Page 12 of The Griffin, the Tiger, and Their House Cat Omega

I really liked Matthew. Like, a lot. More than a lot—but not quite enough. He wasn’t my mate, that much I knew, although there was this comfort in him, like we’d known each other forever.

And was I ever attracted to him. I never remembered meeting someone I was that instantly drawn to—not even at college, where I was meeting other young, hot guys all the time. Objectively he was hot as hell, but so were a ton of guys, and I’d never come close to feeling this way.

I wanted him to be my mate because so much of my instinct said he was. But my tiger—he didn’t recognize him as such. And if he didn’t, then he wasn’t. That was that.

“This is the last round of go fish,” I told Flora. I had also told her that the last two rounds, so I was pretty sure the credibility ship had longed sailed. It was so hard to say no to her. I wanted her world to be happy and perfect, or at least as perfect as it could be after what she’d been through.

“Can I have some more popcorn.” She didn’t pretend to acknowledge me cutting her off of her card game in a few.

“Sure.” I took her bowl, refilled it, and set it next to her as Matthew handed out the cards.

“This time, I’m gonna win,” he insisted. He never would—not when playing against Flora. Because if she got all sad about not doing well, suddenly, he was making mistakes left and right. Her cards were showing, or he’d call something that had just been discarded. He was throwing the game for her, and it was all kinds of adorable—but also probably not the best for her.

I understood that giving her the world could turn her into a spoiled brat. But also, I hadn’t seen any of those tendencies in her. Not yet, anyway.

We went round and round the table asking for cards and just like the last few hands, sweet Flora came out on top.

“That’s three in a row! Does that make me the go fish champion?”

“Sure, you can be the Go Fish champ—” Matthew chuckled.

I started to say something, but her yawn took over. She was exhausted. How could she not be, she’d been through so much over the past year?

“And that is why it is time for you to get ready for bed, little one.” I tapped her nose.

“Fine, fine,” she said, though she didn’t really put any feeling into it.

As I suspected she was more than ready to go to bed. For the first time in far too long, into the bathroom to brush her teeth she went and I excused myself to go to the bedroom to make sure Flora’s stuffie was where it needed to be and to grab one of her beginning reader books she could enjoy before light out.

She wasn’t out of the bathroom yet when there was a knock at the door. I ran over.

It was Zevo.

“Hey, what’s up, dude?”

“Dude?” He wrinkled his face, attempting to look upset and then nearly instantly giving up.

I shrugged.

“Fine, I can be dude. But anyway, you two are needed upstairs.”

I wasn’t working, and Matthew didn’t even work here. His request made no sense.

“Matthew can go, but I need to stay here. I have Flora, remember?” She was five, and as safe as the living quarters were, she was far too young to be alone. Not going to happen, not for a job or anything else.

“No, you don’t, because I am babysitting.”

He was dead-ass serious.

“You’re my boss.”

“I remember.” And now he was just teasing. He had to be.

“You are supposed to be going home.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Matthew trying, with little success, to hod back his amusement.

“Naw. I’m supposed to be here. Besides, my family is at the in-laws for the night. They won’t even miss me.”

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