Mike laughed. “Norman has a way of making his feelings known, doesn’t he?”
“Oh, yes. Norman communicates better than some people I know.”
Mike helped her out of the truck, then carried her bag for her, waiting close behind her as she unlocked the door to her apartment. “Do you think Norman would let me say hi to him?”
She opened the door with a smile. “You can try.”
Grinning, he accompanied her inside.
True to her prediction, Norman gave them one disdainful look, then sneered and pointedly turned his back to them, making Mike laugh again. “Oh, man, you are really going to have to crawl.”
“Tell me about it.” Smiling, she walked straight to the pantry for the salmon snacks.
Mike leaned a shoulder against a wall and watched as she coaxed Norman into a better mood. The cat was purring by the time she rose and went back into the kitchen to refill his food and water bowls. There was still a little dry kitty kibble in the food bowl, but she refilled it, anyway, just to keep him happy.
Hearing a sound behind her, she turned to see Mike standing in the doorway with Norman lying contently in his arms. “I apologized to him for taking you away for the weekend.”
“I see he’s forgiven you.”
“Provisionally.”
“You’re lucky he made it so easy for you. Can I get you anything?”
“No, I’m good. Thanks.” With a final pat to Norman’s head, he set the cat on the floor, then straightened.
Something about his expression caught Catherine’s attention. She sensed that he was about to say something momentous, and a moment later he proved her right. “Catherine, will you come with me to my parents’ house for Thanksgiving dinner?”
Startled, she said, “I, uh—what?”
“I know it’s r
eally short notice and maybe you already have other plans. We haven’t talked about Thanksgiving because I wasn’t sure how you would feel about me asking you. I know your first impression of my sisters wasn’t very positive, but they really are nicer than they acted that night. I had a pretty good talk with both of them after the Halloween party, and they both admitted they didn’t behave very well. I promise they’ll be nice to you Thursday or red heads will roll.”
While she was touched that he had asked, she had to shake her head. She would decide later whether she was relieved or disappointed that she had a legitimate reason to decline. “I’m sorry, Mike, but I’ve already told Karen I would join her dinner party for Thanksgiving. It would be rude to rescind my acceptance at this late date.”
He allowed his own disappointment to show on his face. “I’m sorry to hear that. I guess I should have risked asking you earlier.”
“I really do appreciate the invitation.”
“So Karen invited you to join her and Wayne for Thanksgiving?”
“Yes. She’s having a, um, few people over for the holiday.”
He must have noticed her slight hesitation. Or perhaps he read her expression a bit too well. “Who all will be there?”
She swallowed a sigh, suspecting he wasn’t going to like her answer. “Karen and Wayne, of course. Bonnie and Chris. And Bill James.”
Mike’s eyes narrowed. “Bill James?”
“His mother died recently, and he has no other family in this area. Karen didn’t want him to be alone for Thanksgiving.”
“So she set him up with you?”
“It isn’t a setup. She invited us both as friends and colleagues who had no other plans for the holiday. There’s nothing more to it.”
“Does he know that?”
“I’m sure he does,” she said, though she couldn’t speak with the certainty he might have liked.