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The Cat's Meow
An Aloha Flirt
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Chapter One
“You couldn’t have found yourself a little closer to home?”
“Not you too?” Sitting at a red light, Courtney Anderson sucked in the sweet ocean air and basked in the soft breeze through the open car windows. Everything seemed easier in Paradise. Even the similar phone call earlier today with her mother. She’d expected the hour long monologue on the disadvantages of living so far from family. Though the way her mom had carried on about what a blessing it would be to have family around the corner twenty-four seven when Courtney started having children, and how not to underestimate the support of family for a new mother, anyone would think Courtney wasn’t single and unattached, but married and on the verge of birthing quintuplets. But this response from her BFF was not what Courtney had expected.
Brittany had been her best friend since the first day of high school when they’d bonded over a new school, a stash of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, and the future captain of the football team sitting in front of them during Mrs. McIntyre’s Algebra class. “Me too who?”
“My mother. At the wrong end of a very long lecture, I have the distinct feeling it’s not me she’s worried about living too far away, but those hypothetical grandchildren that she wants close by. Probably so she can brainwash them young.”
“Every girl’s dream—to be compared to someone’s middle aged mother.” Brittany blew out a soft sigh. “Though it could be worse. At least your mom is kinda cool.”
One woman’s cool was another woman’s problem. Not that her mom was really a problem. After all, Courtney couldn’t blame her mother for being caught off guard when her daughter’s ten days in Kona shifted from a much needed vacation to a permanent life change. “I just wish she wasn’t pulling out all the maternal guilt trips. I mean, why can’t she see now she’ll finally have a good reason for Dad and her to take a real vacation?”
“I’m sure she’ll adjust. It’s me you should be worried about. Your mom has two more children she can mother. I only have one best friend.”
And that was the thing that had been bothering her this whole time. When her boss informed her entire team that due to unexpected setbacks they were letting several groups go with severance pay, her friend and coworker, Amy, suggested they use at least some of that money and spare time to take the dream vacation they’d always talked of and had never gotten around to. At the time, the idea had been both exciting and terrifying. After all, what if she spent all that money and then couldn’t find another job? It had taken all of twenty minutes searching hotel rates in Hawaii to be totally on board with the idea. After a week on the island, she’d begun to plan a return trip. Not only had she never really liked the hard Midwest winters, she’d had no idea how much she loved everything to do with water, especially scuba diving. When Nick at the dive shop mentioned they were going to be hiring a new shop manager, she started wondering. By the time she and Amy were packing for the flight home, Courtney had made up her
mind, and moments like this, driving down the road with the ocean breeze blowing in her face, only solidified that she had to give Kona a real try.
The hard part of that decision hadn’t been leaving her folks and sisters behind, it had been moving on without Brittany. “Have you asked for vacation time yet?”
Her friend heaved a soft sigh. “Just waiting for you to have a place of your own and then I’ll be on the next flight to visit.”
“Really?” Courtney was almost as excited about Brittany visiting as she was about starting a new life in Hawaii.
Brittany chuckled. “Really. My boss said as long as you find a place before the busy season, I can take off whenever I want.”
“That is so perfect!”
“It doesn’t hurt that I haven’t taken vacation days in over two years.”
“Whatever works.”
“So what’s the plan? Find anything yet?”
“No. Seems word of mouth moves all the best places long before I find out about them.” Courtney tried not to let her frustration show in her voice. “Both of the apartments on the list were just a little too primitive for me.”
“I’m afraid to ask what that means.”
“Well, the first one that came with a garage?”
“The one you were so excited about even though you don’t have a car yet?”
“Turns out the car is literally parked in the living room.”
“What?”
“You heard me. There’s a garage door and then no walls so the car sits to the side of the living room.”
“And the other one?”
“It was actually very nice. Except for the shower.”
“What was wrong with the shower?”
“It was in the yard. As much as I love being outdoors, I couldn’t see myself showering with only a grass cloth wall between me and all my neighbors.”
“I think I’d rather have a car in the living room.”
“That’s what I was thinking.”
“So now what?”
“As the saying goes: Tomorrow’s another day.” She could almost hear Brittany rolling her eyes. “I’m meeting some of the gang from the dive shop at the Surf’s Up.”
“The what?”
“Surf’s Up Saloon.”
“Did you say Saloon?”
“Yeah.” Courtney thought the same thing the first time she heard the name. “Odd name for a beachfront bar, but they have good food, reasonable prices and the family that owns the place is really nice.”
“It’s a family bar?”
“One brother owns it, another bartends, and a sister waitresses. Not sure if the parents are involved. This is only my second time there.”
“So what are the chances if you don’t find a place of your own that you’ll come to your senses and move home?”
Pulling into the parking lot, she sighed, hoping when Brittany came to visit Paradise and saw for herself, she’d understand that Courtney had already come to her senses. “I’m here. I have to go.”
“Keep me posted, but don’t hold it against me if I’m on the team that wants you to change your mind and come home.”
Courtney bit back a chuckle. She knew her friend meant well, and frankly, Courtney missed her friends and family too, but she also knew deep in her heart that this was something she had to do. Something she would be asking what if for the rest of her life if she didn’t give it a try now. “Love you too.”
“See? How am I going to find a new BFF who understands me like you do?” This time rather than melancholy, humor laced Brittany’s words.
“I have faith in you.” A few more words of encouragement to each other and Courtney slammed and locked the door of her rental car and slipped her phone into her pocket. A shadow dashed past her into the shrubs and for a second her heart lurched into her throat at the thought of one of those wild mongooses coming that close.
Shaking off the thought, she took two more steps when another sight caught her eye. This time she stopped for a better look at the rustling shrub. Judging by the short, striped and clearly nervous tail whipping about out in the open, her money was on she’d stumbled upon a kitten. “Poor baby.”
Unsure of how friendly the little guy was, Courtney inched forward very slowly. The tail stilled and she stopped. If it bolted, catching it could be more challenging. On the other hand, how fast could one little kitten run? Setting her purse on the ground, she hunched low and murmured shushing sounds at the little guy the way she might have done to calm an infant. “It’s okay, sweetie.”
Another few seconds and Courtney was on all fours, one arm stretched, her fingers tapping a soundless tune on the grass. The movement definitely had the little guy’s attention. His tail now curled about him and out of sight, he—or she—had shifted around and two big eyes watched her through the leaves. Another moment and one little paw darted out from under, not quite reaching her polished fingertips.
“Come on out. Just a little further.” Adding her other hand to the silent tune playing, she tapped at the ground as though playing a piano concerto. Growing in courage, the fluff ball popped his head out from under the bush and whacked at her left hand. A few more tries and the little gray tabby was fully exposed, swiping at her fingers, and when he or she was finally within reach of Courtney’s free hand, she scooped him up.
Scared, the little thing extended its razor-sharp claws and let out a loud meow that sounded more like a squeak before curling up securely against her chest.
“Let’s get you inside for something to eat and drink, then we’ll have to find you a good home. Hopefully it will be easier than finding one for me.”
She’d barely stepped up to the bar when Ben Kapule smiled wide at her. “I see you caught one of them.”
“One of them?”
“Yeah. We haven’t spotted the mom yet, but we’ve seen at least two of these. One orange and one gray. We can’t be sure if there are more.”
“Oh, dear.” Her gaze drifted to the front door. Wouldn’t the litter stay close together? But she hadn’t noticed any sign of another kitty. Of course, she was pretty focused on catching the one.
“My sister has put out milk and tried to lure them, but they’re smart little ones.” Ben tapped the bar. “Good on you. One cup of milk for the kitten and what will you have?”
“A few more minutes.” Without thinking, she handed the purring little bundle over to Ben and muttered, “I’ll be right back.”
If there was another little kitten out there all alone now, he—or she—would be scared. If she could catch one, surely she could catch another. How much harder could it be?
* * *
The pursuit of Thursday night happiness at the Surf’s Up happy hour was as fundamental to the attorneys at Brian’s law firm as the right to life and liberty. After a day like today, he was especially thankful for the chance to unwind before heading home. Undoing his tie, he shoved it in his pocket, pushed the double glass doors to the four story office building open and sucked in a long breath of sweet salt air.
The last few weeks had seemed interminable. This case in particular had worn him out. His client’s husband was a truly skilled lying piece of work. A few dark nights the outcome for his client had looked grim. But, one night, the idiot had been a bit too cocky, a bit too full of booze, and a bit too loose with his tongue—and he’d done it in front witnesses willing to step up and take a stand. In the sobering light of day, when faced with the depositions, even with his high priced lawyer at his side, the worthless excuse for a husband and father admitted defeat. Brian had proven his case, and his client could rest assured that her bum of a husband wouldn’t be getting custody of their children anytime soon. Supervised visits would ensure he didn’t hurt anyone in his family again. His client and her kids were due a little happiness.
“You heading to the Surf’s Up?” Trotting down the front steps of the building, JP, one of his co-workers and best friends, stopped at Brian’s side.
“Yeah.”
“Funny, you don’t look like a guy who just won the case that has kept him burning the midnight oil.”
Brian twirled his keys on his fingers. He knew too well that now the hard work of setting up a truly happy home was just beginning for his client. Sometimes he felt like a mother bird pushing her babies out of the nest and praying they could fly on their own, but his gut told him these birdies were going to be just fine. “All I need is a cold beer and an hour with good friends and I won’t be thinking about the creep or what he almost got away with.”
“Atta boy.” JP stopped at the bottom step. “You go on ahead. Kim forgot her phone. We’ll be over any minute.”
