Chapter 3

Once I reached the door, I placed a kiss on her head and set her down.

“I’m going up and I’m sure Dante doesn’t want you going into a strange building. You’d better get home, miss.”

I opened the lobby door and she darted in ahead of me.

She looked back at me and meowed.

“You can’t come up. I don’t think they allow pets.”

She looked at me unfazed. Of course she did, because she was a cat.

“Simone! No. Come on.”

No amount of urging was going to make a stubborn feline move. I was going to have to put her outside. Just as I went to pick her up, the elevator opened and she ran into the car, between the legs of the person getting out.

“Well, sort of. It’s a long story.”

Simone sat patiently waiting for me and meowed softly when I entered the elevator.

“Ok, fine. You can come up and visit, but you can’t stay.”

She stretched up against me and I took it as she wanted me to pick her up again. I pulled her up into my arms and held her. We got off the elevator on the third floor and I entered my apartment. I walked over to the couch and set her down.

“Keep the claws off of the furniture. Got it?”

She squinted at me and hopped down onto the floor. She spent the next 20 minutes inspecting the place. She went into every room, not that there were many to explore. I had a kitchen and living room, a bedroom with a decent sized closet, a master bath, a half bath that was also a laundry room, and a tiny spare room that I used as an office. After her tour she jumped onto the couch and I sat down with her. She crawled onto my lap and curled up. I stroked her back slowly and soon she was asleep.

It was relaxing to have a sleeping cat in my lap. I continued to pet her and before I knew it, I had dozed off myself. I woke up an hour later and nudged Simone awake. She stretched and let out the most adorable little sound. She jumped down onto the floor and walked into my bedroom. I heard her meow so I went to investigate. She was up on the window sill, pawing at the window. It was the window that led to the fire escape.

“You want to go out there?”

I opened the window and she jumped down onto the platform. She looked back and squinted at me before making her way down the fire escape. Of course she knew about fire escapes. She was a city cat after all.

The next evening I was laying on my bed reading when I heard a sound at the window. I looked up and saw a familiar black cat on the other side of the window. I unlocked the latch and Simone hopped in. She jumped up onto the bed and curled up at the end. I laid back down and picked my book up. After a few minutes a felt a tiny paw on my leg and I set my book down to see her slowly inching her way up the bed. She settled on a spot, which was the on the pillow next to me, and curled up. She reached her little paw up and gently laid on my arm. I set my book aside and rolled over to face her. I placed a tiny kiss on her nose and ran my nails through the fur on her head and cheeks. She purred loudly and closed her eyes. When I woke the next morning, she hadn’t moved.

Simone visited the next two nights and I knew what I had to do. I visited the local pet supply store and returned home with bowls, food, a scratching post, an enclosed litter box and a box of litter. The nice lady at the store helped me choose the best products I could get. I figured if I was going to have a regular visitor, I should be a gracious host.

The evening visits from Simone had become a regular occurrence. It was comforting having her around and I had to remind myself that she wasn’t actually my cat. Actually, it was more than comforting. I looked forward to her visits every night. She was the sweetest, most loving animal I’d ever met. If she wasn’t laying on me, she was at least right next to me. If I was busy with chores, she was always watching what I was doing, at times interrupting so she could give me little nose bumps or rub up against me.

At bed time, she waited for me on my spare pillow and would either sleep on me or curl up close to me. I loved her so much and wished that she was mine. I hoped that Dante wouldn’t be mad that I was letting her in. I needed to tell him and I had plenty of opportunities to tell him too, but I wasn’t sure how to bring it up or how he’d react.

I’d kept my word and Dante and I gone out as friends a number of times. We’d hit up a few local bars to watch bands play and to have a few drinks. He was hilarious and was a blast to hang out with. He was becoming such a good friend and I even helped introduce him to a sexy Puerto Rican girl we met one night. I had to stop in and pick some stuff up after work, so I’d tell him then.

Speaking of the market, Simone still spent her days lounging around there, greeting customers and keeping Dante company. It seemed she had settled into a schedule that suited her. The only times I didn’t see her were the times that Maria was over. We were still seeing each other, but we were taking it slow. We’d go out to dinner once or twice a week and maybe catch a movie or some other fun activity, but we’d just started visiting each other’s homes. Even though it had been a little over a month, the farthest we had gone was kissing and some light groping over clothing. I was feeling guarded and wasn’t sure I was ready to let my heart be so vulnerable yet. So far, Maria seemed to understand, but I had been thinking that maybe it was time to take things a little farther? I’d definitely have to consider that. First, I had to go confess.

“Afternoon, Char. What up?”

“Afternoon, Dante. Hi, Simone!”

I waved to my favorite black cat, who was lounging on a shelf in the window behind the front counter.

