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Nate Adams set down the cage in his living room and the creature inside howled piteously. Nate wondered how so much sound could come from such a tiny ball of fur. His stomach tensed for a moment. He hoped he’d made the right decision. If this went wrong, he would never hear the end of it from Moana.
She had a real thing for sticking with an issue once she got hold of it. For about six months now she’d been serving peas at every family meal and insisting Abigail eat them, despite knowing full well they were the only vegetable the poor girl refused to eat. It was incredibly frustrating and unnecessary to Nate’s mind, but she kept doing it, as if determined to take on more and more of a parent role for Abigail.
Ever since Emma had died, Moana had gotten more and more opinionated about his parenting. It wasn’t that he didn’t appreciate advice – he was the first to admit that the prospect of raising a daughter on his own had scared the crap out of him – but under the circumstances, he thought he was doing okay. Extended family support was one thing, interference and undermining was another. Explaining the difference to his sister-in-law was no easy task.
Yesterday, at the store, had been one of the few times he’d ever seen Moana at a loss for words – and that had been due to his new neighbour. She might have been a slip of a city girl, but she’d put Mo in her place quickly enough. He might have to take lessons on her style!
He went back to the car and brought in the bag of cat food and kitty litter, nudging the door open with his foot as he did so. He put them down on the kitchen bench, then stuck the ribbon he’d bought on top of the bag of litter. The irony of the placement made him chuckle.
He could just imagine Abi’s face when she saw it and realised what it meant.
Responsibility for Abigail was a topic they’d been debating for a while. Mo thought he spoiled Abi. Perhaps he did a little. It was hard not to when they were all each other had. But this was an idea he’d come to on his own and he was sure it would help. Giving Abi responsibility for a pet would help her learn the importance of her actions and give her a furry friend as well.
The kitchen was part of the open plan living space of the house, with a bench lined with stools separating it from the lounge area. It was where he and Abigail ate breakfast together, so that the used cereal bowls could be pushed quickly into the sink as they rushed to get ready for work and school, rather than at the dining table, just a few steps further away. This morning’s bowls were still there, and he ran a little water into them to soften any cereal left behind so he could wash up before Abi got home.
The kitten watched him with wide eyes and continued yowling.
“Come on, little guy,” he soothed, walking back into the lounge room and poking his fingers through the cage bars for the tiny creature to sniff. “Just stay put until Abi gets home from school, okay? Not long now.”
An amused female voice came from the doorway behind him. “Do you usually get good results negotiating with animals?”
Nate chuckled. “You’d be surprised.”
He straightened up and turned to see the town newcomer on his doorstep. Her dark, almost black hair was tucked behind her ears in thick waves that contrasted with her pale skin. Yesterday, he’d thought her eyes were dark blue, but now he realised they were green. They matched the pattern on the sundress she was wearing. There was something more relaxed in her face today, and in her bearing. She was as striking to look at as she had been to talk to at the shop yesterday. He supposed the neighbourly thing to do would have been to go over to the O’Neill house with some baking this morning, but his baking was hardly welcoming and now it seemed she’d beaten him to it.
When she saw his face, however, her eyes widened and her face turned red. “Oh. You’re the guy from the shop.”
He smiled and held out his hand. “Yeah. Nate Adams. Good to meet you properly since we’re neighbours.”
She awkwardly stepped forward to shake it. “Sara O’Neill.” She scrunched up her nose. “I...um...I’m sorry if I was rude yesterday. It was a long drive...”
“No worries,” he said, and meant it. He felt his smile get wider at the memory. “Moana can have that effect on people. O’Neill? So it’s your family’s house? Did you find it okay?”
She nodded. “Yeah, your directions were great. It’s...a bit rustic, but I found it easily enough.”
Nate laughed. “Rustic. Yeah, that’s one word for it. I’m surprised it hasn’t been condemned.”
Her jaw tensed and he noticed what looked like the remnants of a faded bruise on the side of her cheek. “Actually, it seems structurally stable. It just needs some work and...I don’t think it’s very fair of you to try to have someone else’s home condemned.”
