“Okay, thanks.” I start perusing. Some of the cats come to their doors and paw at me. It’s heartbreaking to see them so needy for love and affection. I keep my hands to myself as I was told. But all I want to do is love them all. Tears form in my eyes as I wrestle with the need to take them all home but can’t. I might have to get a farm or animal rescue and—whew. I take a breath and remind myself the cats are being adopted. They’re safe here. It’s not a kill shelter. It’s okay.
I move past a couple of cats and stop. A black-and-white one stares at me from the back of the cage. His green eyes meet mine, and I swear I know this cat.
“This guy is handsome,” I say and walk to him.
The cat in the cage perks up, seeing me. His ears, which seem small for his fluffy face, twitch. He’s adorable, even hiding in the shadows.
“Oh, you are cute.” His whiskers are big for his face and his eyes are enormous.
The lady sighs, “That’s Romeo. He’s the sweetest. A bit shy at first but the second he warms up, he’s a snuggler.”
His gaze meets mine and I know right away. This is the little man I need in my life. He dares a couple of soft steps forward, eyes wide and curious.
“Would you like to see him play in the playroom?” the lady asks.
“No, that’s okay. I’ll just get him,” I reply, not breaking eye contact with him. The truth is I can’t stay here a second longer than necessary. I’m dying from the need to adopt every one.
“Sounds good. I’ll meet you up at the front desk.” She nods at the door and hurries off in the other direction.
“You and I are going to be best friends,” I say to him and walk to the front door, not making eye contact with any of the others. I feel like a traitor.
“When I get to the desk, she hands me a massive form to fill out. It takes me several minutes, but I complete it all, fibbing about owning my own house. I use Liz’s address.
When I give it back to her, she sanitizes the pen and clipboard and points at the wall. “We are giving half off the supplies.”
“Right, guess I need the stuff.” I turn and walk to the wall of cat goods.
I get everything and finally she fetches him with the carrier I have now purchased. She brings him out, carrying him gently. “And here you are. Thank you so much for adopting.”
As she hands him to me, it becomes real. I’m getting a cat. He’s coming with me. I hold the handle and carry him to the door which the lady holds open. It takes me two trips to put it all in old Helen. When I’m done, I sit in the back seat and poke my finger through the cage.
The little man’s bright green eyes fixate on mine.
“It’s okay.” I wiggle my finger in the cage and wait for him to bring his face closer. He sniffs me, curious and maybe worried. I want so badly to pet him, but I know how cats are. You have to let them come to you. “You know,” I say, “When I met Rod, my ex, who you will never meet, I had just started online dating. It was new then. I’m old.” I make a face at him. “And my profile was ‘must love cats.’” I don’t tell him anything else. Like how I married a man who hated cats. And kids. And ruined my chances of having them for a long time.
I don’t want him to judge me.
He’ll have time for that later, during COVID when he sees how much wine I can burn through.
It takes a while but Brent eventually comes out with a white fluffy polar bear-looking dog. Brent is smiling so wide he looks like a kid again. “Meet Bear,” he says proudly. “He’s a Maremma. He’s four. His owner got sick and couldn’t take care of him anymore. He’s been here for a month.”
I kneel and let him come to me. He wags his tail and hurries over, nuzzling his face into my body as I scratch his neck. “He’s so friendly. Aren’t you?” I ask the dog.
He wiggles his whole body in excitement.
“He’s so fluffy and cute.” I pet his handsome face.
“They said he is not the norm for the breed. He’s a house dog and they’re meant to be farming dogs. Guarding animals. But he’s been inside on the sofa his whole life. He has no idea about farming. Which makes two of us.” Brent laughs and scratches the dog’s ears. Bear leans right into him, staring up into his eyes with the biggest smile I’ve ever seen.
“Thanks for the idea, Brent. This was exactly what I needed,” I say, not bothering to fight the tears in my eyes.
He smiles wide, his stare is shiny too. “Me too. Maybe we could meet up for a drink and a cry sometime this summer when the world opens up again.”
“I’d like that,” I agree. “But we should get these guys home. I’m really happy for you.”
“You too. Take care of each other.” He surprises me a second time.
“You guys too.” It’s awkward parting again with no hug or anything. He and I are survivors of the same wreckage. We should always hug and comfort one another. After the plague is over maybe.
When I get into the car and start her up, I stare at Romeo in the back seat and feel like one piece of the puzzle my life has become has clicked into place.
It’s the first time in a long time.
The tears hit hard, not all sad. I glance at Romeo when we stop at a light. “I’m not normally this weepy.”
He probably doesn’t believe me.
I don’t blame him.
Chapter 22
April 3
Six days of Liz chilling in my bed, demanding food and entertainment like Jabba the Hutt has me excited when she says she wants to go home. She misses James and snuggling. But I promised the poor man seven days. I don’t know what to do.
I call him from the deck, standing in the cold where she can’t see me, and notice the weather’s gone frigid again.
“Hey,” he answers, sounding like a new man.
“Hi. Bad news. She wants to come home. I’ve tried stalling her by making my own ice cream but she’s pretty spicy,” I say, keeping my voice low. The wind is cold, and I swear to God and all that is holy, if this spring doesn’t warm up I’m going to lose it.
“I did see the texts from her.” He chuckles into the phone, sounding so much lighter. “She can totally come home. Honestly, I miss her too. Even if she’s mean and emotional and demanding.”
“Demanding isn’t the word for it. It’s abusive. I feel like Carrie Fisher as Leia. All week, I felt like I needed to put my hair into a long braid and sport a gold bikini. I think I have one you can borrow if you like.”
“She won’t get the reference. She refuses to watch them, and she’ll think I’ve lost it,” he says. “But thanks so much for this. I got so much accomplished. Tell her I’ll pick her up in about an hour. I have a showing downtown and then I’ll swing by.”
“You sure?”
“Absolutely. The kids are not coming home for weeks at this rate. Your mother is loving having them there. She said I am saving her marriage. If she had to be alone with your father much more, she was going to go insane.”
“I’m sure he feels the same. So it’ll just be the two of you?”
“Yeah, and if she doesn’t have the kids there asking her a thousand questions and jumping on the bed and going crazy, she should be manageable. But don’t give away that bikini just yet. I may need it.”