“I uhm, I came to talk to you. I’ve done a…thing, and I hope you’re not mad?”

“Girl, we’re friends. I can’t be mad at you. Wait, you didn’t steal my girl did you?”

“Uhm, actually…kind of.”

“Stop playing Char. You almost had me. Really though, what’s going on?”

“I’ve uh, I’ve been getting regular visits from Simone. She’s been sleeping at my place most nights.”

I waited for the inevitable.

“That’s all? Damn, I thought you were going to confess some juicy shit. Thats cool. See, Simone…. uhm, I don’t OWN her, but I’m more like her caretaker. I tried to keep her locked up in my apartment upstairs, but she’s stubborn so I gave up on that fight. She does her own thing and she knows she’s safe here. I know she’s safe with you too.”

“Well, I feel ridiculous for agonizing for so long about telling you now. It felt like a huge deal to me.”

“Thank you for telling me. I’m sorry you felt that way, but it just shows that you’re a good person.”

“Ok… now that we have that out of the way… what’s going on with Dante today?”

“Other than running the store? Thinking about what I’m going to be for Halloween.”

“You are aware that Halloween is just a few weeks away, right? This neighborhood likes to have fun and almost everyone dresses up for Halloween. The store owners dress up through the day, and in the evening, the trick or treaters come around and we pass out candy. There are Halloween parties at all the bars and the streets are filled with all the people in costume.”

“That’s so cool! So, what are you going to be?”

“I don’t know? A vampire, maybe?”

“I guess I’d better figure out my costume too. I’d better ask Maria what she’s going as, too.”

“Right? Did you come in for some stuff, or did you just need to clear your conscience?”

“No, I’m going to grab some stuff. I’ll be right back.”

I felt much better after talking to Dante about Simone. Hearing about Halloween excited me too! I definitely needed to check with Maria about our costumes. Maybe I could find something a little sexy and revealing to wear? I liked that idea!

After dinner, I was laying on my bed, talking on the phone with Maria about Halloween costumes, when my usual guest arrived.

“Simone!” I got up and let her in through the window.

“I can’t believe you let that crazy cat stay with you. She might kill you in your sleep, you know?”

“Oh, stop. She’s a sweetheart! I’m sure she’s sorry about clawing your leg too.”

“I don’t know, she might be bloodthirsty. I told you I had bad vibes about her.”

“Anyway, what are you thinking about for a costume?

“I don’t know? There are so many choices! Maybe we could go costume shopping soon. Maybe this weekend?”

“That’s a good idea. I’m sure we’ll figure something out. Let’s do dinner tomorrow and talk about it more, ok?”

“I’d like that. Talk to you tomorrow, Char.”

I set my phone down, rolled over towards Simone and scooped her up in my arms. The little motor inside of her was humming loudly.

“I don’t get what Maria’s deal is with you? You’re the sweetest ever. Yes you are!”

She rubbed her head against my chin.

“Oh, I love you too, Simone! I’m so glad I met you. I sure don’t get any bad vibes from you.”

I laid on my back and let Simone lay on my chest. I slowly ran my nails from her head and down her back.

“Thank you for keeping me company. It gets lonely here by myself.”

Yes, I was talking to a cat.

“I don’t know what to do about Maria. She’s really nice and we have fun together. She’s pretty too, but I just feel like…I don’t know, like I can’t let my guard down. Maybe I just need to go for it. What do you think, Miss Simone?”

I swear she rolled her eyes before she got up and hopped onto the floor.

I got up too and turned on some television. Simone joined me and we sat on the couch for a few hours. After a while, I decided it was time for bed and I fell asleep with my favorite black kitty curled up next to me.

Maria and I had dinner the next night and came up with a few ideas for Halloween costumes that we could wear as a couple. No, we weren’t going to go dressed as a horse where one of us was the head and the other the…back. We’d each be wearing our own costumes. We cracked ourselves up with some of our ideas but we settled on a few that seemed like they’d be perfect. I was excited about dressing up with her and I could tell she was excited too, which made me happy. Maybe this thing with Maria was really it? We planned to meet up over the weekend and visit a couple costume shops as well as a Halloween specialty store.

After our day of shopping for our costumes I was feeling a bit worn out. We had a great time and visited many more stores than just the costume shops. The costumes we decided on were fun and while Maria was busy looking at other things, I managed to pick up something for “underneath” my costume. I had been seriously considering taking our relationship to the next step and was feeling like I was ready to be intimate with someone again. While sexy lingerie might not be necessary, it sure sounded like fun.

I was in my bedroom that evening when Simone arrived. I let her in as usual and showed her some love. I was getting ready to put my purchases away for the day when she arrived, and I showed her what I had purchased, not that a cat would have interest or understanding of what she was seeing. Maybe I was becoming a crazy cat lady?