Page 58 of Back to You
He seemed surprised. “You didn’t think about your future? Or finding a partner and settling down one day?”
“Nah. None of my hook-ups were even close to meaningful. To be honest, until you, I’ve never really been in a relationship before,” I told him.
“That’s sad, Hollister.”
“Is it, though? I would’ve really regretted it if I’d had a boyfriend when we reconnected. I guess I never quite got over you. Lame, huh?” I chuckled, but Dane’s expression was so serious.
He swam closer, skimming his hands up to frame my face. His blue eyes seemed even brighter beneath the cloudless summer skies. “No. Not lame at all. If we’re being totally honest, I drove myself crazy thinking of you, happily married to some guy that was better than me in every way.That’slame. I got lucky.”
I flung my arms around his neck. “I’m glad you’re back in my life. Oh, and for the record, I don’t think it’s possible for someone to be better than you. I’m the lucky one.”
“If you say so.” He splashed me in the face, then started swimming towards shore. “Ugh, my hands are all prune-y. Let’s get coffee. My treat.”
We toweled off and got dressed, then took the RV into town. The streets were already packed with cars, thanks to the holiday weekend, so we had to park in the back of a fast-food parking lot and walk to the Starbucks across the street.
As we passed by a cluster of buildings on the right, something caught my eye. “Hey, look!”
There, sitting on the windowsill, was a gray cat with a silky purple ribbon tied around its neck with a bow. The cat blinked at me once, then disappeared from sight. I grabbed Dane’s arm.
“Did you see it?”
His head popped up. “Huh? See what?”
“The cat. There was a cat.” I peered in the window, cupping my hands around my eyes to block out the sun. Inside I could see row after row of bookshelves, and a small sitting area. A couple of teenagers were drinking coffee and chatting, while an elderly woman read a book.
And on her lap was the cat.
“See, look.” I pointed, but Dane was already pulling me down the street.
“You look like a creeper, peeking into peoples’ windows like that. It looks like it’s a bookstore, so let’s just go inside and check it out.” He rolled his eyes at me. I stuck out my tongue indignantly, so he kicked me lightly in the shin.
We stopped in front of the door, which was the prettiest shade of purple I’d ever seen. The sign above read: The Cat’s Meow - Bookstore & Coffeeshoppe. Interesting. I turned the brass knob and went inside, a tinkling of bells announcing our arrival.
“Welcome to The Cat’s Meow!” called a fluting voice from behind the stacks. “I’ll be with you in just one moment.”
A petite Asian girl came around the counter, and I couldn’t help but stare. She looked like one of those anime girls you see in those gimmicky gacha phone games. She wore a pastel purple dress that was a cutesy version of a maid’s outfit, complete with frilly lace and puffy sleeves. Her long black hair was tied up in pigtails and her makeup was the same shade of lavender.
She smiled brightly at us. “Hi there, I’m Mina. What brings you in here today? I’m guessing you’re tourists. Am I right?” Her eyes darted between us, a slightly impish look crossing her delicate features. I nodded, and she giggled. “Thought so.”
“I saw a cat,” I explained, just as the gray feline from before leapt up onto the counter with a trilling, “Mew?” The bow tied around her neck matched the color of Mina’s dress.
Mina stroked her hand down the cat’s sleek back. “Of course! We actually have two resident kitties. This pretty little girl is Fae and her brother is Fiji. You can’t miss him. He’s snow white and his collar matches his blue eyes.” She glanced across the little cafe. “He’s probably snuggling with one of our clients. He loves his job.”
“They stay here?” I asked. “All the time?”
“Yes. Actually, they were born here last winter, after their mother snuck in on the heels of a customer. She was heavily pregnant and it was so cold outside, we just couldn’t send her away. She gave birth at the back of the bookstore a few weeks later and by then, everyone knew Mama and demanded we let them stay. The clientele loved watching them grow up and it was great for business, so now they’ve got a forever home here.” She gestured to the cafe.
“Wow, that’s really cool.”
“Would you like to order?” she asked us, gesturing to the chalkboard signage hanging on the wall. The different menu items were written in colorful pastel chalk. In fact, the entire shop was done in light pinks and purples, as if a unicorn had come in and vomited rainbows on everything. Mina winked at me when she caught me scoping he place out. “I could recommend our Toffee-Coffee? Tastes just like a Heath bar and has two shots of espresso. It’s a fan favorite.”
Dane and I exchanged a glance. He must’ve seen the need glowing in my eyes, because he grinned. “That sounds freaking amazing. We’ll take two, mediums please.”
She shooed Fae off the counter. “Coming right up!”
Once we had our coffees, which smelled like heaven, with whip cream and chocolate drizzle on top, we meandered over to the sitting area. The teenagers from before had left, leaving the purple corduroy couch vacant. We pulled up a seat and were immediately greeted by Fiji. The slim white cat definitely had some Siamese blood in his veins, because his ice blue eyes were slightly crossed, like Sampson’s.
“Oh man. That is one beautiful cat,” Dane murmured, but I wasn’t paying attention. I was too busy thinking about how perfect something like this would be in our small-but-bustling town back home. I froze.
