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She giggled. “Are you joking? He’ll love him. Go.”
Mamápatted me on the cheek before she wandered toward the kitchen, probably to night bake like she did sometimes when she couldn’t sleep. She explained it was because Papá wasn’t on the other side of the bed, and I couldn’t imagine being with someone for so long, only to have them suddenly gone.
I made my way back to my room, and when I got there, I turned the knob of the door, swinging it open. Manny lay on his back on the bed, dressed in a plain gray T-shirt and a pair of red pajama pants. As soon as he heard the door, though, he flung up and toward me, stopping inches away. His eyes widened and his mouth dropped open.
“It’s not a tiger,” he whispered, “But it’s a…. What is it?”
I chuckled and leaned over to kiss his nose. “He’s a bobcat.”
“Mierda.” He held out his hands, and I transferred the gray spotted cub into his arms. “He’s beautiful.”
“He won’t grow as big as a tiger, so we won’t need the land, but we’ll need to take him for walks. Give him good exercise every day. He can still take off your hand if he’s not trained well.” I gave him a stern look and he laughed, his smile so wide I thought it might break his face.
“Where did you find him?” Manny whispered.
“Maddock. I said that I had business with him when we were in Pleasant Beach, and I wasn’t lying. He’s more than a business partner, he’s a good friend of mine. When he hears about poachers or animal smugglers trading in body parts, he… deals with them and finds the animals good homes. Unfortunately once the animals are taken from their mothers at a young age, it’s hard to integrate them back into their habitat. A lot of them just die. So Maddock makes sure they have a good life.”
“And you help him?” He gave me the widest lovestruck look. I thought I felt my heart thump so hard I was going to fall over. It was a ridiculous thought, but Manny made me feel a way no one ever had. He really was my version of cocaine.
“I fund his own poaching expeditions, but it’s not the animals he’s hunting.” I came closer to him and kissed him on the forehead. “But if you want this animal as yours, Manny, promise me you’ll train him well. I won’t have him taking a bite out of you. Preciosa is different. She’s not a wildcat.”
“I know,” he whispered with a gentle smile. “I promise I’ll spend the time to train him.”
“I’ll bring someone trustworthy on the payroll. They can help you. Maddock said he knows someone.”
Manny petted the bobcat and he let out a low growl. “Okay. Can I name him now?”
I laughed hard. “Yes, hermoso, you can name him.”
He bounced on his toes and grinned. “His name will be Sir Coco Cara Esponjosa Reyes-Méndez.”
The bobcat growled in his little wild kitty way, as though agreeing with the name. I rolled my eyes and laughed. How did I live so long without Manny?
