Page 21 of Patching Over

“Yeppers.”

I giggle again as we leave my apartment. Freedom is a wonderful thing as far as I can tell.

“What’s that noise?” Cassie ponders as we’re leaving the diner.

I listen closely until I hear a mewling meow that sounds like it’s coming from the dumpster or at least, by it. Walking carefully, I follow the noise until I spot two small kittens standing next to a prone body, likely their mother judging from the sorrowful sounds they’re making.

“Shhh, sweet babies, I’ve got you,” I coo, as I crouch down and pick them up to cuddle in my arms. “I’m sorry about your momma, but I’ll take good care of you, I promise.”

“Cassie, do you know what I need to take care of these guys?” I ask since I’ve never had a pet of my own before, standing with both kittens firmly ensconced in my arms. I have no idea if they’re girls or boys, I just know they’re all alone, like me, so I’m bringing them home to love and provide for.

“Let’s get in the car and I’ll Google what supplies they’ll need, okay? They probably should see a vet.”

I mentally tally what I’ve got left on me and figure I should have enough, at least for the basics. “Okay.” She opens the passenger door for me, and I slide inside, being careful not to drop either kitty.

Once she’s inside and the car has been cranked, she pulls her phone out and begins searching for information. While she does that, I look at each of them. One is orange with a tiny bit of white on its tail, while the other is black and gray striped. Both are now purring, their eyes closed as they knead my hoodie with their little paws. “Sweet babies,” I murmur, lightly petting both of them. “You’re so tiny.”

“Alrighty, there’s a big box pet store not too far from here and they’ve got a vet on staff, wanna go?”

I hesitate because what if it’s more than I’ve got on me right now? “Do you think it’ll be expensive?”

“I don’t know, but I’ve got you, my friend. If you don’t have enough, I’ll cover the difference and you can just pay me back!” she proposes. “Now, buckle up, it’s the law.”

Laughing, I buckle my seatbelt as she pulls out of the lot and onto the road.

“Well, now, you two, let me show you your new home,” I softly say to the two of them who are now in a carrier courtesy of Cassie. Normally, with two animals, we’d have two of the carriers, but they’re still so small, she figured they’d be okay for the time being. While I sat waiting at the vet, she went through the store and grabbed the things she said Google advised I needed. All except for food, because she wasn’t sure of their ages.

The vet checked them out, gave them a clean bill of health after doing some tests, then gave each of them their first set of shots, poor babies. She said they were roughly four weeks old, so I added more things to what Cassie picked out. I’ve now got kitten food, both dry and wet, as well as something called replacement milk that I’m supposed to mix with the dry until they’re six weeks old since they weren’t fully weaned from their mom. I feel terrible that she was apparently killed, but I’m so glad we heard their cries, otherwise, they might have ended up dead too. I have to take them back in a few weeks for their second set of shots which Cassie said was no problem, she’d drive me, then several more weeks after that, they’ll get their final set as well as their rabies shots. I also have to getthem neutered, but the vet said they needed to weigh a certain amount, then she gave me the information for a low-cost spay and neuter clinic, so I’ll use them, even though I have the money, because she said there was no difference in what she’d do and what they do. Might as well save whenever and wherever I can.

Both kittens are boys, so we got cute breakaway collars for when they get their rabies tags, along with some toys, a litter box, and of course, multi-cat litter. Even though she wanted to stay and help me, Cassie had another engagement, so after exchanging phone numbers, she left and here I am, alone except for Calvin and Hobbes to keep me company.

Carefully setting the carrier down, I open the door and watch as they both cautiously come out. “Hey, Calvin,” I say to the orange kitty, picking him up for a nuzzle. “Hello, Hobbes,” I state, doing the same to the gray kitten. “You boys are going to be spoiled rotten.”

I walk them over to the litter box and set them inside like the vet suggested. She was also kind enough to give me a booklet about raising kittens. I know I’ll be pouring over that and also going online to see what else I need to know. Once they each use it, I walk into the kitchen with both of them following me and set up their food and water dishes. After watching them play in the water and food, I realize they’re going to be a bit messy while they learn.

“No big deal, boys, I’ll never punish you because you did something wrong,” I murmur, bad memories of my childhood resurfacing once again. I push them away as I remind myself I can’t change the past, only the future. While they continue to play, I set up their beds then open the cat tree Cassie insisted on buying for them. “Oh, this is gonna be fun,” I groan, my voice full of sarcasm as I see all the pieces needing to be put together. Pulling the instruction manual out of the box, I set to work creating a play area for my new charges.

CHAPTER

ELEVEN

Brick

Staying away from Rayleigh has been an exercise of extreme proportions. If not for the fact that Brew and Phantom, as well as the brothers who go to the bar, let me know she seems to be settling in just fine, I’d be banging down her door and dragging her back to the clubhouse with me.

I honestly can’t believe that she’s managed to sneak under my defenses to burrow into my heart in such a short time. Because of her, I have no interest in our club girls for a release; no, all I can imagine is Rayleigh spread out beneath me. I see her sprawled on my bed, her arms open and inviting. I imagine sinking my cock into her tight, warm heat as she cries out my name. I envision her on her knees as I feed my length into her mouth. I picture her on her hands and knees, her back bowed as I thrust into her from behind, my hands gripping her hips.

“Fuck!” I grunt as I spill my seed across my stomach. This has become a regular occurrence since she left. I swear I haven’t jacked off this much since I was a teenager.

My phone chiming alerts me to an incoming text. Grabbing it, I grin maliciously. Her parents are now residents of our converted wine cellar. Once the Tonopah Valley and Ankeny brothers arrive, we’re going to have a little bit of fun exacting revenge on the couple. In the meantime, looks like Scythe, Rooster, and Jingles have roughed them up based on the picture that has just come through.

“Serves you fuckers right!” I bellow. Time to get cleaned up and see what needs doing around here. Arrow is out on the first run with some of Scorn’s guns so I’m waiting to hear from him. Chains heard from his friend, Wrecker, out of Cedar Creek, Texas. Seems they’ve been searching for some women and children and heard they may be in our neck of the woods. He’s getting pictures we can share so we can be on alert. I need to let him know if they need to come, there’s room. There’ll always be room for a brother.

With my morning routine now complete, I head down to find some breakfast and coffee. While many of the brothers are caffeine addicts, I’m good as long as I get one cup in the morning. After that, it’s water, soda, beer, and an occasional shot of whiskey. Hell, I rarely smoke anymore, but the situation with Rayleigh has had me lighting up more often than I did when I was actively smoking.

“What’s up, Pres?” Arrow asks once I breach the kitchen door. He’s sitting there with Leathyr on his lap, grinding down. Not exactly what I want to see while trying to eat, so I fix a plate as well as a mug full of the life-saving java.

“Just the usual. Gotta see what paperwork I can take care of before our brothers arrive,” I reply, giving him a look.

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