It took Brian all of three minutes to retrieve his car from the building parking lot and pull into a spot across the street at the Surf’s Up within a few feet of the front door. Considering it wasn’t quite five o’clock yet, it was no surprise to find plenty of parking spaces. His car locked, he walked a few feet, his thoughts still kicking around the days events when he caught sight of a colorful lump by the bushes. A few more steps and he’d have sworn the lump was the swell of a well rounded derriere. Through the years he had come across quite a few unexpected things in the saloon’s parking lot, from overly romantic couples forgetting there was nothing private about a public parking lot to little kids shaming patrons into buying their fundraiser candy bars, but finding a headless rear end was not on the list.
Coming closer, he blinked and confirmed he was indeed staring at the backside of a human female. With the turn of his wrist, he concluded it was still too early to find a drunken woman in the bushes, even if it was happy hour. Low heeled sandals covered narrow feet at the end of shapely calves. Denim cropped shorts pulled tightly across her bottom and covered the rest of her legs. When the blue jean clad butt shifted from side to side, he reached for his collar to loosen a tie that wasn’t there. “May I help you?”
The butt wiggled again but she gave no response.
Brian closed the gap and clearing his throat, spoke up more loudly. “Need some help?” Not that he had any clue what she was doing on all fours practically under the bushes, or how he could possibly help.
Still no response.
There was no way, without being sure the woman wasn’t in some kind of trouble, he could leave her on the ground, regardless if she might be completely and certifiably crazy, and even though he was drawing a blank on what kind of trouble she could be in. Inching a little closer, he crouched down, and settling on his hands and knees, he spoke up again. “May I be of some help?”
“Shh,” she muttered still under the shrubs. “I’ve. Almost. Got—”
An orange blur darted across his fingers and faster than he thought possible, he leaned back, landing on his haunches.
“He’ll get away!” The denim clad rear-end shimmied backwards, and arms extended, the anxious young woman thrust herself in front of him.
“He’ll?” His gaze shifted in the direction of the fast moving blur as it doubled around and rapidly retreated back to the shrubs. Twisting around, arms outstretched, Brian dove in the critter’s direction. “Oh no you don’t…”
Squirming, furry creature, clutched between his hands, Brian landed on his side, drawing the tiny animal against him as he rolled onto his back at the same moment the snug pant wearing woman tumbled forward. Sprawled across him, she squealed, “You got him!”
A bright smile sprouted across her face. It was a very pretty face.
“Comfortable?” Amused laughter coated JP’s words.
Holding hands, Brian’s coworkers stood at his feet. He had no idea how long they’d been standing there. Sunlight shone behind Kim’s silhouette, shading her face and making it impossible to see if she was laughing with her husband or frowning down at the two of them huddled on the concrete like a couple of linebackers sacking the quarterback. Though, none of the linebackers he’d gone to school with had crystal blue eyes, delicate features, and a smile that could make a man give away state secrets.
Clutching the kitten snuggly against her chest, the blonde leveled her gaze with his, blinked and momentarily frozen in place, a hint of rose tinted her cheeks before she muttered a muffled thank you and hurriedly lifted herself upright and scooted back onto her haunches. Without loosening her grip on the tiny creature, she stood and retreated a step, nuzzling the furball. “You’re as cute as your brother. Or sister.”
“Why, thank you.” Brian pushed to his feet, Kim rolled her eyes and JP shook his head. Either the blonde didn’t hear his lame comeback or pretended not to. With a shrug, he brushed himself off and leaned forward to scratch under the kitty’s chin. “He is a cutie. Are there more?”
“At least one. I left him inside with the bartender.”
“Ben?”
She nodded. “I found the gray one earlier. Didn’t realize there were two of them.”
“Oh my.” Concern settled between Kim’s brows. She cooed at the kitten, vying for a spot under its chin to scratch. “Where there are two there could be more.”
“Do you think?” The soft expression on the blonde’s face slid behind a worried gaze.
“Give me a minute.” Brian inched back a step. “I’ll get some milk or tuna from Ben and see if we can coax out any more.” Preferably without falling all over each other.
“Thank you. That would be wonderful.” A wide smile took over her face and bright eyes heavy with worry a moment before danced with delight.
“My pleasure.” On second thought, maybe scrambling around together in search of another kitten wasn’t such a bad idea at all.
Chapter Two
“Haven’t seen you for a while.” Ben nodded at one of the attorney’s from across the street. A small group of lawyers had helped add a little class to happy hour back when his brother had taken over the place. Now that a few years had gone by, the gang seemed more like family than customers. Especially since JP and Kim had actually held their wedding reception here at the Surf’s Up. They’d had a small ceremony on the beach across the street, then everyone moseyed over for cake, music and dancing. One of the most fun nights he’d ever spent tending bar.
“Feels good to put a tough case behind me, but right now I’m needing some milk.”
“Milk? Indigestion?”
“Kitten.”
“Ah.” Apparently gathering up stray kittens had become a group effort. “I see. One bowl of milk coming up.”
“I don’t suppose you know if there are more than two?”
Halfway to the kitchen door, Ben shrugged. From the surveillance cameras, they were pretty sure only two kittens were hanging around, but he wasn’t willing to bet a night’s tips on it. He also wasn’t going to tell Brian that his sister had tried a bowl of milk more than once and it hadn’t been enough to bring the little critters out of hiding while anyone was close enough to grab them. They may be young, but their mama had taught them well. Shoving the door open with one hand, he leaned in and called to his sister, “Lilah, we’ve got a customer who wants a bowl of milk for the other stray.”
“Got it.” A few moments later Ben’s sister set the small bowl in front of Brian. “Enough for two. Shadow seems to be quite content in the office. I wrapped a couple of old bar towels around the bottom of a box for padding. So far so good. How many more have you found?”
“About to find out.”
“My wife is still outside cuddling the orange kitten.” JP took the empty spot at the bar beside Brian. “I have a feeling I may have competition for snuggling up with my wife tonight.”
“Oh, good,” Ben’s sister squealed, and JP skewered her with a less than amused glare. “I mean, good he’s found a home. Sorry about the snuggling part.”
From behind the bar, Ben tossed a rag over his shoulder and muffled a chuckle. JP might have to step up his game to beat out a cute kitten. Puppies, kittens and babies had a way of making adults in general goofy, but women especially were easy marks. “Let me know who wins.”
“If it helps any,” Ben’s sister smiled, “we’ve only seen a gray and an orange kitty.”
No sooner had Brian turned with the bowl in hand then Kim waltzed up with the kitten curled in her arms. “Isn’t he cute?”
“Adorable,” JP muttered.
Ben bit his lip. Oh, JP was seriously going to compete with a new kitten tonight.
* * *
On all fours again, Courtney peered under every shrub in front of, around, and behind the Surf’s Up. “There simply has to be a mom.”
“That’s usually how it works. In a perfect world.”
The smooth deep timbre of the nearby voice momentarily scrambled her thoughts. She wasn’t quite sure what he’d said as much as how he’d said it.
“Lilah, Ben’s sister, tells me the kittens suddenly appeared a couple of days ago. She’s been leaving food out every night but didn’t see any sign of a mother cat. Maybe they’re on their own.”
The man who had helped her catch the orange kitty squatted beside her and set a bowl on the ground. Tilting his head to face her, he smiled and her brain scrambled once again, making her seriously thankful he hadn’t asked a question.
“Ben mentioned there’s a security camera above us, so if we leave a bowl here we can watch from inside. See if there are any more.”
Courtney pushed to her feet, brushed off her hands, and ungluing her tongue from the roof of her mouth, managed to spit out a coherent thought. “Thank you.”
“I haven’t done much, it was Ben’s idea.”
“Yes, you have.” She shot her hand out. “I’m Courtney.”
“Brian.” He shook her hand, firm, not too hard, nice. “Pleased to meet you.”
“Same here.” She looked to the bowl and the nearby still shrubs. “I wish I knew where mama is, but Ben is right. If mama is around, she’ll be more likely to come eat if she doesn’t see us.”
“Hey.” A tall guy in suit pants and button down shirt came to a stop beside them. “I heard you won.”
Brian nodded. “It was a good day for one family.”
“On your way inside?” The man’s glance shifted from Brian to her and back.
“We were just looking for a missing cat,” Brian responded.
“Not the one Amy adopted?”
“Amy?” the two of them echoed.
“A calico. Not very big. Amy noticed her about a week ago but the cat wouldn’t come out. Amy’s been coming over at lunch every day since, trying to make friends. A couple of days ago the cat crawled into her lap and Amy took it home.” The man turned from Brian to her and stuck his hand out. “Is that your cat, Miss…?”
“Courtney. And the cat’s not mine, but there are kittens.”
“Ted Chapman. I work across the hall from this guy, and Amy didn’t say anything about kittens. You think Patches is the mother cat?”
“Patches?” Courtney repeated.
Ted shrugged. “That’s what Amy named her.”
“Is the party out here?” Nick, owner of the Big Island Dive shop, slid his keys into his pocket and smiled at Courtney. His wife Kara sidled up beside him and with a smooth immediate move, his arm circled her waist. One of the many things Courtney liked about her job was all the happily married people. For a bunch of former navy guys, her bosses and coworkers made her think soul mates and true love wasn’t just a thing of fairy tales and romance novels. Perhaps that was just another part of living in Paradise. “Or are we all going inside?”
“Hi.” Lifting his chin at Nick in a quiet greeting, Brian smiled and threw a thumb over his shoulder. “We were just about to head inside.”
Another nice thing about living in Paradise that Courtney liked, friends were everywhere.
A few steps behind, a sharp whistle sounded and all heads turned.
