Page 39 of Adored By the Wolf

“Yeah, I remember seeing it in your garage, tucked in the back.”

“Oh, that old thing. You don’t want to use that. It’s been sitting in there way too long. I probably threw it away because it’s useless now.”

“Oh.” I hadn’t realized how disappointed I’d be. I hadn’t wanted to go hang gliding either, so with this news, I thought I’d feel more relaxed, but the thought of Millie waking up and realizing we couldn’t hang glide after all sent a shot of anxiety through me.

I looked over at her sleeping form. She was now slumped over the seatbelt, and I couldn’t help smiling at the fact that she was by my side right now, hang glider or not.

Denis was still standing by the door. He said, “Well, you’ve driven all the way out here. Why don’t you two come in? You might not be cold but I am.” He pulled his jacket tighter around himself. “I just made some hot chocolate with chocolate from my own cacao beans.” Turning, he headed toward his house.

“You made your own chocolate?”

“I have time on my hands,” he called back, already halfway up the stairs.

I saw him enter, and I sat there for a few seconds wondering if it was a good idea to bring Millie in to spend the day here. While I was thinking over what to do, I noticed Millie stirring and thought it was probably best to ask her what she wanted to do before I drove us home. If there was anything Sandy had taught us about girls, it was to always ask them what they wanted—not assume what they desired.

I waited till Millie had opened her eyes and was looking at me with absolute trust shining out of her dark, black eyes.She is mine.My hand reached for hers before I registered what I was doing.

“Hi,” she said. “Sorry, I nodded off there.”

“Don’t be sorry. I’m glad you got some rest.”

She looked around and realized we were parked. “Are we here?”

“Yes, we’re at Denis’s house. But I have some unfortunate news. I thought he had a hang glider we could use, but he said it’s too old and wouldn’t trust it.”

I definitely felt a wave of relief wash over her and was about to ask why but decided not to ask. She was trying to appear strong for some reason, and I wouldn’t break her trust because she wasn’t ready to share the reason why with me yet.

Squeezing my hand, she said, “Okay. I understand, Jacob. It’s not your fault.”

Relieved at her response, I said, “Thank you. While you were sleeping, Denis asked if we’d like to come in before we head back home.”

“Oh, I’d love that.”

And it appeared she did because there was no increased heart rate, no shaky hands, only the genuine smile of someone who really did want to pay a visit to Denis, even though she knew nothing about him. That sense of trust she was putting in me lifted my spirits. Shooting her a smile, I exited the car and went around to open her door, but she was already out and coming toward me.

I smiled and took her hand to lead her to the house.

“What is Denis like?” she asked as we walked up the stairs.

“He’s eccentric, that’s for sure, but he really cares about nature. That’s why he gets along so well with Dad. They both have a love for nature and keeping the land as pristine as possible for future generations.”

“I love that.”

One look at her and I could tell she really meant it. How was I so lucky to have a woman who cared about someone she’d never met? In the same breath, I admonished myself that I didn’t actually have her yet. There was still Bruno and the fact she didn’t know we were wolf shifters. I took a deep breath to prevent the low growl that was threatening to come out. If there was a way to get rid of my wolf shifter side, I would do it if it meant I could have Millie without her looking at me like Becca had when she realized there were large wolves on our territory.

Denis opened the door and invited us in, leading us to his kitchen where a small round table big enough for two people was situated not two feet from the stove.

“For someone who’s so environmentally conscious, your table is very close to your stove,” I pointed out.

Denis looked at the table and then at his stove, where I could see embers in the pit under his pot. He shrugged. “Did you notice the size of this room?”

How could we not? The three of us filled it up.

“This table acts as my island, and I use it for cooking and eating and whatever else I need. Not like your big houses where you have one thing for every job.”

I laughed and looked at Millie. “It’s easy to get him riled up.”

Denis hmphed. “If you boys hadn’t done such a good job fixing my house, I’d throw you out right now. Now, who wants some Cheerios?”