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Ollie met my eyes over her head, his expression confused.
“Is that all, Meri?” he asked, turning his attention back to my cousin. “Do you see anything else?”
“No.” Meri’s face cleared, her sunny personality returning as if she’d flipped a switch. “Unfortunately I can’t control what the spirit guides show me. But let me know who it is. I’ll be curious.”
Ollie
I’d been back in Greysden long enough to hear the stories about Meri’s strange predictions. Rumor had it that her accuracy had improved after she’d mated with that wolf Preston, but clearly things were still a little wonky.
As we ate dinner I wondered who on Earth would visit me here in Greysden. I didn’t know a lot of people other than my military buddies. Everyone else I knew pretty much lived here.
“Is it someone I know from the military?” I asked Meri as we passed around the dishes.
She gave me an apologetic look. “No clue, sorry. I see what I see, I can’t call things up at will.”
Given that the vision might not even happen, I put it out of my mind.
Dinner with the Rosewaters was more enjoyable than I would have expected. I didn’t feel any of the awkwardness I usually felt around people I didn’t know well. Despite it only being the five of us, Sage and Meri had made a veritable feast with two kinds of meat, rice, potatoes with gravy, two vegetable dishes, and rolls with butter.
I ate way more than was strictly polite, thrilled to have a home cooked meal for once. After more than thirty years of eating whatever they were serving in the mess hall, cooking for myself had been an adjustment. I’d found myself eating cereal, sandwiches, and frozen pizza more often than not. Sometimes I’d get inspired to grill some meat or make eggs, but nothing ever turned out as good as this meal. Nowhere close.
“Everything is so delicious Sage. Thank you so much.”
“It’s nice to have you here. We’ll send you home with some leftovers so you don’t have to cook tomorrow.”
My bear and I both perked up at that idea before I remembered that I didn’t have my truck. “I came through the woods in my bear form.”
“That’s okay dear. Nora will drive you home.”
My mate looked up from her plate. “I will?”
“Of course. I’m sure you want to see where Ollie lives. I imagine you’ll be spending a lot of time there soon enough.”
That’s when it hit me. My cabin was built for a guy who lived alone. It was basically one big room with a loft. How did I think I could move my mate there? She’d never be comfortable.
We need to build an addition, my bear said. Make room for our mate.
I resolved to start planning for that the next day.
After dinner Sage refused our offer to help clean up, explaining that they had a rule in the house that whoever didn’t help prepare dinner was on clean-up duty.
“Edward will handle it. I’m sure you two want to get out of here.”
Nothing about my mate’s demeanor indicated that.
“You don’t have to drive me,” I said softly. “I can put the bag of leftovers in my mouth and run with it that way.”
“That sounds like a recipe for disaster,” she said drily. “I’m glad to drive you but we need to leave soon. I’m sorry to say that my night vision isn’t as good as it used to be.”
The problem with humans was their bodies were so fragile and they aged quickly. A shifter could be ninety years old and still be able to see perfectly well in the dark. Then again, most of us had something called a ‘tapetum lucidum’ that gave us excellent night vision. Shifters’ eyes reflected in the dark just like their animal counterparts.
I followed Nora out into her SUV. I pushed the passenger seat back as far as it would go but it was still a bit of a tight squeeze. My knees were pressed against the glove box, but I didn’t mind a little bit of discomfort if it allowed me to spend more time with my mate. In the close confines of the car I could smell her arousal, the scent competing with her natural scent and body care products.
“Thanks for letting me stay for dinner,” I said as we pulled away from the Rosewater house.
“It wasn’t up to me,” she said. “But I didn’t mind it either.”
I guess that was high praise from my mate. She drove through town and I directed her towards the road that led up the mountain.
