Traffic on the interstate was crazy for lunchtime. Kids were out of school and it showed in the volume of vehicles moving about.
“YEOOOOWAWW.”
“Pipe down, Higgins. I’ve got enough on my mind.” I glared at the cat carrier sitting on the passenger seat, all belted in nice and tidy.
“MEEEEEOOOOOOOWWW,” Higgins replied even louder than before.
If someone heard him, they’d swear I was torturing the cat. As tempting as it was, I put the thought out of my head.
The groomer had washed and fluffed Higgins and put a pretty blue collar with a bow around his neck. His nails had been trimmed and blunted so they were no longer sharp barbs. If you didn’t know his personality, you’d think he was a sweet, adorable kitty. Yeah, as if.
“WWWWWAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!”
My head drummed in response. How could one cat make such an awful racket? “Shut up!”
I could see traffic stalled something horrible at the off-ramp to my Granddad’s house. I checked the clock on the dash. If I took the time to drop the cranky critter off at home, I’d definitely be late getting back to work, and I couldn’t risk that.
“That’s it, old boy. You’re coming with me.” I floored the gas pedal and hit the passing gear, continuing on to the exit to work a couple of miles up the road. With luck, I could be back at my desk in five minutes. I’d have to store Higgins in the group room until Granddad could swing by and pick him up later. It wasn’t a great plan, but considering my time crunch and the thin ice I skated on with the therapists, it was the best solution.
Speeding by slower traffic, I made excellent time and soon pulled into the parking lot and wrestled with the cat carrier.
And then memory kicked in and with it Dr. Daley’s severe allergic reaction to cats. Damn, damn, damn. I stomped my foot on the ground and reconsidered my options.
Checking the parking lot, I noticed that Ryder’s car was there. Bingo. I’d stash Higgins in Ryder’s office and then make a quick call to Granddad and tell him he had to find a way to pick up his baby.
I rushed down the hall to Ryder’s office praying I’d find the door to his offices unlocked.
I tugged on the door and to my surprise and relief, it opened easily. When I called out for Ryder, he didn’t answer, but since his car was in the lot, I figured he’d be back soon.
I checked my watch. There was only one solution. I’d leave the cat and dash off a quick note about what was happening. With any luck at all, Granddad would pick the cat up before Ryder returned.
“WWWEEEEEOOOOOWWWW!!!!”
I sat the cat carrier down on the floor and watched as Higgins rocked the soft-sided carrier to and fro with a new intensity. He was one angry animal. Thank goodness I could leave him here. He’d definitely freak out our patients.
“Kitty?”
“Daisy? What are you doing here?”
But instead of paying attention to me, Ryder’s sister went directly to the carrier and unlocked it before I could warn her not to.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.” I tried to stop her, but I was way too late. Higgins became silent when the door to his carrier opened. I think his shock exceeded mine. I half expected him to lunge out and claw Daisy in the face.
“Pretty, pretty kitty boy,” Daisy said and stuck her hand into the carrier.
I closed my eyes, not wanting to see her skillful little hands reduced to bloody nubs. To my intense relief, I didn’t see any fountains of red gushing from the carrier.
“Where’s Ryder?” I asked, attempting to draw her attention to me.
Daisy ignored me and continued to play with Higgins. The sounds of purring replaced his previous caterwauling. She had the touch. I’d give her that.
She stood up and held Higgins like a spoiled baby in her arms. “Pretty boy,” she said to me while the cat let her rub his belly. “Such a pretty boy.”
I merely nodded. This may work out better than I’d anticipated. Ryder would be back soon. Daisy loved the snotty cat and could keep him quiet and happy until Granddad swung by and picked him up. I could go to my desk and finish out the day in relative peace and quiet. Another potential Becca disaster averted.
“Daisy, I have to get to work. My Granddad will come by and get the cat, but can you watch him until then?” I studied her beautiful pale face for some sign that she understood me. She tore her attention away from the cat long enough to nod once. Yes, she’d cat-sit Higgins for me.
“I’m going to call Granddad right now and tell him to get over here pronto.” Daisy ignored me, lost in her own world snuggling the cat to her breast. As for Higgins, he purred and snuzzled her chest with his head, lost in cat bliss.
I hit the speed dial on my cell phone. Voice mail. Odd. What the heck did Granddad have going on that prevented him from answering? “Granddad, it’s me. You’ve got to come pick Higgins up. I had to take him to work. He’s in Ryder’s office across the hall. It’s a long story. Just get here soon.” I clicked the cell phone closed. Maybe he didn’t hear his phone ring. I’d wait a bit, and if I didn’t hear from him, I’d give him another call. I had to get the cat out of the building before the shrinks found out or before Ryder’s patience with me wore out for good…assuming it hadn’t already.
Taking a pen from my purse, I rushed into Ryder’s office and snatched up a piece of paper and scribbled a hasty note explaining the situation and apologizing profusely.
