She shrugs. “I’m just extra hungry today. Maybe some eggs and bacon, too?”
“Okay,” I answer, laughing. “Fried potatoes and extra onion?”
“Oh, God, yes!” she chuckles. “You know the way to my heart.”
“I hope so,” I say.
Alisha blushes a little and kisses my cheek before going down the hall.
In the kitchen, I text almost everyone I know with the news that Alisha is safe. Messages come pouring back in immediately, showing me how much my support network cares about her and me.
As I flip the steaks and crisp the potatoes in oil, I have to admit I like the feeling of people looking out for me. It’s not something I’m used to, and it’s very different having people do it out of love rather than duty.
I’m serving up the plates when Alisha comes in, and to my surprise, she demolishes half her food within two short minutes.
I let out a low whistle. “Damn, you were hungry!”
“I know, and I’m not even done yet,” she says. “But do we have anything for dessert?”
“Probably,” I say, watching with fascination as she wolfs down the food. “I think I have some chocolate cake.”
“Oh, can we heat it up and put ice cream on top?”
“That sounds great,” I laugh. “What’s gotten into you?”
Alisha shifts her eyes away from me to look at her plate, and I feel an uncomfortable shiver run through me.
Is she lying about something?
Even though her body language screams deception, I can’t imagine what she could possibly be lying about.
What could consuming a mass of red meat and sweets possibly have to do with deception?
Even though an answer seems to tease at my brain, I can’t catch it, so I let it go.
We finish dinner and dessert, and the moment Alisha is through with her cake, her eyelids start to droop.
“Wow,” she says, yawning. “I’m really wiped out.”
“It must have been a hard few days for you,” I say. “Not knowing what you were going to do and trying to keep away from me.”
Alisha gives me a steady look. “I know it was worse on you,” she says. “I’d rather not talk about it.”
“Okay,” I reply. “Is there anything I can do?”
“No,” she answers. “I just want to go to bed.”
“That’s fine,” I answer. “I’ll stay on the couch.”
Alisha just gives me a steady look and nods, and I can tell that she’s relieved I already made the decision, so she doesn’t have to worry about sleeping beside me.
I don’t know what this is right now. Are we together? Are we not? I just don’t know.
Alisha goes upstairs, and I clean up the kitchen, listening with my wolf hearing as she puts herself to bed. As I head for the couch, I mentally check over every part of my house, making sure I’ve doubled-checked that every window and door is closed and locked.
When I lay down with a blanket over me, I immediately fall into an incredibly deep sleep. Utter relief that Alisha issafe and back under my roof with me releases all the stress and tension of the past few days, and my mind drags my body straight down into a dreamless and silent abyss. I’m only just barely aware of drifting in the blissful peace when far-off screams shatter the silence.
Fuck! It’s Alisha!
