Mila's face was beet red and she buried her face in her hands in mortification. What was she even supposed to say to that? She didn't want to hurt Leo's feelings but her heart couldn't take an attack like that.
She sighed heavily and resigned herself to her fate. "It's fine. I just…wasn't expecting it."
Leo had always been an extremely affectionate cat and now his ways of showing it had been limited. She couldn't limit him further because of her own discomfort.
"I don't want to make you sad, Mila," he said quietly.
Mila shot him her bravest attempt at a real smile and rubbed his head. "You aren't making me sad, kitty. Come on. I need to make dinner. Do you want to try and help me this time?"
That immediately perked him up. "Yeah! Show me what I need to do. I want to help."
