With Stella keen on the cabin by the lake, he needed to check in with Chloe to confirm it was available at the time they agreed on.  The pair would be there for the duration of a weekend, and then some.  Anton just needed to know how many days exactly, because Chloe would need to know that, too.<br/><br/>Having kissed her goodbye for the time being, he teased her that she had some major sucking up to do with HMS Tesla.  By the time Anton left her apartment for his own, he noticed the Maine Coon wasn’t bitching as much as when they’d initially arrived and freed him from captivity.  Seemed to him that the vociferous kitty was slowly but surely reacquainting himself with the familiar sights and scents in his home.  Stella also had quite a bit of unpacking to do.<br/><br/>While Licorice was sunning herself on the bench by the window, he retrieved his phone from the couch and dialed the number to the agency.  As it rang, Anton wondered if her black fur served as a heat magnet the same way a black t-shirt did.  Chloe picked up on the fourth ring.  After some small talk between them, she entered his request for a reservation for the lakeside cabin into her computer.  He coulda sworn he heard a slight squeal from her when he ‘fessed up and said that he’d be going there with Stella.<br/><br/>Call disconnected, he smiled as he tossed the device back onto the couch, where it bounced twice before lying still.  And then the light shone bright in his eyes.  Holy crap!  The lake!  That meant bathing suits.  At issue was not what he’d be wearing, but rather, Stella’s choice of swimming attire.  A one-piece, he could probably handle.  Probably.  A two-piece?  Best not dwell on it too long.<br/><br/>By now, Licorice had flipped to her other side.  Perhaps his theory about her black fur attracting heat from the sun’s rays was accurate, after all.  Time to warm the opposite side’s fur.  Kinda like BBQ.<br/><br/>Anton lounged on the couch with a pencil and scratch paper in hand.  He began to jot down some grocery items, which he would in turn cross-reference with Stella.  Knowing her, she’d more than likely want to concoct a few dishes of her own, whether they were for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.  Fair is fair, he thought.  Funny how steak headlined his list, though he knew there’d be no napalm-induced prawns included like the last time.  He chuckled at the memory, recalling how they were in a world of hurt that night with his choice of spiciness.  Unsurprisingly, no trace of hot sauce showed up on his list.<br/><br/>A radiated visitor joined him on the couch, then on his chest.  Plopping onto her side, Anton felt like a splat of lava from Mauna Loa just landed on him.  A splat of lava from Mauna Loa never purred though.  Sizzled and hissed, perhaps, but never purred.