Free Hearts in Motion by Edie Ramer Page A

his worries about the company. He’d told her the truth about Cara’s parentage. Other than her, he’d only told Daisy and Ryan. It was their right to know the truth.
    It wasn’t Abby’s right. But he’d seen the accusation and disappointment on her face at dinner tonight.  
    He’d seen the rejection. Yet he’d continued to eat his spaghetti as if nothing was wrong...when everything was wrong.
    He’d burned at the injustice, yet he had no idea how to fix it.
    A sound caught his attention. A soft meow.
    Turning, he spotted the kitten.
    “What are you doing here?” He bent and held his hand out for her to sniff.
    The little ball of fluff did better than that. She rubbed the sides of her mouth on the bony ridges of his hand then tried to climb on it.  
    His mood softened. Epic stumbled off his hand, too big to fit. Still thinking she was tiny and obviously not accustomed to her growth spurts.
    “I understand.” He picked her up with both hands and held her in front of his face. “I think I’m more limber than I am, too.”
    Epic meowed.
    “You’re going to get white cat hair all over my brown couch, aren’t you?”
    Another meow.
    “The lady at the pet store said I need to clean the litter box every day.”
    Another meow. As if she was answering him.
    “The cleaning crew comes in only once a week. This means I’ll have to do it myself.”
    The kitten didn’t meow at him now, perhaps understanding that some subjects were better left unanswered.
    “You’re a smart kitten, aren’t you?”
    Epic meowed loudly, ending on a high note, as if it were an exclamation point.
    “I agree. Let me give you a problem.” Holden stepped to the brown, leather recliner and sank into it. “If I knew something that would change the way someone thought about me, do you think I should tell her?”
    This time she mewled, a sound that could only be more positive if she’d nodded her small head.
    “Even if it’s not my secret?”
    The kitten’s head tilted, and she stared at him, as if trying to understand the subtext.
    “Even if it would hurt another person if she found out the truth?” He frowned. Maybe it wouldn’t have hurt Cara before this, he thought. But in these last couple days, she’d come to depend upon him. She’d told him she loved him.
    Epic voiced a string of meows. Holden leaned back on the recliner and let her walk on his upper chest.
    “That’s definitely a yes,” he said.
    The kitten jumped off him, and he turned his head and watched her pad back down the hall toward Cara’s bedroom.
    He clasped the chair arms. If he thought Abby would say anything to Cara, he wouldn’t talk to her. But of course she wouldn’t. He got off his chair and went to the table where he’d left his cell phone. There was no excuse not to tell Abby.
    A moment later, he listened to Grace tell him that Abby was on a date.
    ***
    Mom and the man had driven away, but the man’s smell lingered in the living room. The scent was familiar, and so was the man. Minnie remembered him from all the years ago, when she’d been very young. The man had petted her and had made Mom laugh.
    Then he’d made Mom angry. And when Mom got angry, so did Minnie.
    She’s with the wrong man, she told Quigley, who sat on the cat ladder’s top perch. He liked being on top, and for the most part, Minnie let him go up there.
    But every once in a while, she would run up and knock him down to the floor.
    Just to show him who was really the boss.
    She likes men who are wrong, Quigley said.
    No, she doesn’t. She says they’re fun while they last.
    What does that mean?
    Minnie quickly licked a paw before replying. It’s like chasing a bug. It’s fun for a while, but when you catch it, it’s not as fun.
    It’s fun for me. I eat bugs. If this man is wrong, I can scratch and bite him.
    Let’s wait. I didn’t smell her mating scent before they left, just his.
    Maybe this is about the business. Maybe that’s why she left with him.
    Minnie leaped