for a routine checkup on the horses on Monday. I’ll ask her to examine Little Mama and see if she needs treatment. She can probably tell us how much time she has before the babies arrive.”
Once they finished, Kieran took Little Mama to his cabin, and Finley interrupted the poker game to talk to Ivan.
“What’s up?” the foreman asked.
“A pregnant cat wandered into the barn a little while ago. We got her cleaned up, but I think she’s malnourished. Can I borrow some food and litter from you until I can get supplies?”
Ivan held his gaze for several moments. “We?”
“Huh?”
“You said ‘we got her cleaned up.’”
He knew damn well who Finley was talking about, but he wanted to make things more difficult. Everyone on the ranch liked Kieran, even Tyler and Owen. Why couldn’t Ivan let up on him? “I’ll just drive into town. Sorry I bothered you.” Finley moved to step around Ivan, but he sidestepped to block his path. Finley tilted his head back to meet his friend’s gaze.
“Of course you can have the supplies,” his friend said. “If you promise to do something for me in return.”
Finley quirked a brow. If Kieran had said the same thing, many innuendos would’ve popped into his brain. With Ivan, all he felt was dread. “What?”
“Guard your beautiful heart, Fin.”
“There’s no danger to me here.”
Ivan pursed his lips as if mulling something over, then said, “Everything you need is in the utility room. I even have an extra litter box. There’s some special food for malnourished cats at the top of the cabinet. My big boy doesn’t need it anymore.” Finley remembered the condition Scruffy had been in when Ivan had adopted him. He’d lovingly nurtured the cat back to health. As if he knew they were talking about him, the big, beautiful tabby swaggered into the room and rubbed up against Finley’s leg.
“I appreciate it, Ivan. I’ll replace what we use when—”
Ivan shook his head. “That’s not necessary. Where are you going to keep the cat?”
“Little Mama is going to stay with Kieran.” He smiled as he recalled the adoring look on the cat’s face as she stared up at her rescuer during her bath.
“Not in danger, huh?” Ivan asked.
Finley rolled his eyes. “I was thinking about how the cat is already smitten with Kieran.”
