Page 79 of Swept Away

18

GEMMA

Saturday

I slingmy backpack over my shoulder and walk up the street.

I’ve bought food for my cat––yes, he’s officially my cat––and some groceries to cook dinner.

The late afternoon light slides at an angle, glowing over the concrete while distant buildings peek through the trees.

A soft breeze moves around my ankles, blowing my skirt up.

I push it down as I inch closer to my home and get ready to enter the building when a voice drifts through the air.

“Miss… Miss?”

I turn around. One of the women I noticed yesterday in front of my building now waves at me from a window across the street.

I glance at her twice as a small orange fur ball is curled up against her chest.

“Your cat,” the woman says. “I think he got lost. I’ll bring him to you.”

I give her a wry smile while waiting on the sidewalk.

“This cat…” I murmur under my breath.

Cross my heart, this cat introduced me to more people this past week than I’ve met the entire year.

The door opens, and the younger woman wearing blue leggings and a white tank top rushes down the stairs.

She might be about my mother’s age, but she’s way more sporty than my mother.

You wouldn’t catch Mom in leggings and a spaghetti straps top on the street under any circumstances.

She’s always going for flowing skirts and dresses. Long shirts that fit loosely and are comfortable to wear.

She loves to be comfortable as much as she likes new men in her life, and it shows.

“Where did you find him?” I ask, glancing at my window and then at her.

“He jumped off the windowsill and crossed the street.

Panic swooshes through me.

“I can’t believe him,” I say, taking him from her. “I thought I’d left the window closed. He almost never does that. Even if he walks out of my apartment, he usually settles for a branch.”

I point to the tree.

“Don’t worry about it. I’m glad I got him. We had a cat like that. He’d be anywhere except where he was supposed to be.”

“Please don’t tell me something bad happened to him.”

She flashes a smile.

“Nothing bad happened to him.”

“You’re not saying that just to say it.”