Page 18 of Herding Cat

“Yeah. Sure,” he said. “I’ll, ah, be out here on the couch if you need anything.”

She didn’t even look at him before walking into her room.

Damn it all.

He threw himself on the couch and grabbed the remote but couldn’t find anything interesting on the television, so he flipped desultorily through one of her fashion magazines. It was hardly his kind of reading material. He couldn’t help wishing his room were closer so he could go snag a book. But he knew, even if it were, he would never leave her alone. Not for a second.

He pushed to his feet and crossed to the window, leaning against the wall and staring out at the night lights of Hong Kong, though he hardly noticed the spectacular view. His mind was filled with other images. Fantasies. Wishes. All featuring a certain wildcat who thought they were too mismatched to even give what they had a try.

He wasn’t sure how long he stood there before he heard the snick of a door opening, and turned.

His heart stopped. Breath caught.

God. She was beautiful in the muted light, wearing a flowing nightgown. With her hair down and her face soft. But her expression was troubled.

“Are you all right?” he asked.

“Yes.” Clearly a lie.

“Can’t sleep?”

“I keep thinking of those girls.” She tangled her fingers and sighed. “Those poor girls. With no parents. No family. Nothing.”

Garrett didn’t know how to respond. Clearly the interaction with those children had affected her deeply. After a moment he muttered, “But you can change that.”

Her gaze snapped to him, her eyes wide. He had no idea why she seemed so surprised at his declaration because she’d made the offer herself.

“You mentioned you wanted to help them,” he reminded her.

“Oh. Oh. Right.” She nodded, but he had the distinct impression she had been thinking of something else entirely. She sat in the armchair and huffed another sigh, clearly absorbed in her private thoughts.

It annoyed him a little, because she was utterly unaware of him, but everything about her—the sight of her, her scent, her presence—put him on point. He had to wish they’d never shared that one kiss, because now it just made him ache for more.

He sat on the sofa, far from her, linked his fingers and stared at them. He tried very hard not to look at her, but failed.

“Are you hungry?”

He jumped at her question, because he’d been in the midst of another fantasy that made his body uncomfortable. “I could eat.” Always. He could always eat.

She set her hand on her belly and nodded. “Burgers?”

Burgers two nights in a row in Hong Kong seemed like kind of a sacrilege, but he was missing good old American food so he nodded. “I’ll order. Do you want anything else?”

They decided on their meals and Garrett called down to room service. It was annoying that it had ceased deliveries for the night an hour ago, but he was able to convince the staff that it would be worth their while.

More annoying still was the fact that they sat there in the living room of her suite avoiding each other’s gazes and not speaking much while they waited.

He couldn’t help thinking it was a phenomenal waste of time.

There were so many nicer ways he could imagine spending an evening with her.

It was a damn shame she couldn’t see it.

Chapter Five

The food arrived much more quickly than Catherine had expected, which was a tremendous relief. The tension between her and Garrett sizzled and made her nerves hum.

She replayed that kiss, the hard, powerful feel of his body when they’d brushed against each other, the sound of his voice, the taste of his breath...all of it made her weak and wanting.