Page 73 of Talk About… Secrets
The babies were small enough that they still had a little stumble to their steps as they tried to run away. Thankfully, mybetas were faster, gently scooping them up and passing them off to Beckett.
“What am I supposed to do with them?” he panicked, though he still held them tight, even as they wiggled to break free.
“Try purring,” I suggested, curious if it would actually help.
Sure enough, the moment the alpha started to purr, the kitten settled instantly, clinging to his suit jacket for dear life.
Once they finally grabbed the third one he was rushing inside, the rest of us on his heels.
“I’ll find a box or something to put them in for now,” I said, grabbing one of the empty ones from the bay, then a towel from the laundry room, spreading it out on the bottom so they could go inside.
“Aren’t firehouses supposed to have dogs?” Beckett deadpanned.
“Don’t tell me you’re afraid of cats, alpha,” I teased.
“I’ve just… never been around animals much,” he admitted.
Drew walked in before I could tease him further, but the somber look on his face instantly wiped the humor away.
“They did pick up a pregnant cat,” he said quietly. “They looked around for babies but couldn’t find them. However… Mama didn’t make it,” he admitted, reluctantly, like he was afraid to tell me.
Tears burned in my eyes, and I tried my best to blink them away, my heart breaking for these little babies.
“I told them we had some kittens but no mother around. They’re sending someone out now to help us take care of them. I assume they’re staying here, right?”
“Oh yeah,” Cade and Spencer said at the same time.
“She’s already in love,” Cade added, nudging me gently.
It wasn’t even five minutes later when one of the shelter workers arrived. She had a whole bag of supplies that she sat on the table before inspecting the kittens.
“They caught me on the way out, but I’m a vet,” she explained. “So, I brought the standard meds and vaccines they’ll probably need. Looking at these babies, I don’t think you’ll have to bring them in just yet, unless you have issues. It seems their mama managed to get them through the nursing stage, so we lucked out there.”
We watched silently as she inspected each kitten. They looked so tiny, and their little protesting meows werekillingme.
“Well, congrats. You’ve got all girls,” she said, putting the last kitten in the box. “They look healthy, and I don’t think we have any major concerns. I’ll leave my card with you. You should schedule with the clinic. They’ll explain how many visits, at what weeks, all of that. I’d say we’re looking at six to eight week old kittens here. You’ll need to give them that information as well, and I’ll turn in my own report.” She rattled off a bit more information and what food to give them before standing up to leave.
“Thank you so much for coming out,” I said, soaking in every word. So much for going out for my craving. I knew I wasn’t about to leave these babies right now.
Honestly, I wasgladwe were the ones to find them and not some wild animal roaming around out there. This really was the perfect place for them to run and play once they were older.
“Well,” Beck said, clapping his hands together. “Someone needs to stay on kitten duty while the rest of us go out shopping and secure our girl her cheese sticks and cheesecake.”
I wrinkled my nose. “That sounds terrible. I changed my mind.”
Grace
The kittens had been a handful over the last few weeks, and now they were old enough that they were constantly scurrying around underfoot and running through the firehouse.
Stormy was a little gray bundle of energy. Star was a white kitten that was a sweet, cuddly baby. Then there was the orange one, Ember, who was always climbing things she shouldn’t.
Beckett loved to act exasperated by them, but everyone else adored the tiny, crazy additions. They brought so much life to this place.
The place that wasofficiallydone.
Our major renovations had been completed, and Drew was finally getting a chance to relax. Though of course, he kept finding more and more projects to keep himself busy.
I was set up in my new office downstairs, working on a few designs, when the front door camera went off. I saw the deliveryguy drop off a package, and since it was just me and the betas home today, I hurried out to grab it.