“Maddie!” Nick released his hold on his wife and curling them around her waist, spun the grinning woman around in a big circle. “What are you doing here?”
After a greeting like that, Courtney was curious over who deserved that earth spinning salutation.
The woman kissed him soundly on the cheek then stepped back and swooped his wife Kara into a tight hug. “Thought it would be fun to make a surprise visit.”
Brian waved at the group. “We’re going to head inside.”
“I’ll come with you. Check on the kitties.” Courtney smiled at her boss and waved her fingers at the other people.
“Lord, where are my manners.” Nick sighed. “Maddie, this is our new office manager, Courtney. Courtney, my sister Madeleine and her husband Dan.”
Choruses of “nice to meet you” tumbled over each other as everyone slowly inched toward the front doors.
“Does Mom know you’re here?” Nick asked.
Maddie shook her head. “Dan and I thought it would be more fun to see everyone’s face in person when we share the good news.”
With a smile so wide he looked like his face might crack, Dan slapped his brother-in-law on the back and looped his arm around his wife. Clearly he was another one of them. Once she found herself a place to live, Courtney was going to see what she could do about finding herself a former navy man.
“What could be better than you’re visiting?” Nick reached for the front door.
The grinning woman beamed at her husband. “You’re looking at the Division Supervisor for the newest grant on marine life distribution in sanctuary waters.”
“Congratulations.” Brian flung the door open.
Courtney had no idea what the long title entailed, but from the glowing expression on Nick’s sister’s face, it was a big deal. “Congratulations,” she echoed.
Grinning, Nick slapped his brother-in-law on the back. “Kauai?”
Dan shook his head. “Nope. New division will be here on the Big Island.”
“Holy cow.” Nick waved everyone inside. “Mom is going to flip when she hears.”
“We stopped there first, but she’s off with Sally in Hilo and won’t be back for a couple more hours.”
“Good.” Kara linked elbows with the woman and marched to the biggest table in the place. “Then we’ll have a celebratory glass of champagne.”
Courtney followed the two women inside, taking note of how both husbands quickly sidled up to their wives. Glancing around the bar, her gaze landed on Brian and she wondered what were the odds he’d ever been in the Navy?
* * *
“No luck?” Kim looked up from the table where the law firm employees had begun to gather.
Brian shook his head. “Thought I’d check out the security cameras for a few minutes. See if there’s any movement.”
“Take a beer with you.” JP pointed to an empty glass and the standard pitcher on the middle of the table.
“Nah. I won’t be but a few minutes.” Halfway to the bar, Brian ran into Lilah.
“You going for a beer?”
“Nope. Thought if it was all right with you guys, I’d check on the kittens.”
“Sure thing.” She pointed to the door in the opposite corner from the kitchen. “They’re in a big box by the desk and if you hit any key on the keyboard, the screen will wake up and the camera views should pop up.”
“Great. Thanks.” At the office door, he paused to look over his shoulder. Courtney was chatting with Nick and his friend Billy who had just arrived with his wife. Quickly, Brian ran the former navy men that he’d met over the years through his mind in search of any single ones. The only unmarried he could come up with was Jonathan. If he was attached in any way to Courtney, he was an idiot for not being here with her now.
When Lilah said big box, she wasn’t kidding. Only about fifteen inches high, it was just high enough to keep the kittens in, but the thing was at least three feet wide on all sides so the kitties had plenty of room to romp if they so chose. In one corner of the box, Lilah had placed a small tray with a little sand. In another corner a small bowl of milk, but currently the pair were huddled in a ball on a towel in an opposite corner. Not sleeping, but not ready to explore either. No doubt scared as all get out and wondering, like him, where was their mom?
“You guys have had a busy day. Shall we check to see if there’s any sign of mama?” They both definitely lifted their heads at the sound of his voice, twitched their ears, and he couldn’t swear to it in a court of law, but he was pretty sure the gray one nodded.
At the desk, he tapped the space key and the monitor came to life. Four different camera views popped up. No movement other than a couple more patrons approaching, but he could spend a few more minutes. Another moment or two passed when he heard the squeak of the opening door. “I won’t stay much longer.”
“Ben said there’s no hurry.”
Expecting Ben or his sister, he spun about, knocking his knee against the desk at the sound of Courtney’s voice.
“Any sign of mama kitty?”
He shook his head.
“Other siblings?”
“Not yet.” He spun back around, ignoring the heat of her standing behind him, leaning over his shoulder. “The motion sensor is set to ding on the computer whenever it detects something. The one at the front door is lower, but just before you came in someone on the staff opened the back door and that dinged more loudly.”
“So if mama catches the sensor’s eye, the computer will ding.”
“I think so.”
“Good.” She turned toward the box and at the side, dropped to the floor in a perfect lotus position. “Oh, what a set up they have.”
“Not bad for impromptu guests.” Brian abandoned his post manning the cameras and sank to the floor on the other side of the box. At least one of the kittens had good taste. Like him, the gray kitty wanted to be at her side. He’d pushed to his feet and waddled slowly over and sniffed her fingers dangling in front of him.
“I hope I pass inspection.”
“I’m sure that won’t be a problem. You rescued him. He’s probably already a little in love with you.”
“I hope so.” She leaned over and picked him up. “Lilah says she named you Shadow. And we think maybe that nice lady outside will take one of you home.”
Gathering his or her courage, the orange kitty stretched and padded over to Courtney.
“Oh my.” She smiled and scratched a cat with each hand. “I’ll try and talk her into keeping both of you.”
Leaning back on his hands, Brian nodded. “I’ve heard kittens should always be adopted in pairs.”
“Yep. I remember as a kid one of my teachers was giving away kittens. Mom let us bring one home. Poor thing cried all night for days before he got used to his new surroundings. My friend Katie’s mom let her bring home two. No crying at their house, and the two romped and bounced and jumped and over all had a ton of fun together.”
“Yeah. Growing up we lived in the country. Had plenty of barn cats and whenever Mom would source a litter, she’d always find people who would take them in pairs.” The orange kitty waddled away from the other kitten and tried to climb up the side by him.
“I think she likes your voice.”
“You think?” He reached in and lifted the kitten into his arms. Flipping her onto her back a moment, he confirmed she was indeed a she.
“You like cats.” It wasn’t a question. “Your face lit up at her liking your voice.”
“Yes.” He reached for a pen on a nearby table. “I suppose I do.”
A ding sounded and they both looked up at the screen, spotted the scurrying mongoose and returned their attention to the kittens.
“I love it here, but it’s taken a bit of time to get used to those little animals running everywhere.”
“The epitome of overcorrection.” The orange kitty crawled out of his arm and scurrying down his leg, discovered his shoe laces.
“Overcorrection?”
“You haven’t heard the story about the rats?”
Courtney shuddered and shook her head.
“Then I gather you’re not from around here?”
“Not even close. Came here for vacation and now it looks like I’m here to stay, so please don’t tell me I have to learn to live with rats too.”
“Not unless you live on a sugar plantation. Do you?”
“Not hardly.”
“Then you’re safe.” He liked the way mouth twisted into a soft smile. “In the 1800s it was thought that breeding and releasing mongoose into the sugar cane fields would control the rat population.”
“But, I see the mongoose everywhere all day long and rats usually come out at night.”
“Bingo.” He tapped his nose. “So we now have a fifty million dollar a year nuisance problem on the islands thanks to the mongoose.”
“I wonder how they get along with cats?” Her gaze lost some of its sparkle and he wondered what might it take to put it back.
Bouncing about, Shadow spotted Brian’s other shoe and hurried over to tackle the offensive and dangerous shoelace. Watching intently, Courtney hid a laugh with her hand and Brian decided that if it kept Courtney smiling, he’d let the siblings chew on his laces all night long.
Chapter Three
The last thing Courtney had expected to find when she’d pushed the office door open was Brian at the desk surveying the cameras. She’d thought for sure he was somewhere having a beer with his friends from work. She also hadn’t expected the little kick her heart gave at his sweet effort with the kittens. Like good apartments, good men were usually already snatched up.
The door squeaked open, and both she and Brian glanced up.
“Oh. I didn’t realize anyone was in here.” Lilah craned her neck to better see the kitten-filled box. “Apparently these two are quite popular. Both Kim and Nick’s sister are lobbying to adopt them.”
“They are cute.” Courtney plastered on her best smile. She was growing too fond of the fluff balls.
“I’d better get back to work.” Lilah backed out of the small office. “See you guys later.”
A big part of her was thrilled that the kittens would find good homes and not wind up in a shelter for who knew how long until they got adopted—if they got adopted. There were a lot of cute kittens in the world. Another part, deep down, didn’t want to give them up.
“Sorry, guys.” She scratched the orange kitten’s neck. “My motel is no place for pets.”
“If it’s none of my business, just say so, but why are you living in a motel?”
“Turns out I don’t like parking my car in the living room.”
“Excuse me?” His fingers froze mid scratch.
“I don’t really want much, but a nice little apartment to call home that doesn’t use the living room for a garage or expect me to shower outside would be nice.”
His eyebrows rose high on his forehead.
Courtney let out a sigh. “The last place I saw this morning had indoor plumbing and an outdoor shower.”
“Really?”
She nodded.
“I wouldn’t have expected that.” He blew out a low sigh that seemed to match her frustration.
“Having plumbing troubles too?”
“No.” He shook his head. “Just thinking about how important it is to have a safe and pleasant place to call home. Especially with kids.”
“Oh.” It hadn’t occurred to her he might be married. “You have children.”
Those dark brows shadowing deep blue eyes rose up high again. “No, not me. I sometimes do pro bono work for a local women’s group. Today we scored one for the good guys, but like you said finding a good safe place to call home isn’t always easy. Except maybe for these guys.”
