Page 1 of Sofa King Safe

ChapterOne

QUINN

Who needs an alarm clock when you have a giant, bossy orange cat?Boss nudges me with his head under my chin, and when I don’t open my eyes, he tries to paw at my face.

“No,” I grumble, swatting his paw away.

He might not be able to physically get me out of bed with those extra fingers on his massive paws, but his persistence has the desired effect.My eyes pop open, and scowling at me is a very grumpy cat, his fur sticking out in all directions.I’ll need to fix that before I let anyone see him.His state of disarray would be bad for business.

“You keep this up and I’m going to start being the grumpy one in the morning.”I wrap my arms around him, cuddling him close before I place kisses on the top of his head and then put him down.

Boss circles my feet, wanting out of the van for his morning adventure and wet food.Sleeping in my van isn’t as simple as I thought it might be.I’m reminded of the tight space when I go to stretch and I can’t do it all the way.Annoyed, I pull down the window cover in the back and peek out to make sure no one is around.It's getting harder and harder to find a spot to park at night.The best spot is behind the building I'm renting for my shop, but I worry if I do it too often, people might catch on to the fact that I'm living in my van.

I'm relatively new to Cottonwood, but I’ve discovered that gossip travels fast.The last thing I want is to be the talk of the town.Not unless it's about Clean Kitty and the services I offer to the local cats.

When I see the coast is clear, I open the back door to the van, not bothering with a leash for Boss.He won't go far, especially not without his breakfast.Boss also doesn't love the outside.He prefers air conditioning and a soft, fluffy bed.That makes two of us, big guy.

He jumps down, his tail flicking a few times in irritation that it rained last night and the ground is still wet.With the way he acts, no one would ever know it took me a month to lure him to me.Once upon a time, Boss was feral and would growl if I tried to get close.Yet every day he still showed up to demand food.Boss still does both of those things, but he doesn't hiss or try to scratch me anymore.

Pulling on my boots, I jump out with him to stretch my legs.I stumbled across this spot late last night, and it’s more secluded than my usual places.I don't love parking in the middle of almost nowhere all alone, but living in Cottonwood, it's not difficult to suddenly be in the middle of nowhere.People either live in town or around it, but all the houses have stretches of land.

Boss freezes mid-step, and I watch as his front paw lifts and his ears go up.My eyes search the wooded area around us, and I turn around to find the bat I keep in my van.

Boss suddenly darts back to the van, and I hear a twig snap.Fear rushes through me, and my stomach drops as I spin around, swinging the bat as hard as I can.But before I can make contact with anything, a hand comes out, catching the end and stopping it abruptly.

My relief is instant when I see that it's Rhodes."Oh God."

Tension leaves my body, and my shoulders relax.It's not him.He hasn't found me.

"Quinn,” Rhodes says and easily pulls the bat from my hand.

"Sorry, I'm so sorry."What if I had hit him?

"You should put a sock on the end."He flips the bat in his hand and holds the handle out for me to take.He’s not the least bit shaken that I tried to hit him.

"What?"My heart is still pounding so hard, it's difficult to hear.

“If you put a sock on the end and someone grabs the bat, they won’t be able to catch it because the sock will slide off.Then you swing again.”I think those are the most words Rhodes has ever said to me at once.

“Right, thanks.”Boss comes trotting over to inspect Rhodes.I’m shocked when Rhodes bends down and Boss allows him to give him a few pets.My cat has a tendency to be a bit sexist.

“What’s his name?”

“Boss,” I say and put the bat back inside my van.

“Boss?”

“Yeah, he’s the boss around here.”

“And why is it you're out here?”Rhodes steps closer, peering into my van.His rich, earthy scent with a hint of pine surrounds me.I've only been this close to him a few times, but I remember that smell.

Of course I see him in town all the time.He's a hard man to miss with how big he is.Rhodes is a fine specimen of a man and easily towers over me.His short hair is nearly black and so is his short beard.It does nothing to soften his sharp jawline.Add in his broad shoulders and he exudes power.Weirdly, it’s not intimidating.Maybe because his voice is always low and steady.That's the perfect word for him: steady.I thought that about him before I really knew him.

It's why when I realized it was him, I wasn't scared.I'm sure that's stupid because I know better than most how people easily hide who they are.It could be that since I’ve had an up-close experience with it, I know what to look for.With Rhodes, I feel safe when he’s near.

"Boss wanted to go on his morning stroll."

"You've been here all night,” he says.“Are you living out of your van?"

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