Nate blinked. “What? I’m not. I just meant it’s been abandoned for a long time.”
“Your wife said you were.”
“Um...” It was a punch in the gut, even after this long. “My wife has been dead for about three years. I think you have me confused with someone else.”
Her mouth worked silently for a moment, like a startled fish. “Oh God. I’m so sorry! I thought you and Moana...”
He let out a bark of laughter. “God, no! She was my wife’s sister, that’s all. My daughter’s aunt.”
“Oh.” Her face was even redder now than it had been when she’d first recognised him.
He took pity. “Easy mistake to make. No harm done. Did you come over for anything in particular?”
“Um, actually, yes.” She held up her cellphone and charger. “The house doesn’t have any electricity yet. Would it be okay if I plug this in here for a bit? I need to call my grandmother and let her know I’m okay.”
“Sure.” Nate pointed to the wall. “There’s a socket over there. I’ll make us a coffee while you wait.” He put the electric kettle on and took two mugs out of the cupboard. “So you sound like you know a bit about the house. Have you been out here before?”
Sara plugged in the phone charger and shrugged. “Actually, my grandmother only told me about it a week ago. She grew up there. I don’t think anyone’s lived in it since.”
“I’m guessing it was in better condition back then,” Nate said.
She chuckled. “Yeah. I’d hope so. But that’s okay. My partner and I...” She frowned. “Ex-partner...we did a bit of renovating houses. So I’m used to living in a state of disrepair.”
Nate carefully ignored her correction. “Are you planning to renovate here?” He got the milk out of the fridge and put it on the bench next to the coffee mugs.
Sara took it and poured a little into one of the cups, then settled on one of the stools that lined the other side of the bench. “I hadn’t really thought about it until today, but it would give me something to do while I’m here. At the very least I need to get the electricity sorted and make whatever repairs are needed to stop your sister-in-law knocking the place down.”
That seemed reasonable. “I can lend you a generator if you like. Just to get you going.”
She shook her head. “Thanks, but letting me charge my phone is help enough. I’ll call and get the power company to hook me up.”
“Fair enough.”
The coffee was ready and they both took a sip. The rich flavour spilled over Nate’s tongue, soothing and warm. The smell of it was invigorating. Sara seemed to be enjoying her cup just as much. Nate wondered if the lack of electricity over at the old house extended to a lack of kitchen facilities. If so, she’d likely not had any coffee since sometime yesterday. Too long for any decent human.
Speaking of decent, he was suddenly aware of the ribboned bag of kitty litter on the bench. Hardly the hallmark of a good and gentlemanly host. But then she’d already seen the kitten so hopefully she would understand.
The suspiciously quiet kitten.
His stomach suddenly in knots, Nate leaned over the bench, peering past Sara into the living room. The door of the cage was open. The kitten was gone.
His coffee mug hit the bench with a thud. “Damn it!”
He noticed Sara jump and felt a stab of guilt at startling her. He must have banged the cup louder than he’d thought.
“What is it?” she said, gripping her own cup tight like a safety line. Or a weapon.
Nate sighed. “The kitten I bought for my daughter has escaped. Is the front door still open?”
She glanced sideways to check. “Yes, sorry.”
He shrugged. “Not your fault. I thought the cage was secure. Damn. I hope he hasn’t gone far.”
Sara frowned, her mouth open as if she’d expected to have to argue the matter.
Nate wondered what her ex had been like if she felt the need to justify her lack of blame for a random occurrence. “Can you check in there? I’ll see if I can spot him in the yard.”
He hurried out the door and looked over the yard. No sign of the kitten. He got on his hands and knees and looked under Sara’s car and his own. Still nothing.
What if the little ball of fur had gotten under the house? Or wandered across the road into the bushes? He might never be found and starve to death instead of living the pampered life of a loved pet Nate had intended. Not to mention how disappointed Abigail would be and how Moana would lord it over him.
