Number Neighbors

by Hart, Emma

  She hesitated for a moment. “I don’t know if I can.”

  “Put her down as a foster with a hold on adoption until her issues are sorted out. But I’m telling you now—she’s mine.”

  Spring looked up at me with her big blue eyes, and I knew I was right.

  She was mine.

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN – HANNAH

  Furrever Home

  “There is no tuna,” I said to the little black ball of fluff who was staring at me with big, wide eyes.

  “You should give him tuna,” Grandma said, shuffling out to the kitchen.

  “I don’t have any.” I rolled my eyes at her. “I just said that.”

  “Well, why not? He’s a cat. He needs tuna.”

  “Because I’m not a bloody fish market.”

  “A bloody fish market? You’ve spent too much with that English guy, my girl.”

  I sighed. I wasn’t going to get into this again. Isaac was bringing Spring home today, and the last thing I needed was for Grandma Jen to be all up in my business about my relationship.

  We hadn’t discussed the whole ‘she’s my girlfriend’ thing that had happened at the shelter. We’d gone from shady to one hundred in a matter of hours, and it’s not that I was against being his girlfriend because I wasn’t, but I also didn’t want him to think I was just taking it for granted that I was.

  This was why I’d been single for a long time, kids.

  Too many blurry lines.

  “I like him,” Grandma said after a moment. “He builds my shelves and compliments my baking. You could have worse traits in a man.”

  “I guess,” I said hesitantly. “Is this going anywhere? Or is it another episode of the Grandma Jen show?”

  “I wish, dear. That would be a terribly entertaining show. Could you imagine the book club on national TV?” She cackled and reached for her cup of tea. “I think you should ask him to be your boyfriend.”

  “We’re not in middle school,” I replied. “Besides, he’s not American. I don’t know his status. I don’t want to get myself into a relationship with someone who could be shipped back to the motherland at any point.”

  Her laughter turned dark. “He’s got a green card.”

  “How the hell do you know that?”

  “I asked him, child. A darn sight more than you did!” She slapped her hand against the counter. “Why didn’t you ask him? You’re the one sucking face with him in public!”

  “I am not!” I gasped.

  She snorted. “I know. I just like fucking with you.” She shrugged and finished her tea. “Is that Mason outside? It’s time for him to take me home.”

  I walked to the living room and looked out of the window. “No. It’s Isaac bringing Spring home.”

  “Spring? What kind of name is that?”

  “Oh, my God. Put your asshole away, Grandma.” I stalked past her and out to the front porch.

  Isaac grinned the moment he saw me. “Hey! Wanna come say hi?”

  “Grandma is here,” I called back. “Wanna bring her here?”

  He hesitated for a second. “Where’s Lucifer?”

  “Probably sleeping my sock drawer.”

  “All right. I’ll bring her over.” He pulled her carrier out from the back seat. “I did actually want to try something with Lucifer.”

  I was so excited to see her. She was the most beautiful cat I’d ever seen, and I was so glad Isaac had been able to talk the shelter into letting him adopt her.

  Audrey knew he was adopting her, but I loved that she’d fudged the paperwork. It wasn’t like they didn’t know him after all. He was probably more qualified to look after him than they were.

  Actually, there was no probably about it.

  He was.

  He carried her up to me and lifted the cat box so I could look inside. Spring was sitting at the very back, curled up in a little ball. She was so freaking pretty, and I smiled and motioned for him to bring her inside.

  “Is that the cat?” Grandma asked. Even her voice was softer than usual.

  “Yep,” Isaac answered, resting it on the island so she could see.

  Grandma peered inside. “Well, isn’t she a pretty little thing. Between her and Hannah, you’re gonna have to fight the men off.”

  Isaac pressed his lips together. “We’ll be fine.”

  “Ooookay.” She held up her hands. “I believe that’s my ride outside. I’ll catch you kids in the hood.”

  What the—

  I wasn’t even going to ask, to be honest.

  “Put her down,” I said to Isaac. “You can let her out if you want. Lucifer is actually asleep on the sofa.”

  “I don’t know if introducing her to another cat is the right choice,” he said slowly.

  “But you can introduce me as your girlfriend to strangers?” I clapped my hand over my mouth the moment I said it. “Ignore that.”

  He put Spring on the floor and looked at me. “You’ve been holding that one inside, haven’t you?”

  I shrugged one shoulder. “Let the poor baby out.”

  He undid the door to the carrier and faced it toward the living room, then walked over to me. “Hannah, you know why I did that, didn’t you?”

  “Of course I do. I’m a woman, Isaac. Alesha clearly had a crush on you, and you used me to shut her down, then you had to keep the ruse up for Audrey.”

  “I wish you were wrong.” He pulled me against him, wrapping one arm around my waist. “I did. I turned her down several weeks ago, and I didn’t know how to introduce you, so I said the first thing that came to mind. Is that so bad?”

  “No, but I reserve the right to be petty.”

  “You absolutely do.” He grinned, and I knew he was so fucking amused by me right now. “I encourage the petty. Let’s face it, you’re only being petty because I said you were my girlfriend before I asked you to be.”

