Page 83 of The Cajun Doctor

Aaron flashed his dimple at his brother, the one on the opposite side of the face. It wasn’t nearly as nice as Daniel’s.

Daniel turned on Samantha. “You knew about this when you gave me that damn cat, didn’t you?”

“Well . . . um . . . uh,” she stammered.

“Your markers are piling up, sweetheart.”

“Okay, so I owe you.”

“Damn straight you do. You got me involved with three live-in guests, one of whom is very pregnant, and—”

“You invited us,” she pointed out.

“. . . then there is the cougar—”

“I keep telling you, it’s not a cougar. It’s a Savannah cat.”

“. . . and two other cats—”

“. . . who are no trouble at all. You hardly know that Felix and Garfield are here.”

“. . . and a dog the size of a pony that can barely walk . . .”

“Now, that’s cruel. Axel is sweet, you have to admit that.”

“. . . and five puppies . . .”

“. . . three of whom are going to be gone soon . . .”

“. . . and a foul-mouthed bird . . .”

“You got me with that one.”

“. . . not to mention, the Dixie Mob, a whacko doctor, the police, the FBI, and now a pregnant cat and seven freakin’ kittens. God only knows what else you’ll pull out of your witchy hat.”

She cringed. It didn’t sound good when he listed all his favors and the impositions on him like that. In fact, very bad. “Don’t worry. I’ll make it up to you.”

“Hah! I’d like to know how.”

“I could pay you—”

“If I wanted money, I’d get a job.”

He had a point there. “I’ll take care of the new kittens and find homes for them, along with the other two, Felix and Garfield.”

“That’s a given.”

“While I’m here, I’ll help clean up the place and do the cooking, and—”

“I could just as easily call Bayou Maids ’r Us and get takeout like I have been the last few years. Big deal!”

“Don’t you mean ‘Happy Meal’?” she tried to tease.

He didn’t crack even a tiny smile.

“I’ll make up a plan for restoring this mansion. And give you a list of experts to help with some of the more complicated work.”

“Blah, blah, blah.” He was unimpressed.