Page 15

“Is work sending you somewhere?”

“Not exactly. I was getting ready to come see you. If I had left earlier, we’d have missed each other.”

“I know. We’d have been like a sit-com.” He pressed his forehead to mine. “How about in the future neither one of us tries to surprise each other this way?”

I agreed that was a good idea.

He gave me a tour of the house. It was very mechanical. He wasn’t revealing new stories of a place he loved. He was giving me just the facts, including the restrictive HOA.

“And this is where we’ll sleep.” He did not have a king-size bed, and I was not upset at him, because that meant I’d have to squish close with him.

“How long were you coming for?”

“Don’t be mad, but I was thinking of quitting my job and staying forever.”

“Except I’m not from Animals.” I loved that he wanted to be with me, but was that really the place for us?

“I didn’t say the logistics were sound.” He rubbed his cheek, his wolf meeting my scent all over him and my capybara living for it.

“That was kind of a big decision.” I wasn’t upset he made it, but it felt like something we should talk about.

“Yeah. I wasn’t really thinking. But all I do know is that I need to be where you are. I’m miserable without you.”

“Same. So very same.” I couldn’t even be mad at him, because I’d have done the same thing.

I explained to him how Karma found me and told me that I wasn’t chained to the project and encouraged me to come.

“Yeah. That’s pretty on-brand for her.”

“Right?”

This place might not be the perfect home for us, or maybe it would be. I doubted it, but my thoughts could change once we looked at the big picture. The only game-changing downside was the lack of room for us to shift, and definitely not the kind of room we needed for our family. We had talked about wanting one someday, but that had been as far as that conversation went.

Where ever we ended up, it needed to be someplace where we could shift and where we didn’t have to worry about being identical to everyone else because some Karen got a position of power.

“We need to make a plan,” I said when we sat down to dinner. “The plan plan, not the plan that had you leaving your job because you miss me. We need to pick out something that makes sense for both of us.”

We didn’t have to solve everything at once, but we needed to move forward. The townhouse would sell when we were ready. We didn’t need to rush to do that, and he didn’t need to quit his job, but maybe he could look for a new one near Animals because something about the desert felt like home.

An hour later, we had a semi-plan, and I felt better about it.

I looked at the suitcases by the door. We were so lucky. One flight later, and we’d still have been apart.

Or possibly we weren’t so lucky. We just had Fate on our side.

Chapter Thirteen

Porter

Chip was able to stay with me at first, at the townhouse, while the permitting process was going through, materials were ordered, and nothing hands-on had begun at the habitats. But after a few weeks, that was about to come to a halt. He would need to be present before construction began and wanted to be.

Of course, I wanted that for him as well, and we were going to have to make it work for our relationship. I would go a many weekends as possible and it would be okay. Or at least that’s what we told one another whenever we tried to find a work around and there were none. He was contracted to complete the habitats, and even if he hadn’t been and hadn’t desperately wanted to honor it, he drew great pleasure from his work. And I admired it.

But we still discussed possibilities. If I quit my job to accompany him and then got another—what would we do when his project began? The only practical solution was for me to keep my job, visit him as much as possible or vice versa, and appreciate the time we had together. Starting with celebrating his trip. Obviously it wasn’t optimum for him to be away, but as I told him when he joined me at the front door to leave on our special going-away date, “It’s going to be great every time we get back together.”

“And awful when I leave or when you do after a visit?”

I kissed him and pulled him close. “We won’t focus on that. Tonight is about my talented mate creating something beautiful at Animals that so many people will enjoy.” I led him outside and locked the door before taking his hand and lifting it to my lips. “I’m so proud of you.”