Stella nodded as she recited the saying. “What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.”

“Yep, that’s exactly what she said.” April felt a weight lift off her shoulders at that good memory of her grandmother.

So you applied that law when you had an affair, didn’t you, Nanny Lucy? April asked, but she got no answer.

“Hey, anyone here?” Kent called out from the vet side of the building.

“Come on back,” April yelled.

Callie beat him through the door and ran across the room to wrap her arms around April. “Daddy finally brought me! Do you remember what I’m going to name my kitten?” She stopped long enough to suck in a lungful of air and went on. “Cindy, for Cinderella, because she has long blonde hair like you, and I like you.” She ran out of air again.

“She’s been bugging me ever since we saw y’all at Walmart to come back for the second kitten.” Kent’s smile lit up the whole room. “But two cats in the house is my limit.”

“But our house is so big,” Callie argued. “We could take all these poor little kitties home with us, Daddy.”

“Two!” Kent held up two fingers.

“But how will I ever see April again?” Callie’s chin began to quiver.

April stooped and gave the child a hug. “Darlin’, you can come see me anytime you want to. You don’t have to adopt a cat every time you come visit. And if your dad ever needs a babysitter so he can go on a date, maybe I could keep you for a few hours.”

“And maybe you can come to my house to keep me and see the kitties?” Callie’s expression changed from one of sadness to one of pure joy.

“We’ll see when the time comes.” April patted her on the back.

“Daddy needs a girlfriend, but he never, ever goes out.” Callie pouted. “Maybe you could just come for a playdate sometime.”

“Maybe, but right now, we’ve got to see which one of these kitty cats looks like a Cindy.” April guided Callie gently over to the cages.

“Thank you,” Kent mouthed.

“There’s a yellow one with a pink bowl, so she’s a girl.” Callie pointed to a fluffy kitten with blue eyes. “She looks like a twin to my Belle. I think they will like each other a lot.”

April took the kitten out of the cage and handed her to Callie. “Why don’t you take her over to the rug and see if she likes to play?”

Callie nodded seriously, carried the animal to the area rug in the middle of the floor, and sat down. The minute she turned the kitten loose, it swatted a toy mouse halfway across the rug, then grabbed it up in its mouth and laid it in Callie’s lap.