Mitzy follows after me, sticking close to my heels, completely oblivious to the mess she’s started.
Or maybe she’s not completely oblivious.
I would have never found that box if she hadn’t led me to it…
Is she looking out for me or him?
Shaking my head, I close the closet doors and experience a strange sense of relief.
He didn’t catch me and all that stuff is back where it belongs. Tucked in a dark, dusty corner, hopefully never to see light again.
Until I get a chance to burn it.
Feeling exhausted and downright dirty after the day’s events, I head to the guest bathroom and take a long hot shower. Standing under the water until the bathroom is so thick with steam it becomes difficult to breathe.
Clean, refreshed, and still freaked out, I realize I don’t have any clothes except for what I was wearing. I fought James over packing, and by the time I realized he was truly going to force me to leave my house, it was too late to do anything about it.
Not willing to put what I was wearing back on and not willing to go bed naked because that’s just asking for it, I drag my ass back to James’s room to borrow something to wear.
Hoping I can find what I need in his dresser and avoid the closet completely, I start yanking open drawers. Like the closet, half of the of the drawers end up being empty, as if the space was left for someone else’s things.
Trying not to assume he’s beyond insane and left the space for me, I find a drawer full of t-shirts and help myself to one. Unfortunately, there’s not a pair of boxers or underwear to be found.
I guess James was being completely honest when he said he doesn’t wear them.
Crap.
The memory of his ass pops into my head, uninvited, as I grab a pair of his sweatpants and pull them on.
Like the suit he’s wearing, it should be considered a sin for a guy to have an ass like his.
All round and juicy with those dimples above it.
The kind of ass I wish I had.
And it’s not just his ass.
His entire body is fantastic.
The man is literally a walking, talking, breathing sin.
I roll down the waistband of the sweatpants three times so they’ll stay up then shuffle my way back to the guest room, feeling like a complete clown.
His clothes are way too big for me. The blue t-shirt I pulled on nearly goes down to my knees and the crotch of the black sweatpants is so long it’s hard to walk in them.
Beggars can’t be choosers though.
I take comfort in the fact that only a seriously desperate man would find anything sexy about the way I’m dressed. If I’m lucky, they’ll completely repulse him.
As if they can sense I’m going to bed, Fluffers runs up the stairs with Mitzy chasing behind her.
“Where have you been?” I grumble as I swoop down to pick up Fluffers and snuggle her in my arms.
I haven’t seen her since James left. It’s not necessarily unusual because she likes to find little cubby holes to hide and sleep in, but it made me nervous.
Fluffers looks up at me and gives me an apologetic meow.
Sighing, I give her gray head a light scratch and tell her, “It’s okay. Just stay where I can see you from now on.”
We need to be ready to run at any second, and I can’t run without her.
I could never leave her behind.
She’s like my child and the only family I have left.
Without her…
Meowing again, Fluffers leans into my head scratch as I carry her into the guest bedroom.
Sitting down in the hallway, Mitzy pants as she looks up at us expectantly.
“Are you coming, too?” I ask her before I close the door.
Yipping, Mitzy runs happily across the threshold and jumps right on the bed to pick out her spot.
At least she has manners, I think as I close the door, unlike her owner.
It’s probably futile, given that this is his house and he seems to have a way around locks, but I lock the door anyway.
I know it won’t keep James out, but it might slow him down a little bit.
Falling asleep is impossible. I just keep tossing and turning, unable to get the pictures I found out of my head.
Pulling Fluffers up to my chest, I pet her by rubbing my palm slowly up and down her back. Usually the motion and softness of her fur calms me down. Her purrs soothing whatever ails my heart.
But even her love can’t help me tonight.
I’m anxious and antsy about James coming back now that I know what I know.
Eventually Fluffers gets annoyed with me and crawls up to my pillow to sleep above my head.
Mitzy was snuggled against my stomach, but even she seems to lose patience with my constant movement. She ends up moving to the other side of the bed.