Page 181 of With Us

“Look again.”

Her ecstatic cheer practically echoed through the house. “It’s signed!”

Getting her favorite movie signed by the writers and stars hadn’t cost much, but she looked at me like I’d accomplished some amazing feat. “This is the best present in the whole world. Thank you!” She launched herself across the floor at me, her mouth touching on mine in a series of quick kisses. “I love it. And I love you. And I love that youknowme.”

“That’s not your last present.” I grabbed her hand and stood, pulling her with me. We walked to the movie room, and I covered her eyes when we got there. “Can you see?”

“No.”

Opening the door, I waited a moment before uncovering her eyes.

She gasped, but didn’t move. Topped with a big bow,The Simpsonspinball game was against the wall, along with a few others.

“You make me nervous when you’re so quiet,” I whispered, wrapping my arm around her waist and lowering my head near hers.

“You did it again.”

“What?”

She turned, her cat eyes brimming with tears. “You took my bad memories and made them good ones.” Once again, she threw herself into my arms. Only this time, instead of quick kisses, she took her time. When she pulled away, panting as tears slowly streamed down her cheeks, she buried her face in my neck. “I love you, my Theo.”

“I love you, too, my gattina.” When she pulled away, I stood fully. “Want to play a game?”

“In a minute. I still have a couple gifts for you. I need your help first.” Walking through the living room, she went to the small storage closet. She opened the door to show me a huge cat tower.

“Gattina, he’s a tiny ball of fluff. What’s he going to do with all that space?”

She shrugged. “Have fun? Anyway, he’s going to love it, and it’ll maybe stop him from clawing the couch. You just have to tell me where to put it.”

“We’ll figure it out.”

As if on cue, Gus ran in, his paws sliding out from under him with his speed. He jumped on the tower, climbing to the top before jumping down and going again.

“Told you so,” she muttered. Grabbing my hand, she brought me back out to the living room. She handed me a large gift that was clearly a picture frame. When I opened it, I burst out laughing.

“He’s roaring in fuzzy fury,” she said, pointing to the picture of Gus. “Well, he was yawning. But I still thought it was perfect.”

“It is. I love it.”

“I thought it’d look good in the entryway.”

“You thought right. I’ll hang it tomorrow.”

She grinned. “Ready to have some breakfast?”

“What’s behind your back?” I asked, her eyes going wide.

“Nothing. They’re for the family.”

“I’ll go load them into the car.”

She looked horrified, her face going pale as she grimaced. “No! Nope, that’s okay.”

“What is it?”

“I thought I had a good idea, but now I think it’s stupid.”

I moved so I was sitting right across from her, our knees touching. “Let me see.”

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