Total pages in book: 215
Estimated words: 199344 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 997(@200wpm)___ 797(@250wpm)___ 664(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 199344 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 997(@200wpm)___ 797(@250wpm)___ 664(@300wpm)
The beaming excitement that shines through her eyes is the best thing I’ve ever seen, and with her kitten wrapped in her arms, she leans forward and presses her lips to mine in a hungry kiss, and I don’t dare hesitate to kiss her back. Only her eyes widen, and she quickly pulls away. “Oh, shit. I’m not supposed to kiss you,” she panics, her hand coming up and wiping over my lips, but I shake my head, lowering her hand.
“You really think a little bit of chemo is going to stop me from kissing my girl?” I ask, pulling her right back in and giving her exactly what she’s been wanting. Fuck the chemo. If it makes me sick, I’ll deal with it, but nothing is going to keep me from showing my girl how much I love her. I resisted during her first round, but seeing her like this has only gone to show just how short life can be, and I want to live it to the fullest.
She holds up the little kitten before bringing her right to her face, unconditional love already shining in her wet eyes. “Don’t cry, baby,” I beg her.
“I can’t help it,” she tells me. “Apart from when I’m with you, I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy in my life.”
I smile back at her, absolutely loving seeing her like this. Then trying to keep myself from getting overly emotional and wondering just how many chances I might get to make her this happy again, I stand up and start pulling all the cat supplies out of my pockets.
The kitten watches me like a hawk, eyeing the toys I put down on the bed, more than ready to start chasing them around Zoey’s room. I add treats and a portable food and water bowl to the pile, surprised with just how much crap I was able to squeeze into my pockets.
“Holy shit,” Zoey says, eyeing it all. “Where am I supposed to hide all of this?”
“Your call, Zo,” I tell her. “I can take her home with me tonight and bring her back in the morning or—”
“Hell no,” she says, her brows furrowed, looking appalled at my suggestion. “What kind of momma would I be if I let you take my baby away every night? She’ll stay here with me.”
“You sure, babe? I know you don’t like breaking the rules and having pets in a place like this is definitely against the rules. Dr. Sanchez isn’t going to be down with this.”
Zoey smirks. “Maybe not for you, but when I push the whole therapy kitty angle and tell her how happy she would make all of her patients, she won’t be able to resist. Besides, it’s not like I’m going to advertise that she’s here. I’ll keep her hidden for as long as I can.”
“So, she’s going to sleep under the blankets with you?” I ask, a little jealous.
“Uh-huh,” Zoey smirks. “But don’t be surprised if you get a call in the middle of the night to come and get our cat.”
“Our cat?”
“Mm-hmm,” Zoey murmurs, her gaze so heavily focused on the tiny bundle of fluff in her lap, adoration shining in her beautiful green eyes. “You’re my person, Noah. So if this little sweet thing is my baby, that means by default, you’re her daddy.”
“Ah, shit.”
Zoey laughs and holds up the kitten, looking over her with deep consideration. “Hmmm, I think I’ll call you Allie.”
My brows furrow, having no idea where she pulled that name from. “Allie?” I question.
Zoey grins wide. “From The Notebook,” she tells me as though I should have already figured it out. “Noah and Allie. I’ve already got my Noah, but I need an Allie to complete the set.”
I shake my head, letting out a heavy breath as I scooch in beside Zoey on her bed, reaching over to put her laptop somewhere safe before pulling her into my arms as she holds tightly on to little Allie. “How are you feeling today?”
“Better now,” she admits. “It was mostly a shit day. I got a new neighbor, and the walls are paper thin. All I’ve been able to hear all day is how easy she thought her chemo treatment was. I’m about ready to march in there and shove my foot right up her ass.”
“That bad, huh?”
“Worse,” she mutters. “She also likes scrolling through TikTok with the volume all the way up.”
“You only need to get through two more weeks, and then you’re out of here,” I remind her, knowing my words are doing absolutely nothing to make her feel better about her situation.
Zoey lets out a heavy sigh before reaching up and pushing her hair back off her face, only when her hand falls away, she gasps with horror, her eyes widening. My head snaps toward her, trying to figure out what’s wrong when I glance down and find long strands of chestnut hair tangled between her slim fingers.