“I want to ride on this too!”
“Oh, I’ll let you ride it as long as you like, baby,” he said winking insinuatingly, then started the engine and drove away, stirring a trail of dust.
With a long breath, I got into my uninteresting and unexciting car, and started my engine. When the car got into motion, Rat’s eyes bulged. He darted frantic gazes right and left, trying to figure out what was going on. I talked to him soothingly, and after a few minutes he began to calm down. By the time we exited the city, he was curled up on the seat. Only the tip of his twitching tail gave away a hint of nervousness.
I stopped briefly on the side of the road to get my phone and head set out of my bag. I put on my ear phones, dialed Mom’s number, then resumed my driving.
After a few moments, she answered. “Angie, sweetie, I thought you didn’t have service. I tried to call you last night. Did the storm reach you?”
“Yes, it did. It was awesome! You know how I love a good storm. Are you at work?”
“Yes, just got in. How are you girls doing?”
I grimaced, pushing up my sunglasses on the bridge of my nose.
“Um, Mom, I have something to tell you. I... lied to you.”
I proceeded to tell her everything that had happened yesterday, omitting only the grittier details of my reunion with Blade. I expected her to be angry and disappointed with me for lying to her, but she was so happy for me and Blade getting back together that she forgot to get mad.
“I have one more surprise before I hang up,” I told her, biting my lower lip.
“Another one? Lord, help us. What is it?” she asked, sounding amused.
“I’m bringing home a kitten named Rat.”
“What?”
“Well, I found him during the storm. He showed up at the cottage and I think he has no masters. You will love him, Mummy, really you will!” I said in the cooing tone I used whenever I wanted to suck up to her and manipulate her to get my way.
She laughed, reading me like an open book.
“Let’s see if you think he’s so wonderful after you have to clean up cat shit and empty the litter box for the first time.”
“Oh, that’s insignificant stuff compared to the joy a pet brings in a home. We’ll be fine, you’ll see. I’ll stop home to drop him and change, then I have to get to the office.”
“Okay. I’ll try to leave early. I hope he hasn’t got fleas,” she added sternly.
“No, he’s very clean and well-mannered. Thanks, Mom! See you later.”
By the time I hung up, I was entering Seattle. I drove on the crowded streets shadowed by skyscrapers with mirror windows reflecting the heavy traffic and diaphanous clouds. When I reached my building, I pulled the car in my usual spot and turned toward Rat.
“We’re here, buddy,” I told him, scratching his ears. He yawned and stretched, then started to sharpen his claws on the leather of my seat. When I smacked his paws lightly, he looked up at me affronted, his large green eyes dismayed.
“This is called discipline, mate. No sharpening your claws wherever you feel like it. Come on.”
Holding him under one arm, I took my bag from the trunk, then locked my car. In the elevator I met a neighbor who oohed and aahed over the kitten, as she told me she had three cats, two males and a female. I smiled noncommittally at this, imagining the feline fornicating that went on under the old bat’s roof. At long last I reached my floor and unlocked the door, then dropped both cat and bag in the hallway. I worked my feet out of my shoes, watching with maternal indulgence as Rat sniffed at everything, inspecting his new surroundings. His attention stopped suspiciously too often on the large potted plants me and Mom had spread all over the condo, to give it the aspect of a small corner of nature.
“Don’t even think about peeing on those,” I warned the cat. But that gave me the brilliant idea on how to solve the cat toilet problem until Mom and I could get to a pet shop and buy all the necessary stuff. I went outside on our large balcony, spread some old papers on the tiles, then filled a pizza box with some flower dirt we had left from the last time we’d moved the plants into bigger pots.
I dusted off my hands and went to find Rat on the windowsill, looking curiously seventeen floors down. Since the window was open, my heart lurched and I barely stifled a scream.
“Oh, God. Come here, kitty,” I whispered, frozen in the doorway. Rat looked back at me innocently, then jumped down majestically and came toward me, tail raised high in the air. I snatched him to my chest and held him tightly, burying my face in his gray fur.
