I opened my mouth to complain, but nothing came out. Honestly, what was I supposed to say? I'd agreed to forgive him, I couldn't very well hurt his feelings. I swallowed a sigh. It wasn't like I had plans for the night so there was no reason that we couldn't spend a little time together and then go our separate ways. After all, it wasn't like Alrick would be staying long term.
In the packhouse where we took our meals, I started for the serving buffet, but Alrick tightened his grip on my waist, guiding me to a table that had been prepared over by the window and pulled out a chair. Obediently sinking into it, I waited for an explanation.
"I'll be right back," he promised.
I shivered as his palm danced over my shoulder as he pulled it away. I started seriously re-evaluating whether I could survive a day of buddying around with him without losing my mind. It didn't look promising.
"Here you go." Alrick's rich voice made me shiver again as he set a brimming coffee cup down in front of me with one hand and a heavily loaded plate with the other. My nostrils were immediately assaulted by the divine scent of his signature venison hash.
"Oh, gods," I moaned, swallowing a large mouthful as he dug into his own serving across from me. "You made me hash?"
"Well," Alrick grinned. "It was a large stag, so if you want to be specific, I made everybody hash."
My fork clattered to the plate and I stared.
"You made venison hash for over three hundred beings?"
Alrick shrugged, but I noticed his smile was a little smug. "Give or take." He winked at me. "But I made sure there was some stashed in the back of the freezer just for you."
That breakfast was just the beginning. As the days passed, it began to look like I'd been wrong about Alrick not being in the Coruscation territory for long. We took every meal together. No matter where I was when it was time to eat, I would look up and find him waiting for me, a smile on his face. He surprised me with little treats – homemade cookies and trips into town on classic movie nights. A small stuffed orange striped kitten appeared on my bed one day, reminding me that I'd told him about the pet cat that I'd had as a child. After that? A super soft t-shirt emblazoned with Alpha Wolf after he'd told the story about my saving him from a gunman and then pronounced me as brave as any Alpha he knew. A set of professional pencils and an adult coloring book from my favorite science fiction program appeared at the breakfast table after that. Each gift warmed my heart, not because he was giving methingsbut because each small gift was so personal, so tailored to some aspect of my life that it told me that he been truly listening when I talked. Through it all, he never tried to touch me beyond a guiding hand or an arm around my waist. Then, on my birthday, he went for broke.
I came down the steps from the dorm, no longer surprised to find the Alpha lounging there, waiting for me.
"Happy birthday!" Alrick bent down to drop a sweet kiss on my cheek.
Startled, I frowned and drew back to see his eyes. "How did you know?"
Alrick laughed, his eyes dancing. "I'll never tell!" He teased, wrapping that familiar arm around my waist, but instead of the packhouse, he led me toward the long drive and an unfamiliar blue truck parked on the side.
"Where are we going?" I asked, climbing inside when he opened the door.
"You'll see."
We stopped for breakfast at a small diner off the highway, but in spite of all my wheedling, Alrick refused to disclose his secret. Instead, he pulled a small bundle from the inside of his coat and passed it to me.
"What's this?" I raised my brow as he grinned at me.
"Just a little something," he said with a smirk. "If you open it, you'll know."
I carefully peeled the paper back and choked back a gasp. Thelittle somethingwas a leather-bound collector's edition of Jack London'sWhite Fang.
"Oh, Alrick," I exclaimed. "I can't accept this!"
"Sure you can," he disagreed with a grin. "I can't return it."
"I..i don't know what to say." I stroked the buttery-soft cover with the tips of my fingers. "It's amazing. Thank you."
"You're welcome, Seb," Alrick leaned over the table to kiss my cheek. "Happy Birthday." He turned back to his menu. "Now, what looks good?"
***
About an hour away from the Coruscation lands, he pulled the truck to a stop in the parking lot of a private hunting lodge.
"What are we doing here?"
Alrick's grin was definitely wolfish as he pulled me out of the truck. "We're booked for a private birthday hunt."
"What?" I knew my eyes widened. "What are we hunting?"
