Page 258 of By His Vow

“Doritos?” I repeat, more than happy to buy the thing chips if it means I get one extra one-on-one time with Tatum. “Any flavor?” I ask, secretly thinking about giving her the hot ones.

Her litter tray is in your bathroom. Don’t do it.

“Cheesy ones.”

“Okay. I can do that,” I agree before looking down at the cat again. “Do we have a deal? Let me have access to Tatum and I’ll buy you all the Doritos you can eat?”

She continues glaring, but I swear I see a chink in her armor.

“Fantastic. Great doing business with you.” I look back up, focusing on Tatum. “Now, where were we?” I ask, gripping the back of her neck and pressing my forehead against hers.

“We were going to find out what was in that box,” she says, ignoring what she can clearly see in my eyes.

“Yeah,” I muse. “Exactly what I was just thinking about too.”

“Come on, Griz. If you’re lucky, it might be the world’s most over-the-top cat toy.”

“I’m not having one of those ugly scratching post things in my home,” I warn.

“And yet, you have this beautiful tablecloth,” Tatum says, pointing to the offending thing on the top of the pile of open gifts.

“Hmm.”

I rip into the paper as Tatum lowers herself and Griz to the couch, watching with interest when all I reveal is a cardboard box.

Reaching for the scissors, I open it and pull the contents free.

“Wow,” Tatum breathes. “That’s…I’m speechless.”

“What even is it?” I ask, taking a step back.

“A piece of modern art, I guess?”

“It looks like a lump of wood on a stand,” I point out.

Tatum tilts her head to the side. “That’s because it is.”

Reaching for the abandoned gift paper, I search for a tag to discover who thought that buying us this monstrosity was a good idea.

“There isn’t a tag.”

“I guess that saves us writing a fake thank-you note.”

“It has to be someone who knows the truth,” I muse. “Probably Kian. It’s the sort of shit he’d pull.”

“I’m sure it would look wonderful in his apartment. Should we deliver it ourselves?” Tatum laughs.

Raking my hand through my hair, I stare down at the mess.

“This is a disaster.”

“Grab the one from Lori. She will have got us something decent,” Tatum reasons.

“You think so?”

She thinks for a moment before shrugging one shoulder, her confidence draining.

“Here, you can do the honors,” I say, passing her the box.