“Don’t ever scare me like that, you idiot,” I told him shakily.
I moved from room to room and latched the mosquito nettings, so he wouldn’t be able to fall if he was in the mood for window staring. I looked at my watch and noted it was 10:30. Uttering a loud curse, I rushed to my bedroom and changed my rumpled red dress with a white summer suit. I swiped on some eyeliner, mascara and lip gloss, thus making myself presentable.
Just as I exited the bedroom, I heard Mom unlocking the front door. I stood in the hallway to greet her with a toothy smile. She came in carrying two grocery bags. She wore her favorite pale blue sleeveless blouse and a pair of matching thin pants. She looked great, with her hair neatly tucked behind pearl-adorned ears.
Her face lighted up when she saw me.
“Angie, baby, come here!” She put the bags down and hugged me lovingly, rocking me gently. “I’m so pleased to see you happy, my darling,” she said, watching me closely, no doubt for signs of a night of debauchery. A knowing grin tickled her lips.
“I know, Mommy, thank you. I am happy, more than you can imagine.”
I hugged her in turn, and let her stroke my hair and cuddle me like I was five again, instead of twenty-five. When we drew apart, I saw her glance down. Rat had just appeared from the living room, moving with tiny, hesitant steps toward the newcomer.
Mom divided a not-so-convincing stern look between us, but then she relented. She knelt down and called to the kitten. He came immediately to her and bumped his head against her open palm. Her heart melted instantly, as I knew it would. She lifted him up and gathered him to her chest, murmuring silly things to him, as she did to me when I was a kid.
“Um, I improvised a toilet for him on the balcony,” I said, grabbing my handbag and keys. “I have to go now. I’m late for work.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll take care of... Do you really want to call the poor cat Rat?”
“Yep. It’s a cute name and he does look like a rat. Even Blade thinks so.”
We smiled at each other before I walked out again, leaving Mom to get acquainted with her new son—or grandson, whichever she preferred.
Thirteen
It was past eleven o’clock when I reached my office. As I passed by coworkers, a few curious looks darted toward me. I hoped nobody was going to grumble about my arriving late. After all, when Howie was in charge I came by once a week. But now things had changed. I wondered how my relationship with Blade would evolve in the office environment. I didn’t want to diminish his authority in any way, but I knew it would be impossible to hide our relationship. And I knew he wouldn’t accept hiding it, in any case. Neither would I, for that matter. If anyone had a problem with us being together, they would just have to suck it up.
With that comforting thought and a firm nod of my chin, I headed toward my office. I glanced longingly at Blade’s closed office door, but kept on walking. No mixing business with pleasure.
In my office, I turned on the air conditioning and was just aligning my papers when the door opened quietly and a contrite Belle stuck her head in.
“Can I come in?” she asked tentatively, her lower lip caught between her small, white teeth.
I smiled at her and crooked my finger in a come on gesture. She grinned and rushed into my office, pushing the door closed.
“Tell me I didn’t blow it, Angie! I didn’t want to tell him where you were, really I didn’t, but when he looked down at me with that serious
, frowning face of his and that dominant attitude, I nearly squirmed. And when he threatened to fire me, he truly got me scared. I had to tell him where you were, and what happened. I had no choice!”
She talked fast and breathless, her big, blue eyes watching me earnestly. She looked hilarious, but so worried I rushed to reassure her.
“Don’t worry, Belle. I’m glad you told Blade where to find me. You’ve no idea how grateful I am for that. We... got back together.”
She stared at me, dumbfounded.
“But... but what about his wife?” she stammered.
“She is his ex-wife. It was all a misunderstanding. Sit down,” I said and proceeded to tell her everything, including the hottest details—she was my best friend after all. She listened wide-eyed, exclaiming now and again in disbelieve or pure excitement, especially when I got to the nitty gritty.