“I hope the good guys find what they want.”
His eyes met hers, the earlier sparkle was back and a thin smile teased at his lips. “I think now they’ll be just fine.”
For the next hour or so she shared about being laid off, the pros, the cons, the concerns. Then she moved on to the once in a lifetime vacation here in Hawaii. By the time she’d gotten to her decision to stay, she’d learned that Brian was a native Hawaiian who had thought he’d want to live on the mainland but after college realized that while the continental US might have its beauty, it wasn’t anyplace he wanted to live.
“What I don’t understand,” he shifted in place, “is why after anyone gets a taste of life on the mainland, would they want to stay? The west coast water is like ice and the east coast, well, let’s just say most of it isn’t paradise.”
She shrugged. “For those born there, they don’t know any better. Most people in the US never make it out of their state. Very few have passports. If I were born and raised here, I’d have never left.”
This time Brian shrugged. “I suspect every small town, or island, kid dreams of city lights at some point.”
“Even you.” She smiled, pleased to see him smile back.
“Even me.” His legs stretched out in front of him, he leaned on one arm, half leaning over the box. “I bet Amy’s new cat is their mom.”
“The timing definitely seems to make sense.”
“Especially if the day she finally caught Patches coincides with the day the kittens started coming out of hiding. The milk train, so to speak, was gone.”
“Poor babies.” She really did wish she could have kittens at the motel. With the set up Lilah had made for them, who would notice. “I wonder how Nick feels about shop kitties.”
“I don’t know about Nick, but my coworker would probably be over the moon not to have to share his wife with the cats.”
“Do you think I could talk Nick into it? Just until I find a place of my own.”
The office door swung open and Lilah swirled around a tray in her hand. “Knock knock.”
Brian sprang to his feet and reached Lilah in two steps. “Let me take that for you?”
“Thank you,” Lilah beamed. “It’s a lot easier balancing one of those things when you’re not opening doors.”
“Where do you want this?” Brian pointed his chin at the tray.
“On the desk is fine. I thought you might be hungry so I brought a snack.”
Not until Lilah mentioned food did Courtney realize how hungry she was. Pushing to her feet, she moved to the desk with both the monitor and the tray.
“Our cook has been tinkering with new recipes so you’re the official guinea pig tonight. There’s stuffed mushrooms in a pink cremora sauce, shrimp crostinis that I think are to die for, and a twist on the parmesan truffle fries, blue cheese drizzled truffle fried potato chips.”
Blue cheese wasn’t Courtney’s favorite, but the crispy fried hand cut potato chips were impossible to resist. Reaching for the tasty morsel, her hand quickly collided with Brian’s. “Oops.”
“Sorry.” His gaze momentarily locked with hers before he pulled his hand away. “I have a weakness for truffle fries.”
Unable to look away, she nodded. “Me too.”
Lilah was already holding the door open to leave when she turned toward them. “Oh, I almost forgot to mention, Kim and Nick’s sister have decided that the kittens shouldn’t be separated. So now they’re debating if they’re going to toss a coin or do rock paper scissors to see who takes those babies home tonight.”
Food forgotten, Courtney’s gaze shifted to the two kittens curled together in a ball. At least they’d have a good safe home tonight, even if it wasn’t with her. The orange kitty stretched its paw and then lifted its head, nose twitching, one eye opened then the other. “Do you think she smells the fries?”
“Or the blue cheese.” Brian squatted down on his haunches.
Both kittens were now on their feet, alert and well rested. At least it looked like that from the way the two hopped about in an effort to leap out of the box.
“Come here, fella.” Brian scooped up the gray kitty.
“Doesn’t seem fair that her brother has a name and she doesn’t.” Courtney tilted her head and studied the feline. “I think Ginger.”
The orange kitty swung her tail hard and turned her back on Courtney.
Brian bit back a smile. “Not sure she likes that. Or she wants at the solid food.”
“I bet they smell shrimp crostinis.” Courtney scooped up the kitten. “Too bad you’re not a boy, I’d call you O’Malley.”
“O’Malley?”
“From the Aristocats.”
“Ah. I’d forgotten about that movie. Loved it as a kid. How about Peaches and Cream, or Peaches for short?”
Courtney scratched at the top of the kitten’s head. “What do you think? Are you a Peaches and Cream?” The little tabby began to purr.
“I guess that’s a yes?”
“Well, Peaches you are. Hope you weren’t telling me you wanted the shrimp crostinis.”
Brian chuckled and lifted his gaze to meet Courtney’s. “Maybe I should take a run to the market and pick up a few things. I’m sure they sell cat beds, litter boxes, dishes and such as well as cat food.”
Courtney couldn’t help the smile that tugged at the corners of her cheeks at how concerned Brian was with the kitties, or the pang that thumped at her heart. “I’m guessing whoever wins custody will be making a run.”
“I suppose.” With one finger he scratched under the cat’s chin. “I think Shadow is a good name for him. Suits him.”
“It does.”
He blew out a deep sigh, bobbed his head and looked up from the kitten he held. “How is it these little creatures capture a grown human being’s heart so quickly?”
“Right?” She waved an arm excitedly in the air.
“You may not have a place to live, but I do.” He pushed to his feet and set the kitten down in the box. “We haven’t seen any more kittens, so it’s probably only these two, and there’s no reason I can’t have a couple of cats. Crazy cat ladies do it all the time.”
That made her laugh. No one would ever mistake him for a crazy cat lady. Besides, if she played her cards right, maybe Mr. Cat Lady would let her come visit. Even if the cats weren’t the only thing she was interested in.
* * *
Brian’s phone buzzed in his pocket. Shifting to grab it without disturbing the kitten, he spotted his neighbor Jack’s number. “I have to take this.”
“No problem,” Courtney mouthed silently and placed the kitten in the box with his sibling.
The fun thing about really young kittens is one minute they were prancing and bouncing around in the box and the next they were out like lights, sound asleep, dropping where they stood.
While his neighbor rambled on about dog food and water bowls, Brian watched Courtney put half the truffle chips onto a fresh plate and slide it his way. She smiled wide and then pulled a chip from her own plate, the cheesy drizzle dripping on her lip. Giggling, she licked the droplets away. It hadn’t even occurred to Brian to take a bite of his own when his neighbor’s words registered. “Wait a minute. Say that again?”
“My flight leaves at six am. Can I drop Leo at your place now or do you really want me to wake you up at zero dark thirty?”
“Flight?”
“What are you deaf? I got the promotion. I’ve got to meet with the suits on the mainland. I’ll be home in about three days, then I start packing.”
“Packing?” So intent on Courtney nibbling on the chips and her lower lip, he hadn’t really heard anything his neighbor had said.
“For the new job,” the man said the words with such succinct clarity it was obvious he thought Brian had lost it. “The promotion means I have to work out of Honolulu. I told you that.”
Now it was all coming into focus. Jack had mentioned a sweet promotion that came with a hefty pay increase. The downside was he’d be traveling more and that meant being based out of Honolulu with more flights coming and going. Which if Brian was putting the pieces together correctly, the apartment next door to him was about to become available. “When is this move happening?”
“Movers are scheduled to come Friday. So what do you want me to do with Leo?”
Brian looked at the kittens and figured they might as well get acquainted with the aging schnauzer. Hopefully Leo liked cats. “Go ahead and drop Leo off. I have to make one quick stop and then I’ll be home.”
“Great, man. Thanks!”
“Oh, and Jack?”
“Yes?”
“Have you told building management yet?”
“No. It’ll have to wait till I get back.”
“Okay. Thanks.”
He slid the phone back into his pocket, turned to Courtney. “Want to run a quick errand?”
“To the pet store?” Her smile bloomed.
“That, then we can come back for the kittens, but first I want to show you an apartment.”
“Apartment?” She slung her purse over her shoulder and held the door open for him.
“Yep. Not far from here. Easy commute to the dive shop. Spacious one bedroom. Small complex. Reasonable rents.”
“Oh, that sounds like the ones that go to people with connections before I can fill out an application.”
His hand on the small of her back, he ushered her into the crowded bar. “Consider yourself connected.”
Those pretty blue eyes circled round under brows now knit together with confusion. The office door shut closed behind them and the elevated hum of conversation was typical of the shift inside from the after work crowd to the ready to party type.
He stopped at the corner where his coworker and the dive shop crew were laughing and debating whether or not to try for five out of seven. “Sorry, but you guys are going to have to hit the pound for kittens of your own. We’ve decided that we’re going to keep the cats.” He half saluted Nick and his buddies before turning on his heel and headed for the exit.
Eyes wide with surprise, Courtney hurried after him. “And just how are we supposed to do this if I don’t have a home of my own to keep them?”
“Yet.” He smiled at her and held the door open for her. He hadn’t realized how late it had gotten. The dark velvet sky the perfect backdrop for a starry night.
She almost bumped into him, her gaze following his skyward. “And this is only one of the many reasons I want to make my home in Paradise.”
A slow grin took over his face. “Did I mention the place I’m going to show you has really nice neighbors?”
She shook her head and fell into step behind him. “Nice as in sweet little old ladies or nice as in don’t care if you play loud music and run out of coffee all the time?”
“More like a friendly lawyer who definitely won’t care if you play loud music and will be happy to make you a cup of a coffee any time you want.”
“It’ll probably be gone before we get there. They always are.” It took her a few more steps to connect the dots, but she suddenly stopped short, her jaw dropped open and just as quickly snapped shut. She’d figured it out. Then the corners of her mouth tipped up in a smile that had her eyes twinkling, and he was pretty sure life was about to get a whole lot more interesting.
