A Sensitive Arrangement

Chapter 18

I had barely walked in the door, and already a tiny kitten was being shoved into my hands. A very dirty tiny kitten.

"Oh thank God you're here. Someone just dropped off a litter of these guys. They had been abandoned near the train station, poor things. Any chance you could get them all cleaned up before Dr. Kane gets here in thirty minutes?" Jackie, the shelter manager, asked. She was clearly at the end of her rope, holding a basket full of several adorable but muddy kittens, all doing their best to escape.

"Yeah, no problem." I smiled, already enamored by my new little feline friend. I placed him into the basket with his siblings and took it off Jackie's hands.

"Great, we have a new volunteer coming in any minute. He can help. I'll send him back to the grooming station when he gets in." She seemed so frazzled. I wanted to assure her everything would be okay, but I had a sneaking suspicion that it wouldn't help ease her nerves any.

"Sure thing boss." I joked, premeditating her response.

"Not your boss." She replied, already rushing off to her next task. If I needed any further proof that today would be crazy, I had just received it. Ordinarily Jackie would make a cheeky comment about not paying me. Or at least ask me how my Christmas had been.

"Let's get you guys cleaned up." I cooed to the kittens, bringing them back to the grooming station room.

It only took about thirty seconds to realize this was a two person job. One to wrangle the cats and one to actually wash them. They were curious little rascals who just wanted to explore their new home. The second I stopped one from escaping the basket, another would already be halfway out.

The little guy who had been thrust into my arms was obviously the troublemaker of the litter. I had just managed to catch him again after he had taken off and made a very rapid beeline for the exit, which thankfully was closed. Of course, now two of the other kittens had made their way out of the basket.

"Hey-" I heard the door open and close behind me, and before whoever it was had a chance to finish their thought, I was shoving the tiny hellion into their hands. The same way he had been foisted into mine just a few minutes ago. Unfortunately, his new handler wasn't so lucky. Almost immediately the smell of cat urine filled the air and I noticed a wet spot forming on the shirt of my new comrade in arms.

"Sorry. I promise I didn't know that was going to happen." I admitted sheepishly, finally looking up at the face of this newcomer. I almost wished I hadn't. He was gorgeous, in a sort of innocent adorable way, and I had just thrust a pissing cat into his arms. In terms of meet-cutes, this one probably wouldn't be my top choice. At least it was memorable.

"I'll believe you this time." He smiled, but it wasn't as arrogant as I might have expected. I suppose that wasn't fair. Just because he looked like that, didn't necessarily mean he was cocky. I guess when you've spent your entire life around the rich and beautiful, you expect at least some level of self-assuredness. But his expression was devoid of any of that. In fact, it was almost shy. "I'm Luke." He introduced himself, still holding the tiny offender, albeit much further away from his body now.

"And you're covered in cat pee. Do you have a spare shirt?" I couldn't keep an amused smile off my face. I knew I shouldn't be laughing, but it was kind of funny.

"No." He groaned, probably worried he'd need to spend the next six hours in sullied clothes.

"Don't worry about it. There are some extra volunteer shirts in the back. Can you watch these guys while I grab one for you?" I gestured around to the other kittens, who by now had all made their way out of the basket and were exploring the grooming station. Luckily we were in an enclosed space.