Part 24 (2/2)

Living as a cat, he'd come to appreciate some things he'd never paid much attention to before. He'd been too busy rus.h.i.+ng from one thing to the next, going for the big score in the market, making sure he had tickets to opening night of whatever play was hot that season, hurrying to the gym and staying on the phone the entire time he was working out.

He'd never bothered to stop and enjoy whatever was right in front of him because he'd been too busy looking ahead to the next great thing, which was bound to be so much better than what he had going on at the moment. He knew now that nothing could be better than making love to Anica in a room filled with candlelight and then lying quietly, watching over her while she slept.

Staying with her all night would be a bonus, though, and he wanted to get to that point ASAP. When he was fully transformed into a cat, he trotted out to the living room, hopped on the desk chair, and turned on the computer. Typing wouldn't be nearly as smooth as it had been four hours ago, but there were compensations. Cats didn't get carpel tunnel or stiff necks. At least he hoped cats didn't.

Now that he knew he'd be changing back permanently, he could allow himself to appreciate the good things about his feline self. He could leap to heights five or six times taller than he was. Even Michael Jordan hadn't been able to do that.

He was now a champion nap-taker, too, and he had to acknowledge that naps lowered his stress levels. He also had meditation skills to rival the Dalai Lama and the patience of . . . well, of a saint. As a man he used to sit and drum his fingers on the desk while his computer booted up. Now he simply sat and waited.

Would any of his cat skills transfer to his human self? Not the leaping ability, of course, but he had hopes for a calmer approach, a more in-the-moment philosophy once he returned to his other life. He realized with some surprise that there were things he'd miss about being a cat.

Not the lack of opposable thumbs, though. Computers were designed for people and he struggled whenever he had to use this one. Yet he'd learned how, and the computer could be one of his main sources of salvation now. He signed on to the Internet.

As he was calling up the animal rescue site, he heard soft footsteps and knew Anica was up. Her scent drew nearer as she approached the desk, and the rustle of silk told him she'd put on a bathrobe.

He'd learned to depend on his cat senses and had missed them during those times when he'd transformed into a man. Consequently he'd learned to compensate by paying better attention. He'd like to hang on to that tendency, too.

”I heard the computer boot up.” She yawned. ”I thought I'd come out and see what you're doing.”

Jasper opened a Word file so he could type a message to her. He clicked on the lock function and typed in U NED SLP.

She laughed softly. ”You know, that last word could be slap instead of sleep. I might need a slap more than I need sleep, come to think of it.” RUIN2 S & M He didn't think that at all, but he was feeling good and wanted to tease her a little bit.

”Nope.”

GD.

”But I have a confession to make, Jasper. A part of me has enjoyed the past few days.”

PRT OF ME 2.

”That's nice of you to say.”

MY DCK.

She hooted with laughter, and he was proud of himself for making her lose it. That was another thing he wanted that had largely been missing in his human life. He wanted more play. Naked play with Anica would be even better.

”Okay, Jasper, my hoo-ha has certainly enjoyed the past few days, but I've also discovered that I've enjoyed the control I've had over this situation, which is not good. I'm going to work on that, which would be especially important if I'm about to get my magic back.”

YES.

She took a deep breath. ”Yes. s.e.x with you is a good practice ground for giving up control.”

NCE.

”It is nice. Very nice.” She paused. ”Jasper, I . . .” He waited, wondering if she would choose this moment to reveal the depth of her feelings. Now wouldn't be the best timing in the world, when all he could do was type his response. But he'd take the words whenever he could get them.

Telling him how she felt about him would be the ultimate loss of control, though. She might not be there yet. He'd just been mentally bragging on his increased patience, so this would give him a chance to test it.

”I should let Orion out of the closet,” she said at last.

With a little sigh, Jasper minimized his Word file and went back to the animal rescue site. If only he knew the amount to give that would do the trick. He didn't seem to be getting hours in proportion to what he was giving.

Other factors must be at work, and he was still holding out hope that each o.r.g.a.s.m he gave Anica counted. That would be sweet. His e-mails to Sheila, Kate and Deb might do something for him. At least he hoped they were in the good-deed category. He'd meant for them to be.

Still, the animal rescue site offered the most clear-cut opportunity for good works. His American Express was a no-limit card, so theoretically he could put anything he wanted to on there. He'd have to pay it next month, though, and he'd rather not empty his IRA and savings to do that. The condo didn't have much equity yet.

He might strike gold at work, but the market was like a temperamental lover. Whenever he tried too hard to woo her she turned into a b.i.t.c.h. So no guarantees from that corner.

He was talking about his freedom, though. He had five hours, and he needed nineteen more to make a whole day. Logic said to charge whatever amount he thought might buy him nineteen hours and worry about how to pay for it later.

Yeah, but what would that amount be? He didn't want to overshoot it by thousands. He'd never know whether he did or not, which would be frustrating in itself.

Anica's footfalls were almost noiseless on the carpet, but Jasper could smell that combination of sugar and spice coming closer. The scent of male cat came with her this time, which meant Orion was out of the closet.

”What has you so mesmerized, Jasper?” She paused to glance at the screen. ”Aha! You're going to make a donation. Smart.”

Jasper didn't feel all that smart. He'd love to talk to that witch and wizard and find out if they could be more specific about how this worked. If he knew for a fact that nineteen grand would buy him nineteen hours, he'd probably just do it. But he didn't know that, and he would have a h.e.l.l of a time paying that money back.

”I would help you navigate the computer.” Anica crouched down next to the desk so she could stroke Orion. ”But I'm afraid if I did the typing for you that might counteract the value of your good deed.”

He sure didn't want that happening, especially because he was toying with the idea of giving ten grand. Even if it didn't take him all the way, he should get a huge chunk of time for that. If he transformed early enough in the day, he might be able to use those extra hours to do more good deeds.

Still, ten grand was a lot of money. He could probably get an equity loan for that amount, but that would add significantly to his debt load. Of course, if he didn't transform back into a man soon, he could kiss his job goodbye and then he'd be in real financial trouble.

And if the worst happened and he never completely made the transition, he would have far bigger problems than being in debt. He typed in the numbers before he lost his nerve.

Behind him, Anica gasped. ”Jasper! That's a small fortune! It's a good cause, but I'm sure you don't need to give them that much.” She reached around him and tried to grab the mouse.

He batted it away, something he was especially good at.

”Jasper, behave. I'm sure that lifting the spell doesn't require that you spend ten thousand dollars.” She reached for the mouse again.

But he had cat reflexes. Leaping to the desk, he threw himself on top of the mouse. Growling, he gathered it underneath his body.

”Don't be crazy.” Anica began pulling on the cord connecting the mouse to the computer. ”Let me have the mouse before you do something really dumb.”

He stared at her while gripping the mouse with the claws of his back feet. Too bad he couldn't talk. He'd tell her that she hadn't quite given up that habit of hers, the one where she wanted to control things. He was a grown man-well, at least for a few hours every evening-and he had the right to donate whatever money he chose to whatever cause he chose.

She pulled harder on the cord, and he growled a warning. He didn't want to scratch her, but she was messing in his business.

”You're being incredibly stubborn. Tomorrow night we can brainstorm ways you can earn minutes. Now that you know how the spell can be reversed, I'm free to help you strategize. I'm sure we can come up with things that don't require some ma.s.sive infusion of money.”

Little did she know. He'd already given $4,700, and his five hours of being a man wasn't all due to that donation, either. He didn't think $10k would even be enough, but it was the amount he could give away without hyperventilating.

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