Before We Kiss (Fool's Gold #14)

Taryn looked doubtful. “Maybe. If it was really hairless.”


Dellina left them discussing the issue. She checked in more volunteers, and took temporary possession of additional carriers. By eleven, they had everything they needed.

There were fifteen vehicles in the caravan. Larissa had printed instructions on where they were going, along with various phone numbers. Everyone agreed to stop for lunch on the outskirts of Sacramento so, once they got the cats, they could drive straight back. Several people agreed to meet them back at the convention center parking lot for feline assessments and distribution.

* * *

DRIVING FOR NEARLY two hours with four cats meowing was not the most restful experience, Dellina thought as she pulled back into the convention center parking lot. While she understood the cats were scared, couldn’t they express that a bit more quietly?

Larissa had phoned ahead to let people know they were on their way back. As Dellina parked, she saw several dozen people waiting to help with the cats, including Cameron and his nursing staff. She turned off the engine and unlocked her door, only to have it opened from the outside.

“You’re a hard lady to track down.”

Dellina stared up into Sam’s dark eyes and braced herself for the inevitable thumpty-thump of her heart. Sure enough, the organ sighed while the rest of her body went on sexy-man alert.

He held out his hand. She put hers in his and let him draw her out of the car.

“I was helping Larissa,” she told him. “With a cat rescue.”

“That’s Jack’s job.”

“This was bigger than Jack.” She motioned to the cars pulling in beside hers. “There were fifty-seven cats in total. Some of them are okay, but several are obviously sick and a few act like they’ve never seen a human before.”

She had more, but Sam didn’t seem all that interested in the story. Instead he was drawing her away from the growing crowd. When they were by the front door of the convention center, he lightly kissed her.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “About assuming the worst when it came to Simone. That was more about her powers of persuasion than you, but I was wrong to doubt you.”

A weight she hadn’t been aware of lifted. “I’m glad,” she told him. “I would never have told her anything.”

“I know that now and I promise to never doubt you again.”

She smiled. “While I like the sound of that, don’t get too cocky with your promises.”

“Are you going to let me down?”

“No.”

“Then I don’t see a problem.”

He kissed her again, lingering this time. She kissed him back and wished they could be transported to her place or his place and practice whatever new technique his mother had emailed him.

He drew back. “You have cats,” he said. “How can I help?”

“Foster a couple of them.”

She expected him to recoil or explain why that wasn’t possible. Instead he shrugged. “Sure. I don’t know much about cats, so I’m going to need some instructions.”

“Seriously? You’ll take in cats?”

“Yes. Like I said, Larissa’s causes are usually Jack’s problem, but I don’t mind being sucked in now and then.”

“They shed,” she told him.

“They have fur. I expect shedding.”

She was still having trouble taking it all in. “Just like that?”

“I’m fostering them. This isn’t a lifetime commitment. Yes, I’ll take two cats.”

First he’d apologized and now this. She’d loved Sam for a while now, but she hadn’t expected him to be one of the good guys.

Emotion blossomed inside of her until speaking the words was inevitable. “I love you.”

He froze. “What?”

She sighed happily. “I love you. You’re a great guy and now you want to foster cats. How could I not?” She touched his hand. “I remember everything you told Fayrene, about being honest with Ryan. So I want to be honest with you. I love you.”

Sam took a step back, then another. Before she could figure out what was happening, he’d turned his back on her and walked away.

CHAPTER TWENTY

OVER THE NEXT couple of days Dellina learned that cats made pretty good roommates. The two she’d taken in to foster were quiet and clean. Best of all, they didn’t seem to mind when she cried herself to sleep. The smaller of the two, a little short-haired marmalade, had even jumped onto the bed when her tears had turned into sobs. He’d cuddled close and tried to soothe her with his purr. Unfortunately cat support wasn’t the same as being with the man she loved, but she was going to have to learn to make do.

After fixing her morning coffee, she carried a mug into her office. The cats were already fed and were now sitting in her east-facing kitchen window. Apparently daily grooming was best accomplished in sunlight.