Page 16 of Fortune's Control
I lurched to a stop at the familiar voice. Who was the pirate?
“The fluffiest pirate. The purringest pirate.”
Lilah met the cat. Shaking my head, I rounded the corner to find her draped across the back porch floor. The black and white cat rubbed its chin against Lilah’s hands, lapping up both the praise and soft scratches. An emerald green swimsuit bottom peeked out from Lilah’s white t-shirt. Her damp hair let me know she’d been in the pool only a short time ago, and I missed it.
Damn.
“Who’s the pirate?” I asked.
Lilah jumped at my sudden presence, but the cat didn’t notice. “He is. We met a few days ago, and he let me pet him today. I named him Pirate.”
“Why’s that?” I asked, already knowing the answer.
The cat appeared in my backyard one morning over a week ago, but ran when I tried to approach. The cat did the same when I left food and water bowls out. I returned that evening to find them empty and her missing.
Lilah pulled herself up and crossed her legs. “He’s missing an eye, and the black and white fur makes it look like he’s wearing an eyepatch. I can’t call him Captain Hook because he isn’t missing a leg, so Pirate it is. Better than Fluffy or Precious, don’t you think?”
“It’s better than the name I picked out.” She raised her eyebrows, curious. “I picked out Dog.” It struck me as funny, although I couldn’t recall why. “Pirate is a fierce name. Also, he is a girl. Check between his legs.”
Lilah lifted Pirate’s tail and drew back. “Oh. It doesn’t matter. She’s a fierce lady pirate. I’m sticking with Pirate. We’re keeping her.” Her eyes widened. “You’re keeping her. No obligation.”
I ignored the slip, as there was no way to respond without embarrassing us both. “I showed a couple of pictures of her missing eye to the vet. He said she was likely born that way, and to bring her in for a check-up when she was caught. It looks like you managed that today, so I’ll call the vet in the morning for an appointment. Would you want to come with?”
Her eyes lit up. “Absolutely. I always wanted a pet growing up. Cat or dog, it didn’t matter.” She sighed and perked back up. “Did you have any pets?”
“A golden retriever named Killer. Sweet boy, but he never lived up to that name.” I smiled at the fond memories. “He could capture a leaf or stick, and not much else.”
We barely spoke since picking up her car, and that was several days ago. I sat on the porch’s top step and spread my legs on the grass below, taking care to give Lilah a respectful distance. Pirate stretched, curled on her side between us, and purred. “Are you enjoying the pool? I’m glad it’s getting some use as I’d considered filling it in.”
“Seriously? You have your own private swimming pool and want to get rid of it?”
“They’re a lot of work, and I don’t use it.”
“You should.” Lilah covered her mouth at the admonition.
“Maybe.”
“You’re invited to join me if you’d like, although it belongs to you, so the invitation is redundant, isn’t it?” Her tone grew casual toward the end, like a friendly invitation from one person to another, and easy to decline. Like she knew I would.
My physical therapists suggested swimming for strength training, and I ran for no other reason but to prove that I still could. “Sure. Some other time. Maybe when it’s closer to summer.”
“It’s late April.”
I smirked. “I prefer my water just shy of boiling. Maybe another time.”
That sounded like a dismissal, which it was, but I didn’t plan to go swimming with her soon. Her casual invitation, likely because of polite obligation, wouldn’t change my mind.
“Did you enjoy the chocolate chip cookies?” she asked.
We both knew her question was a deliberate attempt to change the conversation, but I played along.
“They were a sweet surprise. You didn’t need to do that.” Aiden would bonk my head if he were here. Telling Lilah the truth would hurt her feelings, and there was no reason to do so.
She waved her hand and resumed stroking Pirate rather than look at me. “I enjoy baking. Cooking, not so much. It always feels like a chore, while cookies mean a fun treat at the end, you know?”
I preferred my desserts to be fruit-based. “I get that.”
“Also, thank you for the new phone. You didn’t need to do that.” She turned my words back on me, adding asmile at the end to remove any bite.