“You couldn’t have found yourself a little closer to home?”
“Not you too?” Sitting at a red light, Courtney Anderson sucked in the sweet ocean air and basked in the soft breeze through the open car windows. Everything seemed easier in Paradise. Even the similar phone call earlier today with her mother. She’d expected the hour long monologue on the disadvantages of living so far from family. Though the way her mom had carried on about what a blessing it would be to have family around the corner twenty-four seven when Courtney started having children, and how not to underestimate the support of family for a new mother, anyone would think Courtney wasn’t single and unattached, but married and on the verge of birthing quintuplets. But this response from her BFF was not what Courtney had expected.
Brittany had been her best friend since the first day of high school when they’d bonded over a new school, a stash of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, and the future captain of the football team sitting in front of them during Mrs. McIntyre’s Algebra class. “Me too who?”
“My mother. At the wrong end of a very long lecture, I have the distinct feeling it’s not me she’s worried about living too far away, but those hypothetical grandchildren that she wants close by. Probably so she can brainwash them young.”
“Every girl’s dream—to be compared to someone’s middle aged mother.” Brittany blew out a soft sigh. “Though it could be worse. At least your mom is kinda cool.”
One woman’s cool was another woman’s problem. Not that her mom was really a problem. After all, Courtney couldn’t blame her mother for being caught off guard when her daughter’s ten days in Kona shifted from a much needed vacation to a permanent life change. “I just wish she wasn’t pulling out all the maternal guilt trips. I mean, why can’t she see now she’ll finally have a good reason for Dad and her to take a real vacation?”
“I’m sure she’ll adjust. It’s me you should be worried about. Your mom has two more children she can mother. I only have one best friend.”
And that was the thing that had been bothering her this whole time. When her boss informed her entire team that due to unexpected setbacks they were letting several groups go with severance pay, her friend and coworker, Amy, suggested they use at least some of that money and spare time to take the dream vacation they’d always talked of and had never gotten around to. At the time, the idea had been both exciting and terrifying. After all, what if she spent all that money and then couldn’t find another job? It had taken all of twenty minutes searching hotel rates in Hawaii to be totally on board with the idea. After a week on the island, she’d begun to plan a return trip. Not only had she never really liked the hard Midwest winters, she’d had no idea how much she loved everything to do with water, especially scuba diving. When Nick at the dive shop mentioned they were going to be hiring a new shop manager, she started wondering. By the time she and Amy were packing for the flight home, Courtney had made up her
mind, and moments like this, driving down the road with the ocean breeze blowing in her face, only solidified that she had to give Kona a real try.
The hard part of that decision hadn’t been leaving her folks and sisters behind, it had been moving on without Brittany. “Have you asked for vacation time yet?”
Her friend heaved a soft sigh. “Just waiting for you to have a place of your own and then I’ll be on the next flight to visit.”
“Really?” Courtney was almost as excited about Brittany visiting as she was about starting a new life in Hawaii.
Brittany chuckled. “Really. My boss said as long as you find a place before the busy season, I can take off whenever I want.”
“That is so perfect!”
“It doesn’t hurt that I haven’t taken vacation days in over two years.”
“Whatever works.”
“So what’s the plan? Find anything yet?”
“No. Seems word of mouth moves all the best places long before I find out about them.” Courtney tried not to let her frustration show in her voice. “Both of the apartments on the list were just a little too primitive for me.”
“I’m afraid to ask what that means.”
“Well, the first one that came with a garage?”
“The one you were so excited about even though you don’t have a car yet?”
“Turns out the car is literally parked in the living room.”
“What?”
“You heard me. There’s a garage door and then no walls so the car sits to the side of the living room.”
“And the other one?”
“It was actually very nice. Except for the shower.”
“What was wrong with the shower?”
“It was in the yard. As much as I love being outdoors, I couldn’t see myself showering with only a grass cloth wall between me and all my neighbors.”
“I think I’d rather have a car in the living room.”
“That’s what I was thinking.”
“So now what?”
“As the saying goes: Tomorrow’s another day.” She could almost hear Brittany rolling her eyes. “I’m meeting some of the gang from the dive shop at the Surf’s Up.”
“The what?”
“Surf’s Up Saloon.”
“Did you say Saloon?”
“Yeah.” Courtney thought the same thing the first time she heard the name. “Odd name for a beachfront bar, but they have good food, reasonable prices and the family that owns the place is really nice.”
“It’s a family bar?”
“One brother owns it, another bartends, and a sister waitresses. Not sure if the parents are involved. This is only my second time there.”
“So what are the chances if you don’t find a place of your own that you’ll come to your senses and move home?”
Pulling into the parking lot, she sighed, hoping when Brittany came to visit Paradise and saw for herself, she’d understand that Courtney had already come to her senses. “I’m here. I have to go.”
“Keep me posted, but don’t hold it against me if I’m on the team that wants you to change your mind and come home.”
Courtney bit back a chuckle. She knew her friend meant well, and frankly, Courtney missed her friends and family too, but she also knew deep in her heart that this was something she had to do. Something she would be asking what if for the rest of her life if she didn’t give it a try now. “Love you too.”
“See? How am I going to find a new BFF who understands me like you do?” This time rather than melancholy, humor laced Brittany’s words.
“I have faith in you.” A few more words of encouragement to each other and Courtney slammed and locked the door of her rental car and slipped her phone into her pocket. A shadow dashed past her into the shrubs and for a second her heart lurched into her throat at the thought of one of those wild mongooses coming that close.
Shaking off the thought, she took two more steps when another sight caught her eye. This time she stopped for a better look at the rustling shrub. Judging by the short, striped and clearly nervous tail whipping about out in the open, her money was on she’d stumbled upon a kitten. “Poor baby.”
Unsure of how friendly the little guy was, Courtney inched forward very slowly. The tail stilled and she stopped. If it bolted, catching it could be more challenging. On the other hand, how fast could one little kitten run? Setting her purse on the ground, she hunched low and murmured shushing sounds at the little guy the way she might have done to calm an infant. “It’s okay, sweetie.”
Another few seconds and Courtney was on all fours, one arm stretched, her fingers tapping a soundless tune on the grass. The movement definitely had the little guy’s attention. His tail now curled about him and out of sight, he—or she—had shifted around and two big eyes watched her through the leaves. Another moment and one little paw darted out from under, not quite reaching her polished fingertips.
“Come on out. Just a little further.” Adding her other hand to the silent tune playing, she tapped at the ground as though playing a piano concerto. Growing in courage, the fluff ball popped his head out from under the bush and whacked at her left hand. A few more tries and the little gray tabby was fully exposed, swiping at her fingers, and when he or she was finally within reach of Courtney’s free hand, she scooped him up.
Scared, the little thing extended its razor-sharp claws and let out a loud meow that sounded more like a squeak before curling up securely against her chest.
“Let’s get you inside for something to eat and drink, then we’ll have to find you a good home. Hopefully it will be easier than finding one for me.”
She’d barely stepped up to the bar when Ben Kapule smiled wide at her. “I see you caught one of them.”
“One of them?”
“Yeah. We haven’t spotted the mom yet, but we’ve seen at least two of these. One orange and one gray. We can’t be sure if there are more.”
“Oh, dear.” Her gaze drifted to the front door. Wouldn’t the litter stay close together? But she hadn’t noticed any sign of another kitty. Of course, she was pretty focused on catching the one.
“My sister has put out milk and tried to lure them, but they’re smart little ones.” Ben tapped the bar. “Good on you. One cup of milk for the kitten and what will you have?”
“A few more minutes.” Without thinking, she handed the purring little bundle over to Ben and muttered, “I’ll be right back.”
If there was another little kitten out there all alone now, he—or she—would be scared. If she could catch one, surely she could catch another. How much harder could it be?
* * *
The pursuit of Thursday night happiness at the Surf’s Up happy hour was as fundamental to the attorneys at Brian’s law firm as the right to life and liberty. After a day like today, he was especially thankful for the chance to unwind before heading home. Undoing his tie, he shoved it in his pocket, pushed the double glass doors to the four story office building open and sucked in a long breath of sweet salt air.
The last few weeks had seemed interminable. This case in particular had worn him out. His client’s husband was a truly skilled lying piece of work. A few dark nights the outcome for his client had looked grim. But, one night, the idiot had been a bit too cocky, a bit too full of booze, and a bit too loose with his tongue—and he’d done it in front witnesses willing to step up and take a stand. In the sobering light of day, when faced with the depositions, even with his high priced lawyer at his side, the worthless excuse for a husband and father admitted defeat. Brian had proven his case, and his client could rest assured that her bum of a husband wouldn’t be getting custody of their children anytime soon. Supervised visits would ensure he didn’t hurt anyone in his family again. His client and her kids were due a little happiness.
“You heading to the Surf’s Up?” Trotting down the front steps of the building, JP, one of his co-workers and best friends, stopped at Brian’s side.
“Yeah.”
“Funny, you don’t look like a guy who just won the case that has kept him burning the midnight oil.”
Brian twirled his keys on his fingers. He knew too well that now the hard work of setting up a truly happy home was just beginning for his client. Sometimes he felt like a mother bird pushing her babies out of the nest and praying they could fly on their own, but his gut told him these birdies were going to be just fine. “All I need is a cold beer and an hour with good friends and I won’t be thinking about the creep or what he almost got away with.”
“Atta boy.” JP stopped at the bottom step. “You go on ahead. Kim forgot her phone. We’ll be over any minute.”
