Page 20 of Alfie

Joss made a face. “Wish me luck.”

Alfie grinned. “Good luck. If all else fails, the California roll is pretty good.”

Joss nodded. “We’ll meet you in the employee lot at seven.”

“Thanks, guys.”

Alfie returned to the bedroom to finish getting ready. His wolf was anxious to see Myla again; he loved spending time with her. It was wild to him that he could feel so strongly about her so quickly, but he knew that was the pull of soulmates. He was certain she was feeling it too.

When it was time to leave, he grabbed the coupon book and headed out the door, walking across the park to the employee lot. It was bracingly cold, and snow was due later in the evening. His wolf loved the snow. He swore the beast was half husky. He hadn’t been in his shift since the December full moon, but he hoped the next time he shifted it would be so he could show Myla what he truly was.

When he reached the lot, he saw Joss and Jeanie in one of the park’s unmarked SUVs, idling in the aisle. He waved and got behind the wheel of another SUV, put in Myla’s parents’ address, and pulled ahead of them.

Sending a quick text to Myla that he was on the way, he turned on a playlist and drove toward his future.

“Mom, Dad, this is Alfie,” Myla said, holding Alfie’s left hand tightly like he was a balloon that might fly away. “Alfie, these are my parents, Stacy and Joe. You remember my brother, Milo, and his better half, Alice.”

Alfie shook her parents’ hands. “It’s nice to meet you. Thanks for letting me join the fun tonight. I brought this for your family,” he said, handing over the coupon book and explaining how they could schedule a group tour once they opened again in February.

“Oh! This is so sweet, thank you! And you’re very welcome here,” Stacy said, showing Joe the coupon book. “Make yourself at home. There’s a card game in the garage, but it’s cold as heck out there if you ask me. And in the den, there’s a movie marathon with a terrible theme that Milo picked.”

“It’s not terrible,” Milo said.

“What’s the theme?” Alfie asked.

“Movies where the world ends,” he said, grinning. “It’s a great theme for New Year’s Eve!”

Alfie laughed.

“Let me give you the tour, and then we can grab some food. I’m starving,” Myla said. “Mom had me on my feet all day cooking.”

“You’re just so good at it!” Joe said.

“I’m not five,” Myla said. “You can’t tell me I’m amazing at mundane chores to get me to keep doing them enthusiastically! I know for a fact that I’m not the best potato peeler in the world.”

Alfie loved their banter. It made him miss his own family.

Time had a shitty way of robbing people of the ones they needed the most.

Milo and Alice joined them for the tour, talking about their Valentine’s Day wedding. He was aware that Alice kept elbowing Myla, and he was sure it was about the plus-one situation at the wedding.

Little did they know that he and his wolf were one hundred percent ready to spend the rest of their lives with Myla and he’d happily be her plus-one. Whenever she asked, he’d say yes.

They spent time watching one of the end-of-the-world movies, ate their fill of various appetizers, pasta dishes, and cupcakes that Myla had made special for the night.

When it was close to midnight, she suggested they put on their coats.

“Why?” he asked. “Do you want to leave before midnight?”

“No, I want to go out into the backyard. It just started snowing.”

He grinned, loving the idea, and followed her to the hall closet for their coats.

“Oh, yeah, I mean it was wild!” one of Myla’s parents’ friends said in the hall, speaking to someone else. “He got fired, and kicked up a fit, and they had to get security to escort him out.”

Myla paused. “Who got fired?”

“A guy at the bank I use to drop off the deposits from the shop,” the woman said. “His name is Eddie. He was a personal banker, so I never dealt with him, but he always struck me as a schmuck.”