Cats Who Think They're Dogs

Have you ever met a cat who thinks it's a dog? One who has a few more canine traits than feline?

The cat in The Summer of Jake, Rover, thinks she's a Jack Russell Terrier and I had a whole heap of fun writing her character. But she's not alone!

If you're not sure what I'm talking about, or you just want a chuckle, here's a little introduction to cats who think they're dogs for you:

Here's a little snippet of the moment when Jake first meets Rover at Annalise's apartment:

At that moment, Rover came bounding out from my bedroom, almost barreling over Jake as she jumped up on his leg. I think he faltered more from surprise than her cat-weight. I bent to pick her up, but she was scrabbling her paws to reach the new person.

Jake took a step back. “Is that cat on medication?”

Used to this kind of comment, I just smiled. “Rover thinks she’s a dog. A Jack Russell to be specific.”

“Ah.” Jake thought for a moment, then shrugged and reached forward to pat her. “Have you considered therapy?”

For a second, I wondered if he meant the cat or me, but then his eyes twinkled.

“No need. She’s perfectly happy as long as people treat her like a dog.” Rover turned and licked my cheek as if to reinforce my point. “She was dumped at four weeks old outside my grandmother’s house, and Nan took her in.”

“Let me guess, your grandmother had a Jack Russell who adopted the kitten?”

“Her dog Spot completely took over her care. And Nan didn’t like cats, so she treated Rover like a dog. Between the two of them, Rover didn’t stand a chance.” I snuggled my face into her black and white stripy neck, and she relaxed for a few seconds before trying to reach Jake again.

“So why’s she living with you?”

I put Rover down on the ground, and she sniffed the leg of Jake’s jeans. “When Nan died a year ago, Spot had already been gone a little while, so Rover came to live here. I’ll just give her some dog food, and we can start.”

Jake started nodding, then hesitated. “You feed her dog food? Isn’t that taking things a bit far?”

I rolled my eyes. “It’s C-A-T food,” I spelled out. “We just can’t let Rover know that.”

And because I can't resist, here's another cat who thinks she's a dog. :)

I love to hear about unusual animals - tell me the most unusual pet you've had or met. I'll give away a copy of The Summer of Jake to one commenter so they can meet Rover for themselves!

Sunday Smooch: The Summer of Jake

Welcome to another LoveCats DownUnder Sunday Smooch!


Today we have a smooch from The Summer of Jake but first...


... the winner of last week's Sunday Smooch Giveaway is Barb!


Can you please contact michelle (at) michelle-douglas (dot) com to receive your copy of The Rebel and The Heiress.


And now for today's Sunday Smooch from The Summer of Jake .

Falling in love wasn’t part of the plan… 

Life is just dandy for aspiring fashion designer Annalise Farley. She has a great job (or she will once her designs are discovered), parents who only slightly disapprove, a cat that thinks she’s a dog, and a best friend…even if she hasn’t seen her in a while. But then Jake Maxwell saunters back into her life. Jake, the love god. Jake, her best friend’s older brother. Jake, who broke her heart at sixteen without realizing it, then left to become a pro surfer. Now he’s back, having taken the surfing and business worlds by storm, and he’s ready for a new challenge—catching the eye of another girl. And he wants Annalise’s help. Helping Jake land his next girlfriend is too fraught with emotional danger for her liking, but then Jake offers to put her designs in his shops. Is that the sound of her life cracking at the seams? It’s hard to tell with Jake smiling at her like she’s the only thing that makes him happy…

Scene set-up
Jake is having dinner at Annalise's place while she teaches him about wine. They've already tried quite a few varieties...
 

Smooch  -
“How about that last wine? You said it’d be the sweetest?”

 

“Um, yes. The Riesling.” Uncertain, I hesitated. If Jake wanted to avoid talking more, shouldn’t I allow him the privacy?

I poured two glasses of Riesling and handed one to him.

“Thanks,” he said, then looking into my eyes, he smiled. “It’s your turn to make the toast.”

“But I did the last one.”

“I’ve made two and you’ve made one, so this one’s yours.” He was trying hard to make light, teasing conversation, when I could see in his eyes he was still feeling the pain he’d just re-lived. I wanted to hold him, rock him, tell him everything would be all right, but I knew he’d take it as pity and push me away.

I lifted my glass. “Here’s to an amazing man, who’s both sensitive and strong.”

As he held my gaze, I held my breath. Had I gone too far? He stilled; the only sign of animation was the darkening of his eyes. “That’s probably the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me.”

Slightly confused—not to mention slightly breathless—by Jake’s intensity, I tried to lighten the mood. “I’m sure you’ve been complimented before, Jake.”

His gaze didn’t waver. “On my looks or my surfing, yes. Often. But no one’s said something like that before. Thank you.”

I tilted my head to the side, considering. Why hadn’t that been said to him before? I’d once thought Jake had everything life had to offer…but that was a fallacy. As revelations go, it was a big one. “You’re welcome.”

