Page 38 of Friend Me

A sneeze came through the phone, followed by a wet sniffle. “Marlee, it’s Audrey Jones. I need your help.”

Why was Jackson’s mother calling me? A chill shot through me. “Are Jackson and Alicia all right?” Cooper had pushed off my desk, about to return to his office, but he froze.

“Of course. I’m sure they’re fine. It’s me”—she sneezed again—“who isn’t.”

“What’s wrong?” I shooed Cooper away and mouthed,They’re okay.

“We’re keeping their cat, Tigger, while they’re on their honeymoon, and my—my”—another sneeze—“my allergy medications aren’t working. Would you mind keeping him for us?”

A cat. In our house. With Dad. I squeezed my eyes shut and shook my head. But Alicia loved that cat. So I said, “No, Mrs. Jones. I wouldn’t mind at all.”

“Thank you. Can I send him with a driver to your office? Do you think you could leave the office early to take him home?”

I’d miss my first lunch with Cooper, but I pictured Alicia, worry-free at last, on the beach in Fiji. “That’ll be fine. Thank you.”

After we hung up, I knocked on Cooper’s doorframe.

“Sorry, I’m going to have to take a rain check for lunch. Jackson’s mother is allergic to Tigger, and she’s sending him home with me. Now.”

He frowned. “Poor Audrey.”

“Poor Marlee. What am I going to do with a cat?” We’d never had so much as a fish.

“Have you met Tigger? He loves everyone. And he sleeps all the time. Just set up his bed near a sunny window, and you won’t hear a sound from him for three weeks.”

I made a noncommittal noise. I hoped the cat wouldn’t cause trouble. I had enough to handle at home.

I turned to go. “Call me if you need anything.”

“Mm-hm.” He already had his nose back in his computer screen.

I dragged back to my desk to pack up. The score was Fate - 2, Marlee’s romantic plans - 0.

* * *

That night,as I washed my scratched-up arms in the kitchen sink, I mentally calculated the hours I’d have to spend with Tigger until Jackson and Alicia returned from their honeymoon. Under the kitchen table, the cat nonchalantly licked a paw and rubbed it over his ear.

“Four hundred fifty-six hours, cat. Can’t we be friends for that long?”

He swiveled his ears back and hissed at me.

Maybe I should spend more time at the office.That’d minimize time with Tigger and maximize time with Cooper. But then who’d take care of Dad? “Okay, maybe friends is too much to ask. Can’t we just ignore each other?”

He stood up, turned his orange-striped back, and plunked back down, his twitching tail facing me. I closed my eyes and sighed through my nose.

Dad walked in. “Sunshine, who were you talking to?”

“Just the cat.”

He furrowed his brow. “We don’t have a cat.”

That familiar feeling zapped me like a Taser to the chest. “Dad, remember, I told you about Tigger when I came home. We’re watching him for Jackson and Alicia.”

His expression didn’t change, but he said, “That’s right. Well, good night.”

A minor slip-up. That’s all it was. He’d been fine over the weekend. Fine all day. I wasn’t losing my dad. He was tired, and he’d forgotten.

I stared at the cat who didn’t want to be at our house any more than I wanted him to be there.

“Troublemaker,” I growled. If it weren’t for Alicia and Noah, who loved that cat, he’d be out on his furry butt. Thank goodness for Operation Prince Charming. It’d give me the distraction I needed to get through the next nineteen days.

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