PetCareDomain.com

We live in a house owned by my fiance’s grandma. She is currently in a nursing home so we are just staying here so the house isn’t empty. The family is trying to sell the home and this has been used as a reason we cannot get a dog or cat as they fear it will tear up the house, carpet, etc. We have tried many times over the past year to get a dog or cat without success.
Just recently we were asked to cat sit for one of my fiance’s sisters friends. When asked I immediately said that it has to go through the warden (fiance’s mom) because of all the issues about this in the past. Come to find out it was her idea and not only did the owner want to find someone to cat sit, but also wants to find someone to take the cat as well. She rescued it a couple of months ago as it was homeless around her neighborhood and it has been living in her bathroom. This poor thing isn’t very sociable, she is a sweet heart, but not used to being loved and doesn’t even know how to play as I have gotten her all kinds of cat toys. We have been working with her and have fallen in love as well as her with us and I do not want her to have to go back to live in a bathroom and be isolated. I have it set in my heart that I am going to stand up to the “mother in-law” and say she is no going back. It was her idea and the cat has not destroyed anything.
I also work for a pet store and feel that if for any reason the cat doesn’t work out living here at any point in time, I will have no problem finding it a wonderful home.
I need some advise on the above – should I do what it takes to stand up to the warden? What else can I say?

I also need advice on cat care and maybe how I can get her to warm up and possibly play with her toys (she doesn’t even know what they are!). I do work for a pet store and plan on asking advice from some co-workers, but reptiles and birds are my personal “specialty”

Thank you in advance for any advice.
Thank you all for your answers/advice thus far! As I said I do plan on standing up to the “warden”, I just thought some advice here would help with the extra guts that I am going to need =). I did buy all kinds of toys for her… little mice, some balls, and those feather teasers. She just runs the other way any time I touch them. I figured it will take time for her to warm up to what she is supposed to and can do with them. My guess is that since she was homeless and then lived in a bathroom she doesn’t know how to play and what cat toys are. She has warmed up to us quite a bit!! She has spent the last two nights in our bed and she pures so loud you would think a motor boat is starting up =) She is so precious and my honey has already named her. Keep the answers coming and thanks again.