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It’s hard to say when we fell asleep, but when I woke, Kate was right beside me.
“Mornin’.”
“Morning.” I let out a long yawn. “Have you been up long?”
“Maybe fifteen minutes?” She frowned, then scanned the room. “I don’t know what time it is, and I’m too lazy to get up to grab my phone, but if I had to guess, I’d say it’s close to ten.”
“Ten?”Shit!I’d overslept.
“Relax,” she said when I got up too fast. “It’s Saturday, remember?” Kate pressed her forehead to mine, then kissed me on the lips. “There’s nothing to worry about.”
“Aside from my family, you mean.” There was no way I could hide the nerves in my voice so I didn’t even try. After everything Kate and I had gone through over the last twelve hours, being honest with her was the least I could do.
“Nora won’t ask you to leave.”
“I don’t want to burden her more than I already have.”
“She wouldn’t have offered you a place to stay if she didn’t mean it. She said you could stay as long as you like.”
“Yeah,” I said between kisses, “but the longer I let this go on, the worse it’s going to get. Besides, my mom’s probably worried sick. I should get back to her.”
“I envy that about you,” Kate said as we sat up in bed. “About wolves. Your families are so strong.”
“Not all of them.” I glanced at the steps leading from the basement, then met her gaze again. “Do you know what happened between Nora and her pack?”
“No.” Kate bowed her head with regret. “I figured she wanted to be alone.”
“I’m not strong enough to do something like that. A wolf is only as strong as the pack she keeps.”
“Do you actually believe that?”
“I’d miss my mom and dad, but I’d lose my freaking mind if I ever had to let Dustin go.”
“I think we’re only as strong as we believe. I might envy the bond you have with your pack, but that’s only because I don’t know what I’m going to say to my mom when I go home.”
“Tell her what you’ve done,” I said while taking her hand in mine. “Tell her about all of the people you’ve helped and the smiles you’ve caused. Tell her you missed her and thought of her often because you did. But most importantly, tell her you love her.
There’s no need to apologize for your passion, but if you want to learn anything from a wolf, it’s to be as honest as you can.”
“Like not telling your folks about us.” This time when she spoke, there was no mistaking the pain in her voice.
“I’m sorry about that. I wanted to tell them, but they have these plans for me that–”
“It’s okay. I get it. I’m only here for one more day as it is, so–”
“No,” I said with a quick shake of my head. “It’s not okay, and you’re right. I should've been more honest with them and with you. I also don’t want this to end.”
“But I’m leaving first thing tomorrow morning.”
“That doesn’t mean we can’t be friends.”
“Friends?”
“Or more if you’ll have me.”Please, please, please say yes.“I know these things don’t always work out.”
Kate didn’t say anything for a long unnerving moment. At first, I wondered if she’d heard what I’d said. Then I was afraid of how she’d respond.
