On his way downstairs to assist Stella with her belongings, Anton developed his plan of action.  Namely, to plant one on her lips like he meant it.  He hadn’t given this plan any previous thought, only coming up with it while descending the stairwell.  A sort of an epiphany, if you will.  He realized he wouldn’t be returning to pecks on her cheek after this.  Strictly as a hello or good-bye greeting, perhaps.<br/><br/>What he hadn’t planned on, nor anticipated, was Stella’s returned kiss.  Anton was not protesting her actions in any way.  Any and all protestations were emanating from an annoyed and testy Maine Coon.  Her initiation of her own smooch was a bonus, pure and simple.  Alas, all good things must come to an end, and so did their extended bout of kissing.<br/><br/>Upon separation, Stella blushed, which he’d always found to be endearing.  With her fair skin, it was nearly impossible for her to disguise it.  Anton wondered, however, why she blushed in the first place.  Did his sneak attack kiss catch her off guard that much?  He didn’t think so, since she willingly had one of her own for him.  He had to admit though, that his decision to kiss her like he did would surprise just about anyone.<br/><br/>Time to play pack-mule and haul her stuff upstairs.  Thank goodness for the elevator, he thought.  Anton was at first laden with Tesla and the cooler before Stella felt like some rearrangements were necessary.  After she was done, he was still carrying Tesla and the cooler, but with an added bag around his shoulder.  She informed him of sharing her good friend’s excellent cooking.<br/><br/>Once inside her apartment, first and foremost Anton saw to the release of Tesla from his portable gulag.  He assumed that at the top of the Maine Coon’s to-do list were his food and water bowls, primarily his food, of course.  His grumblings, however, accompanied him along the way, but under the sofa, not to his food.  Just goes to show how upset he was at being locked up for so long.<br/><br/>Both neighbors decided to take a load off their feet, making themselves comfortable at her kitchen table.  Unaware of Stella’s wish to avoid him prior to leaving on her mini vacation, Anton smirked at her while she first unburdened herself of various bags and a backpack.  He was about to inform her that she coulda left Tesla with him, until she unburdened herself of other forms of baggage.  Apparently, and unbeknownst to him, he and Peter Guthrie were a part of those other forms of baggage.  A lot of past events and reactions were beginning to make more and more sense, none more so than when she mentioned Chloe.<br/><br/>Anton listened intently, her words about Guthrie sorta confirming what he’d already heard from Magdalene.  She’d glossed over generalities about the man, having only heard and read about him.  What Stella had to say about the tycoon was far more personal.  What Stella had to say about Anton was a shock to his system.  He had no idea she felt and thought of him that way.  And somewhere, he knew Evangeline was smiling, always amused at how her husband always seemed to have his head in the clouds when it came to the opposite sex.  Movement, and a quick glance confirmed that Tesla had left the solitude of his hiding spot under the sofa to reacquaint himself with his home.  It was then that the nuclear submarine of a cat found his way to his bowls of sustenance, still pissing and moaning about the injustice and indignity of it all.  To his downstairs human neighbor, he was a very entertaining cat.<br/><br/>Stella was finally done with her raw and emotional explanations, not that she owed him any of it.  And holy crap, she certainly left no stone unturned, it all sounding like a confession of sorts.  Visions instantly popped into his mind’s eye at her suggestion of getting away for a weekend.  Anton knew what that probably meant, too.  He understood all too well what to do and what went where.  It’s just that he was unable to recall the last time he’d been intimate with a woman.  And for some reason, he didn’t count Magdalene in the equation, which just left his dearly departed wife.<br/><br/>But first, some clarification was in order.  “Chloe?” he asked, not surprised by her misunderstanding.  “Uh, no.  We’re more like brother and sister,” he explained.  “Okay, more like older brother and younger sister, though I think I’m only three years older than her.”  Well, that should put her a little more at ease, Anton thought, at least he hoped that was true.<br/><br/>Anton was equally amazed and impressed with the guts it took for her to say all that she did.  He slowly stood from his chair to stand next to her.  Guiding Stella to stand with him, he glided his hands over her bare arms before embracing her once more.  “I’d like that, Stella,” he stated, gazing into her emerald eyes.  “You just tell me what you prefer between mountains or lake, cuz I’ve got something in mind.”  While she mulled that over, he kissed her on those soft lips again, while leaving his hands on her hips this time.