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LoriFLA, it's common to see this kind of thing in a group of cats, and it usually reflects the hierarchy, with one cat always being 'top cat'.
When I had three cats, a girl and two boys, the girl cat always had to be higher up than the boys, so if they were on the rug, she was happy to be on the sofa. If they were on the sofa, she'd be on my lap or on the arm of the sofa, if one was on the arm, she'd be on the back. She made sure they always knew their place.