CEO's Cat Lady [Complete]

Chapter 13

It was the rumble of her stomach that woke her up. She bolted out of the bed in a hurry and went straight into the sink to puke out the sour and disgusting taste at the back of her throat. As she was desperately throwing up, she was vaguely aware of Beerus brushing up against her leg. The foolish cat probably thought she was going to prepare his food.

After a few moments, the disgusting taste was finally gone; her stomach was also back to normal. She grimaced though when she saw what she threw up: bits of pineapple chunks that she gobbled up last night. She had finally learned her lesson though: she wouldn't eat too much of that fruit before she went to sleep next time.

She washed up the traces of her greediness on the said fruit and picked up Beerus from the floor who was making up a racket. The said cat shut up finally when he got to cuddle in her neck. She was thinking of going back to sleep and just spending her whole day relaxing, but she knew she would have to feed Beerus first before she could have any peace.

She prepared her cat's wet food and as she watched him eat, the events from last night's encounter filled her mind. She didn't know what to make of it… seemed like some people who she met once always came back to her life. Whether that was a good thing or not, she couldn't really care. She had always gone with the flow anyway; it never mattered what she thought about it.

"It's nice seeing you again. I've always wondered how you've been doing after the incident at the FMX track." The tall had a gentle smile as he looked down at her.

Amy was blinded for awhile with his sparkling white teeth before she nodded. "Uhmm, yeah. It's nice to see you too. Thanks again for what you did that night."

Mr. Del Rosario waved his hand. "Don't think too much about it. It was my pleasure." He glanced at the pineapples she was holding. "I see you're grocery shopping. Do you mind if I join you? I'm not much familiar with the brands we have here in the Philippines."

He probably saw her inquisitive expression, so he went on to explain more. "I just came back from Hong Kong where I stayed for five years."

"Oh." Amy tried to smile. "Yeah, no problem. It's a small favor compared to what you did for me."

And that was what exactly they did. Mr. Del Rosario asked for her opinion about the best brands of each product. It was a bit awkward when she went into the aisle of sanitary napkins, and Amy wondered how she could tell him off for privacy (she didn't feel comfortable comparing sanitary napkins in front of a man).

"I… I will just go get some… stuff." She pointed at the aisle where the products were found.

The tall man then looked up towards the direction of the aisle, and as if understanding what she meant, he just nodded rigorously, saying, "Of course. No problem. I'll just wait up here."

She went on to get what she needed and returned to his side to continue shopping with him. Even in the counter, they were together, with her falling in line ahead of him, and out of courtesy, she waited for him to finish up paying for his goods. He offered earlier to pay for her groceries, but she declined vehemently, as she found it utterly shameful. It should be her that should buy him something as thanks for saving her life.

He also offered to carry her grocery bags, and she also wanted to decline, but this time, the man was insistent. By the time they got out of the grocery, he was carrying her bags, and he was calling her by her first name. She thought it polite to call him "Jensen" in return.

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"So, Amy, where do you live? I can take you home." Jensen briefly turned to her while they were walking towards the parking lot.

"It's okay. I've troubled you enough already." She pointed at her Kawasaki KX250F. "Besides, I brought my own bike."

Something like amusement filled Jensen's eyes. "Is that the same bike you use at the track?"

"Yep." She patted its seat. "I like it because it's very lightweight, but durable."

"I agree." The tall man then handed her back her grocery bags. "Do you live around the area?"

"Yeah, just a few minutes away from here actually. Why?" Amy creased her forehead as she held on to her grocery bags.

"I live around here too. I found an apartment at Tahanan Village. I was hoping I could invite you to coffee some time." Jensen had a sheepish smile.

Her eyes widened at what she heard. "Tahanan Village? That's where I live too. Which street are you in by the way?"

"Number six, Lily Street. How about you?"

Her mouth gaped in wonder. "That's amazing. I'm in number eight, Lily Street." She looked at his eyes directly. "I think we're neighbors."

Even Jensen had a look of disbelief in his face. "Amazing indeed. It's like, what do they call it? Serendipitous."

Amy herself had no words for it, so she just nodded. "Yeah."

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In the end, they decided to go home, with her a bit ahead on her motorbike, while Jensen trailed on with his car. She thought Jensen would park in front of his home, but he parked right in front of her home too. When the man who turned out her neighbor stepped outside of his car, he went towards her.

"Let me help you bring your groceries inside." Jensen gestured at the bags she was carrying.

"No, it's okay. You've been such a great help already… I actually feel ashamed." Amy shook her head and sighed.

"Ashamed? But why? We're neighbors anyway." The tall man smiled comfortingly. "If you want, you could help me cook tomorrow, in exchange for helping you today."

Seeing that the man was insistent, Amy agreed. "Alright. Although I would warn you that I don't know a lot of recipes. I only know some basics because I usually eat out, except on the weekends."

"It's okay." He then got her bags from her. "Please lead the way."

Amy then walked towards the door, turned on her key and finally opened the door, where Beerus came out wailing loudly. It was obvious that her cat was waiting for her. She picked him up while she led Jensen inside.

"You could just put it on the table, thank you," Amy told him as she scratched the head of her cat who was still making sounds.

