I sat down on one of the Adirondack chairs and stared into the trees, hoping the universe might show me a way forward. The big wolf I’d seen last week walked out of a break in the tree line. He headed right for me, his steps steady and sure. My muscles froze, and I couldn’t move. I sat there helpless as he came all the way onto the deck.
His huge muzzle nudged into my lap until he got his head under my hand. This close to him, I could see the flecks of dark gray around his ears.
“I see you met Hades.” Cullen stepped out onto the deck.
Hades licked my hand, then walked over to rub along Cullen’s legs.
“Did I just pet a wolf?” I asked, still too stunned to process what had happened.
“Give him a granola bar. He’ll love you forever.” Cullen tossed me one of his peanut butter protein bars.
The wolf’s eyes tracked it through the air and within seconds, he was sitting in front of me. His tongue swept along his lip, eagerly waiting for his treat.
While I unwrapped it with shaky fingers, Cullen came up behind me. “Ruby offered to watch Callie tonight. I was thinking we could go into town and grab something for dinner. You haven’t been away from her in over a week and could probably use a break.”
I didn’t know what to say. My time in Mustang Mountain was coming to an end. The smart thing to do would be to distance myself, not spend time alone with Cullen. The longer I stayed, the harder it would be to leave.
“Um, that’s okay. I’m fine. Just needed some fresh air.” I wanted to say yes. But wanting anything from him would be a mistake. Hades had finished his snack, and I ran my hand over the thick fur on his back.
Cullen tilted his head, studying me with that intense gaze of his. “We can go wherever you want. There are some things we need to talk about. Does six work for you?”
So he wasn’t asking, he was telling. There were some things I probably needed to talk to him about too. So instead of holding my ground, I let up. “Six is fine. Is Ruby coming over, or are we taking Callie to her?”
“She said it would be easier if Callie stayed at her place tonight. We can drop her off on our way.” The ground tipped. No baby buffer. Just him and me and the truth we’d been dodging. He hesitated for a minute like he wanted to say something more. Then he went back inside, leaving me on the back deck with a wild wolf and the gorgeous view to keep me company.
Tonight, I’d tell him. That something came up, and I needed to leave sooner than I’d planned.
That was the only way to protect myself.
CHAPTER 7
CULLEN
We’d dropped Callie off with Ruby over an hour ago, and since then I’d been trying to make small talk with Rose but she’d barely said a word. I’d had a longer conversation with our server who was interested in applying to be a volunteer firefighter in Mustang Mountain than I’d had with the woman sitting across the table from me.
“How was your drink?” I asked. She’d finished off her huckleberry mule a few minutes ago. I thought the alcohol might help her relax, but she looked just as uptight as she’d been when we left the house.
“Good.” Her hands toyed with the wrapper from her straw, coiling it around and around her pointer finger, then pulling it free before doing it again.
Ruby had been thrilled to keep Callie overnight. It didn’t feel right to leave her with someone besides Rose, but Ruby insisted. She even asked if it would be okay to start calling herself Grandma Ruby since she didn’t have kids of her own. I didn’t have the heart to refuse her.
“You said there was something you wanted to talk to me about.” Rose looked at me over the appetizer she hadn’t touched. “I need to tell you something too. Do you want to go first or should I?”
I wanted to ask her to stay longer than three weeks—call it a job if I had to, but the truth sat lower in my gut. I didn’t want to lose her. Not just the help. Her. Usually, I’d insist on ladies first, but I was afraid of what she might say. If she said she was leaving sooner, I wasn’t sure what I’d do with the hole that thought carved out of me.
“Do you mind if I share first?”
“Go ahead.” Her shoulders dipped, maybe in relief, maybe in disappointment. She was a difficult person to read, and hell, I’d been trying. It didn’t help that I had zero experience trying to decipher the opposite sex. I never stuck around long enough to have to figure things out.
“So, um…”
Our dinner arrived.
“The petite filet for the lady and the ribeye for the gentleman,” our server announced. “Do you need anything else? Steak sauce? Extra butter for your potatoes?”
“No thank you.” Rose gave him a tight-lipped smile.
“I think we’re good,” I said.