He stood up and turned in a slow circle, eyes searching every nook and shadow, ears straining for the slightest sound. “Puss?” he called softly. “Come on kitty. Come back. I’ll get you some food.”
A shriek came from inside the house. Nate was already running when the sound was followed by laughter. He jumped the front steps and stood in the doorway.
Sara stood in the middle of the room, her hips swaying gently, letting the full skirt of her dress flare just a touch. About half way up the skirt, claws clinging to the fabric as he made his way higher, was the kitten.
Sara’s laugh was infectious. As she reached for the kitten, he scurried sideways across her skirt. “Help! Apparently he thinks I’m a tree!”
Nate quickly closed the door behind him and hurried forward. He made a grab for the kitten but it dodged him and scurried higher up Sara’s dress and around her waist to the small of her back.
“Ow! God, he’s got sharp little claws!” She turned to keep Nate facing the kitten.
Before Nate could catch him, however, the little furball had reached her shoulder and stopped, burying its face in her neck.
Nate chuckled. “I think you have a friend.”
Sara cooed and smiled. “You might not say that if it was your body he used as a jungle gym. He is adorable though.” She reached up and gave the kitten a little scratch behind the ears. He purred loud as a tractor.
“How did you find him?”
“He found me.” She sniffed slightly. “Cats always seem to find me. I swear they know I’m allergic.”
“You’re allergic?” Nate hurried forward to pluck the kitten from her shoulder. The little black and white bundle gave a little mew of protest but stayed settled.
“It’s fine.” Sara moved back across to the kitchen bench and took a sip out of her discarded coffee. “I’ll sniff and sneeze a bit but it doesn’t get any worse than that.” She watched as he put the kitten back in its cage and shut the door firmly. “You said this little guy is for your daughter?”
“Yeah.” Nate straightened up and went back to his own coffee. It was luke warm, but she continued to drink hers so he did the same. “She’s seven and I wanted something to try to teach her some responsibility.”
Sara glanced at the bag of kitty litter with the bow attached. “Okay. So she gets a kitten but all the chores that go with it – responsibility with consequences for a creature she loves and can have empathy for.”
Nate blinked. “Yeah. That’s the idea. Although I wouldn’t have put it quite like that.”
Sara chuckled and pointed to herself. “Early childhood teacher. We get trained to think about things like that.”
“Oh.” It made sense, Nate thought. She seemed like she’d be good with kids. “So you think it’s a good idea? I...don’t always know what I’m doing. I’m raising her on my own these days.”
She shrugged. “Depends on the child. But it’s not a bad one. Just make sure she’s capable of the tasks you set her and has a good understanding of what’s expected and the consequences for both her and the kitten if she doesn’t do it. And make them consequences you can actually follow through on. You don’t want to threaten something and then not be able to carry it out.” She nodded in the direction of the cage. “Like threatening to get rid of this little guy when in a day you’ll be too in love with him to truly consider it.”
Nate snorted. “You really think it’ll take a whole day?”
“Good point! I’m guessing you’re there already.”
“God, when I saw him climbing up your dress like that...” They both chuckled into their coffee mugs. “Abigail is going to love him.”
Sara nodded. “I’m sure she will.”
How was it he could talk so easily about raising Abi with this near stranger when it was so difficult with his wife’s sister? He watched her with interest. This was a woman more interesting than any he’d met in a long time. To be honest, he hadn’t been this comfortable talking about Abi with anyone since Em had died.
“Do you have children of your own?” he asked.
The light dropped out of Sara’s eyes. She stared into her coffee cup. “No. No, that’s not for me, I’m afraid.” She set the cup down and stood up. “I’m sure my phone will have enough charge by now. Thank you for the coffee. Sorry to have taken up your time.”
Nate stood as well, confused. “That’s okay. Stay a bit longer if you want...”
But she’d already unplugged her phone charger and was wrapping the cord around the phone on her way to the door. “Thanks again. Tell Moana I’ll have the house ready for her assessment very soon. She’s not getting a chance to knock it down.”
And with that, she was gone. Leaving Nate intrigued and wondering exactly what had gone wrong.