Page 36 of You're so Bad

Tell that to the feeling inside of me, like I accidentally swallowed a firefly.

“You ready for this?” Leonard calls out from the other room, laughter in his voice.

“Something tells me I’m not and could never be.”

He comes out with a fuzzy black kitten cuddled in the crook of his arm and a pleased-with-himself smile on his face. “Meet Tiger, Jr. Actually, I was thinking we should call her Bean. Colter will hate that.”

“What the hell?” I blurt. “You’re bringing a cat?”

“To a pompom craft night, yes,” he says with a grin that’s more sly than not. “I’m sure Bianca and Colter will understand. Bean needs constant supervision. We’ll take her crate too, but something tells me she’ll want to get some air.” His grin stretches wider, his eyes sparkling, his whole face lit up with chaotic glee. “You’ll want to check this out.”

He goes to the coffee table and pulls a pompom out from a shelf built beneath it. The pompom goes on the couch, followed by the little kitten. She immediately launches herself at it, attacking with teeth and claws. Yarn flies around like confetti.

Grinning at me, he says, “I taught her to go after them by putting catnip in the middle.”

“Diabolical,” I admit, impressed. How long has he had this cat anyway? “But I’m not sure how I feel about bringing an animal into the situation. What are you going to do with her after tonight?”

He shrugs, looking a little self-conscious, and picks her up again. “I figured maybe I’d keep her.”

“You like cats?”

“Sure. I’ve heard they’re more self-sufficient than dogs.”

I remember the look on his face when he told me that Gidget was dead and it was his fault. There’s a swelling feeling inside of me. I put a hand on his arm, but Bean bats it as if to say he’s her man.

You can keep him, Cat.

“Tell me about your friends,” I say on impulse.

His eyes find the photo that I was shamelessly checking out a couple of minutes ago. He steps closer, standing by my side so he can look down at it too. He’s close enough that I can feel his heat in every inch of my body. “But those aremyfriends, Tiger, not Dr. Leonard’s.”

“And we agreed it’s best to stay truth adjacent in our over-the-top lies.”

He pets Bean, who leans into his hand, her little eyes squeezing shut as she purrs. Does he know how sexy that is?

Judging from the crafty look in his eyes, yes, he does. He’s trying to get me to bend on the whole no-touching thing. Not because he likes me, I’m sure, but because he’s the kind of man who likes to fuck.

I’ll bet he’s good at it.

I bet he could make me the delicious kind of sore.

I deliver myself a mental slap. It’s been too long. Long enough to make me forget why it’s a mistake to sleep with unsuitable men.

“I met them at a bar when we were dumb kids. Twenty-one, maybe twenty-two. I let Burke think I had a college degree, and he helped me land a job with his folks before we realized they were assholes. I don’t have a degree, though, so it was a lie from the get-go.” He pauses, a vein in his neck pulsing. I have the impulse to lick it, so my libido is definitely out of control. “What do you think about that?”

I snort. “I’m not going to judge you for it. My grandmother may have started this lie without my permission, but I’m the idiot who’s leaning into it. We’ve both lied to our friends.”

His gaze is pointed. “Those people aren’t your friends, Tiger.”

“No,” I agree. “That’s the biggest lie of all, isn’t it? You know, I did think some of the people who’ll be there tonight were my friends, but that was bullshit too.”

“Still, I don’t think your not-friends would be impressed with my GED.”

“Probably not. Maybe that’s why they chose Bianca over me. She’ll tell anyone who listens that she went to the College of William and Mary.”

“Is that made up?” he asks with a puff of air. “Sounds made up.”

I have to smile. My face demands it. “No. I looked it up. It’s about as self-important as you’d expect.Ididn’t go to college.”

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