“She probably hasn’t had any in a long time,” Edie said softly.
He scratched under the cat’s fuzzy chin. “Don’t say things like that. You’ll break my manly heart.”
“It’s just the reality of shelter cats. Some zoom out the door right away and some never find another home. They’re too old, or not cute enough, or they’re unfriendly when someone shows up to adopt a cat, and it’s a death sentence for them.”
“And so you try to rescue them?” he asked.
“Just because they’re flawed doesn’t mean they don’t deserve love.”
“No one ever debated that,” Magnus said. His fingers rubbed one side of the cat’s whiskers and Lady D closed her eyes, clearly in bliss. “I think I’m pretty good at this cat-owner thing.”
“You definitely seem to have the magic touch,” Edie said, and then blushed at how that sounded.
“Just a matter of giving a lady the right kind of attention,” he murmured, his focus on the cat. “It’s all about making her feel comfortable with you. Once she knows what your intentions are, you can touch her however you want, wherever you want.” He ran a finger along one of the cat’s tufted ears.
“I have a feeling we’re no longer talking about cats,” Edie said dryly.
“Cats, ladies, the same rules apply. Everyone wants love and safety . . . and lots of the right stroking.”
She snorted.
“You’re uncomfortable, aren’t you?” he said, glancing up at Edie as he scratched the cat’s head.
“Oh, please.”
“No, you are. Your cheeks are bright red.”
“It’s because you’re making innuendos while petting a cat.”
“She doesn’t mind,” he said, rubbing Lady D’s head. “She knows it’s harmless talk. You, on the other hand . . .”
“Me what?” Her arms crossed over her chest and with horror, she realized she was still wearing his shirt.
“You’re all flustered.”
“I am not!”
“You are,” he said smugly. Then, in a lower voice, he added, “I like making you flustered, you know.”
Her mouth went dry.
The room got quiet between them, the tension thickening in an almost palpable way. Edie’s body tensed, her pulse pounding, and she clutched at the collar of his shirt, feeling strangely vulnerable.
“I’d like to kiss you again,” Magnus said in a soft voice. “Put my mouth on those pretty, plump lips of yours and kiss you until you’re begging for more.”
Heat scorched her cheeks, and she sucked in a breath. She couldn’t look at him, at those brilliant green eyes that seemed to see what she looked like without her clothing on. All she could do was sit and silently picture him leaning over her, kissing her. Soft, and then hard, his lips brushing against her own. Her thighs clamped together tightly.
“I can’t.”
“But you want to,” Magnus continued in that husky, seductive voice. “Don’t you?”
Her nipples pricked in response and she shivered. “I . . . I can’t kiss you yet, Magnus.”
“Why is that?”
Because Bianca knows men, and she says if I have a shot in hell at keeping you interested, I’ll play hard to get. But she couldn’t tell him that, of course. In fact, she could think of nothing to say to that, nothing that sounded clever, composed, or in control. So she mutely glared at the cat, unwilling to look Magnus in the eye. “I should call Bianca.”
Magnus straightened, the seductive look leaving his face, and her heart pounded in brief disappointment. “Don’t call her. She’s fine.”
“How do you know?”
“Because she’s a grown adult?” He gave her a speculative look. “Or is this just an excuse to run away?”
“I’m not running away!”
“You are absolutely running away. Tell me, is it the fearsome cat that scares you, or her soft-hearted owner?”
Even though she was growing more annoyed with Magnus by the minute, she couldn’t help but smile at that assessment. “I’m not running away. I need to get up and stretch my leg anyhow. All this sitting on hard floors isn’t good for it.”
“I’ll join you,” Magnus said. He gave the cat one final scratch behind the ears and then gently set her on the floor. “She should probably get used to her surroundings without us here, huh?”
“Sure,” Edie said, a little distracted by his nearness. Okay, a lot.
“You want to head up to the game room? We could watch TV or kick back and play a few games.”
She considered him for a moment. “We can game,” she said, because she was curious to see him in his “element” a bit more. Every time they had a conversation, it seemed to focus on cats and her. She wanted to learn more about him, for purely platonic reasons, of course.
They exited the bathroom, shutting the door behind them, and as they entered Magnus’s big bedroom, Lady Cujo greeted them with a loud meow from the bed. Both of them stopped to pet the cat, and Edie noticed that she seemed to be flourishing in her new home. She looked healthy and content, and Magnus gave her an affectionate ear rub. “She sleeps with me now,” he commented. “She’s totally a cover hog. I’m even teaching her to play fetch.”
And because that gave her stupid cat-lady heart a little squeeze of delight, she just made a humph ing noise in her throat. “She’s not a dog.”