Ofelia Rosario - I take pride in being smart, careful, and independent. Fostering a pregnant cat was supposed to be the one soft thing in my life—until the fire. I stayed too long trying to save Spitfire, and I nearly didn’t make it out. But Zach Dayton pulled me from the flames—calm, strong, and way too charming. He’s everything I shouldn’t want. Everything that scares me. But he keeps showing up, helping, and making me laugh when I want to cry. And Spitfire? She seems convinced we belong together. Maybe love isn’t something you can logic your way around. Maybe it’s something you lean into. Zach Dayton - Falling in love isn’t supposed to feel more dangerous than running into a burning building. But then there’s Ofelia—stubborn, guarded, beautiful Ofelia. I was just doing my job when I found her trying to shield a pregnant cat from the smoke. But the second I saw her, something shifted. I’ve always believed I’m not built for love—too much loss, too many close calls. But she makes me want to try anyway. The way she looks at me, the way she fights for that cat, for herself… she doesn’t need a hero. But maybe she’ll let me be hers anyway. Book 8 in the Ravenwood Series. It can be read as a standalone. However, to learn about the characters and past events that may be referenced, you should check out the rest of the series. Book 1 - The Princes of Ravenwood (Zach's first appearance) Book 2 - Chasing Kitsune Book 3 - Expect the Unexpected Book 4 - Out of My League Book 5 - Man's Best Wingman (Ofelia's first appearance) Book 6 - Troubled Heart Book 7 - A Bark in the Park
View MoreBalancing grad school, hospital rotations, and a heavily pregnant foster cat in a Newark walk-up wasn’t the dream life I had envisioned at age twelve, staring at a career board with “Doctor of Psychology” scrawled across it in pink gel pen. But it was my life—and most days, I had it under control.
Most days.
Today was not one of them.
I was three pages into a paper on trauma-informed therapy approaches, halfway through reheating leftover pasta, and midway through talking myself out of crying over an unsent text from my residency supervisor when a yowl broke through the apartment like a foghorn.
“Spitfire,” I groaned, slamming the laptop shut as the tab with my half-finished reference list blinked at me in judgment. “What now?”
Another yowl. This one was somehow louder and more dramatic, as if she’d taken up opera as a pregnancy hobby, or maybe this was her normal speaking voice, who knows.
I found her crouched on top of the fridge—yes, on top—her rounded belly drooping over the edge like a furry avalanche waiting to happen. She looked down at me, tail flicking, golden eyes narrowed as if to say, I own you. Do something about this.
“You know you’re the one who got yourself up there,” I muttered, reaching for the step stool I’d reluctantly purchased after her last acrobatic display ended with an overturned blender and me sobbing into a bag of frozen peas on my nose that broke the blender’s fall.
Spitfire was, in every way, the cat I didn’t ask for but somehow deserved. A tortoiseshell calico with an attitude that could cut glass and a belly full of future chaos, she had been abandoned near the shelter where I volunteered during undergrad. I agreed to foster her just until she gave birth and the kittens were weaned. That had been nearly two months ago.
She showed no intention of leaving.
“You’re too pregnant for acrobatics,” I said as I coaxed her into my arms. She growled, not because she hated me—no, that would be too straightforward—but because growling was her default communication style.
I set her down on the floor and nudged the nesting box I’d built out of a plastic storage container and three towels. She sniffed it, sneezed, and walked away.
Naturally.
The microwave beeped. I’d forgotten the pasta again. I let it sit. My stomach was too knotted to care anyway.
Between double shifts at the hospital and trying to keep up with lectures and clinical notes, I was one missed deadline away from a full psychological spiral. My life had become a checklist of survival tasks: keep the cat alive, show up to rounds, remember to eat something with protein, and don’t cry in public.
I bent down to scoop Spitfire’s kibble into her bowl and caught sight of myself in the reflection of the oven door. Hair in a frizzy bun, hoodie covered in fur, eyes shadowed like I’d been punched by sleep deprivation itself.
Hot.
