Bryan begins to chew my shoelaces, and I edge my foot away.
Fuck off, cat.
“Where do you come from, Christopher?” Harvey asks.
Bryan grabs my legs between his two claws and bites my shin. “Ahh.” I jump and look under the table. “Bryan’s getting a little vicious down there.” I frown as I watch the sneaky fucker. “Little-jaguar-for-real kind of thing.”
“New York,” Hayden replies for me. She sips her coffee casually.
Sharp, vicious teeth sink into my anklebone through my socks, and I inwardly wince, pretending that nothing is wrong.
Ahh.
The fuck is going on down there?
Harvey carries on the conversation. “Busy damn town, that place.”
“Yes, yes, it is.” I peer under the table to see Bryan winding up to attack me again. His tail is whipping side to side as he leans back, ready to launch, and I begin to sweat.
A little help over here, Hayden?
“Where do you live?” Harvey asks.
Do you catch rabies from cats? Sharp pain shoots through me as Bryan attacks for real. “Ahh,” I cry.
“What’s happening?” Hayden frowns.
“Don’t he like you?” Harvey asks dryly.
“Oh, he likes me.” I smile as razor-sharp teeth sink straight to the bone. “Maybe a little too much. My mother is allergic.”
“You don’t like cats?”
“Love them,” I lie with a smile. “Looking forward to snuggling with little Bryan later tonight.”
Not an actual lie. I am a pussy whisperer from way back. Small inferior jaguars with attitude problems, maybe not so much.
Harvey’s cold eyes hold mine.
“Let’s go unpack into our room.” Hayden stands, breaking the moment. “It’s so good to be home, Dad.”
Harvey pulls his daughter in for a hug.
“Dinner at six.” Valerie smiles.
I follow Hayden out the front door and over to the car. We grab our bags, and I go to go back into the house.
“This way,” she says.
“Where?”
“I have my own house on the property.”
“You do?”
Thank fuck for that.
“Great.”
We walk about 150 yards up the road and come to a pretty little cottage. Hayden opens the door, and I smile.
Now this . . . is more like it.
It’s decorated in pastels and homey, comfortable furniture, and instantly I can feel Hayden’s calming presence. “This is beautiful, babe.” I smile as I look around.
“I like it.” She looks around as if seeing it for the first time. “My bedroom is upstairs.” She leads me up the stairs, and the entire top floor is her bedroom. It’s feminine and sweet and romantic . . . just like her.
And unlike my bedroom, where she can hear the moans, all I can feel in here is the love she had with her ex.
I look at the bed as I imagine another man in it. Did he have her in there? Of course he did. I snap my eyes away angrily.
I fucking hate that he had her.
“It’s a new bed,” she says as if reading my mind.
I nod, grateful. “Good news.” I take her into my arms and kiss her softly. “Your father hates me.”