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Where the hell was he, anyway?
Sighing, I grabbed my ear buds and scrolled through my playlist for something upbeat to listen to. I needed a distraction from myown thoughts, but Lord Huron was not where it was at today. Patti Smith. Perfect.
As I plugged in the earbuds, I heard a movement behind me. Yeah, my heart did a little flippy thing, and maybe my breath caught a bit. And that was at just theideaof seeing Grayson. I hadn’t even stood up yet.
Okay, deep breath. Act normal. I got to my feet, turning to see Grayson walking into the kitchen, with a strange contraption which he put on the kitchen counter. His hair was damp from the rain, and the way his shirt clung to his muscles was almost indecent.
“Hey.” Trying to sound casual, failing miserably. It was pretty rude of him to look so hot, actually.
“Hello.” He sounded a little off. Maybe nervous? Why would he be nervous?
“I haven’t had lunch yet. I was sort of waiting for you. I can make something, if you like.” And now we have a lame attempt at easing the tension.
“I can make it. But come here first.” Yep, his voice was definitely a bit strange.
I walked slowly into the kitchen, frowning at Grayson’s peculiar behavior. “What is it?”
“After what happened yesterday, I did some thinking.”
“Why does that sound so ominous?” I asked, a bit concerned now.
“You’re bored,” he said simply.
“Out of my fucking mind,” I agreed, not sure where this was going.
“You’ve got too much time to sit here, feeling sorry for yourself.”
“Well, I’m trying not to do that so much. After that stellar come to Jesus talk you gave me yesterday, that is.”
“Stefania, would you please just let me finish?” His patience was clearly wearing thin.
“Sorry. Go on.”
“Since you aren’t well enough to do any proper activity, I figured you could do with something to entertain you.” He looked like he was addressing a board meeting, which was pretty adorable.
“Now I’m very intrigued.”
“Right, so, I, uh, got you this.” He placed his hand on top of the contraption.
I frowned. “What is it?”
“You need to come closer.”
I stepped a little closer, hesitating because of how odd Grayson was being. A strange sound came from the contraption, making me freeze on the spot. “What the fuck?”
Grayson reached over and unlocked the door.
I stared at what was inside for the longest time, because I just couldnotbelieve what I was seeing. “You...you got me a kitten?”
“Yeah, I just thought it would be something that would help you, something to focus on. I mean, I don’t know if you’re allergic or if you even like cats. You might be a dog person, I don’t know. ButI figured a puppy might require a bit more energy, so that idea was out. And you know, a goldfish is not much fun. So yeah, a kitten was the best I could do.”
My eyes were round with wonder as I looked from the box to Grayson and back again. “I’ve always wanted a cat. Always. But my mom never let me. Oh my fucking god, I think I’m gonna cry.”
Grayson’s shoulders slumped with relief. “Please don’t.”
I was still standing there frozen on the spot, too overwhelmed to move.
“Why don’t you come and meet her?” he suggested gently.