"You should name it after a unicorn," Sophie suggested. "You love unicorns."
"But it's not a unicorn, any more than I'm a rabbit," Jamie said, peering down at the kitten. "I don't even know what it really looks like, because of how dirty it is."
I wanted to get a closer look at the kitten, but I had to keep my eyes on the road. I didn't want to run over another imaginary chipmunk. Then I'll have a whole posse of vengeful chipmunks haunting me.
I couldn't tell Sophie and Jamie that I had been caught off guard on our way to Plattsburgh when Jamie mentioned hearing weird piano noises. I knew immediately that she must have heard Ash somehow, his music ringing throughout the manor. I can't tell them the truth about him. They'll think I'm crazy, and he has to be protected. It's the same reason why I didn't tell Jamie this morning where I really got those music scores.
A little white lie never hurt anyone.
"Kriss?" Sophie asked. "Are you listening?"
I jolted back to reality. "Sorry," I said. "What?"
In the rearview mirror, I saw Sophie and Jamie exchange a worried look. What's that all about?
"I asked you what you think the kitten's name should be," Sophie said.
"Oh," I thought about it. I didn't see the kitten very much, as Jamie had been infatuated by it at the first glance, and she made Sophie and I shop for supplies so she could stay outside with it. I thought about a good name to give the kitten.
Lottie. Wendy. Kat. Cathy. Catherine. Ellen. Nelly. Isabelle.
My brain started skimming through Wuthering Heights characters. I mentally tried rebooting myself, and a fresh batch of names skimmed across my mind.
Christine. Fantine. Kim. Meg. Marguerite. Pamina. Cosette. Medda.
I don't think names from musical and opera characters are what Jamie's really looking for, either. I tried thinking up things from nature. Jamie likes nature...
Sky. Summer. Ocean. Ember. Rose. Ashley. Ash...
The mere thought of his name sent my mind spinning off track, and I was suddenly consumed by thoughts of him. His face flashed across my vision. The color of his eyes, his sweeping eyelashes, his sharp cheekbones, his structured jawline...
"Kriss!" Jamie called me. "Stop daydreaming on the road! I don't want to hit another chipmunk! Then the live ones will all gang up and seek revenge for the death of their comrades!"
I blinked, my thoughts vanishing. "I didn't realize I was daydreaming," I said, shaking out my head.
Jamie sighed, looking down at the kitten perched on her lap. She frowned and tilted her head, looking thoughtful, then grinned.
"She has large ears," Jamie decided. "Especially for a kitten. See how they flop over?"
"Please don't name it Dumbo, Jamie," Sophie said. "But yes, I see what you mean."
"What else has floppy ears?" Jamie asked, then paused, clearly waiting for somebody to answer her.
"Um... Basset Hounds?" I guessed.
"Sheep?" Sophie asked.
"Donkeys?"
"Flabbergasts?"
"Silly potato, flabbergasts don't have ears," Jamie giggled. "No, bunnies!"
Sophie coughed. "You want to name it Bunny?"
YOU ARE READING
Ashes and Embers
Paranormal"I warned you, Kristina," he said, leaning closer to me, his hand scorching my wrist, his silver eyes darkening to a stormy grey. "I told you what would happen if you defied me." Fire was racing up and down my arm. The rose necklace burned at my thr...
21. Busted
Start from the beginning
