The Predicament of Persians - A.G. Henley Page 0,44

ran out.”

I grimace when he says she’d been crying. “Any idea where she went?”

He shakes his head and scratches his belly. His torso is weirdly hairless, like a kid’s. “When she’s mad at home, she takes Juliet out on the deck and sulks.”

I think about that. “Thanks, James. Hey, how did you know she was mad at me?”

“I didn’t. But Kathleen doesn’t get mad much, and she never has a boyfriend. I figured if you’re her new boyfriend, she’s probably mad at you.”

His logic isn’t wrong.

“Do me a favor,” I say. “If she comes back to the room, will you try to get her to stay here so I can talk to her?”

He thinks about it. “I could sure use a few bucks to pay for Netflix this month. Can you believe Kathleen makes me pay for it myself?”

I’m itching to search the hotel for Kathleen and Juliet, but I pause. “What else do you pay for?”

James shifts his feet. “I mean, I buy groceries sometimes.”

“Look,” I say. “No more money. From me or from your sister. You’re a grown man, James. You should have a job that pays your bills and quit relying on your sister to support you. You need to man up.”

He rolls his eyes and stretches. “You sound exactly like her. You two deserve each other.”

Hearing that makes my blood zing through my veins. He didn’t mean it this way, but even James thinks Kathleen and I should be together. If only she’ll agree.

I pull out my phone. “What’s your number? If I can’t find Kathleen, I’m going to call you to see if she’s here.” Reluctantly, he gives it to me. I turn back toward the elevator.

“Joe,” James says, “try that hot tub up on the top floor.”

“You think Kathleen took Juliet in a hot tub?”

He scoffs. “Not in the hot tub, but there are deck chairs up there. That’s where I’d look.”

He actually sounds like he’s trying to help, so I thank him. I ride to the top floor, where sure enough, I find a sign that points to a hot tub. I follow it, open the outside door, and find Kathleen. In a chair, like James said.

Two kids splash around in the spa, and their mom sits nearby reading a magazine. Kathleen sits in a chair off to the side of the open deck, looking out toward the mountains and cradling Juliet in her arms.

I grab a chair and carry it toward her. When she sees me coming, she turns away.

“I don’t want to talk to you,” she says.

I sit beside her. Normally, I’d respect her wishes, but this isn’t the time to back down. “Please, Kathleen. Give me a chance to explain.”

“What is there to explain? I think it’s all pretty obvious.” Her voice is loud and scratchy, as if she’s been crying. She glances past me at the family. The mom looks very still, like she’s eavesdropping.

“It’s not as obvious as it may seem.” I pull my chair an inch closer. Juliet watches me, her green eyes passive. She really is a stunning cat. In so many ways, her quartz white fur and lime green eyes are the exact opposite of my black and amber Romeo. They would make a gorgeous couple.

“Hello, Juliet,” I say.

“Don’t speak to her.”

I sigh. “Kathleen, please. Don’t be ridiculous.”

“Ridiculous?” She starts to stand.

“Wait! I’m sorry, bad choice of words. Please hear me out, okay?”

She sits, jostling Juliet, who blinks and meows in an annoyed way. “Fine. Go ahead.”

Showtime. I have to make this good. I turn toward her and balance my forearms on my thighs.

“Okay. Friday night in the lounge, I had no idea that you were Juliet’s owner. I really didn’t. You weren’t in any of her posts, and since we only traded DMs over the months, I never knew your real name. You obviously didn’t know mine, either, or what I looked like, so I hope you believe that.”

I wait, but she doesn’t answer. She doesn’t even look my way. She’s staring at the view, her hand moving slowly through Juliet’s fur.

“And to go back farther, I’m so sorry for some of the comments I made online toward you and Juliet. That was petty and immature. Honestly, I thought you might take the whole feud thing as a joke, like I did, but I realized after a while that you didn’t. I tried to stop, but by then, our fans had caught on and, well, it became a flame war.”

She nods at that, at