Jensen did what she said effortlessly and turned on her to glance at her cat. "A hairless cat? It's an unusual breed here in the country, isn't it?" He queried.

Amy chuckled briefly. "Yep. I actually just found him on the side of the road. I think that he was thrown there on the bushes because they probably thought he was a weird looking cat."

She shook her head as she looked at Jensen's eyes. "The dumbass who left him there didn't know that this is such an expensive breed."

Jensen laughed a bit at her words. "What's his name by the way?"

"Beerus."

"That's a weird name too… though I must say it goes well with him. A weird name for a weird-looking cat."

She smiled sheepishly. "Nah. I just named him after a fictional character. I'm actually a bit of a geek."

They shared a brief chuckle. When their laughs died down, Jensen spoke again.

"Nothing wrong with that. Anyway, it's a bit late. I'll head to my apartment now. I don't wanna bother you anymore."

"Alright. Thanks again for the help. I'll just see you tomorrow." Amy walked him to her door.

"Just press the doorbell. You can bring Beerus too." He told her before he went inside his car.

Later on that night, when she munched on her pineapple topped bacon sandwich, her mind would be filled her conversation with Jensen. She just found it really… strange. She was not used to such kind treatment, so she felt a bit uncomfortable. She was also never sociable with her neighbors, and this would probably be the first time that she would be friends with one. Maybe Chris was right… Maybe her life was indeed miserable (even though she didn't actually feel that way). Perhaps starting such friendship wouldn't be so bad. Jensen didn't seem like a bad person anyway.

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Esther finally put down her phone with a big smile on her face. She felt really happy. The buyer that she just talked to wouldn't be backing up. She must admit that she felt really worried when she learned that Amy was returning to their family and to top it all off, would even be managing the hospital that her niece didn't know that was registered on her name.

When her brother died, he left most of his money to the charity and whatever remained to their family had to be divided on the three of them: she, Arthur, and Amethyst. Amethyst got the hospital, the resort in Rizal, and a trust fund kept for her, her nephew the mansion and the lands they owned, as well as the biggest share of stocks in their group of companies, while she was left the family heirlooms and the art collection, as well as a trust fund too.

In order to sell the hospital, she would have to make Amy sign documents for transferring ownership without her discovering that it was the hospital. That was the hardest part, for she knew that her nephew would be on the lookout. She explained this to the buyer so that they would get a good picture of the situation, but it seemed that he wasn't a bit concerned. He told her that he was also doing some steps of his own. Esther asked to be filled in, but the buyer refused to divulge information. She was pissed and put off, but she knew that she had to play nice. After all, the "customer was always right."

Amy would be starting on Monday. That meant that her work would finally start too. She would have to be alert and sneaky… accomplish her objective without Arthur catching wind of it. She still didn't have a definite plan, but she was confident that she would succeed. She was a Ledesma and Ledesmas always get what they want.

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Amy had just finished eating her home-cooked adobo with Jensen. Of course, it was topped with pineapple chunks. This was a recipe she saw from the TV before and only now that she had tried it. She hoped her experiment worked, and as she observed the tall man wolf down his food, she supposed it was alright.

They were in his patio, in a table under a broad umbrella to shield them from the heat of the summer sun. Good thing that the breeze was constantly breathing upon them, making the early afternoon lazy and balmy. They were currently watching Beerus (who she brought with her to Jensen's home) playing with her friend's slippers. She warned Jensen that those slippers might get destroyed, knowing her cat's specialty, but the man merely laughed it off. He actually looked kind of amused.

Their talk, punctuated with stretches of silences that were not uncomfortable at all, was disturbed when Amy's phone suddenly rang. She saw Trevor's name as the caller as her forehead creased out of curiosity. She excused herself to talk in the corner where she could still watch Beerus' antics.

"Hello, Mr. Schwarz? Is there something I could help you with?" She answered in low tones.

The man's stony voice replied on the other line. "Ms. Flores? I just called to tell you that I was finally able to talk to your brother."

That shocked Amy. She didn't expect Trevor Schwarz to actually carry on with what he said. She thought he was merely teasing her back then, so she spoke up right away.

"W-what did you tell him? How did you do that?" She stuttered.

"It's… a secret. I'll tell you on one condition."

She frowned with what she heard. "Mr. Schwarz, I was asking you politely. I was hoping you would answer seriously."

There was a dry chuckle that came from the opposite line. "I would tell you. But first, you need to go with me tomorrow."

"Where?"

"To the animal shelter. I am looking for a cat to adopt." Trevor Schwarz answered with a hint of boredom in his voice. "Meet me tomorrow at the Starbucks Coffee Shop at Greenbelt at exactly 10 AM."

"B-but why do I need to go with you?" Amy was not able to get her answer because the line was already cut. "Hey! I'm still talking!"

Irritated, she turned her phone off while glaring at the poor gadget. Trevor Schwarz's thinly-veiled arrogance was really off-putting, but she must admit that she was dying to know what he and her brother talked about. She knew she wouldn't be able to ask her brother about it, so her only hope was Trevor. Still, he was a d**k. Grrr!