Chapter 17 - Stepping Out

Tiara decides that just one kitten isn't going to keep her company enough. It's time to go meet the neighbors.

The kitty park seems like a good place to start~!

The first person she meets is very pregnant.

"Tiara Toft! Nice to meet you!"

"Jazlyn Parrott." She seems to be perpetually unhappy, but Tiara supposes it must be from being pregnant in constant hot weather like this.

"How much longer do you have to go?" Tiara chirps, studying the belly.

Jazlyn thinks about it for a long moment. "Another day or two, I'd say."

"Oh my gosh, you're going to have such pretty babies!"

This manages to bring a smile to Jazlyn's lips.

Within minutes, the two are fast friends.

Socializing is sweaty work out in the heat of the day, however, and so Tiara makes the public pool her next destination.

Fountains~! Whee!

Tiara distracts herself relatively well with the jets, giggling as she lets them shower down on her, but she's still alert enough to hear a faint chuckle nearby.

"Having fun?" the man asks when he realizes that Tiara notices him. His smile is teasing but not lecherous and thus Tiara has no problem with grinning back and heaving herself out of the water to better talk to him.

Zac Whipsnake is his name and he is almost frighteningly intimidating thanks to heavy eyebrows and a well-cut jawline. Once his first smile vanishes, it never seems to return.

Zac is a natural cook, and Tiara wastes no time in pulling kitchen secrets out of him.

"You see, you have to cube the cheese just so to release the latent flavors. And pair the plate with a good wine. Otherwise it will fall flat as a dessert."

"That is so cool! I never would've thought of that!"

By the time that the two of them have to race off to their respective careers, Zac to the bistro and Tiara to the theater, she has his number tucked safely away in her cell phone.

She's barely walked in the door that night when Toulouse tackles her and mewls pathetically. The scratching post is already worn to shreds and there are claw marks on the couch as well. Tiara huffs...but really, she reasons, she can't be mad at Toulouse. She's the one who left a kitten alone all day and expected him to entertain himself.

It's really not a chore to call up the adoption center and adopt another kitten.

Meet Hitle- I mean, Dizzy!

Dizzy and Toulouse are both extremely hyper kittens. They take two seconds to sniff each other...and then they are running around the house like madmen.

Tiara can only watch those kittens for so long before she sighs and feels that weird urge to go out and be around actual people. Cats are incredible, but they're no replacement for human beings.

The Watering Hole seems like a decent place to check out.

Tiara's never actually had a drink of alcohol. It might be a fun night to do so.

She doesn't quite expect the person at the end of the bar to look so familiar.

"Tiara?" he says, quirking one of those impressive manly man eyebrows at her.

"Fancy meeting you again!" she chirps, shaking his hand. "How was work?"

"About the same as always." He scoffs, looking away. "Got passed over for a promotion. It's bullshit."

She's familiar with these things from her own mother and thus knows how to give the perfect sympathetic nod.

As the two chat, time seems to fall away. More recipes are shared. Tiara chatters about her family and Bridgeport and how Appaloosa Plains is so different from it and how she misses Naomi and her mom...and eventually she realizes that Zac is looking a little overwhelmed with all of the information.

She wracks her brain. WWRD: What Would Rhiannon Do?

"Want a drink?"

Zac nods, looking relieved, and Tiara heads over to the bar.

As she waits for the drinks, however, she makes little peeks over her shoulder at Zac, admiring the strong build of his face and the darkness of his skin. She saw so few people back in Bridgeport that weren't as pale as if they'd never seen the sun in their lives. Meeting Zac feels...like home.

And then there are the times where their eyes meet during those peeks and that a little spark shoots through Tiara's veins. She shivers every time, staring at the bar counter with a giddy smile.

By the time that she turns to bring him their drinks, she can actually feel when Zac's eyes are on her, burning into different parts of her body. It's addicting.

The intensity only builds in his green eyes as they drink and drink and drink, until he's talking in vaguely slurred tones and Tiara's more than delighted that she shunned the alcohol after the first glass for some juice instead. "Wanna dance?"

They dance.

If Tiara is using the excuse to get closer to him, then there's no harm, no foul.

But before she can pull any moves on him, the bar is shut down.

"Guess I'm going," Zac murmurs. "I'll call you sometime?"

"Oh, please do!"

Sleeping isn't as fun when you have a kitten to sit there and screech at you every five minutes for more food instead of a boy to cuddle with.