Page 36 of Alfie

“No, cold like it didn’t feel like it was your place. There were some mementoes, but not a lot. And it’s really too well-stocked to belong to a single guy.”

“What?” he asked with a laugh.

“You have a full set of matching plates, silverware, and glasses. I literally have never met a single guy who had a well-appointed kitchen. Milo lived alone for a few years before he and Alice moved in together, and let me tell you, that even with my mom and grandma giving him all sorts of dishes and kitchen stuff, he still drinks out of a chipped coffee mug for his favorite football team because it’s lucky and puts his leftovers in whipped cream containers.”

“I hadn’t thought about that,” he said.

She shrugged. “Before I knew much about your life, I figured your mom or sister helped you stock it, or you went out and bought a bunch of things to impress me. But aside from the whole place being matchy-matchy with the navy-blue color palette in every room, it’s just a little too neat for a bachelor.”

He drew her close and kissed her. “I bet the pack members who decorated the apartments hadn’t thought about how it would look to an outsider, they were just trying to make them seem lived-in.”

“That would be hard to do with no one living there for real.” She went onto her toes and kissed him. “So you’re going to show me your real place? Because it’s cold out and my toes are numb.”

“Yes, right now. But I just wanted to apologize. I wasn’t able to show you where I really live because it’s another layer of the secrets in the park. Like my wolf, it’s something else you have to keep from the people you love.”

“You’re worth it,” she said. “And I don’t think you need to apologize. Your alphas have rules to keep everyone safe, and since I’m your soulmate and we’re going to have half-human, half-wolf kiddos at some point, I want you, and them, safe too.”

“Me too.”

He took her hand and they walked to the employee cafeteria, and straight to the back of the building. He entered a code to unlock the security door, then took her down underneath the park where the wolves’ private living area was behind another locked security door.

“I can’t give you the codes for the doors until we’re mates.”

“I thought we were?” she asked.

He opened the door and she let out a surprised gasp. “Oh! It looks like dens in the woods, holy crap!”

Chuckling, he pulled the door shut behind him and took her hand. Bringing it to his lips, he kissed her knuckles and said, “You’re wearing my marks and that makes you my mate. But you’re not officially my mate or part of the pack until we’re joined together by the alphas during a mating ceremony. It’s similar to a wedding ceremony but ends with the pack shifting and running around the paddock.”

“When can we do that?”

“There’s no rush, we can do it whenever we want. This month or next, or we can wait until it’s nicer out, April or May even,” he said.

“How about this month?” she asked. “The full moon is probably in a couple weeks.”

He loved that she didn’t want to wait. “We can check with Joss and Jeanie, but I’m sure they won’t mind.”

She gave him a curious look. When he prompted her, she said, “You’re going to ask me to be your wife too, at some point? Because I’ve always pictured my dad walking me down the aisle. I’m the only daughter, and I want him to be able to have that. And for my mom to be the mother-of-the-bride.”

“Of course,” he said. “I definitely want you to be my wife too.”

“I want a nice, sexy proposal, by the way. We can have a PG-rated story to tell my family, but the real one needs several Big Os.”

“You got it.”

He led her to the house that he’d claimed when he’d first come to the park and had imagined he’d find his soulmate sooner rather than later. He wasn’t old by any stretch, but he felt like he’d waited a lifetime for Myla. She was well worth the years of waiting, though.

The two-bedroom was similar to the other homes, with the exterior covered with rocks to resemble a den. All the homes were scattered around the forest-themed private living area.

She walked right into the kitchen and opened a cabinet, then pointed to the variety of glassware and mugs. Few matched, and most were sentimental, including the coffee mug that had belonged to his grandpa.

“Hardly anything matches,” she said. “I can tell this is your place, and I love it.”

“It’s yours now too, Myla.”

Her eyes were shining brightly. “I love that even more.”

He showed her the rest of the house, which he’d called home but had never really felt like home. Then they’d christened the moment with a quick tumble in the sheets before they journeyed up to the employee lot and met Amadeus and London, who escorted them to Myla’s apartment so she could pack a few things.