We both lifted our glasses to taste the last wine, but I couldn’t draw my eyes from his. I felt the Riesling flow over my tongue, and, when I lowered the glass, I licked the remaining taste from my lips. I saw Jake watch the movement.

“Do you like that wine?” I asked, my voice slightly husky.

“Yep.” He took another sip, still watching me with a strange intensity.

“I thought you’d like this one best.”

“I do.” He took a step closer and offered his glass to me. “Try some.”

I considered telling him that my glass came from the same bottle, but didn’t. I was mesmerized. He moved even closer and lifted his glass to my lips. Closing my eyes, I sipped. Then I felt him take the glass from my fingers and heard both glasses landing on the bench. In the same moment, I felt his mouth gently on mine, tasting the sweet wine on my lips.

I tried to contain a slight groan, but it slipped out moments before Jake’s arms wrapped around me, pulling me against him. Winding an arm around his neck and the other around his back, I held him firm, not willing to risk that he might change his mind. Whatever was happening outside in the real world, here and now, Jake was kissing me, and no way was I letting anything stop that.

He slid a hand to cradle my head before opening my hairclip, allowing my hair to spill down to my shoulders, and a shiver fluttered along my spine as his fingers ran through its length.
 

When his lips moved over my mouth, I felt the simple kiss become more passionate, tongues, lips, and hands bolder. But it wasn’t enough—I wanted to touch and be touched everywhere at once. His mouth was hot and decadent…and, once again, he was spoiling me for any other man.


 


I have one copy of The Summer of Jake to give away. To go into the draw, simply leave me a comment, and maybe tell me one thing that spoiled you for other things. For me, it's probably Lindt chocolate - I'm so much pickier about other chocolate now!

Come back next Sunday, when the winner of today's giveaway will be announced and a smooch from Bronwyn Jameson will be posted!

Smooch Graphic by WebWeaver

Dreaming of Summer

Is it summer in your part of the world, or winter? It's winter here in Australia and I'm rugged up during the day and sitting in front of the fire at night. 

I love winter - love being able to snuggle under the covers at night, love the smell of the fireplace through the house, love eating warm pudding. But towards the end of winter, I start dreaming about summer...

Warm days at the beach, lighter clothes, ice cream (though, honestly, I eat ice cream in winter if I feel like it).

My rom-com, The Summer of Jake is out in a few days - timed for the northern hemisphere's summer. It's set at in and around Bondi Beach in Sydney, and Jake and Annalise spend some of the time in the water and doing summery things.

And seeing the cover and title around, makes me think of summer and all the things I'll be doing when it arrives DownUnder.

What about you? Are you looking forward to summer? What's one thing you'll do when it hits? Or is it summer in your part of the world already? If so, what are you most enjoying about it?


The Summer of Jake is available for pre-order now from all your favourite retailers.

Falling in love wasn’t part of the plan…
Life is just dandy for aspiring fashion designer Annalise Farley. She has a great job (or she will once her designs are discovered), parents who only slightly disapprove, a cat that thinks she’s a dog, and a best friend…even if she hasn’t seen her in a while. But then Jake Maxwell saunters back into her life. Jake, the love god. Jake, her best friend’s older brother. Jake, who broke her heart at sixteen without realizing it, then left to become a pro surfer. Now he’s back, having taken the surfing and business worlds by storm, and he’s ready for a new challenge—catching the eye of another girl. And he wants Annalise’s help. Helping Jake land his next girlfriend is too fraught with emotional danger for her liking, but then Jake offers to put her designs in his shops. Is that the sound of her life cracking at the seams? It’s hard to tell with Jake smiling at her like she’s the only thing that makes him happy…

Baking Daze

by Rachel Bailey

There's been a lot of baking at my house recently. It must be something about the cooler weather that makes me want to turn the oven on.

The first photo is a lemon drizzle cake that is divine, and fairly easy to make. Mel Scott / MJ Scott shared the recipe with me and I think it's going to become a regular in our house. In fact, there's a how-to video that makes it even easier - I'll post it below in case anyone gets the urge. 

We're also quite fond of sultana cake (or, as I've recently discovered, it would be called yellow raisin cake in the US). When it's warm from the oven, with a cup of tea or coffee, there's not much yummier.

We've also been making puddings - chocolate molten puddings, to be precise. Though it's quite possible that there will be some sticky date puddings in our near future, since Mr Bailey usually makes them about this time of year.
 

The third photo is not baking, but it is made in the kitchen - chocolate coated popcorn. It's school holidays, so there's been some of this eaten in the last few days.



And in other news, my upcoming new adult rom-com has a title: The Summer of Jake. Thanks for all the suggestions on my last post! The winner of the Name This Book contest is Dora Bramden. Dora, drop me an email and I'll send you a copy of The Summer of Jake when it comes out.

And in the meantime, tell me what your favourite thing to bake is - do you have a go-to recipe? Maybe a family favourite? Or perhaps something that you can throw together easily? I'd love to hear about it! And maybe try baking it myself. :)

But first, that easy recipe for the lemon drizzle cake that I promised you! If you make it, let me know.