“So, that’s about it,” I concluded several minutes later, uncapping my water bottle to irrigate my dry throat.
“Oh, my God!” She sighed and melted into the chair facing my desk, with a hand on her heart. “This is so romantic! I would give anything to have a man like that.”
“What about Henri?”
She scoffed.
“Henri doesn’t look half as good as your Blade, and he never gave me more than one orgasm at a time.”
I laughed.
“Maybe you’re not doing it right.”
“Maybe Blade should give me a demonstration,” she joked, giggling. “Is he really that good?”
“Oh, yesss...” I let out a long breath and reclined in my chair, with a silly look on my smiling face. “I fib you not, my friend. Blade Spencer is the real deal, the one-in-a-million lover.”
In the middle of another longing sigh on her part, the door opened and the legend himself appeared, freshly shaven, wearing a dark blue shirt and black suit pants.
Belle spun around and nearly scrambled out of the chair in her haste to leave us alone. I hid a smile behind my hand, but let it bloom over my lips after she left murmuring something about having to write an editorial. Blade smiled back at me, gazing deeply into my eyes, with such smoldering desire I felt I would go up in smoke under his stare.
I pushed Gym back and got to my feet, then moved toward him. He wrapped his hands around my middle and drew me to him, skimming my lips with his.
“You’re late,” he said in a low, stirring voice.
“So are you.”
“But I’m the boss. You, on the other hand, must be reprimanded.”
“Oh? And what’s the penalty?” I asked in a whisper, watching him from under heavy eyelids, scraping my teeth over his lower lip.
He kissed me then, thoroughly and with no restraint, leaving me to wonder how a joining of mouths could make my ears ring and my bones feel weightless. I took several deep breaths and gently detached myself from his arms.
“We can’t go on like this, Blade,” I said breathlessly, going to the window to put some distance between us. “The others will notice.”
“Then we’ll have to do something about it,” he replied undeterred, moving closer to my desk. “What’s this?” he asked, picking up the copy of Johnny DiLucca’s book, from the corner of infamy.
I blinked, finding it hard to focus on more than one thing at a time.
“Oh, it’s Johnny DiLucca’s latest book. What do you mean we have to do something about it?”
He lifted the cover and read the dedication out loud, “To Angelina, a very special lady. Hmm, this form of addressing seems overly familiar. How well do you know this DiLucca fellow?”
“Not as well as he’d like,” I replied caustically. “Now, what did you mean by saying that we would have to do something about our relationship? Do what?”
“Well, for starters I thought that you might spend tonight at my place. What do you say?”
My lips parted, but I made no sound. After several moments I said, “I... would love that. But I need to go home first after work, to talk to Mom and see how Rat is doing.”
“Okay. I’ll come and pick you up when you’re ready. I have the address from your employee file.”
He turned to go, then said over his shoulder, “I’ll keep this for a while. I want to take a look at what this guy writes. You know, study my competitor,” he added with DiLucca’s book in his hand, and winked before closing the door behind him.
I stared after him. My mouth was still agape as I lowered myself in my chair and tried to concentrate on my business.
I was working on finishing my review of Chriss D. Ross’s book, The Road Of Moebius, when someone knocked softly at my door. It was Jim. His cheeks were flushed with excitement as he handed me the mockup of tomorrow’s number. Unabridged had never looked better. I couldn’t help smiling broadly when I saw that my illustration with the cavewoman and modern woman was on the cover, under the subtitle Women Versus Females.
“This is awesome, Angie!” exclaimed Jim, animated.
“It is, isn’t it?” I said, thumbing the pages to see what the others had contributed.
“You’re very good at this. I can’t wait to see more art work made by you.”
He blushed to the roots of his light blond hair when I wrapped a friendly arm around his thin shoulders and thanked him, delighted. After he left, I returned to my desk and focused on my work. I finished the review, then sketched an illustration that would fit it.