  “I… Shut up, Isaac.”

  He grinned, pulling my face toward his. His lips brushed across mine in the barest of touches. “Hannah, will you be my girlfriend?”

  “You’re a dork.” I pushed at his chest, but it was futile. He was so much stronger than I was. “I think we know I already am.”

  “Thank God. I was thirty seconds away from needing to go wank in the shower.”

  “Have you done that?”

  “Oh, sure. All the British words, and ‘wank’ is the one you know.”

  I grinned. “I know the important ones.”

  He laughed against my mouth. “I’ll let you think that one through. I need to check on my pussy.”

  Groaning, I pulled away from him. “Oh, God. That’s going to be a running joke isn’t it?”

  “Depends. Do you touch your pussy?”

  “Isaac.”

  “Hannah.”

  I shivered and looked at the empty cage. “Your pussy escaped its cage.”

  He stared at me for a second because his eyes widened. “Shit!” He pushed off the kitchen island and froze when he reached the living room door.

  It wasn’t far. Like six steps. He was so dramatic.

  I stepped up next to him. Spring was on the sofa already, right where Lucifer was sleeping. My breath caught; I didn’t want them to hate each other, and Lucifer was so tiny compared to her.

  I stepped forward, but Isaac stretched out his arm.

  “Wait,” he whispered. “I wonder…”

  “Wonder what?” I hissed. “If she kills my cat, I’m gonna kill you.”

  “Fair trade,” he whispered again. “Just, a second, okay?”

  I blew out a long breath and waited. Spring gently reached out with her front paw. She patted Lucifer several times, and Lucifer rolled onto his side. His eyes were fixated on her, but his were pinned to his head, too.

  “Isaac,” I breathed.

  “He can’t hurt her.” He wrapped one arm around me from the front, pulling me into his body. “Hold on, okay?”

  I fisted his shirt in my hands and watched.

  Lucifer
stretched out his paws and batted at her several times. Spring responded with a swipe of her own larger paw, and my throat swelled with apprehension.

  Lucifer hit her one last time, and Spring swatted him in the face.

  I took a step forward.

  And she licked his head.

  Isaac tightened his hold on me. “This is what I wanted to try,” he whispered. “She lost her babies. I have a feeling she may adopt him as her own.”

  “I’m not looking after two cats,” I warned him.

  “We’ll co-parent,” he replied without blinking. “It’s fine.”

  “Hey, buddy. I didn’t want one cat, let alone two.”

  “Well, that sucks.” He grinned down at me. “I think this is the root of her behavior, Han. I think it’s because she misses her babies and she thinks the humans took them from her.”

  I softened. “That’s so sad.”

  He nodded. “I know. But look at her. She’s taken to him right away. She’s a mum, for sure.”

  He was right. Spring was sitting over him, her bright white fur a stark contrast against Lucifer’s pitch-black coat. She was licking his fur like her life depended on it, and for his part, he looked like he was enjoying it.

  Isaac lifted his arm and wrapped it around me fully, pulling me properly into his side. “Look at that. Two weeks ago, we were sexting, now we’re cat parents.”

  “Don’t push it, buddy,” I replied, watching the cats. “It’s not that easy.”

  He snorted. “I know. Shall we take a vacation together? How about Florida?”

  “Easy. We’ve been a couple for ten minutes.”

  “All the better for it. Shall we?”

  I could go for a vacation. “We’re leaving the book club at home,” I said, watching as Spring used her paw to clean Lucifer. “And we’re taking the cats.”

  “Look at you, you little cat lady. I agree. Where shall we go?”

  “I don’t know. Why don’t you do your thing with a map and pick a random place?”

  Isaac looked down at me and grinned. “Done.”

  I grinned back, butterflies going nuts in my stomach. It was a little surreal, this situation, but I loved it. I didn’t need to date the guy for six months to know I was going to fall in love with him.

  It was inevitable.

  Spring was curled around Lucifer, and my heart skipped a beat.

  It was instant, their connection.

  The opposite of mine and Isaac’s. And you know what? That was fine. Totally fine. I knew we were falling in love, no matter how early it was. I knew we’d say it. I knew he was my end game, no matter the weird way we’d come together.

  Something—something deep down inside said he was my forever.

  Happily ever after wasn’t always right now.

  Happily ever after was a work in progress.

  And I was willing to work on mine.

  Forever.

  EPILOGUE – HANNAH

  Happily Ever After

  THREE MONTHS LATER

  “How do you mess up the GPS?” I demanded, loading up Google Maps on my phone. “Isaac!”

  “I fixed it!” he said, tapping the screen. “Look. Two minutes to Creek Keys. I told you.”

  “Mmph.” I put my phone on my lap, screen down, and looked out of the window. I wasn’t sure I believed his GPS system, but whatever.

  We pulled onto another road and drove down it. A few minutes later we did indeed read a sign that read ‘CREEK KEYS, FLORIDA. Population 990.’

  “Told you,” he said smugly. “We made it.”

  “To what I think is the smallest Keys island ever,” I replied. “Is this really where your finger landed on the map?”

