Page 73 of Not Just Gal Pals

I wrapped my arms around her waist and smiled at her.

“I am so happy you came back.” My voice was gentle and low.

“I’m so happy to be back.”

She leaned in, and we kissed as if we’d been apart for months, rather than hours. I shut my eyes, inhaling her familiar scent, holding onto her as if I’d never let go.

And I wouldn’t have if snow hadn’t started to fall, first slowly, dusting our heads and settling on our shoulders, and then faster, whirling around us in a beautiful, icy dance.

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

JENNY

I knocked on the door, my stomach full of butterflies. If this went badly, it could mess everything up. We wouldn’t be able to move in together next year. In fact, we’d probably need to live apart until one of them died—a scenario I didn’t want to contemplate for multiple reasons. The stakes were high, much higher than when we’d officially met each other’s parents over Thanksgiving, which, unbelievably, was just a little over a week ago.

“Now, behave, okay?” I said, looking down at Walter. “Just because @charlietheinstagramcat was a dick doesn’t mean all cats are. It would be very narrow-minded of you to make that assumption. Fred is really quite lovely.”

I heard footsteps approaching and took in a deep breath, only releasing it when Blake opened the door.

“Hi, babe.” Blake grinned, leaning out to plant a quick kiss on my lips. “Hey, Walter, are you ready to meet Fred?”

Walter began tugging on the leash to go inside.

“We’ll take that as a yes!”

Blake opened the door, and Walter and I walked in.

“Fred’s down in the living room.”

We walked down the hall, my stomach churning, and into the colorful living room, where Fred sat curled up on his usual corner of the couch. Please like each other. Please like each other.

As planned, Blake kept a close eye on Fred’s body language, while I focused all my attention on Walter.

Fred immediately spotted Walter but remained seated on the couch, looking curious but unconcerned. Fred, it appeared, was totally chill about the intruder.

Walter, on the other hand, still hadn’t spotted Fred. He was sniffing the carpet, potentially picking up Fred’s scent or, perhaps—more likely—a scrap of pizza we’d dropped last night.

“Walter, look. There’s Fred!” Blake said, crouching down next to him and pointing at Fred.

Walter started wandering in the other direction. I shook my head, giggling, some of the tension dissipating. “God, he’s hopeless! Walter, look, there’s a cat! I might need to go get his eyes tested.”

“He could see well enough at lunch today to snap up that piece of prosciutto I dropped within seconds, so I’m not sure that’s the issue.” Blake chuckled. “Maybe I should put Fred onto the carpet, too, so they’re at the same level?”

I nodded, and Blake picked up Fred and plopped him on the carpet. Fred promptly sat down, still eyeing Walter with interest but, as far as I could tell, no malice.

Finally, Walter noticed Fred’s feline presence. He froze.

My heart skipped a beat. This was the moment of truth. I gripped his leash, ready to pull him back or, if need be, throw myself between Fred and Walter to avoid either ending up at the vet.

Walter tentatively took a step toward Fred.

Fred stood up and took a step toward Walter.

“Oh god, this is stressful!” I muttered to Blake.

They both took another step forward. And another. And another.

And then they stopped about a foot apart. My pulse thumped in my ears. Please don’t pounce.