Levi didn’t even look hurt at Magnus’s pissy mood. He just gave his brother a beatific smile. “I don’t know that I’ll ever be able to get Bianca out of my system. She’s special.”
“You say that about every girl you fall for.”
“This one’s different.”
“You also say that about every girl you fall for.” Magnus closed the milk carton and reached past his brother to put it back into the fridge. “Except instead of just getting this one out of your system, you’ve decided to be her friend, and meanwhile, I get stuck with a wildcat and a pissy cat whisperer.”
“You should woo her,” Levi said.
“The cat?”
“The cat lady.”
Magnus gritted his teeth through his smile. “I don’t want to woo anyone. I want to push forward on our goddamn project. You know, the one you promised to work on with me?”
“And once Bianca and I are settled, I will.”
Settled? What the fuck did that mean? Magnus fought his anger, since it was useless when it came to Levi. His younger brother had selective amnesia when it came to anything that didn’t pertain to his current interests. “How long do you think that’s going to be?”
“I don’t know,” Levi said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. “I need to see her again outside of the house. Away from her sister.” He looked over at Magnus. “You should ask Edie out on a date.”
“On a date,” Magnus repeated flatly. “Why would I do that?”
“Because you want to work on The World and you can’t without me?”
Magnus gritted his teeth. It wasn’t that he couldn’t work without Levi—it was that out of the two of them, Levi was the creative thinker. Magnus was the doer, the details man. He could get a lot done on his own, but without Levi’s ideas, he was rudderless. “You’re fucking killing me here, man.”
Levi turned to his brother and put his hands on Magnus’s shoulders, his expression contrite. “I know. And I really am sorry. I promise once we get Bianca out from under Edie’s control, we’ll get back to working on the game. But for now . . . I really do think you need to ask Edie out on a date. Take her out for several hours so that’ll give me alone time with Bianca.”
“She’s not twelve, you know. She can go out on her own without her sister being involved.”
But Levi shook his head and patted Magnus on the shoulder as if he were a child. “Bianca’s very devoted. She won’t leave Edie if she thinks Edie needs help.”
“Edie seems pretty capable, if you ask me. She’s got a limp. That’s it. It’s not as if she’s missing her arms and legs.” Even if she was, he was pretty sure Edie would still find a way to cut him down to size. “I’ve never met anyone more capable than her.”
“Did you want that IP or not?”
Magnus threw his hands up. “I give up. Fine. Fuck. Whatever. I’ll ask the cat lady out for a goddamn date. Just shut the hell up about Bianca, all right?” He stormed up the stairs, because if he saw Levi’s smug little smile, he was going to punch someone out. He automatically headed up to the fourth floor for the office, and then paused at the door. He couldn’t work—he was stuck until Levi sat down and worked out some of the basic kinks of the program with him. Damn it. Swearing, he jogged back down the stairs to his own room. Might as well run on his treadmill for a bit.
When he opened the door to his room, though, he saw the cat taking another shit on his bed. It looked over at him and hissed furiously.
Magnus hissed back at it. Damn cat. Damn brother. Damn Edie. Why was everyone determined to make him lose his mind? Why was he the only sane person in this circle? Why was it that he was the only one who wanted to work?
Scratch that. Edie worked, too. At least they had that in common.
He dragged his jeans off and tossed them into a corner, then pulled on workout shorts. As he climbed onto his treadmill and began to jog, he picked up his phone and voice-texted Jenna, the assistant. “I need several cardboard boxes, two cat trees, some wet cat food, and a litterbox. Tonight.” He looked over at his bed, now with two piles of shit on it, and added, “And a blanket.”
At least five hundred million could buy a lot of damn blankets. He began to run, pumping up the treadmill to a breakneck speed. Maybe he’d buy one and smother Levi’s smug face with it.
***
“What’s your day look like today?” Bianca said, frowning as a cat nudged her hand over breakfast two days later. “Can’t you make these cats behave?”
“That is behaving,” Edie said, reaching out to pet Sleepy before pulling him down off the table. “I’m actually pretty impressed he’s so spry considering he’s missing a leg and has arthritis. Besides, you know downstairs is cat territory.” Their shared apartment was split into two territories—Bianca had the entire upstairs, and Edie claimed the downstairs. It suited them both just fine most of the time, because Bianca got the deluxe bathroom with the tub and Edie only had the guest bathroom with the teeny tiny shower. The kitchen was downstairs, though, and meals were always a bit contentious, because Edie’s seven cats tended to be underfoot.
“I’d prefer for him to be less spry around meals,” Bianca said, tossing her hair. “It’s unsanitary.”
No more unsanitary than Bianca constantly flinging her hair everywhere. “Cats are clean. It’s because you have cereal. He smells the milk.”
“Forget the cat. We’ve been asked to go back to New York for another round of coaching with Cujo.” Bianca gave Edie her prettiest smile. “Get ready to make more money!”
Edie blinked. “Really? Back to New York already? Magnus has barely had time to get the things I suggested.” She thought of his stark room and frowned. “Actually, I’d almost bet he didn’t get that stuff. He didn’t seem to care much. That’s so weird.”
Bianca gave her a coy little smile. “I don’t think it’s so weird.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s clear the man was flirting with you.”
Edie paused, spoon midway to her mouth. “You’re . . . kidding, right?”
“Not kidding.”
“He can’t stand me!”
“Mmhmm.” Bianca gave her a knowing look.
“I—no! Seriously. He hated every suggestion I gave him. Didn’t want to listen to any of it. I can assure you, the man does not like me.” It was weird to even think about it.
“Oh, Edie, you’re so blind to these sorts of things,” Bianca said in a pitying voice. She arched an eyebrow at her sister. “Let’s analyze this, shall we? Here we have a man who you met at a party and sat next to all night—”
“Neither of us speaking to the other, I should point out.”
“—and a few days later, this man acquires a random cat he knows nothing about.” Bianca extended a finger, counting off. “This man immediately contacts you to come and work with his cat, even offering to pay extra so you’ll come despite the long drive.”
“Oh, but—”
“Did he leave the room while you were there?”
“No, but—”
“Did you notice that I disappeared? His brother kept me busy with questions about the business and our billing. You don’t think he was seriously that interested in it, do you?”
This time, Edie had no excuse. She had wondered where her sister had run off to.
“Did he ask about you when you two were alone? Things like what made you who you are? Personal things?”
“Of course not,” Edie said, flustered. It was ridiculous to think about—
So what made you decide to become a cat expert? Her brain reminded her using Magnus’s voice.
Edie’s eyes widened. Surely not. “I . . . Uh, are you sure, Bianca?”
“I think I know what it looks like when a man is trying to let a woman know he’s interested. And I’m pretty sure he was interested in you.” Her smile became encouraging. “It’s obvious he got the cat as a means to get closer to you.”
That was so . . . strange. Edie thought back to the party at Gretchen’s house. She’d overheard their boorish male conversation in the kitchens, and both she and Magnus had been dismayed to see they were sitting together. They’d taken a seemingly instant dislike to each other, one that had carried through all night.