  “Yep. That’s the last time you have me decide, huh?”

  “No kidding.” I sighed as we drove through the quaint beachside island. It was cute. There were beachy looking buildings and it was the perfect little vacation spot.

  Lucifer meowed from the backseat.

  “We’re not taking him again,” Isaac said. “That kitten is so noisy.”

  “He ran out of treats,” I replied. “He’s hungry.”

  “As usual.” He snorted and pulled into the parking lot of the vacation complex we’d booked. “Shall we get out? When are Mason and Immy getting here?”

  “They’re getting Maya in the morning, so sometime tomorrow.” I got out of the car and went straight to the backseat to get the cats.

  Isaac got out of the car and nodded. “So we have some time to explore?”

  “That doesn’t mean explore the bedroom, Isaac.”

  “I know, I know.” He grinned, his eyes flashing with heat. “Maybe once?”

  I fought a smirk. “Let’s check in, for God’s sake.”

  He listened. We went together inside, carrying the kittens in their box, and hit the reception desk. Isaac checked us in and got the key. We were shown to our littlebeachside house right after and I was thrilled to see there were provisions for the cats, too.

  “Let me know if you need anything,” the guy said.

  “We will. Thank you.” Isaac slipped him a tip in his handshake and shut the door behind him.

  I collapsed on the huge bed that overlooked the beach. My God, I was tired. Isaac stopped to let the cats out then threw himself down next to me.

  The whole bed bounced with the weight of his body, and I grunted when I bounced up and landed right next to him. He swept me straight into his arm and pulled me on top of him, humming when he kissed me.

  I just about resisted the urge to moan into his mouth. He slid his hands over my body and flipped me over onto my back, pinning me in place. I laughed into his mouth and gripped his shoulders. I was so ready for this vacation with him and my cousin and the animals and everyone else.

  “Agh!” Isaac cried, arching his back. “That’s it! Lucifer stays in the fucking box when I want to fuck you!”

  Laughter burst out of me, and I covered my face with my hands. Of course it was Lucifer.

  I’d picked that name for the little devil.

  “Don’t fucking laugh at me, Hannah. Get the little sod’s claws out of my shoulders.”

  Still giggling, I crept out from under him and extracted the Lord of Darkness from his shoulders as carefully as I could. “Better?” I said, putting Lucifer in my lap.

  Isaac sat up straight and eyed me carefully. “Mm. He and I need a little word.”

  Grinning, I wrapped my hand around his neck and pulled him down to kiss me. “He loves you.”

  “I love you,” he said, kissing me. “The kitten… Not so much.”

  “Don’t tell Spring, whatever you do.”

  “I love you, too, Isaac,” he muttered. “Thanks for driving eight hours down here, Isaac.”

  I shoved him. “Love you, dork. Now go take a shower. You smell.”

  He stared at me with those green eyes I loved so much. “Thanks. Love might be blind, but it can smell exceptionally well, I guess.”

  I grinned. “Damn right it can.” I stood. “And I’m coming with you, so make sure you lock the door.”

  He pursed his lips and breathed out an, “Ooh.”

  And that was that.

  No. Cats. Allowed.

  THE END

  Thank you for reading NUMBER NEIGHBORS! If you liked this, be sure to sign up to my newsletter to get a free book and exclusive looks into my upcoming books.

  You can do that at www.emmahart.net/newsletter

  Read on for more information on my upcoming release, HOT MESS, set in the now familiar Creek Keys…

  COMING SOON: HOT MESS

  What do you do when the whole world has seen you getting down and dirty in a broom closet?

  I, Elle Evans, am on the run.

  Not from the fuzz—although that would be more exciting.

  No, I’m on the run from the four-year-old private tape that, thanks to my vengeful ex, has probably already ruined my vlogging career.

  There’s nothing like the entire world kn
owing what you look like mid-O.

  Creek Keys, Florida, is a million miles away from NYC and the perfect place for me to hide for the rest of summer until I can figure out what I’m going to do.

  Something that’s easier said than done since my new landlord’s daughter thinks you’re God’s greatest gift. Even better? Their beach house is right next to the one I’m renting, so there’s no getting away from her—or her hot, British dad.

  Who most definitely does not think I’m role model material.

  He might be right.

  The problem is that neither of us can say no to her.

  Or each other.

  COMING MAY 19TH! AVAILABLE NOW FOR PRE-ORDER EVERYWHERE!

  www.emmahart.net/hot-mess

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Emma Hart is the New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of over thirty novels and has been translated into several different languages.

  She is a mother, wife, lover of wine, Pink Goddess, and valiant rescuer of wild baby hedgehogs.

  Emma prides herself on her realistic, snarky smut, with comebacks that would make a PMS-ing teenage girl proud.

  Yes, really. She’s that sarcastic.

  You can find her online at:

  www.emmahart.org

  www.facebook.com/emmahartbooks

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  Alternatively, you can join her reader group at http://bit.ly/EmmaHartsHartbreakers.

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  BOOKS BY EMMA HART

  Standalones:

  Being Brooke

  Catching Carly

  Casanova

  Mixed Up

  Miss Fix-It