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during the day. He had been forced to retire from the police department after a drug dealer’s bullet put him in the hospital and surgery to repair his leg put him in a wheelchair. He’d learned to use crutches to get up and down stairs to a limited degree, but otherwise he stayed close to home. A sweet little cat would be perfect for him.
    â€œToo many to count. Listen, Mom, this poor little tabby has a broken leg and no home. I don’t want to turn her over to the animal shelter, so do you think you could adopt her? I’d take her myself, but Simon won’t share his turf. She’s a real cutie, Mom, and Dad might enjoy the comp—”
    â€œAbigail, recess is only fifteen minutes long. I just called to say I’ll be there right after school to drop off my latest art. We’ll talk then.”
    The tone of her voice wasn’t reassuring. “Okay, Mom. Bye.”
    â€œHey there, beautiful,” a deep male voice said near my ear as a pair of strong arms surrounded me. My heart skipped a beat as I turned and smiled into the face of my beloved.
    â€œHey, yourself, Salvare,” I said, winding my arms around Marco’s neck. “You’re a welcome sight. After the morning I’ve had, I sure could use a kiss.”
    â€œHappy to oblige.” He tilted his head to meet my lips. There was nothing wimpy about anything Marco did, and that applied to his kisses, too. He pulled me against him, and I melted into his arms, feeling all my stress flow right out of my body. But right in the middle of our smoking-hot kiss, Simon launched himself onto the desk, and from there leaped onto Marco’s shoulders.
    â€œSimon!” Before he could dig his claws into Marco’s flesh, I grabbed the cat and placed him on the floor. “Bad boy!”
    â€œWhat’s Simon doing here?” Marco asked, reaching down to scratch him behind the ears.
    I told him the tale of my morning misadventure with the tabby cat as I gathered my tools and stems and started to work on the next order. “And if all that wasn’t traumatic enough, my mom is bringing over a new piece of art after school today, Lottie is convinced one of our customers is a stalker, and your mom is still in town. By the way, I can’t wait for you to explain that one. So all in all, I’ve had a very trying time, and it’s not even noon.”
    Marco pulled out one of the wooden stools at the worktable and perched on it. He was wearing a long-sleeved black T-shirt with a white stripe down one arm and a Down the Hatch logo on the back, a pair of slim-fitting blue jeans, and black boots. I loved how the black T-shirt emphasized his dark, wavy hair and chocolate-colored eyes. “Tell me about the stalker.”
    â€œSure thing, right after you tell me why your mom is still in town.”
    â€œSunshine, given the morning you’ve had, let’s save it for when you’re in a better mood.”
    I ruffled his hair. “How sweet that you want to protect me from further trauma, Marco. But now that you’ve made it clear my mood will have to improve before I can handle the information, after which my mood will undoubtedly go downhill again, could you just get this over with?”
    Marco sighed. “My mom and my sister, Gina, want to throw you a wedding shower.”
    â€œIs that so bad? But let’s not refer to it as my shower. I’m not going through this alone, remember? Did you remind your mom that our wedding isn’t until September?”
    â€œAs I recall, she was in the room when we made the announcement.”
    â€œThat doesn’t mean she was listening. I love your mom, Marco, but she does like to talk. So you’d better explain to her again that there’s no need for her to stick around town now since any prewedding activities won’t take place for months.”
    Marco took my hand, palm-side up, and kissed the tender flesh in the middle, knowing full