Lib Novel Page 60
Gretel’s freakishly bright eyes are still focused on me. Her motorboat purr in full throttle, her little toes flexing and retracting like she’s reaching for me.
“I like cats,” I answer slowly. “Their give no fucks attitude speaks to my soul.”
“That’s Gretel,” Margot laughs.
“I had farm cats when I was a kid. They weren’t this friendly, though.”
Margot sets Gretel down and the cat returns to rub herself all over my chest. I sit up and scratch behind her ears.
“She’s never this friendly with people.” The open-mouthed stare Margot’s watching us with highlights this is a rare occasion. “Ever.”
If my brothers were around, I’d make a crack like, “See, females of every species love me,” but that seems like a weird thing to say to the woman I want to fuck about the cat who’s currently drooling on my hand.
Gretel flops on the end of the chair and rolls to her back, kicking her paws in the air. I reach over to rub her belly and she playfully grabs my hand and swipes her scratchy tongue over my knuckles.
“Even her little toes are black,” I say, playing with her paws.
Margot nods. “She was a shelter kitty, there on borrowed time. I saw her sweet face in a post someone shared and couldn’t stop thinking about her.” Her eyes water. “I always wanted a pet and Dad wouldn’t let us because, you know, too much chance for it to get out and run downstairs during a service or something.”
“But he let you have one now?”
“Well.” Her lips stretch into a secret smile. “I didn’t ask. Black cats have a hard time getting adopted and the shelter couldn’t keep her much longer. So, I just brought her home.”
“He doesn’t even know she’s here?”
“No, he knows.” She scratches behind Gretel’s ears and that cat “mrrrps” at her again. “She’s leash trained, so I take her for walks around the property sometimes. He just…” Margot shrugs. “Made peace with it, I guess.”
Margot’s a little badass in her own way.
Like her welcoming switch has been flipped off, Gretel rolls to her feet, hops off the chair and strolls away. She turns a corner and disappears.
“She’s not going to come back and watch us, is she?” I ask.
Margot lifts one shoulder. “She’s never shown interest in anyone else before, so anything is possible.” She turns toward me. “Where were we?”
I curl a finger, inviting her closer. “You were earning an A-plus in kissing.”
“Ooo, an A, huh? I never got those before.”
“A-plus and really? You strike me as very studious.”
She settles into the chair again, lining herself flush to me, so we’re touching almost everywhere, relaxed and easy. “No, I was more the ‘Cs get degrees’ kind of girl, until senior year. I need to really enjoy the subject matter to excel at it.”
A deep rumble of laughter pours out of me. She blinks, then blushes. “Oh, I just realized what that sounded like.” She presses her finger to my cheekbone, tracing to my chin. “It’s true, though. I enjoy being in your presence.”
Something in my chest thunks. What’s this woman doing to me? My entire soul wants to leap into her hands for safekeeping.
“I’ve never felt like this before.” She frowns, so adorably confused at…enjoying some light kissing?
This has been bugging me since the wedding and I have to ask before we go further.
I push her hair off her cheek and rest my finger under her chin, applying enough pressure so she’ll look at me. “Who said you weren’t good at sex?”
An edge creeps into my tone I didn’t intend. I can’t help it. Someone made her feel so bad about herself, she asked a biker she’s got nothing in common with to teach her how to fuck, and now she seems shocked that I’m praising her kissing skills. Worse, she’s surprised she likes kissing.
“It doesn’t matter.”
Who was it? Why did it bother her so damn much and where can I find him? Instead of a finger, I’ll cut out his tongue. Then he’ll never be able to hurt someone as sweet and vulnerable as Margot again.