Page 38 of Scrape the Barrel
I scanned our surroundings, contemplating that. “What do you think?”
“Hmm, I think she would,” she decided.
“Do you have any wet food for her?”
She stood, shaking her head. “No. Mom says it’s too much money right now.”
I glanced at the front door, then back at Avery. “I can buy you some.”
Her eyes lit up. “Really?”
I nodded. “If you think it’ll make Pudding come home.”
“I do! Let me go tell my mom.” She disappeared into the house but reappeared not even a minute later. “She’s sleeping.”
I slipped my cowboy hat off, running a hand through my hair as I looked out at the street. I couldn’t take Avery to the feed store without Sage’s permission, and I couldn’t leave Avery here with her mother sleeping.
Setting the hat back in place, I looked down at Avery. “Let me call my brother.”
I pulled my phone out, dialing Lennon. He answered on the third ring. “What’s up?”
“Do you guys have any canned cat food?” I asked.
I could hear his snicker on the line. “I do. How’s that going?”
“Currently setting up the trap.” Avery let out a gasp and I quickly corrected myself. “The lure. We’re luring the cat home. Do you think you can make a house call with that wet food?”
He was silent for a moment before speaking. “Oakley was about to go grab us some lunch. I can have her swing by with it. Just text her the address.”
“Alright. Thanks, Len.”
“Have fun wrangling cats,” he said before we hung up.
“Wrangling cats,” I muttered under my breath.
I was never going to hear the end of this from my siblings.
***
After Oakley dropped the can of wet food off, Avery had filled a separate bowl with it, then we headed inside. She showed me her favorite toys, gave me a little tour of her room, and then asked for something to eat. Without knowing what Sage had in her kitchen, I let Avery choose and made her a grilled cheese sandwich with tomato soup.
She’d devoured it, and shortly after, I’d suggested we clean up some of her toys in the living room. I’d pressed that we had to be quiet in order not to wake her mom, and I had to admit, it was pretty adorable watching Avery tiptoe through the living room to gather her toys. While she was gathering her toy ponies, I’d laid a blanket over Sage, careful not to wake her.
I cleaned up the kitchen, washing the dishes that I’d used for Avery’s lunch, then got to work spraying down the counters. I wasn’t sure if Sage would like me cleaning her house like this—not that it needed to be cleaned so thoroughly, it was a home, after all—so I didn’t want to overstep by going through cabinets and doing laundry. I thought wiping down some counters would be okay.
“What are you doing?” Sage asked from the entry to the kitchen.
My eyes shot to her, my strokes with the paper towel pausing. “Cleaning?”
“I see that. But why?”
“To help out, I guess. I didn’t want to wake you, and I didn’t want to leave Avery alone while you were napping, so I figured I could do a few things.”
Sage rubbed her eyes, blinking away the sleep and surveying the kitchen. “It looks…amazing.”
A smile pulled at the corners of my lips. “Thank you.”
“Mama! Did you see I cleaned up my toys?” Avery asked, running into the room from down the hall.