It took Brian all of three minutes to retrieve his car from the building parking lot and pull into a spot across the street at the Surf’s Up within a few feet of the front door. Considering it wasn’t quite five o’clock yet, it was no surprise to find plenty of parking spaces. His car locked, he walked a few feet, his thoughts still kicking around the days events when he caught sight of a colorful lump by the bushes. A few more steps and he’d have sworn the lump was the swell of a well rounded derriere. Through the years he had come across quite a few unexpected things in the saloon’s parking lot, from overly romantic couples forgetting there was nothing private about a public parking lot to little kids shaming patrons into buying their fundraiser candy bars, but finding a headless rear end was not on the list.
Coming closer, he blinked and confirmed he was indeed staring at the backside of a human female. With the turn of his wrist, he concluded it was still too early to find a drunken woman in the bushes, even if it was happy hour. Low heeled sandals covered narrow feet at the end of shapely calves. Denim cropped shorts pulled tightly across her bottom and covered the rest of her legs. When the blue jean clad butt shifted from side to side, he reached for his collar to loosen a tie that wasn’t there. “May I help you?”
The butt wiggled again but she gave no response.
Brian closed the gap and clearing his throat, spoke up more loudly. “Need some help?” Not that he had any clue what she was doing on all fours practically under the bushes, or how he could possibly help.
Still no response.
There was no way, without being sure the woman wasn’t in some kind of trouble, he could leave her on the ground, regardless if she might be completely and certifiably crazy, and even though he was drawing a blank on what kind of trouble she could be in. Inching a little closer, he crouched down, and settling on his hands and knees, he spoke up again. “May I be of some help?”
“Shh,” she muttered still under the shrubs. “I’ve. Almost. Got—”
An orange blur darted across his fingers and faster than he thought possible, he leaned back, landing on his haunches.
“He’ll get away!” The denim clad rear-end shimmied backwards, and arms extended, the anxious young woman thrust herself in front of him.
“He’ll?” His gaze shifted in the direction of the fast moving blur as it doubled around and rapidly retreated back to the shrubs. Twisting around, arms outstretched, Brian dove in the critter’s direction. “Oh no you don’t…”
Squirming, furry creature, clutched between his hands, Brian landed on his side, drawing the tiny animal against him as he rolled onto his back at the same moment the snug pant wearing woman tumbled forward. Sprawled across him, she squealed, “You got him!”
A bright smile sprouted across her face. It was a very pretty face.
“Comfortable?” Amused laughter coated JP’s words.
Holding hands, Brian’s coworkers stood at his feet. He had no idea how long they’d been standing there. Sunlight shone behind Kim’s silhouette, shading her face and making it impossible to see if she was laughing with her husband or frowning down at the two of them huddled on the concrete like a couple of linebackers sacking the quarterback. Though, none of the linebackers he’d gone to school with had crystal blue eyes, delicate features, and a smile that could make a man give away state secrets.
Clutching the kitten snuggly against her chest, the blonde leveled her gaze with his, blinked and momentarily frozen in place, a hint of rose tinted her cheeks before she muttered a muffled thank you and hurriedly lifted herself upright and scooted back onto her haunches. Without loosening her grip on the tiny creature, she stood and retreated a step, nuzzling the furball. “You’re as cute as your brother. Or sister.”
“Why, thank you.” Brian pushed to his feet, Kim rolled her eyes and JP shook his head. Either the blonde didn’t hear his lame comeback or pretended not to. With a shrug, he brushed himself off and leaned forward to scratch under the kitty’s chin. “He is a cutie. Are there more?”
“At least one. I left him inside with the bartender.”
“Ben?”
She nodded. “I found the gray one earlier. Didn’t realize there were two of them.”
“Oh my.” Concern settled between Kim’s brows. She cooed at the kitten, vying for a spot under its chin to scratch. “Where there are two there could be more.”
“Do you think?” The soft expression on the blonde’s face slid behind a worried gaze.
“Give me a minute.” Brian inched back a step. “I’ll get some milk or tuna from Ben and see if we can coax out any more.” Preferably without falling all over each other.
“Thank you. That would be wonderful.” A wide smile took over her face and bright eyes heavy with worry a moment before danced with delight.
“My pleasure.” On second thought, maybe scrambling around together in search of another kitten wasn’t such a bad idea at all.
Chapter Two
“Haven’t seen you for a while.” Ben nodded at one of the attorney’s from across the street. A small group of lawyers had helped add a little class to happy hour back when his brother had taken over the place. Now that a few years had gone by, the gang seemed more like family than customers. Especially since JP and Kim had actually held their wedding reception here at the Surf’s Up. They’d had a small ceremony on the beach across the street, then everyone moseyed over for cake, music and dancing. One of the most fun nights he’d ever spent tending bar.
“Feels good to put a tough case behind me, but right now I’m needing some milk.”
“Milk? Indigestion?”
“Kitten.”
“Ah.” Apparently gathering up stray kittens had become a group effort. “I see. One bowl of milk coming up.”
“I don’t suppose you know if there are more than two?”
Halfway to the kitchen door, Ben shrugged. From the surveillance cameras, they were pretty sure only two kittens were hanging around, but he wasn’t willing to bet a night’s tips on it. He also wasn’t going to tell Brian that his sister had tried a bowl of milk more than once and it hadn’t been enough to bring the little critters out of hiding while anyone was close enough to grab them. They may be young, but their mama had taught them well. Shoving the door open with one hand, he leaned in and called to his sister, “Lilah, we’ve got a customer who wants a bowl of milk for the other stray.”
“Got it.” A few moments later Ben’s sister set the small bowl in front of Brian. “Enough for two. Shadow seems to be quite content in the office. I wrapped a couple of old bar towels around the bottom of a box for padding. So far so good. How many more have you found?”
“About to find out.”
“My wife is still outside cuddling the orange kitten.” JP took the empty spot at the bar beside Brian. “I have a feeling I may have competition for snuggling up with my wife tonight.”
“Oh, good,” Ben’s sister squealed, and JP skewered her with a less than amused glare. “I mean, good he’s found a home. Sorry about the snuggling part.”
From behind the bar, Ben tossed a rag over his shoulder and muffled a chuckle. JP might have to step up his game to beat out a cute kitten. Puppies, kittens and babies had a way of making adults in general goofy, but women especially were easy marks. “Let me know who wins.”
“If it helps any,” Ben’s sister smiled, “we’ve only seen a gray and an orange kitty.”
No sooner had Brian turned with the bowl in hand then Kim waltzed up with the kitten curled in her arms. “Isn’t he cute?”
“Adorable,” JP muttered.
Ben bit his lip. Oh, JP was seriously going to compete with a new kitten tonight.
* * *
On all fours again, Courtney peered under every shrub in front of, around, and behind the Surf’s Up. “There simply has to be a mom.”
“That’s usually how it works. In a perfect world.”
The smooth deep timbre of the nearby voice momentarily scrambled her thoughts. She wasn’t quite sure what he’d said as much as how he’d said it.
“Lilah, Ben’s sister, tells me the kittens suddenly appeared a couple of days ago. She’s been leaving food out every night but didn’t see any sign of a mother cat. Maybe they’re on their own.”
The man who had helped her catch the orange kitty squatted beside her and set a bowl on the ground. Tilting his head to face her, he smiled and her brain scrambled once again, making her seriously thankful he hadn’t asked a question.
“Ben mentioned there’s a security camera above us, so if we leave a bowl here we can watch from inside. See if there are any more.”
Courtney pushed to her feet, brushed off her hands, and ungluing her tongue from the roof of her mouth, managed to spit out a coherent thought. “Thank you.”
“I haven’t done much, it was Ben’s idea.”
“Yes, you have.” She shot her hand out. “I’m Courtney.”
“Brian.” He shook her hand, firm, not too hard, nice. “Pleased to meet you.”
“Same here.” She looked to the bowl and the nearby still shrubs. “I wish I knew where mama is, but Ben is right. If mama is around, she’ll be more likely to come eat if she doesn’t see us.”
“Hey.” A tall guy in suit pants and button down shirt came to a stop beside them. “I heard you won.”
Brian nodded. “It was a good day for one family.”
“On your way inside?” The man’s glance shifted from Brian to her and back.
“We were just looking for a missing cat,” Brian responded.
“Not the one Amy adopted?”
“Amy?” the two of them echoed.
“A calico. Not very big. Amy noticed her about a week ago but the cat wouldn’t come out. Amy’s been coming over at lunch every day since, trying to make friends. A couple of days ago the cat crawled into her lap and Amy took it home.” The man turned from Brian to her and stuck his hand out. “Is that your cat, Miss…?”
“Courtney. And the cat’s not mine, but there are kittens.”
“Ted Chapman. I work across the hall from this guy, and Amy didn’t say anything about kittens. You think Patches is the mother cat?”
“Patches?” Courtney repeated.
Ted shrugged. “That’s what Amy named her.”
“Is the party out here?” Nick, owner of the Big Island Dive shop, slid his keys into his pocket and smiled at Courtney. His wife Kara sidled up beside him and with a smooth immediate move, his arm circled her waist. One of the many things Courtney liked about her job was all the happily married people. For a bunch of former navy guys, her bosses and coworkers made her think soul mates and true love wasn’t just a thing of fairy tales and romance novels. Perhaps that was just another part of living in Paradise. “Or are we all going inside?”
“Hi.” Lifting his chin at Nick in a quiet greeting, Brian smiled and threw a thumb over his shoulder. “We were just about to head inside.”
Another nice thing about living in Paradise that Courtney liked, friends were everywhere.
A few steps behind, a sharp whistle sounded and all heads turned.
“Maddie!” Nick released his hold on his wife and curling them around her waist, spun the grinning woman around in a big circle. “What are you doing here?”