My sisters got meet-cutes with hot guys. My older sister Xenia was Pongoed, if you don’t understand the term, go watch 101 Dalmatians, and you’ll understand, in Central Park, and fell in love with Clay Nikolaidis, who resembles a statue of a Greek god more than a real man. And now my baby sister, Amaya, has her dream guy. Sure, there was way more chaos for Amaya and Alan, but the end result was the same… true love. Meanwhile, I had cat puke on the floor and haven’t been on a date since Spitfire came into my life and scared off the guy I was sort of seeing by using his testicles as cat toys while we were in bed.
Still, I wouldn’t trade it. I’d worked hard for this messy, inconvenient independence. Even if it came with hairballs, burnout, and a cat that clearly thought I was her underpaid assistant.
As Spitfire yowled again and waddled toward the bathroom like she was preparing to deliver her kittens in the sink, I sighed, reached for the mop, and muttered, “Please wait until the weekend. That’s all I ask.”
Because if Spitfire went into labor before I finished that paper, we were both going to need therapy.
Spitfire eventually settled into her favorite nesting spot—my laundry basket, naturally—curling around her swollen belly like a smug croissant. I didn’t have the heart to kick her out, even if it meant all my socks would now be infused with the scent of judgment and Fancy Feast. I backed out of the closet quietly, grabbed my half-reheated pasta, and collapsed onto the couch.
The cushions sank lower than they should’ve. I made a mental note to flip them sometime next week. Or never.
As I picked at my food, I let my thoughts drift—not to my to-do list or the fifteen unread emails from my clinical supervisor, but to my siblings. It was something I did more often than I admitted. Thinking about them grounded me. Reminded me that chaos ran in the family, and somehow, we all made it through.
I’d always been the one who knew. From the time I was old enough to draw crayon hearts next to “PhD” on my career board, I had a plan. Psychology wasn’t just an interest—it was a calling. I wanted to understand people, their broken pieces, and tangled wiring. I wanted to help. That clarity had been my anchor through every AP class, scholarship application, and late-night meltdown.
Ace, on the other hand—our eldest sibling and only brother—was more of a wild card. He was charming, infuriatingly attractive (not that I’d ever tell him that), and allergic to anything resembling a five-year plan. Last I checked, he was bartending in downtown Newark and was still debating whether he should finally attend EMT school, start a podcast, or buy a motorcycle. Or maybe all three in the same week.
He was the first to rush in when Amaya was taken. He didn’t hesitate, didn’t even stop to think. Just went. That was Ace in a nutshell. No compass, just heart. And chaos.
Then there was Xenia. My older sister didn’t find her path until later, but when she did? Dog training became her everything. She went from teaching basic sit commands to running a full business with waitlists and social media fame. Once she committed, she committed. She always had this no-nonsense confidence, a way of setting boundaries with love and affection. She was getting married soon to Clay, who somehow made her laugh even when she was ready to throw him off a ferry. They were perfect in a weird, growly, cinnamon roll-meets-wolfdog way.
Amaya, the youngest, had been the question mark. Sweet, artsy, a little spacey at times—she wasn’t sure what direction to go. But then everything changed with the Marigold Grove. The fight for that park, the way she stood her ground against Alan’s nightmare of a biological father, the way she turned grief and fear into purpose—it lit something in her. Now, she was unstoppable. Fierce, focused, and somehow still full of soft love for the world. She’d found her thing. And I had no doubt she’d change the world with it.
I was proud of all of them, even when I wanted to duct-tape their mouths shut. But I couldn’t lie—there was something reassuring in knowing I’d always been the steady one—the one with a clear direction. The one who didn’t chase chaos, but studied it, diagnosed it, and found patterns in the madness.
I looked around my tiny studio apartment. Laundry in piles, textbooks half-open, Spitfire kneading her claws into my clean clothes like she was baking resentment into them.
Okay, maybe not entirely steady.
Still, I’d worked hard to get here. Independent. Focused. Not relying on anyone, especially not a man, to “rescue” me. Love was beautiful in theory, but messy in practice. I’d seen enough of it secondhand to know I didn’t have the luxury of risking everything for something that might not last.
I had a path. I had a cat. I had lukewarm pasta and a dream.
And really, what more could a girl ask for?
Other than maybe a cat that didn’t yowl like a demon every time she moved. But that was asking too much.
The smoke hit me before the sound did.
It was faint at first—a sour, acrid scent curling into my apartment like a bad idea slipping under the door. I sniffed once, then again, setting my fork down. My stomach dropped. Something wasn’t right.
