Finding Isadora(67)

Hmm. It seemed he led a pretty balanced life, and with the help of Miki and Sun-Hi took decent care of himself. Why had I assumed otherwise? I remembered I’d also been surprised to learn he had a pretty good notion of how to run a business. Normally I didn’t believe in leaping to conclusions about people, but with Gabriel I always seemed to want to think the worst.

A defense mechanism. An increasingly futile attempt to not like, not respect, not be attracted to him.

I glanced sideways. He had a striking profile, with his strong features and flowing hair. He was probably dating some exciting woman. Maybe Sun-Hi or Miki. Or both of them. Perhaps that’s why they took such fine care of him.

“Are most of your friends lawyers?” I ventured.

“God, no. They’re a mixed bag. A few family friends from way back—like a Portuguese woman, Maria, who was a close friend of my mother’s. But most of the others I met through some cause or other, and somehow the relationships stuck.”

I really, really wanted to ask if he was dating, but I couldn’t even think how to phrase the question. I was sure words like dating, girlfriend, or seeing would make him laugh, but I could hardly ask if he was sleeping with anyone. Besides, I had no legitimate excuse for asking.

We’d reached the front door of my building, so I said, “Well, thanks for the earrings, Gabriel. You shouldn’t have.”

He studied me, his head tilted to one side. “Feel like company walking Pogo?”

“Uh, sure, if you want.” More time with Gabriel. Just what I didn’t need. And yet when the man was beside me, I couldn’t bear to send him away.

“Been sitting all day,” he said. “Could use a stretch.”

It was harmless. Everything we’d done had been harmless. But nothing felt that way.

I unlocked the front door. “Come on then.”

Out of habit I took the stairs, and our arms brushed as we walked up. The stairwell had never seemed so narrow before.

He cleared his throat. “Lucky to find a building that takes dogs.”

“It’s one of my basic requirements. Grace and Jimmy Lee’s place doesn’t, but at least they can have cats. And once I gave them an injured boa constrictor, a little guy who wasn’t a danger to the cats. Grace loved him but he made Jimmy Lee nervous.”

And speaking of nervous, thank heavens we’d reached the top of the stairs. The corridor was wider, and I promptly stepped away from Gabriel. “Luckily, one of Grace’s students—she tutors special needs kids—fell in love with Captain Crunch and took him home.”

“Captain Crunch.” He gave a snort of laughter. “I’d be nervous, too.”

“He was really a very friendly snake.”

“That’s what I’d be scared of. Tell me you don’t have any boas in your apartment.”

“Not at the moment.”

As I unlocked my door, I heard Pogo whuffling and snorting on the other side. He’d learned not to bark inside the building, but he was always so eager to greet me that his joy needed a verbal outlet.

The moment I stepped inside, he jumped up and down, landing on my toes more often than not. Then, as Gabriel came in, Pogo landed on all threes and froze. But only for a minute. Clearly, he recalled Gabriel’s scent because soon he was leaping all over his feet, too.

Gabriel bent down to pat him. “Hey, Pogo, how’s it going?”

Owl called, “‘Bout time you made it home, cutie,” and Gabriel jerked.

“Be nice, we have company,” I called. To Gabriel I said, “Don’t mind him. That’s Owl, my parrot.”

“I thought— Never mind.”

He stood straight again and suddenly seemed too big, too close, too real. Gabriel, in my apartment. I took a step backward and said nervously, “I should just check my cell. I keep it turned off at work. I’ll only be a minute. Uh, go on in and make yourself comfortable.” What would he think of my tiny living space, so different from his? Thank god I’d folded my hide-a-bed back into a couch this morning.

I went into the bathroom and smoothed lotion into my face and hands, and dabbed on lip gloss, telling myself it was because my skin got so dry at the clinic. Then I checked messages. Only one, a text from Grace, saying she and Jimmy Lee had taken Alyssa to the hospital and both mother and daughter had dissolved in tears of joy.

When I went to find Gabriel, I saw he’d settled in my reading chair with a purring Alice on his lap, looking far too much as if he belonged.

I reported the news from the hospital, then told him I’d met Alyssa and she was a great little girl. “My parents have always done this. Taken in strays.”

“Not like anyone else I know.” He gestured toward my feet, where Pogo panted up at me with a hopeful expression on his face.

I laughed, conceding the point. “Between their stray people and my stray animals, our homes were always packed full. It took me some time to get used to living by myself with only a few animals for company, but I admit I like the space.”

Although Richard and I were planning to move in together. Why hadn’t I told Gabriel that? Maybe because I was having so much difficulty envisioning it myself.

“Not many people would consider this place spacious,” Gabriel said. “You could fit your whole apartment into the bedroom at my place.”