Page 85 of Hate Mail

“You’re Luca’sdad?”

Rather than confirming, Joel shoves the envelope into his back pocket and steps around me on his way back to the security desk.

“So … what? Have you been delivering all of my letters to him?”

He glances up at me for a split second before returning his attention to his desk. He organizes a stack of paper that was already perfectly straight.

“Did you read any of them?” I ask. “Where is he?”

He ignores my questions altogether, not even bothering to look up at me this time. He opens a drawer, shifting the contents around like he’s looking for something. I watch him, waiting for him to answer me, even though it’s clear he doesn’t plan on it. I guess this is why he watches disapprovingly every time he sees me going out with Jake. He’s rooting for his son, and Jake is getting in the way.

“I don’t know what Luca might have told you about me, but it’s none of your business who I date. I’m seeing Jake and it’s pretty serious. You can tell Luca that. I don’t care.”

He stops digging through his drawer and looks up at me. I’ve always thought I was pretty good at reading people, but I can’t decipher the look he gives me now. He mumbles something about making his rounds, then steps away from his desk and disappears into the elevator. I’m still processing this when I get back upstairs.

Caitlin’s nickname for him makes a lot more sense now. I knew there was more to it. I have so many more questions I want to ask. I want to know how Joel figured out that I’m the person his son has been writing to all these years. Did Luca come to visit him here and see me? I still don’t know if Luca lives here or if he’s just visiting. Maybe that’s why he hasn’t given me a return address.

The kittens are inspecting their new home when I hear a tap at the door. I open it and let Jake inside. It’s been a couple of hours since I learned that Joel is Luca’s dad. I feel a little calmer now, but I’m grateful for the distraction of Jake coming over.

As soon as the door closes behind him, he pins me against the wall using only his body, no hands. The sudden movement steals my breath. His closeness sends a rush of warmth over me. His lips hover just above mine, teasing me. I tilt my chin up just a little. My lip grazes his softly, but I don’t go in for the kiss just yet. The soft touch makes his eyes darken, pushing him over the edge. He makes the move, pressing his lips into mine. Somehow he makes it feel like this is our first kiss all over again. It’s been a couple of hours since I’ve seen him, but it feels like days, even weeks.

When he finally pulls away, I notice that the reason he’s not touching me is because he’s holding something behind his back. I angle my head to try to see what it is, but he turns, blocking my view.

“How are the kittens settling in?” he asks.

“They’re already acting like they own the place. Now all I need is a miniature bowling alley to make them feel right at home.”

“I have to tell you something, Naomi.”

“What is it?”

He takes a deep breath like he’s bracing himself for what he’s about to say. He exhales slowly before he speaks. “The kittens don’t know how to bowl.”

“What?” I stomp my foot. “This is a rip-off. I want my money back.”

He smiles, then pulls a small skateboard from behind his back. It’s about half the size of a regular one, like it was made for a child.

“You skate?” I ask.

“No. It belonged to my brother. He outgrew it, and when I started fostering the kittens, he gave it to me. We were teaching them to skate.”

I look back at the skateboard. “The kittens skate?”

“Sort of. They like to sit on the skateboard while I push it across the floor.”

To demonstrate, he sets the skateboard on the floor. Both the kittens come running. He picks up each kitten and places them side by side on the skateboard, then gives it a gentle shove. The kittens stay on the board as it rolls across the floor, their small heads bobbing around as they look at all the things that are interesting and new to them in my apartment.

“Are you serious? So when I asked if you were bowling upstairs, this is what I was hearing? And you didn’t think to tell me that you had two tiny kitten versions of Tony Hawk skating around up there all day?”

“I thought you would think I was crazy. Or making it up. Anyway, I don’t need the skateboard anymore. I thought it should stay with the kittens.”

I look at the kittens, who are taking turns pouncing on each other from the skateboard and sending it rolling around the room as they do so. I look back at him. “I can tell you right now that my downstairs neighbor is going to hate me for this.”

“It’s okay. Maybe they can drown out the noise with some loud music.”

“It’s a pretty effective method,” I agree.

He takes my hand and pulls me toward my bedroom. “Now let’s finish what we started a few minutes ago.”

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