21: Cat Scratch Fever

More pics than normal. I just like so many of them!

      

      We arrive at a store that Bryce says sells 'everything,' and we find Lynne and Troy there. She and Bryce immediately start up talking, and we find out her stove bucked the kicket. Troy is supposedly helping her shop. The hopeless romantic in me immediately picks up on the fact that he definitely likes her likes her. She acts like she's still a little stunned, if she knows. Surely she knows. Surely she's not that blind. Troy catches me watching him closely, and I immediately duck my head. I feel a mite ridiculous, but I like to try and figure people out from a distance.

      Lynne walks up to me, leaving Troy and Bryce. Bryce actually looks a little happy about this because I get the feeling there's something he's dying to tell just Troy.
       "I wanted to apologize to you if I acted a little rude the other morning," Lynne tells me. I quickly look over at her, and she's smiling a little like she noticed my eyes have hardly left Bryce at all. Am I that obvious? Heh, kind of like Troy is with her... in fact, he's still staring.
       I nervously rub my arm with my other hand as I say, "Oh, don't worry about it. I get it now. I'd be pretty pissed too if someone were to just mess with someone like that. Or something... you know what I mean."
      She smiles kindly again and says, "Yes, I know what you mean."
      We talk for a little while, and I wonder what Bryce and Troy start laughing about.

    I never figure out what it is they laugh about. Well, to be honest, the second I hear Jesse's name mentioned, I tune them out.
     I buy a laptop! I'm happy I can now write outside if I want to.

       When we get to my house, Bryce carries my new laptop in, and I help him take the old one out to chuck it in the garbage can. As I'm walking back up to my front porch steps, this beautiful cat comes trotting up to me.
    I immediately start gushing. I always loved my mom's cats. "Hey sweetie! Aren't you just adorable?" I crouch down to pet it.
      "Erin, you don't know where that thing's been," Bryce says with a note of apprehension.
       "Don't worry about it, Bryce. Cats are clean. Certainly cleaner than dogs."
      "Until you take into account toxoplasmosis, cat scratch fever, ringworm, oh, and don't forget rabies," he says dryly.
      "Cat scratch fever?" I ask, turning to him in disbelief, ready to laugh. The cat rubs against my legs and meows up at me.
        Bryce grins widely. "Yeah, it's more than just an awesome song."

       "I think she's fine," I say and bend down to pick her up.
     "Erin... that's a really bad idea. You don't know where it's been. And how do you know it's a 'she'?"
       "She doesn't smell like a male."
       "Just what the hell is that supposed to mean?"
      "Male cats stink," I say then turn the cat around in my arms. She's obviously not feral. I show him the cat's backside. "And see?" I only grin when Bryce shows me a very annoyed expression.

      "How do you know she's not already somebody else's cat?" he asks, and I ignore the way he looks on disapprovingly as I snuggle the cat.
      "I don't. If anyone reports her missing, I'll give her to them. Until then..." I look at the cat as I say, "Let's go see if we have any tuna." I smile as she starts purring. Bryce walks over to pick up the paper as I carry the cat inside. I can tell he's not happy, but he's not saying any more on the subject.

    He sits down and starts reading the paper as I feed the cat that I've decided to dub "Miley" since she's probably walked miles and miles alone and now has found me. She was lonely and then she found me, and I love that.
   After Miley eats, I walk over to my new computer to get it set up. I steadfastly ignore Bryce's almost-pouting attitude. Miley trots up to him and flops herself right next to him on the couch. I see in the reflection of the glass that he glances at her before he flicks the paper open more and ignores her.
     Disapproval rolls off him in waves, but he doesn't say anything. You can't stop me from getting a cat if I want one, Bryce, and I think I want one.

       I guess Miley decides she's given up on getting any attention from Bryce and gets up to eat some more. Bryce folds the newspaper as I get a whole bunch of updates going.

        He's still really quiet. I can feel him staring at me before I glance up at the glass again to see that he is.

      I'm starting to get aggravated, so I just give up and close my new laptop.

     "What," I say after I stand up and walk over to stand in front of him.
     "Are you going to do that all day? It's my day off, and you're sitting at the computer again," he says, sounding a little hurt.
       Oh. Crap, I think as my mind quickly flies from how I looked sitting there to how he saw it - to that making him think of his ex-wife - to him saying he was jealous of his computer yesterday because it got all my attention.
      "Bryce, if you wanted me to let it wait 'til later, why didn't you just say so?" I ask him and move to sit next to him on the couch.

      In what I'm sure is a well-practiced move, he purposefully trips me as he slides over to where I would land on the couch, catching me before I would land too hard. Holy shit, he's a little too good. Now why the heck do I like it?
       "I want you to let it wait 'til later," he says huskily while simultaneously pulling me closer.
       I am in very great danger of falling so hopelessly in love with him that I'll never be able to even function properly should he leave me. I don't wait for him to kiss me but reach up to hold the back of his head as I kiss him. It takes him about half a second to respond as he clutches me even closer. I try to match the energy with which he kisses me, but every time I come close he asks for more. I think the fact that I kissed him took him by surprise, and he's trying to figure out how I feel in a single kiss. Good luck with that. I wish I knew, really.

      Both of us a little breathless, he pulls back to say with almost a sense of regret, "Adele will be home soon."
       "Okay."
       "You're coming over, right?" he asks, and he actually looks worried for a second that I'll say no.
       I look back at him with a confused grin as I answer, "Of course I am."
       He smiles, and I tell my heart to cool it. That reminds me...