After a greeting like that, Courtney was curious over who deserved that earth spinning salutation.
The woman kissed him soundly on the cheek then stepped back and swooped his wife Kara into a tight hug. “Thought it would be fun to make a surprise visit.”
Brian waved at the group. “We’re going to head inside.”
“I’ll come with you. Check on the kitties.” Courtney smiled at her boss and waved her fingers at the other people.
“Lord, where are my manners.” Nick sighed. “Maddie, this is our new office manager, Courtney. Courtney, my sister Madeleine and her husband Dan.”
Choruses of “nice to meet you” tumbled over each other as everyone slowly inched toward the front doors.
“Does Mom know you’re here?” Nick asked.
Maddie shook her head. “Dan and I thought it would be more fun to see everyone’s face in person when we share the good news.”
With a smile so wide he looked like his face might crack, Dan slapped his brother-in-law on the back and looped his arm around his wife. Clearly he was another one of them. Once she found herself a place to live, Courtney was going to see what she could do about finding herself a former navy man.
“What could be better than you’re visiting?” Nick reached for the front door.
The grinning woman beamed at her husband. “You’re looking at the Division Supervisor for the newest grant on marine life distribution in sanctuary waters.”
“Congratulations.” Brian flung the door open.
Courtney had no idea what the long title entailed, but from the glowing expression on Nick’s sister’s face, it was a big deal. “Congratulations,” she echoed.
Grinning, Nick slapped his brother-in-law on the back. “Kauai?”
Dan shook his head. “Nope. New division will be here on the Big Island.”
“Holy cow.” Nick waved everyone inside. “Mom is going to flip when she hears.”
“We stopped there first, but she’s off with Sally in Hilo and won’t be back for a couple more hours.”
“Good.” Kara linked elbows with the woman and marched to the biggest table in the place. “Then we’ll have a celebratory glass of champagne.”
Courtney followed the two women inside, taking note of how both husbands quickly sidled up to their wives. Glancing around the bar, her gaze landed on Brian and she wondered what were the odds he’d ever been in the Navy?
* * *
“No luck?” Kim looked up from the table where the law firm employees had begun to gather.
Brian shook his head. “Thought I’d check out the security cameras for a few minutes. See if there’s any movement.”
“Take a beer with you.” JP pointed to an empty glass and the standard pitcher on the middle of the table.
“Nah. I won’t be but a few minutes.” Halfway to the bar, Brian ran into Lilah.
“You going for a beer?”
“Nope. Thought if it was all right with you guys, I’d check on the kittens.”
“Sure thing.” She pointed to the door in the opposite corner from the kitchen. “They’re in a big box by the desk and if you hit any key on the keyboard, the screen will wake up and the camera views should pop up.”
“Great. Thanks.” At the office door, he paused to look over his shoulder. Courtney was chatting with Nick and his friend Billy who had just arrived with his wife. Quickly, Brian ran the former navy men that he’d met over the years through his mind in search of any single ones. The only unmarried he could come up with was Jonathan. If he was attached in any way to Courtney, he was an idiot for not being here with her now.
When Lilah said big box, she wasn’t kidding. Only about fifteen inches high, it was just high enough to keep the kittens in, but the thing was at least three feet wide on all sides so the kitties had plenty of room to romp if they so chose. In one corner of the box, Lilah had placed a small tray with a little sand. In another corner a small bowl of milk, but currently the pair were huddled in a ball on a towel in an opposite corner. Not sleeping, but not ready to explore either. No doubt scared as all get out and wondering, like him, where was their mom?
“You guys have had a busy day. Shall we check to see if there’s any sign of mama?” They both definitely lifted their heads at the sound of his voice, twitched their ears, and he couldn’t swear to it in a court of law, but he was pretty sure the gray one nodded.
At the desk, he tapped the space key and the monitor came to life. Four different camera views popped up. No movement other than a couple more patrons approaching, but he could spend a few more minutes. Another moment or two passed when he heard the squeak of the opening door. “I won’t stay much longer.”
“Ben said there’s no hurry.”
Expecting Ben or his sister, he spun about, knocking his knee against the desk at the sound of Courtney’s voice.
“Any sign of mama kitty?”
He shook his head.
“Other siblings?”
“Not yet.” He spun back around, ignoring the heat of her standing behind him, leaning over his shoulder. “The motion sensor is set to ding on the computer whenever it detects something. The one at the front door is lower, but just before you came in someone on the staff opened the back door and that dinged more loudly.”
“So if mama catches the sensor’s eye, the computer will ding.”
“I think so.”
“Good.” She turned toward the box and at the side, dropped to the floor in a perfect lotus position. “Oh, what a set up they have.”
“Not bad for impromptu guests.” Brian abandoned his post manning the cameras and sank to the floor on the other side of the box. At least one of the kittens had good taste. Like him, the gray kitty wanted to be at her side. He’d pushed to his feet and waddled slowly over and sniffed her fingers dangling in front of him.
“I hope I pass inspection.”
“I’m sure that won’t be a problem. You rescued him. He’s probably already a little in love with you.”
“I hope so.” She leaned over and picked him up. “Lilah says she named you Shadow. And we think maybe that nice lady outside will take one of you home.”
Gathering his or her courage, the orange kitty stretched and padded over to Courtney.
“Oh my.” She smiled and scratched a cat with each hand. “I’ll try and talk her into keeping both of you.”
Leaning back on his hands, Brian nodded. “I’ve heard kittens should always be adopted in pairs.”
“Yep. I remember as a kid one of my teachers was giving away kittens. Mom let us bring one home. Poor thing cried all night for days before he got used to his new surroundings. My friend Katie’s mom let her bring home two. No crying at their house, and the two romped and bounced and jumped and over all had a ton of fun together.”
“Yeah. Growing up we lived in the country. Had plenty of barn cats and whenever Mom would source a litter, she’d always find people who would take them in pairs.” The orange kitty waddled away from the other kitten and tried to climb up the side by him.
“I think she likes your voice.”
“You think?” He reached in and lifted the kitten into his arms. Flipping her onto her back a moment, he confirmed she was indeed a she.
“You like cats.” It wasn’t a question. “Your face lit up at her liking your voice.”
“Yes.” He reached for a pen on a nearby table. “I suppose I do.”
A ding sounded and they both looked up at the screen, spotted the scurrying mongoose and returned their attention to the kittens.
“I love it here, but it’s taken a bit of time to get used to those little animals running everywhere.”
“The epitome of overcorrection.” The orange kitty crawled out of his arm and scurrying down his leg, discovered his shoe laces.
“Overcorrection?”
“You haven’t heard the story about the rats?”
Courtney shuddered and shook her head.
“Then I gather you’re not from around here?”
“Not even close. Came here for vacation and now it looks like I’m here to stay, so please don’t tell me I have to learn to live with rats too.”
“Not unless you live on a sugar plantation. Do you?”
“Not hardly.”
“Then you’re safe.” He liked the way mouth twisted into a soft smile. “In the 1800s it was thought that breeding and releasing mongoose into the sugar cane fields would control the rat population.”
“But, I see the mongoose everywhere all day long and rats usually come out at night.”
“Bingo.” He tapped his nose. “So we now have a fifty million dollar a year nuisance problem on the islands thanks to the mongoose.”
“I wonder how they get along with cats?” Her gaze lost some of its sparkle and he wondered what might it take to put it back.
Bouncing about, Shadow spotted Brian’s other shoe and hurried over to tackle the offensive and dangerous shoelace. Watching intently, Courtney hid a laugh with her hand and Brian decided that if it kept Courtney smiling, he’d let the siblings chew on his laces all night long.
Chapter Three
The last thing Courtney had expected to find when she’d pushed the office door open was Brian at the desk surveying the cameras. She’d thought for sure he was somewhere having a beer with his friends from work. She also hadn’t expected the little kick her heart gave at his sweet effort with the kittens. Like good apartments, good men were usually already snatched up.
The door squeaked open, and both she and Brian glanced up.
“Oh. I didn’t realize anyone was in here.” Lilah craned her neck to better see the kitten-filled box. “Apparently these two are quite popular. Both Kim and Nick’s sister are lobbying to adopt them.”
“They are cute.” Courtney plastered on her best smile. She was growing too fond of the fluff balls.
“I’d better get back to work.” Lilah backed out of the small office. “See you guys later.”
A big part of her was thrilled that the kittens would find good homes and not wind up in a shelter for who knew how long until they got adopted—if they got adopted. There were a lot of cute kittens in the world. Another part, deep down, didn’t want to give them up.
“Sorry, guys.” She scratched the orange kitten’s neck. “My motel is no place for pets.”
“If it’s none of my business, just say so, but why are you living in a motel?”
“Turns out I don’t like parking my car in the living room.”
“Excuse me?” His fingers froze mid scratch.
“I don’t really want much, but a nice little apartment to call home that doesn’t use the living room for a garage or expect me to shower outside would be nice.”
His eyebrows rose high on his forehead.
Courtney let out a sigh. “The last place I saw this morning had indoor plumbing and an outdoor shower.”
“Really?”
She nodded.
“I wouldn’t have expected that.” He blew out a low sigh that seemed to match her frustration.
“Having plumbing troubles too?”
“No.” He shook his head. “Just thinking about how important it is to have a safe and pleasant place to call home. Especially with kids.”
“Oh.” It hadn’t occurred to her he might be married. “You have children.”
Those dark brows shadowing deep blue eyes rose up high again. “No, not me. I sometimes do pro bono work for a local women’s group. Today we scored one for the good guys, but like you said finding a good safe place to call home isn’t always easy. Except maybe for these guys.”
