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but were chasing each other and wrestling. At the sight of people, they disappeared into
the hay. Jim knew they d be back, curiosity outweighing their fear. He sat, and motioned
for Catherine to do the same.
Sinking down on a pile of hay, she arranged her skirts so her legs were properly
covered. Her modesty amused him. Too late. I ve already seen them.
The kittens might be shy, but their mother wasn t. The big black cat strolled over
from wherever she d been hiding and rubbed against Catherine s arm. Smiling in delight,
she pulled the heavy animal onto her lap.
My cats were named Sunshine and Shadow, she told Jim, remembering to face
him. One was orange and the other black. Not very clever names, but I was seven when
I named them. They re very old now. I don t know if they ll still be alive by the time I
return home.
Home? He mouthed the word and pointed at her.
It took her only a moment to decipher his meaning. Yes. I ll probably be leaving
after this school year. I miss New York.
He nodded, a pang of disappointment shearing through him.
The boldest of the kittens, a tabby male, suddenly sprang out from behind a drift of
hay. Racing toward where they sat, he stopped and stared with wide eyes. He turned
abruptly and ran back in the direction from where he d come.
Catherine laughed. Her fingers stroked the plush fur of the mama cat on her lap. Jim
imagined what it would feel like to have her hand stroking him like that, touching his
hair, his face & or running over his stomach and slipping up and down his cock. He
swallowed and shoved the lewd thought aside, scolding himself for thinking of her like
that.
Several of the kittens were now brave enough to stalk close. Catherine reached a
hand out and held it there, waiting patiently. The tabby darted in, batted at her fingers and
ran away again, but the runt of the litter, a little black female, came even closer and
allowed her to touch its head. In a moment the kitten s real plan became clear when it
climbed onto her lap to nurse from the mother cat.
Jim watched Catherine s face as she cooed and fussed over her lapful of cats. Her
attention was totally focused on the animals, and it was his first chance to study her
without fear of being caught. She was incredibly beautiful. Her heart-shaped face was
wider at the forehead and pointed at the chin. Brilliant blue eyes were fringed in dark
brown and accented by the arch of her eyebrows. Her skin was fair with a dusting of
freckles across her small nose. Her mass of hair wasn t pale wheat or dirty blond, but a
vibrant sunflower yellow. She wore it in the current magazine cover style, a wide roll
around her face and piled loosely on top of her head. Her white blouse had puffy sleeves
that narrowed to hug her forearms tightly. Hay and cat fur clung to the blouse and to her
navy blue skirt.
Jim watched her pink lips moving as she talked to the cats, and imagined how warm
and soft they d feel pressed against his. He wet his own lips, swallowed and closed his
eyes, trying to clear his head. Nothing was going to happen here. He wasn t actually
going to lean forward and kiss her. If he did, she d slap his face and never come back
again.
After a few moments, she looked up at him with a smile that wrenched his heart.
They re very sweet. Thank you for showing them to me.
He reached out to pet the old calico, which had joined them in the loft. Rubbing the
animal s chest, he felt the strong tremor of its purr.
Catherine touched his knee to get his attention again. Jim, have you always been
deaf?
He nodded.
I asked Mr. Rasmussen about you. He told me your mother died after you moved
here. Do you have any other family still alive?
He shook his head, intrigued that she d been curious enough about him to ask
questions.
It must have been so hard to be left alone with no one to take care of you. How old
were you?
Jim held up ten fingers then four.
You ve lived here in the livery ever since?
Again he nodded. If he could have, he would ve explained that he d started working
for Rasmussen and Murdoch long before his mother died. He d been working one place
or another since he was old enough to push a broom or pick produce. He was also very
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