Chapter 3-1
781 Words
Chapter 3
Just after three, a soft knock roused Dez from snoozing on the couch. Only one person could be rapping on his door rather than ringing the buzzer on the street entrance. He rose quickly. He didn’t want Fran looking at him so concerned and worried again.
He opened the door to find Fran, and the ginger Tom who’d slept on Dez’s stomach a couple of nights ago, weaving around his feet. Fran carried a plate with a couple of slices of what had been the hero cake. He smiled cautiously. “The staff ate the rest of it. But it’s your cake. So…do you want a piece? Or do you have some fundamental moral objection to cake?”
Dez cracked a smile. “No. Cake is good.” And since there were two slices, Dez assumed Fran wasn’t here just to drop off a piece and go away. “Come in,” he said, standing back. “You too, Ginger,” he added.
“Riley,” Dez reminded him. The cat found the couch, no doubt still warm from where Dez had been lying, and made himself at home.
“Lives the life of Riley, I’ll bet,” Dez said.
“I try. Poor sod’s had a rough life, if his scars are anything to go by.”
“They’re all rescue cats, right?” Dez led the way to the kitchen to get some small plates.
“Yes, I work with a local rescue center. You wouldn’t believe some of the things people do to animals.”
“Oh, I would. And to kids.”
“Oh, yes, of course.” Fran looked awkward and put the cake plate on the table. “Maybe I should go.”
“No,” Dez said a bit too quickly and restrained himself. “You don’t have to. Look, you want a cup of tea or coffee? Can’t have cake without a cup of something.”
“Oh, God, yes, a cup of tea would be great.”
“Just tea? Not one of those fancy frothy coffees you do in the café?”
Fran shook his head. “I drink too many of those. Just a cup of tea would be perfect, thanks.”
“You have to be downstairs soon?” Dez asked as he fussed about making tea.
“No. It’s break time. We close from three till six to give the cats a break and prep for the evening session. The girls can handle that. They keep trying to stop me from doing any work because of…” He gestured at his bruised eye.
“Sounds good to me. You should be taking it easy.” He handed a mug to Fran after checking what he wanted in the way of milk and sugar. “Sorry the mug doesn’t have a cat on it.”
Fran laughed as they took their mugs and slices of cake to the living room. “I’ll be honest, it’s a relief to be in a place where every single thing isn’t covered in cats.”
“Except the sofa,” Dez said, nodding toward the snoozing Riley.
“Except that.”
He watched what Dez would do next. Like it was a test of some sort. Dez put down his tea and plate, picked up Riley, then sat with the cat on his lap. Fran smiled and sat at the other end of the couch.
“I wanted to say sorry,” Fran said after he’d eaten a few bites of cake. “I shouldn’t have put you on the spot like that. In front of people. I didn’t mean to freak you out.”
“It’s fine,” Dez said, trying to sound dismissive. “No problem.”
“It was, though,” Fran said quietly. He looked around the room, dim with the curtains drawn. Dez fooled himself into thinking he did that because of the sun’s glare. But in truth, he liked it dim. He liked to be out of the light. “You, um…I Googled you.”
“Yeah. I don’t want to talk about all that.”
“You’re still on sick leave.” Fran spoke as cautiously as a man treading on a frozen lake in early spring.
“That’s right.” And probably not going back for a long time. Maybe not ever unless he’d be satisfied with a desk job.
Fran glanced around again, then looked at Riley, purring loudly as Dez stroked him. “You’ve definitely made a hit with Riley. He’s friendly anyway. All the cats are, of course. But I’ve never seen him quite that much at home. Do you like cats?”
“Yeah. They don’t make a fuss.” When Fran peered into his cup of tea, Dez felt bad. “Thanks, though. For the cake. It was a nice gesture and I’m sorry I wasn’t very gracious about it. I’m just not comfortable with that whole ‘hero’ thing. I’m not a hero.”
“That’s not what the newspapers say.”
“I’m sure a clever lad like you knows that the best use for most of the newspapers is lining a litter tray.”
“Well, that’s true. But if it makes you uncomfortable, I promise I won’t use the ‘H word’ again.”
Dez smiled and raised his cup in a salute. “Appreciated.”
“Damn,” Fran said, checking his watch. “I should get back. Lots to do.” He stood. Dez made to do the same, but Fran waved him to stay in his seat. “No, don’t disturb Riley. In fact, keep him for the afternoon if you want. Just pop him back to my place when you’re tired of him.”
Dez tried to imagine growing tired of the warm fuzz ball purring under his hand. He couldn’t see it. “Thanks. I’ll do that.”
“Then I’ll see you both later.”
- Writer
