Page 45 of Autumn at the Cat Cafe

For once he didn’t respond. And soon Via was getting back into the practice of applying eye shadow, trying not to look like a clown. She rarely bothered with it. The cats didn’t care. Neither did the humans.

“Is it too much?” She turned to Sir.

He replied by jumping off the counter and running out of the room.

“Thanks for your support!” she hollered. She took a damp washcloth, wiped away the neutral-toned eyeshadow, and put on a little mascara and a swipe of berry lip gloss. Good enough. She quickly curled her hair, brushed out the waves, and tucked one side behind her ear to reveal the pumpkin earring.

She put an orange-and-white bandana around Sir’s neck and placed him in his catpack, a knapsack with a mesh screen that allowed Sir to be carried around in comfort, and zipped him in. She had already set water bottles in both side pockets and shoved herwallet in the compartment on the back of the pack, then slung it over her shoulders and picked up the keys to Gold Yeller out of the key bowl near the front door.

Earl had given her the duplicates and let her borrow it anytime she needed to haul something. The nineties-era truck still held up well. The downside was that the only modern convenience was air-conditioning. Even the windows had to be hand-cranked up and down.

She knocked on Leo’s door. No answer. Knocked again. Silence. “Leo?”

“Meow?” Sir said from the catpack.

Nothing.

Familiar dread gathered inside her. Did he stand her up after all?

She pounded on the door in case he was in the shower or something.

“Meow!” Sir said from the catpack, as if he were trying to help.

Still no response. Fine. She was going to the pumpkin patch with or without him. But it wasn’t just anger she felt. It was acute disappointment. She thought he was different. She should have known better.

As she hit the bottom step, ready to turn and go out the back way to the parking lot behind the building, she heard a muffled, angry shout from outside. She halted. It sounded like Leo. He hadn’t left her high and dry. Or maybe he was trying to run off.

Chapter 11

Via held her fingertips to her temples. What was she doing, allowing herself to spiral like this? Leo wasn’t Trevor. He hadn’t gaslit her, or lied to her, or done anything to her except not be at his apartment at precisely 4:30 p.m.

Another shout—not so family friendly this time.

Via opened the door to see him looking under the trunk lid of his Turismo. “Leo?”

He jumped, hitting his head on the hood. “Ow!”

“Sorry!” She instinctively reached out and touched his shoulder.

Leo glanced at her hand and scowled.

She quickly jerked it back and he ducked under the trunk again. She peered inside. “The engine’s in the trunk?”

“Yessss.” He fully straightened up. “Watch out,” he snapped and slammed the trunk shut. Then he whipped out his phone and started scrolling through it.

This was the first time she’d ever seen him emotional about anything.

“What’s going on?” Dora came up beside Via. “I was waiting for you guys in the back.”

“Engine trouble?” Via said, shrugging.

“Ah, thank God.” He pressed on the screen and quickly got an answer. “Service department. SER-VICE DE-PART-MENT,” he yelled into the phone.

Via and Dora exchanged glances.

“Can I just get a real person? Yes, hello? I’ve got a Gran Turismo, 2024. Won’t start.”

“Uh-oh,” Dora said.