The smile she gave him was unbelievably sweet and hit him directly in the chest with how good it made him feel.
He carried her into the next room, careful not to hit her head or her booted foot on a door frame. As they entered, Sophie perked up, taking in the decor of the room.
“Ooh, I like this. It’s all cool blues and creams. Really relaxing.” She remained sitting up when he set her on the bed.
Her gaze swept through the room, and he figured she’d wake up too much to get back to a nap. So he lunged.
She squeaked. Forte grinned, holding himself over her and looking down into her dark brown eyes. “You don’t look tired enough for a nap. Maybe I need to work harder?”
Her eyes widened. “Oh. Yes, but Haydn and my cat. I—”
He kissed her very cute nose. “Should nap before I’m tempted to really start something up again. I’ll wrangle the beasts.”
Rising from the bed, he tucked her in to his satisfaction. “Nap. Food should be here by the time you wake up.”
He closed the door behind him as he left the room. This was a good way to start. Once she woke up recharged, he’d take her through his security precautions and give her instructions for worst-case scenarios.
And there were several, all equally serious.
Haydn was right where Forte had left him. The big dog was alert but unconcerned. For now, at least, there was no detectable threat in the area.
Forte left him on guard and set about bringing their two bags into the cabin, then the box containing the various animal supplies. He found a small laundry room and set up the cat’s litter box in there for the time being. He wanted it someplace accessible but out of the way. Hopefully, the cat would agree on his placement.
He’d never been a cat person. But he could see the benefit of having one or two on the Hope’s Crossing Kennels property. Otherwise, mice had to be tracked down in the storage shed they used to store the dog food.
But the idea of an indoor cat hadn’t ever been something he’d considered.
Forte decided to set Sophie’s cat carrier down in the laundry room so the first thing the feline would see was where its litter box was located. The cat came out of its carrier at a leisurely stroll and sniffed the air for a moment. Then it headed directly to the litter box and started to make a deposit, looking straight up at him.
“Sorry,” he muttered, and exited the room to give kitty her privacy.
He strode outside and closed up the SUV, then released Haydn from guard duty and led the big dog inside.
Forte’s phone rang as Haydn made a beeline for the laundry room.
Shit.
“This is Forte.” He might’ve sounded pissed, but he wasn’t going to miss this call. At the same time, he needed to monitor this meeting of furry minds, too, or blood could be drawn.
“Rojas here.”
Haydn stood just in the doorway to the laundry room, staring at what had become a lightning-struck cat puff in the litter box.
“Los.” Forte kept some force in the command. Responsive as Haydn was, he needed to understand this cat was consistently off limits.
“Who, me?” Rojas asked. He sounded like he was amused, though.
“Sorry, man. I’m handling Haydn and Sophie’s new cat.” The cat in question had begun to let its fur smooth down. It stepped off the litter box with a delicate shake of its paws and hopped up onto the laundry machine. It then sat and deliberately started to clean its lady bits right there in front of both him and Haydn, lifting one hind leg in a distinct demonstration of flexibility.
“How’s that going for you?” Rojas seemed mildly curious.
“I’ve just been given the cat finger.”
Rojas barked out a laugh. “What?”
“Never mind. I’ll take a picture for you if it happens again.” Forte would’ve had to fish out an actual digital camera from his bag because he’d left his smartphone behind at the kennels, too. “Trust me, you’ll know it when you see it.”
“Okay, then.” And there was a story for Rojas to pass on to Lyn and Elisa when they badgered him about how Sophie was doing. “All’s well here at the kennels. Sa is really working well with Taz. I think we’ve got a match.”
“Good.” Forte was pleased. The working dogs could usually transition to more than one partner in their lifetimes, but he and his trainers did their best to pair them in a strong bond at the outset. It made a smart dog and handler into a formidable working pair.