Page 61 of The Love Shack

So why did it feel like his dark gaze was on her more often than not?

She glanced back—bam. They looked at each other, or at least they did until Oliver said, “Eyes forward.”

Right. She was supposed to be concentrating on her pose. As she quickly glanced around, she realized she’d lost her place. Her stance was nothing like everyone else’s.

When Oliver spoke directly behind her, she nearly jumped. He had approached without making a sound!

“Square your hips to the front of the mat. That’s it. Face your back toes in. Good. You want them aimed at the corner of your mat.”

She tried to do it, she really did, but then he put his hands on her, much as he had while instructing others, and she seriously wanted to melt.

Clearly she’d been far too long without the touch of a man. No way should she be obsessing about a guy while surrounded by a class of women and with cats crawling everywhere. Cats! Right, she could use that as an excuse. Quickly she dipped to pick up one kitty that brushed against her ankles.

“Good diversion tactic,” Oliver murmured, and moved on to another person.

Giving up, Lark carried the cat and went over to Berkley. “Hey.”

Berkley smiled at her. “Thanks for being here.”

“My pleasure.” She propped her shoulders against the wall next to Berkley. “It’s a hit, don’t you think?”

Betty took up a position on Berkley’s other side. “I’ve gotten some terrific photos.”

Eyes widening, Lark asked, “Photos?”

“The paper you signed when you came in? It included permission for me to take some photos to post on our social media so everyone can see what they’re missing.”

“Er... I’m a mess. I hope I’m not in your pics.”

Betty just smiled, but Berkley protested, telling her how cute she looked, that she could never be a mess, on and on, until Lark laughed.

When Oliver glanced at them, she quickly quieted herself and lowered her voice to a mere whisper. “I’m often a wreck these days. Before coming to Cemetery, I almost never was.” Of course, there were those few weeks when she’d shut herself off from the world. No one had seen her then. No one had known how she’d cried, how she’d so badly wanted...

Berkley put a hand to her forearm. “We got a new cat today.”

Effectively drawn from the memory, Lark asked, “Oh? Which one?”

“She’s not out here yet.” Berkley turned to Betty. “Would you mind keeping an eye on things? We won’t be long.”

With her phone raised again—this time aimed at Oliver—Betty shooed them away. “Take your time. I’ve got this.”

Berkley indicated the door to leave the training room, so Lark followed along, wondering about this mysterious cat. They entered the cat room, currently empty since all the cats were at yoga, but at the other end there was a larger, separate room enclosed with a secure gate, and Lark immediately heard the tiny mews of kittens.

Her breath caught. She’d just been thinking of babies, and tears immediately clouded her vision as she followed Berkley into the room, then sank to her knees before a deep cardboard box. Inside, a yellow tabby lovingly licked on a gray kitten’s head while three other kittens nursed. They were all different colors.

Softly, Berkley said, “We took her in from another shelter, and two days later she gave birth. I hate that she was moved, but she’s better off here.”

Lark wasn’t sure she could speak, not with emotion clutching her throat, her heart. She nodded, reaching over to pat Berkley’s arm to let her know that any animal was better off with her.

Apparently, Berkley understood. “You can pet her if you like. Or the kittens. She’s amazingly gentle, and she’s a wonderful mama.”

Oh God, Lark wasn’t sure she could. She knew tears were rolling down her cheeks, but she couldn’t stop them.

“It’s okay.” Using the back of one finger, Berkley stroked the cat’s head. “She’s here now, and we’ll take very good care of her and her babies.”

Lark wanted to explain, but she couldn’t. She did manage to say “Thank you.”

For the next few minutes, she and Berkley sat in silence.

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