       I wanted to try out his pool yesterday, so I bring along a swimsuit again today. I go swimming while Bryce fixes us something to eat.
       We'd both forgotten that Adele had that study group today, but we mutually decide to not get caught in the same situation as yesterday. I don't stay out here long; I just wanted a quick dip anyway.

      Once I'm halfway through the kitchen on my way to the bathroom to change back, I hear Bryce ask, "You didn't honestly expect to just waltz right past me, did you?"
      I turn to him in shock just as he collides with me, the lunch/dinner he'd been preparing now laying forgotten on the counter.
       "Bryce!" I squeal before his lips silence mine.
       He picks me up and carries me over to sit me on the washing machine. Moving one of my legs aside, he steps between them and kisses me again, pulling my hips right up to him. My feet are just dangling, and I have the strangest urge to swing them back and forth like a little girl. I decide to wrap them around him instead.
       "You're killing me, Erin," he says cryptically before he starts down my neck.
       I feel a little chilly having just come into the air conditioning still wet from the pool. This only makes the warmth from his traveling magic hands feel warmer, and I want them everywhere.
        He groans and wraps his arms tight around my waist before he picks me up and carries me out of the kitchen into the hallway.

     "Bryce, Adele..." I say, and we hear the front door close. Great, I think sarcastically. "...will be home soon," I lamely finish. I feel his breath whoosh on my still-damp chest as he lets out a huff and puts me down. I turn around, greet Adele, and disappear into the bathroom between us. What must she think of me?
      As I get dressed in the bathroom, I can't help but overhear their conversation about the weekly picnic.

      This is something they need to do just the two of them, I think as I watch Adele's shoulders slump when I come out of the bathroom. Bryce, stop trying to come up with reasons to not do it.
      Adele relents and walks upstairs, trying to hide how sad she is from me and mostly failing.

       "Bryce..." I start to tell him what I'm thinking, but he obviously wants to try to pick up from where we were a minute ago. I'm still a little cold, and his hands feel marvelous. Still, the look on Adele's face haunts me.

      When he starts heading for second base, I stop him and pull back to say, "I should go."

      "What?! Why?" he asks, and the look in his eyes makes me want to stay so I can erase it. "I have the evening off. I have to work tomorrow. I want you to stay."
     "Yes, you have the evening off, which is why you should spend it with Adele. Tomorrow she goes to Pam's. You can see me in the morning. I'll come over okay?" I say, and he still has that worried look in his eyes. "Bryce, please don't look at me like that."
       "But it's too late in the evening for a picnic. I told her... I'll make it up to her Saturday."
      I shake my head no. "Then find some place well-lit and have a dinner picnic. You can't," I shake him a little, "make a change like this right now. That is her special time with you, and I interrupted last week's enough."

      "I love you," he says really fast, and I let out a surprised squeak as his lips attack mine.
       

      I think... I'm really going to miss him even though I know I'm going to see him tomorrow.

       "I'll be over as soon as I can," I say.
       "Thank you," he says, and I don't understand what he means.

       After I ask him to explain, he says, "I was about to blow it big time with my daughter, and you stopped me... again." He looks like he's mentally berating himself as he says, "I feel like such an idiot! How come I don't think of these things?"
       Because you're a guy, I think real fast. Instead of saying that, I say, "Because you have other things on your mind." I grin at the look he gives me. "Don't worry about it. You're a great daddy." I lean in to kiss him real slow, and for once, he doesn't hurry me along.
        Before I can give in to the crazy urge I have to tell him how I feel, which would surely make him stop me from leaving, I slowly pull back and say goodbye for the night.
        On my way home, I shake a little from worry about what's happening to me.
        This is happening so fast. It's still a little soon after the asshole. Could I really be in love with him?
       He's no saint, but neither am I.
       I can't wrap my head around my own thoughts as I fix myself some cereal for dinner, leaving my computer running the updates.
       At last, I'll be able to sit outside in the great outdoors to write my book. Well, rewrite my book, I think as I get ready for bed.

      Suddenly, I sit bolt upright in bed and yell out, "Shit!" Then I place my hands over my face. My book is still open on Bryce's computer!

Bryce

     After my picnic with Adele, she runs upstairs to talk on the phone with one of her friends.

     I'm bored.

     I miss Erin.

     You're pathetic.

     What would've I done tonight if I hadn't have met her?

     Go out looking for a party with Jesse, dropping Adele off at Pam's. Last week... just last week I did that. Only... I was looking for Erin and not really expecting to find her.

      So now what? I think and run my hand down my face. 

     I really have no idea what to do with myself. I don't watch prime time television since I work most of the time during this time of day. I shrug and head up the stairs, hoping a round of 'Plants vs Zombies' will pass the time adequately enough.

      I knew this would happen. She pretty much asked me for space. My acting so needy is making her push me away. Hell, it's what I'd do.

       I sit down in my computer chair and fidget as I sit here thinking. I hate this. I hate needing her, but I do. I fucking love her. I reach down to turn on my computer, and I expect to immediately have to type in my password. I then realize that Erin was the last one to use it, and she'd never logged out since we got... distracted. We'd not set up a password protection for her for some reason.

       It's... her book... right in front of me, I think as I stare unthinking at the words on the screen, not reading them.

       She asked me not to read it. 

      I look down and fidget a little more. It's like forbidden fruit.

    I can't resist. I hit control-home to get to the top. She doesn't have to know, and I'm insanely curious.

  Three years had passed since Lance's wife's death, leaving him with their only daughter, Amy, to raise alone.

      .......
      What?!