Lost in work, I realized it was past four only when Belle stuck her head into my office to ask if we could get a drink together. I explained about the plans I had, receiving numerous eyebrow wiggles and insinuating giggles.
“Things are moving awfully fast between you two, aren’t they?” she remarked, as she sat in the chair facing my desk and dug into my bag for a lipstick.
“Well, not really. We’re not strangers, Belle. We shared an intimacy that few couples experience. Even though it was three years ago, our feelings for one another are stronger than ever. They never died. To me, it feels like we’ve been together for a lifetime,” I said dreamily, reclining in my chair.
She looked up at me, an earnest expression on her face.
“You know, Angie, I’ve never believed in cheesy stuff like soul mates or such idealistic concepts, but I really think you and Blade are made for each other. I mean, the way your love has lasted all this time... It’s something truly special, out of the ordinary.”
I smiled, warmed by her words, which I knew to be true.
“You’re right. And you have no idea how grateful I am to God for giving us to one another, for granting us this love and a second chance. This time we’ll make it work, Belle,” I told her truthfully, my eyes sparkling with happiness and determination.
I slapped my hands softly against my thighs and stood, then gathered my papers and stuffed them into my handbag.
“You’re leaving?” Belle asked.
“Yep. I have a load of things to do before Blade picks me up. Oh, here are your keys from the cottage. Thanks a lot!”
She rose as well, taking the keys with a knowing smile before we both headed out. Belle went to her office and I stopped by Blade’s office to tell him I was going home.
His office was bigger than my own, and the oversized windows framed a breathtaking view. While Howie was the boss, the walls were decorated with provocative calendars of semi-naked chicks, but I saw that Blade had taken all that dubious art down. The walls were now naked and looked a lot better. Everything was neat and tidy, just like the man himself.
He sat at his office, nose buried in tomorrow’s mockup. When he saw me, he smiled and lifted the magazine.
“Have you seen this?”
I grinned back, nodding.
“Looks really good, but are you sure you want to put my amateurish attempt of an illustration on the cover?” I asked, moving close to his desk.
“If it’s amateurish, I didn’t notice. Unabridged has a completely new face and I love it. We make a great team,” he said as he got to his feet, then came to gi
ve me a kiss. “You’re leaving?”
“Yes. I’ll call you after I finish all of my stuff.”
“I can’t wait to have you in my bed, Angelina,” he whispered close to my ear.
When I got home, I found Mom and Rat sitting on the couch, eating popcorn and watching The Young and the Restless.
“Geez, Mom, haven’t you had enough of this?” I asked, kicking off my shoes and plopping down next to her. “These people don’t know when to give up.” I gestured to the screen. “It’s like Bruce Willis in Die Hard. They made so many follow-ups it makes me scream Just Die Already!”
Mom laughed and handed me the popcorn bowl.
“There’s nothing interesting to watch. How was work?”
I told her about my day, while I was munching popcorn with one hand and stroking Rat’s fluffy belly with the other. The cat purred, playfully scratching me when my caresses tickled him too much.
“So, if you don’t have any business with me, I’ll spend the night at Blade’s,” I concluded.
Mom smiled foxily.
“So you’re not trying to sell me the story about working overtime?”
I nearly choked when I heard her referring to the excuse I used whenever I snuck out to spend time with Blade, at the beginning of our relationship.
“You knew about that?”
She scoffed, taking the remote to change the channel.
“Angie, I may not have invented this game, but I played it long before you.”
I giggled and lay on the sofa, resting my head in her lap. She stroked my hair gently.
“Isn’t this thing between you and Blade going too fast?” she asked in a soft voice, echoing Belle’s question.
For a moment I felt irked and defensive, but I couldn’t say I blamed her. She always wanted what was best for me, and I knew her concern came solely out of maternal love. I recounted the discussion between me and Belle.
When I’d finished, she smiled down at me and said, “I think I’ve always known that. You and Blade really are made for each other. I’m so happy you’ve found one another again. I hope this time is forever.”
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