“I hope the good guys find what they want.”
His eyes met hers, the earlier sparkle was back and a thin smile teased at his lips. “I think now they’ll be just fine.”
For the next hour or so she shared about being laid off, the pros, the cons, the concerns. Then she moved on to the once in a lifetime vacation here in Hawaii. By the time she’d gotten to her decision to stay, she’d learned that Brian was a native Hawaiian who had thought he’d want to live on the mainland but after college realized that while the continental US might have its beauty, it wasn’t anyplace he wanted to live.
“What I don’t understand,” he shifted in place, “is why after anyone gets a taste of life on the mainland, would they want to stay? The west coast water is like ice and the east coast, well, let’s just say most of it isn’t paradise.”
She shrugged. “For those born there, they don’t know any better. Most people in the US never make it out of their state. Very few have passports. If I were born and raised here, I’d have never left.”
This time Brian shrugged. “I suspect every small town, or island, kid dreams of city lights at some point.”
“Even you.” She smiled, pleased to see him smile back.
“Even me.” His legs stretched out in front of him, he leaned on one arm, half leaning over the box. “I bet Amy’s new cat is their mom.”
“The timing definitely seems to make sense.”
“Especially if the day she finally caught Patches coincides with the day the kittens started coming out of hiding. The milk train, so to speak, was gone.”
“Poor babies.” She really did wish she could have kittens at the motel. With the set up Lilah had made for them, who would notice. “I wonder how Nick feels about shop kitties.”
“I don’t know about Nick, but my coworker would probably be over the moon not to have to share his wife with the cats.”
“Do you think I could talk Nick into it? Just until I find a place of my own.”
The office door swung open and Lilah swirled around a tray in her hand. “Knock knock.”
Brian sprang to his feet and reached Lilah in two steps. “Let me take that for you?”
“Thank you,” Lilah beamed. “It’s a lot easier balancing one of those things when you’re not opening doors.”
“Where do you want this?” Brian pointed his chin at the tray.
“On the desk is fine. I thought you might be hungry so I brought a snack.”
Not until Lilah mentioned food did Courtney realize how hungry she was. Pushing to her feet, she moved to the desk with both the monitor and the tray.
“Our cook has been tinkering with new recipes so you’re the official guinea pig tonight. There’s stuffed mushrooms in a pink cremora sauce, shrimp crostinis that I think are to die for, and a twist on the parmesan truffle fries, blue cheese drizzled truffle fried potato chips.”
Blue cheese wasn’t Courtney’s favorite, but the crispy fried hand cut potato chips were impossible to resist. Reaching for the tasty morsel, her hand quickly collided with Brian’s. “Oops.”
“Sorry.” His gaze momentarily locked with hers before he pulled his hand away. “I have a weakness for truffle fries.”
Unable to look away, she nodded. “Me too.”
Lilah was already holding the door open to leave when she turned toward them. “Oh, I almost forgot to mention, Kim and Nick’s sister have decided that the kittens shouldn’t be separated. So now they’re debating if they’re going to toss a coin or do rock paper scissors to see who takes those babies home tonight.”
Food forgotten, Courtney’s gaze shifted to the two kittens curled together in a ball. At least they’d have a good safe home tonight, even if it wasn’t with her. The orange kitty stretched its paw and then lifted its head, nose twitching, one eye opened then the other. “Do you think she smells the fries?”
“Or the blue cheese.” Brian squatted down on his haunches.
Both kittens were now on their feet, alert and well rested. At least it looked like that from the way the two hopped about in an effort to leap out of the box.
“Come here, fella.” Brian scooped up the gray kitty.
“Doesn’t seem fair that her brother has a name and she doesn’t.” Courtney tilted her head and studied the feline. “I think Ginger.”
The orange kitty swung her tail hard and turned her back on Courtney.
Brian bit back a smile. “Not sure she likes that. Or she wants at the solid food.”
“I bet they smell shrimp crostinis.” Courtney scooped up the kitten. “Too bad you’re not a boy, I’d call you O’Malley.”
“O’Malley?”
“From the Aristocats.”
“Ah. I’d forgotten about that movie. Loved it as a kid. How about Peaches and Cream, or Peaches for short?”
Courtney scratched at the top of the kitten’s head. “What do you think? Are you a Peaches and Cream?” The little tabby began to purr.
“I guess that’s a yes?”
“Well, Peaches you are. Hope you weren’t telling me you wanted the shrimp crostinis.”
Brian chuckled and lifted his gaze to meet Courtney’s. “Maybe I should take a run to the market and pick up a few things. I’m sure they sell cat beds, litter boxes, dishes and such as well as cat food.”
Courtney couldn’t help the smile that tugged at the corners of her cheeks at how concerned Brian was with the kitties, or the pang that thumped at her heart. “I’m guessing whoever wins custody will be making a run.”
“I suppose.” With one finger he scratched under the cat’s chin. “I think Shadow is a good name for him. Suits him.”
“It does.”
He blew out a deep sigh, bobbed his head and looked up from the kitten he held. “How is it these little creatures capture a grown human being’s heart so quickly?”
“Right?” She waved an arm excitedly in the air.
“You may not have a place to live, but I do.” He pushed to his feet and set the kitten down in the box. “We haven’t seen any more kittens, so it’s probably only these two, and there’s no reason I can’t have a couple of cats. Crazy cat ladies do it all the time.”
That made her laugh. No one would ever mistake him for a crazy cat lady. Besides, if she played her cards right, maybe Mr. Cat Lady would let her come visit. Even if the cats weren’t the only thing she was interested in.
* * *
Brian’s phone buzzed in his pocket. Shifting to grab it without disturbing the kitten, he spotted his neighbor Jack’s number. “I have to take this.”
“No problem,” Courtney mouthed silently and placed the kitten in the box with his sibling.
The fun thing about really young kittens is one minute they were prancing and bouncing around in the box and the next they were out like lights, sound asleep, dropping where they stood.
While his neighbor rambled on about dog food and water bowls, Brian watched Courtney put half the truffle chips onto a fresh plate and slide it his way. She smiled wide and then pulled a chip from her own plate, the cheesy drizzle dripping on her lip. Giggling, she licked the droplets away. It hadn’t even occurred to Brian to take a bite of his own when his neighbor’s words registered. “Wait a minute. Say that again?”
“My flight leaves at six am. Can I drop Leo at your place now or do you really want me to wake you up at zero dark thirty?”
“Flight?”
“What are you deaf? I got the promotion. I’ve got to meet with the suits on the mainland. I’ll be home in about three days, then I start packing.”
“Packing?” So intent on Courtney nibbling on the chips and her lower lip, he hadn’t really heard anything his neighbor had said.
“For the new job,” the man said the words with such succinct clarity it was obvious he thought Brian had lost it. “The promotion means I have to work out of Honolulu. I told you that.”
Now it was all coming into focus. Jack had mentioned a sweet promotion that came with a hefty pay increase. The downside was he’d be traveling more and that meant being based out of Honolulu with more flights coming and going. Which if Brian was putting the pieces together correctly, the apartment next door to him was about to become available. “When is this move happening?”
“Movers are scheduled to come Friday. So what do you want me to do with Leo?”
Brian looked at the kittens and figured they might as well get acquainted with the aging schnauzer. Hopefully Leo liked cats. “Go ahead and drop Leo off. I have to make one quick stop and then I’ll be home.”
“Great, man. Thanks!”
“Oh, and Jack?”
“Yes?”
“Have you told building management yet?”
“No. It’ll have to wait till I get back.”
“Okay. Thanks.”
He slid the phone back into his pocket, turned to Courtney. “Want to run a quick errand?”
“To the pet store?” Her smile bloomed.
“That, then we can come back for the kittens, but first I want to show you an apartment.”
“Apartment?” She slung her purse over her shoulder and held the door open for him.
“Yep. Not far from here. Easy commute to the dive shop. Spacious one bedroom. Small complex. Reasonable rents.”
“Oh, that sounds like the ones that go to people with connections before I can fill out an application.”
His hand on the small of her back, he ushered her into the crowded bar. “Consider yourself connected.”
Those pretty blue eyes circled round under brows now knit together with confusion. The office door shut closed behind them and the elevated hum of conversation was typical of the shift inside from the after work crowd to the ready to party type.
He stopped at the corner where his coworker and the dive shop crew were laughing and debating whether or not to try for five out of seven. “Sorry, but you guys are going to have to hit the pound for kittens of your own. We’ve decided that we’re going to keep the cats.” He half saluted Nick and his buddies before turning on his heel and headed for the exit.
Eyes wide with surprise, Courtney hurried after him. “And just how are we supposed to do this if I don’t have a home of my own to keep them?”
“Yet.” He smiled at her and held the door open for her. He hadn’t realized how late it had gotten. The dark velvet sky the perfect backdrop for a starry night.
She almost bumped into him, her gaze following his skyward. “And this is only one of the many reasons I want to make my home in Paradise.”
A slow grin took over his face. “Did I mention the place I’m going to show you has really nice neighbors?”
She shook her head and fell into step behind him. “Nice as in sweet little old ladies or nice as in don’t care if you play loud music and run out of coffee all the time?”
“More like a friendly lawyer who definitely won’t care if you play loud music and will be happy to make you a cup of a coffee any time you want.”
“It’ll probably be gone before we get there. They always are.” It took her a few more steps to connect the dots, but she suddenly stopped short, her jaw dropped open and just as quickly snapped shut. She’d figured it out. Then the corners of her mouth tipped up in a smile that had her eyes twinkling, and he was pretty sure life was about to get a whole lot more interesting.