Getting second cat

Question
My husband and I have a 1 yr old male; recently neutered, indoors only, cat. He is our baby boy. We got Shiye as a kitten at about 10 weeks old. And he is spoiled!  He considers himself one of the family. We can't have conversation without him being in-between us. We have been seriously thinking about getting another kitten, and are wondering if we should get a male of female kitten and if he would be accepting of the new addition. One of the reasons we are wanting a new kitten beside pure joy is because Shiye seem so lonely when we leave the house and are gone all day or even a few hours.  As soon as we arrive home before I have a chance to put down what ever I am carrying he is right there wanting affection. I know that he will probably be jealous at first, but I am hoping the companionship of the new kitten will be good for him. But would he get along better with a male of female kitten, which either would be fixed soon.

Answer
If he is neutered and the new kitty will also be fixed then the gender of the new kitty should not matter much. You will need to take your time to introduce them because as sweet as your kitty is, they can still play rough even if he has no agressive intentions and you will need to supervise their interaction. Introductions should be made slowly. I recommend a baby gate or screen so that the cats can be kept in separate rooms but still see each other through. Once they get used to this then you can let them intercat with your supervision for a while until you see how they get on. There may be llittle hisses or growls at first but with time that should subside. If you intend to do this you should do it soon since the younger they both are, the better their bond can be. And yes, a playmate can be a great thing for your cat but you should play with them just as much as before.