A second later, the fire alarm from a nearby unit started screeching. Not my unit, not yet—but close enough that the sound jolted me straight up from the couch, knocking over the half-eaten pasta bowl in the process. Tomato sauce splattered across my rug like abstract horror.
“Great,” I muttered, already grabbing my hoodie and phone. “As if I needed more reasons to spiral today.”
Spitfire didn’t react. She was still sprawled in the laundry basket like the world was her heated throne. I gave her a quick glance. “Stay put,” I warned, like that would ever work.
I cracked open the front door, heart already thudding. The hallway reeked—burned plastic, something sharp and wrong—and a thin haze of smoke was drifting along the ceiling like a ghost looking for trouble. Down the hall, I could see one of the apartment doors ajar, gray wisps slipping through the gap.
“Hey!” I called out instinctively, stepping into the corridor. “Is anyone—?”
A flash of orange caught my eye.
Shit.
There was definitely a fire. Small—at least for now—but flames were licking up the side of a trash can and creeping along the wall like it had somewhere to be. The hall’s smoke detector finally kicked in, blaring loud enough to rattle my molars.
Panic clenched my throat. I ran back into my apartment, slammed the door behind me, and grabbed the cat carrier. “Spitfire! Let’s go!”
She blinked at me from the closet like I was the problem.
I dropped to my knees beside the laundry basket, shoving aside socks and stretched-out bras. “Come on, baby. This isn’t a drill. There’s a fire.”
She yowled. Loudly. Dramatically. And bolted under the bed.
“Seriously?” I groaned.
I crawled after her, shoving the storage boxes aside, dust bunnies collecting on my sleeves. My phone buzzed in my hoodie pocket—probably an emergency alert—but I couldn’t stop, not with Spitfire pressed flat against the wall, eyes wild.
“I know you’re scared,” I whispered, breath catching in my throat as more smoke slithered under the door. “I’m scared, too. But we have to go.”
I reached for her—she hissed, swatted at me, and tried to dart past. I barely managed to grab her mid-lunge, cradling her against my chest as she thrashed like a furry chainsaw.
I didn’t even get the carrier open before the fire alarm in my unit started wailing.
My heart shot into my throat.
Smoke was filling the apartment faster now. From the hall? From under the floorboards? I didn’t know. All I knew was I couldn’t see the microwave anymore, and I could feel the heat blooming behind the wall like something was breathing down my neck.
I shoved Spitfire into the carrier mid-scream—mine or hers, unclear—and coughed as I stumbled toward the door. But when I opened it, the hallway was a choking mess of black smoke and flickering light. My eyes watered. I couldn’t tell how far the flames had spread.
For one paralyzing second, I froze. My instincts told me to run. My brain reminded me that the nearest exit was around the corner and down a narrow flight of stairs—stairs that might already be compromised.
I coughed again, clutching Spitfire’s carrier. She was still growling, and I couldn’t blame her.
“Okay,” I whispered, half to her, half to myself. “We’re gonna get out. I’ve got you.”
But I had no plan. No map. Just a heart beating way too fast, lungs filling with smoke, and a cat who absolutely hated me right now. And still—I wouldn’t let go.
