Nico & Hope and a Partridge in a Pear Tree: Small town, feel good, romantic comedy (The Costa Brothers Cozy Christmas Comfort Romance Series Book 6) by Ellie Hall

Author:Ellie Hall [Hall, Ellie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-12-14T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 9

HOPE

At the mention of my cats, Jazzlyn’s question about whether they’re indoor or outdoor comes at me like a pair of claws. The hair on the back of my neck lifts.

Without grabbing my coat, panic sends me swiftly to the door. What if one of the twins let them outside? It’s below freezing, still snowing, and Marigold and Dandelion are both senior rescues. Marigold needs special medicine and Dandelion is missing an eye. They’ll barely make it on their own.

As I slip and slide down the sidewalk, my heart hurts at the thought of them being out here alone and scared.

I tell myself a variation of my usual mantra: things might seem bad, but they might not be in reality. I want to believe that, but experience has taught me differently. They could very well be as bad as I fear. There’s no telling what Jocelyn and Jazzlyn will do.

As I near my cottage, the discordant pounding of piano keys rings through the night. Footfalls pound down the sidewalk behind me.

Nico calls, “Hope what is it? Where are you going? What’s wrong?”

Breathless, I holler over my shoulder, “The cats. Did you hear that? The twins are probably chasing them. I’m afraid they’ll let them outside.”

A sense of foreboding hastens my steps. When I’m less than three long strides from the front door, it blows open.

Jazzlyn fills the space, backlit by the eerie glow of the television. “Scram, you rat.”

“No!” I scream as dread and adrenaline lay siege to my system. What if I lose my sweet kitties?

Marigold streaks toward me, slipping between my legs. I spin as Nico, holding my coat, scoops her up using it like a net. “Gotcha, kitty cat,” he says softly.

I turn back around as Jocelyn holds Dandelion at arms’ length, cackling. “I got this one. Look! I caught it.” She shoves past her sister and throws my cat toward the snowbank.

Her expression teeters when she sees me then she slips into a mask of malice, but there isn’t time to think about all the things I want to say to her.

Thankfully, adrenaline wins this fight as I leap sideways, arms lifted, like a baseball player catching a fly ball. We both land in the snow, but I cushion Dandelion against my chest, clutching her securely.

Nico, still holding a terrified and wiggling Marigold, extends his hand to help me stand up. If the twins want to laugh, now is the time. I’m like a turtle stuck upside down on its shell as I try to heave my way out of the snowbank without hurting or releasing the cat.

When I’m finally back on my feet, I don’t have much fight left in me. The words I want to fire at the Steps die on my tongue as the door to my cottage slams in our faces. I lift my fist to pound on the door and then pray for patience. For grace.

My hand falls because I have the key, but am I willing to fight the Steps.

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