Page 6 of Hell's Kitten

He glances to see that the line is actually out the door now, so he looks back at me with a grunt and a nod of his head. I assume he’s asking me what I’d like to order.

“Um, hi!” I say, giving him a little wave and then immediately regretting it. “I, uh, don’t need anything. To buy, I mean. I guess I was wondering if you’re hiring.”

The guy—Nim, his badge reads. Interesting name. Anyway, Nim stares at me for a second. “No?” he says slowly, putting a whole lot of confusion into a one-syllable word.

I try my best not to get flustered. “I know you don’t have any signs up or anything, I was just wondering. You see, I really need a job, and I really love cats. See!” I point to my headphones. “We always had cats at home until…well, we haven’t had one for a couple of years. But I’m great with them! I think I’d be a perfect fit for this place and well, um, is there a manager or someone I could speak to?”

“I’m the manager,” Nim says simply, still looking confused, his thick eyebrows knitted together.

“Oh,” I utter, the first hint of defeat creeping in. “Right. So…are you sure? No vacancies at all? I’ll do anything, really. I…”

I was trailing off anyway, but the words die in my throat as a tiny tabby kitten suddenly appears from nowhere, climbing up Mr. Manager like a tree until they reach his shoulder and perch there like they’re the ruler of this small kingdom. Nim doesn’t react at all, as if being used as a feline jungle gym is just part of his everyday life. It probably is. But his gruff, intimidatingdemeanor doesn’t exactly match up with such a breathtakingly cute sight.

A sort of croaky sound escapes my throat as I try and process what I’m seeing while remembering what I was saying. I’m soon jolted back to reality, though.

“Come on, kid,” the man behind me snaps. “He said no vacancies. Some of us need to get back to work.”

I blink as I look down the line at more than one irritable face, then back at the manager who’s still regarding me like an alien from outer space. All I did was ask if there were any jobs available, for crying out loud.

Of course there aren’t, though. Why I thought the universe would be kind to me, I have no idea. Just because I wouldlovea position here doesn’t mean it’s going to happen. That’s not how life works.

“S-sorry,” I mumble as I back away.

More people are watching me now. I sense it. Tears fill my eyes, and when I accidentally reverse into a table, they spill down my face. I spin around to check I haven’t knocked anything over, the couple seated there looking up at me in alarm.

“Sorry!” I squeak at them before spinning again to face Nim once more. “Sorry to waste your time.” I turn and flee, hating the happy sound of the bell as I practically pull the door off its hinges in my attempt to escape.

I run until I find a bench. It’s covered in graffiti but otherwise looks clean. I slump down onto it, dropping my face into my hands as I cry. I might have worked out that Parker isn’t the man I thought he was and that I don’t actually want to be with him. But that doesn’t stop the sharp pain of multiple rejections slicing through me.

Why would I think I could walk in there and get a dream job? I miss having a fur baby so much, but when our last cat crossedthe rainbow bridge, with Mom’s ongoing treatment, it didn’t seem responsible to adopt anyone new.

I look back at the café and think about all those little kitties waiting for their forever homes.

Just like me, I guess.

That’s stupid. I just need a place to rent for a while. Maybe when I was feeling particularly sad and lonely, I’d daydream that Parker was my forever, but I see now that was all it was—a dream.

I need a job and an apartment before I start classes in a week. But before that, I give myself a little bit of time to sit on this bench and have a good cry.

It’s not like anyone’s going to notice me or care, are they?

CHAPTER 4

Nim

I’m still staringout the door, my heart in my throat, when I hear a dramatic sigh from my left.

I turn to see Leah glaring at me. It’s such an unusual expression for her it makes me blink a couple of times. “What?”

“What do you mean—‘what?’—Benjamin Decker?”

She only ever uses my actual name when I’m in real trouble. She’s worked for me since the day I opened the café. If Donna is like my big sister, then Leah is my younger sibling. I don’t even really think of her as an employee. That’s why I let her get away with telling me off like that.

I’m just not sure exactly what I did wrong. My brain is still too busy short-circuiting.

That babbling young man with the kitten headphones was one of the most beautiful guys I’ve ever seen in my life. He had a tumble of dark curls, warm, sparkling eyes, and lips that looked so soft and kissable that I’d just wanted to brush my thumb over them.

He’d been talking about a job or something. But we weren’t advertising anything.

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