I prowled the perimeter of the garden like any competent commander would. The sun hung low in the sky, warm and golden, casting a soft shimmer across the petals that littered the cobblestone walk like nature’s version of confetti. Humans oohed and aahed over the setup, white chairs lined in perfect rows, satin ribbons flapping in the breeze, blossoms spilling from urns that were clearly more decorative than functional. But this wasn’t about aesthetics. This was about security. Stability. Control. This was my domain. I wore the floral collar Ofelia had bribed me into with a piece of grilled chicken. Daisies. A touch of lavender. Something pale and pink I couldn’t identify, but it didn’t offend me. It sat lightly against my fur, and I tolerated it because it matched the mood. And because I looked good in it. Obviously. Mochi, bless his foolish heart, had been strapped into a bowtie harness. A powder blue disaster with tiny white stitched stars. He strutted like he owned the place,
It was hot. The kind of June heat that stuck to your spine and made even the fanciest robes feel like weighted blankets soaked in regret. But I didn’t care. I stood in the middle of the Rutgers lawn, diploma in hand, doctoral hood draped down my back, surrounded by so much noise and joy that it felt like my whole chest might burst from it. Four years. Four years of midnight papers, trauma rotations, clinicals, stacked shifts, patient charts, therapy sessions, burnout, breakdowns, and breakthroughs. And now? Dr. Ofelia Rosario, PhD. I adjusted the square of my cap and scanned the crowd. Zach was the first face I found, easy to spot in a sea of red and white, thanks to the two cat ears poking out of a mesh backpack carrier slung over one shoulder. Spitfire, of course, refused to miss my big day. Mochi was nowhere to be seen, probably asleep in Zach’s crossbody bag, his default travel mode. My parents were there; my dad, Jari, dabbed his eyes behind his sunglasses, while my mo
It had been just over a month since Jane was handed a restraining order and quietly admitted to McLean Hospital for a three-month inpatient mental health hold. Publicly, she was on a “wellness sabbatical” in St. Barts. Privately, the world was a whole lot quieter. No cryptic posts. No flowers. No flickers of her shadow on security footage. It should’ve felt like peace. But now, with Christmas looming and snow caking the windows of the train bound for Boston, I was chewing the inside of my cheek like it owed me money. “Relax,” Ofelia murmured, fingers brushing against mine. “We don’t have to stay the whole time. A day and a half. Max.” She sounded calm. But I could feel the tension in her body, the way she kept smoothing the leg of her jeans like they were going to wrinkle just from existing. The backpack carriers helped. Mochi was curled inside mine, fast asleep, tail tucked to his chin, while Spitfire rode in Ofelia’s, eyes sharp and unimpressed, watching the train’s aisle like sh
It was mine. All of it. The couch. The rug. The worn hoodie that smelled like burned wood and salt. The six tiny disasters tearing across the living room like someone owed them money. From my throne, the folded blanket on the back of the couch, elevated, frayed just enough to feel earned, I watched them. This was the kingdom I built. They used to be fragile. Squeaky little puffs that couldn’t find their own tails. Now? Now, at nearly two months of age, they were a six-part stampede of fur, claws, and very poor judgment. And I was proud. Freya launched herself from the windowsill to the arm of the chair. Missed by half an inch and recovered like she meant to fall. Nova knocked over a cup of pens and looked directly at me as it clattered to the floor, like she knew I’d approve. I did. Cloud dragged a hair tie into his makeshift lair under the bookshelf. Goose had somehow acquired one of Ofelia’s socks and was parading around with it like a trophy. Pesto scaled the scratching post
Some days at the hospital felt like a blur. Others, like today, hummed with something quieter. Not peace, exactly. But the space right before it. The art therapy room was warm and dimly lit, with floor-to-ceiling windows offering a soft view of the city’s skyline. It always smelled faintly like paint water and lavender markers. Kids came here for all kinds of reasons: grief, anxiety, trauma. Sometimes they came to talk. Most of the time, they came not to talk. And that was okay. Today I was helping Micah, a thirteen-year-old with a shaved head, hoodie sleeves always tugged down over their palms, and the eyes of someone who’d seen more than they should’ve. They weren’t chatty, but they liked drawing. Their sketchbook was filled with figures that resembled comic book heroes, quiet and fierce, with eyes always cast in shadow. They were hunched over a new page now, sketching a person standing in the center of swirling chaos. The figure held a long sword in both hands, the blade resting
I didn’t expect her to say it back. Not because I didn’t think she felt it, but because I knew how heavy those words could be when they came from her. Ofelia didn’t give anything lightly, not her trust, not her time, and definitely not her heart. So when I said, “I love you,” and she didn’t hesitate? Yeah. That did something to me. We were half-buried in a blanket, kittens snoring on our legs and chest like we were glorified heating pads, and she just looked at me, sleepy and soft and sure. “I love you, too,” Ofelia said. That was it. No dramatic swell. No surge of panic or doubt. Just peace. I let my eyes close not long after that. The world didn’t end. Nothing broke. If anything, the quiet steadied me more than a kiss ever could. She stayed curled into my side, and for the first time in too long, I didn’t dream about fire or sirens or people I couldn’t save. I dreamt of her. In the morning, I slipped out as gently as I could. Ofelia was still asleep, hair tangled, mouth sligh
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