Page 60 of Breakaway

“Is that what you want?”

Chapter 33

Penny

I stare at him for a long, frozen moment.

Yes.

No.

No, it’s not what I want, but I can’t fall for him, and he can’t fall for me, and somewhere in between banter about books and stupid texting conversations and gummy bears and sex so good I cry, I think that’s what might be happening, and if I give in and the whole thing shatters, if my life shatters for a third fucking time—

“Yes,” I manage to say, even though my chest is aching like someone just struck it with an anvil. “It’s what I want.”

“But we didn’t finish your list.”

“It’s . . . it’s fine. It’s whatever.”

“Bullshit,” he says, his gaze searching mine. He swipes his hand through his damp hair. “Penny, why are you lying? What happened?”

I open my mouth—to say what, I don’t know—but before I can muddle through my thoughts, a plaintive little meow breaks the silence.

“Was that a cat?” he says, looking around.

I drop to my knees, wiping furtively at my cheeks to get rid of the stubborn tears, and peer underneath the bush. “Oh my God, there’s a kitten.”

Cooper gets to his knees too, putting his hand on my arm to stop me from reaching into the bush. “Wait, it might bite. Let me do it.”

He carefully pokes around the underside of the bush. There’s another meow, louder this time, and then he pulls out a skinny orange cat with big, amber-colored eyes. I’m not sure how old it is, but if I had to guess, only a couple of months. It hisses, showing Cooper its teeth. I reach out for it, and Cooper gingerly deposits it in my arms. It curls up in the crook of my elbow, giving him a look that clearly says it thinks I’m the superior option here.

“Does it know I’ve never interacted with a cat before?” Cooper says.

“Never?”

“Never. Be careful, it could have rabies.”

“I doubt it.” I stroke my finger between its ears, and it meows again, sounding a lot less annoyed. It must have been freezing underneath that bush. “I wonder what it’s doing here, it’s cold.”

“There’s no tag?”

“Nothing.”

“Weird,” he says, brushing his hands on his knees before straightening up. “Should we like... bring it to the firehouse or something?”

I raise an eyebrow as I stand. “Isn’t that for babies?”

“Probably.” He eyes the thing like he expects it to start howling like a banshee. “Be careful, Pen. It could hurt you.”

I laugh. “Cooper, it’s a three-pound kitten. Hardly threatening.”

“I don’t trust it.”

“Stop being such a baby. Look, it’s cute.” I hold it up. It meows again, batting at the air with a tiny paw. “I had a cat when I was little, they’re perfectly adorable animals.”

“Dogs are perfectly adorable animals,” he says. “Cats are magical beings with malicious intent.”

I hug the kitten closer to my chest. It needs a bath for sure, and some food. I can’t even keep a cat in my dorm room, but I’m already hoping that when we bring it to a vet, they don’t find a microchip. If anything, I can try to convince my dad to take it in. “Can it stay at your place tonight?”

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