Free One Summer by JoAnn Ross

take on a dog.”
    “Absolutely. Dogs need walks. Attention. Something I’m in short supply of these days.”
    “I totally understand.”
    “Damn. I’ve been practicing my carefully thoughtout argument against pet ownership since we talked at the wedding. And now it’s totally wasted.”
    “I’d never push an animal on anyone that wouldn’t be a good fit. And I can see you’ve got too much on your plate right now to give attention to a shelter dog. Especially since they often come with issues. Though, I do have a suggestion.”
    Sedona arched a blond brow. “Why am I not surprised?”
    “How about a cat?”
    “Oh, I don’t know …”
    When her voice drifted off, Charity pounced, just like the cat she had in mind might after a fat mouse. “I took in this Persian the other day,” she said. “An IT computer programmer and father of three was just transferred to Hawaii.”
    “Lucky them.”
    “Lucky that they’re going to spend the next two years in paradise. Not so lucky they just adopted a kitten a month ago who won’t have time to qualify for a prequarantine pass.”
    “Meaning?”
    “Meaning that when it lands in Honolulu, it’ll have to spend one hundred and twenty days in a cage.”
    “Which, needless to say, they don’t want it to have to do.”
    “Apparently the kids started crying at the very idea.”
    “Understandable. I grew up with pets that were part of the family.”
    “As well they should be. The thing is, the dad really can’t turn down this opportunity. Especially since a lot of guys in his department are being laid off. Which is how the kitten ended up back with me.”
    “And now you’re looking for a new home.”
    “Good guess.”
    “It’s hardly a guess since everyone in town knows to cross the street when they see you coming.”
    Charity laughed with Sedona. It wasn’t exactly the truth. But she knew she had a reputation for being tenacious when it came to placing the animals she took in.
    “A Persian’s easy,” she said, pressing her case. “Think of them as the couch potatoes of the cat world.”
    “They also look as if they have high-maintenance coats.”
    “Just a little combing every couple days will keep them free from matting. You can do it while you watch TV. Besides, it gives you a warm body to cuddle with. Until you find that perfect man.”
    “I’ll think about it.” Sedona held out the box. “Now please get out of my shop before I end up with a menagerie.”
    Knowing when not to push, Charity took the box, but exchanged it for a business card. “Call me,” she said. “It’s really a sweetheart.” Pressing just a bit more, she pulled a photo out of her purse. “See? Isn’t she pretty?”
    Who could resist those wide blue eyes set in the middle of that sweet, flat white face?
    “She is cute,” Sedona allowed.
    “With the best personality ever. Persians are much more of a lap breed than a lot of cats. She wouldn’t mind you being gone during the day, but she’ll just eat up any attention you want to give her when you get home.”
    “I test recipes at night a lot.”
    Even as the baker made yet another excuse, Charity, who’d run into tougher cases—like Marine Gabriel St. James—could hear the crashing sound as barricades began tumbling. Block by block.
    “You could always put a little bed in the kitchen so she could keep you company. When the breed was brought back to Europe from Persia along with silk, jewels, and spices in the seventeenth century, they were viewed as status symbols.”
    “I’m not much for jewels and silks. Though I do like spices.”
    “Just consider it,” Charity advised. “Though I’ve got to warn you, she’s going to go fast. The only reason I haven’t put her on the weekend TV Adopt a Best Friend spot or her photo up on the shelter Web site is that I wanted you to have a chance to see her first. Because I honestly believe you’d be a perfect match.”
    Sedona’s only response was a long sigh. But she did