“Pretty much,” Alex said as he led her along the path in the same direction Hannah had gone, albeit at a much slower pace. “You don’t have to whisper, you know. The animals don’t care that we’re here.”
Even though the zoo wasn’t open, there were still enough lights on to see the pathway. Not that it seemed like Alex needed lights to see. He walked with smooth, confident steps like he had the pathways and sidewalks memorized. Or could see in the dark. Lacey couldn’t say the same about herself. Beside her, Alex immediately slowed his pace, reaching his hand out for her to hold. She took a grip on his big hand without thinking, letting him guide and steady her in the darkness.
“You okay in those heels?” he asked.
“Fine.”
She squeezed his hand tighter anyway. That’s when she realized that she hadn’t ever held a guy’s hand on a date. Alex’s hand was strong and warm and felt good wrapped around hers. She had to admit she enjoyed it.
They meandered slowly through the zoo, listening to the sounds of the animals. It seemed so different than any other time she’d been here. More muted but wilder at the same time. The grunts and coughs of the big cats were especially disconcerting, probably because she could hear them but not see them.
As they walked past the African savanna area, Lacey was disappointed when the impalas and zebras—the ones she could see, at least—immediately took off running at their approach.
“What scared them?” she asked.
“Maybe they just aren’t used to having visitors at night,” Alex said.
At least the elephants didn’t run. In fact, they did the opposite. Two of the larger ones came closer and put themselves between Lacey and Alex and the rest of their little herd, like they didn’t want them getting a look at the others. Not that Lacey could see much to begin with. But it seemed like strangely protective behavior.
Still, even if they couldn’t get a good look at the animals, it was fun to stroll through the zoo with Alex. She pulled his arm close, leaning into him more.
“So, how do you know Hannah?” she asked softly.
Lacey winced the moment the words were out of her mouth. Crap, had that come out sounding as jealous as it seemed? She hoped not. She had absolutely no reason to be jealous. She couldn’t be anyway. This was a first date, after all. But Hannah is young and kind of cute. She groaned inwardly. Stop being silly.
Luckily, Alex didn’t seem to notice the mental anxiety she was going through. “I met her a couple years ago when we raided a ranch outside the city that was involved in the illegal animal trade. She helped relocate some of the big cats we recovered. I’ve stopped by to help her out at the zoo a few times since then, and she said if I ever needed a favor, I should just call. So, I called.”
Lacey decided that sounded innocent enough, then chided herself for being so juvenile. It was none of her business, even if Alex and Hannah had dated at some point.
What the heck? Why was she even thinking stuff like that?
Fortunately, a distraction in the form of a big building in their path appeared at that moment.
“This is the zoo’s treatment center,” Alex explained. “It’s where they bring animals when they’re injured or when they’re passing through on their way somewhere else, which is what’s going on in this case.”
Lacey’s excitement level began to ratchet up again. At least it kept her from thinking about Alex and anyone he might have dated in the past.
Stop that!
The interior of the building was a lot like the vet clinic where she worked, only much larger. There were about a dozen cubicle office spaces, then a separate section with lots of treatment and surgical rooms.
At the far end of the building, they found Hannah standing outside a holding pen area. In one of the pens, Lacey spotted a dark gray wolf, bigger than any dog she had ever seen. Of course, some of that had to do with the incredibly thick coat of fur covering him. Regardless, he was huge.
“This is Ralph,” Hannah said with a smile. “He’s a North American gray wolf, sometimes called a timber wolf. He’s a recent arrival from Canada as part of a breeding study trying to increase gene diversity in the U.S. captive population.”
All Lacey could do was stare. The wolf stared right back at them through the bars of the enclosure gate. Since she loved dogs, she obviously loved wolves too. But she’d never seen one this close before, not even in a normal zoo environment. Now she was only four feet away.
“Are they always this big?” Lacey asked.
Hannah shook her head. “Gray wolves normally get up to about a hundred and seventy pounds, but Ralph is two hundred, so he’s bigger than average. It’s part of the reason he’s in the breeding program.”
“You want to go in and see him up close?” Alex asked.
Lacey whipped her head around to look at him. “We can do that? Is he tame?”
Hannah’s lips curved. “Ralph is a wolf. He’s not domesticated and will never be tame, but he is used to people. Still, I’d normally never let anyone go in there with him.” She jerked her thumb at Alex. “He and Ralph are bros, though. I think they were related in a previous life or something. Ralph gets along with Alex better than I get along with my sister. As long as Alex is with you, it’s cool.”
Even though Lacey was sure the woman knew what she was talking about, she was still nervous. The wolf was huge—and looking at them like he was wondering if Lacey’s head would fit in his mouth. Lacey was pretty sure it would.