Daisy wandered in while I was writing. She sat down in one of the comfy chairs that Ryder kept for his clients, and Higgins settled down in her lap and let her stroke his fur. His purr came so loud it almost sounded like a growl.
“I really appreciate you taking care of Higgins. He likes you,” I said and watched as a smile spread across Daisy’s face. How much did she truly understand?
“R.J.,” she said like I should understand her.
I glanced over my shoulder. No, he hadn’t returned. “He should be back any time now,” I tried to assure her. I guess the cat and I weren’t a good substitute for her brother, but she did seem to be enjoying Higgins immensely. Maybe she was worried that Ryder would fuss at her for babysitting the cat.
“It’s okay. I won’t let Ryder go off. About the cat, I mean. If he starts fussing at you, just send him across the hall to me.”
She nodded and continued to play with Higgins, chucking him under the chin like you’d do to an actual baby. And the damn cat let her. I swear it even appeared like he was smiling.
The outer office door opened, and Daisy and I both flinched. It was too soon to be Granddad, even if he’d done a record land speed to get here, which I knew he wouldn’t. That could only mean Ryder had returned. I took a deep breath and entered the waiting area.
But it wasn’t Ryder at all. The face looked familiar, but in the darkly lit room, I had trouble identifying him.
“Miss Reynolds, I believe,” the man said.
So he recognized me. I squinted at him, willing my eyes to adjust to Ryder’s choice of lighting. “Oh, Mr. Ancarrow.” I finally came up with the name of Robert O’Malley’s business partner.
“Where’s R.J.?” he asked, scanning the office.
“He had to step out for a bit. Do you have an appointment with him?” Listen to me. I had this receptionist thing down pat. First Daley & Palmer, now Ryder’s CPA firm. Heck, I could probably handle Temp$ 4 Hire with no problem.
“Not an official appointment, no. But he has some papers ready for me to pick up.”
“Well, if you’ll have a seat he should be back shortly.” I really needed to get back to work.
Instead of sitting, Ancarrow advanced towards me, studying me as he closed the distance that separated us.
He made me uncomfortable for reasons I couldn’t explain. More on a gut-level instinct. I tried to brush the feeling away, but it refused to budge.
“This is quite fortuitous that we’ve run into each other, Miss Reynolds.” He came closer still.
“How so?”
“I think you know why.”
“I haven’t a clue.”
“Really?” He sounded more than dubious, he sounded surprised.
I was about to pursue it further, when Higgins wandered into the room. “YEEEEOOOWWW.”
So much for Daisy keeping him quiet. I reached down to try to pick the cat up, but he evaded me with his tail straight up in the air. He snaked around Ancarrow smelling his pants leg.
“Get that thing away from me.” He shook his leg hard, and Higgins got knocked for a loop.
“Hey, careful, he wasn’t doing anything to hurt you.” I was no fan of the cat, but I didn’t want to see him treated like that by Ancarrow or anyone else.
“Daisy? Can you come get Higgins?” I yelled out over my shoulder. “He’s bothering one of your brother’s clients.”
No response. How odd, but then I couldn’t exactly count on Daisy to act in a normal manner. I’d have to find a way to get Higgins back in Ryder’s office.
“Is that how you think of me, Miss Reynolds?” He took another step closer to me. “As one of Ryder’s clients?”
What was going on with this guy? Maybe I’d given him some weird vibe without realizing it. “Ah, no. I mean, yes.” Befuddled, I stumbled over my response.
Ancarrow smiled and took yet another small step towards me. This time I backed up, ending up almost in the doorway to Ryder’s inner office. And I definitely didn’t like how uncomfortable Ancarrow made me feel. “If you’ll just take a seat, I’ll page Ryder.” Of course, I didn’t have the ability to page Ryder, but Ancarrow didn’t know that and maybe it would put an end to this odd standoff and allow me to get out of the office in one piece. Was he coming on to me? He hadn’t shown that sort of interest the other times we’d spoken.
“I really rather you didn’t page Ryder.”
What? What was he saying?
“I see I’ve confused you. Well, you’ve caused me quite a bit of concern, too, my dear.”
I’d met the guy once or twice, and he’d been thinking about me this whole time? The man needed Match.com or some local singles’ hook-up. He wasn’t my type, and I needed to make that clear to him.
He advanced toward me again. I backed up until I hovered just inside Ryder’s office. I planned to shut and lock the door and let Ryder deal with him when he got back.
Something out of the corner of my eye caught my attention. Daisy crouched behind the chair she’d previously been sitting in. And she was flat-out terrified.
“It’s okay,” I said to her in my most soothing voice.
“Nice try, Miss Reynolds, but that’s the oldest trick in the book.” And with that, Ancarrow stepped into the office, well past the door I’d planned to close and lock.
“Run!” Daisy screamed and bolted past me and past Ancarrow.