Noah was still taking a deep, pollen-filled breath beneath the wisteria when Carrie opened the door. He hadn\u2019t yet manifested his Cat-Shelter-Worker persona, let alone pressed the doorbell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He\u2019d always thought the photos of Carrie in those speculative articles were filtered, but here she was, not a line on her sixty-year-old face. Her sharp blue eyes narrowed as she regarded him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Trembling, he gestured to the crate beside him, housing a tabby kitten. \u2018I\u2019m from Coastal Cat Rescue. This little guy arrived today. As our favourite client, you get first refusal.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Carrie raised an eyebrow. \u2018This isn\u2019t how we usually do business, Mr\u2026?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2018H\u2026Hicks,\u2019 Noah stuttered. \u2018Noah Hicks.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2018I see.\u2019 She coiled a strand of dark hair around her finger. \u2018You\u2019re not from the shelter, are you Noah? I know all their staff. And I know a journalist when I see one.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Noah\u2019s legs twitched with the urge to run, but he was frozen. The idea that he could outwit this woman and get the scoop of the year seemed ludicrous now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Carrie laughed, stepping aside. Two black cats darted out, brushing Noah\u2019s legs as they jangled away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2018Well? Aren\u2019t you coming in? Bring the cat.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The cat on Noah\u2019s lap purred, its white fur popping against the electric blue armchair. It was like being transported to the 1980s. His teacup steamed on a smoked glass table, while a stereo blasted Wham! from a glossy shelf. Carrie reclined and tilted her head, earrings swinging.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Was this a trap? But he was too curious to run. Even if curiosity killed the\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2018Don\u2019t you have questions?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Noah cleared his throat. \u2018This is an all-female commune, right?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2018Yes,\u2019 Carrie said, stroking a ginger cat. \u2018We were university friends. Bought this property decades ago for our widowhood. We vowed we\u2019d relive our youth, only with more money. And no men. We love gardening and partying like it\u2019s 1989.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2018What\u2019s with the 1980s aesthetic?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2018We live as though it\u2019s still our era. We watch 80s TV. We do the Jane Fonda workout. Consequently, we look and feel young. You could say we\u2019re late bloomers.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Noah nodded, the headline forming in his mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2018Malcolm! Claws!\u2019 Noah flinched as Carrie shook the cat off her lap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2018Malcolm?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2018My late husband,\u2019 she sighed, brows knitting together in faux-sadness. \u2018All the cats are named after our dearly departed.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Noah leaned forward, the question burning his tongue. The one that would trigger the confession, the promotion, the fame. George Michael wailed in the background. Everything she wants is everything she sees\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2018How did you know you\u2019d all outlive your husbands?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n The cat dug its claws into Noah\u2019s thighs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I don\u2019t know what the hell you want from me,<\/em> sang George.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Carrie uncrossed and re-crossed her legs. \u2018That\u2019s the million-dollar question,\u2019 she smiled. \u2018And I could tell you\u2026 But then I\u2019d have to name that beautiful kitten \u2018Noah.\u2019 It suits him, don\u2019t you think?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n Noah fled the room, bells ringing in his ears. Bells that tickled his neck as he ran.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Noah was still taking a deep, pollen-filled breath beneath the wisteria when Carrie opened the door. He hadn\u2019t yet manifested his Cat-Shelter-Worker persona, let alone pressed the doorbell. He\u2019d always thought the photos of Carrie in those speculative articles were filtered, but here she was, not a line on her sixty-year-old face. Her sharp […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_10158782359051062_103813597863211":"","twitter_1225722811282530305_1225722811282530305":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1792,1881],"tags":[1766,114,1903,495,8,7,20,1902,103,14,808,11,591,172,125],"class_list":["post-2723","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-1792","category-july-2026-confession","tag-blue","tag-but","tag-carrie","tag-cat","tag-he","tag-her","tag-his","tag-noah","tag-our","tag-she","tag-shelter","tag-was","tag-were","tag-when","tag-year"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pbrNJE-HV","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2723","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2723"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2723\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2724,"href":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2723\/revisions\/2724"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2723"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2723"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.swanseawriterscircle.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2723"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}