Page 33 of The Alpha's Runaway Bride

“I’ll think about it. I still have a couple of weeks,” Angie said.

Just then, Apollo nudged Angie. She looked at her watch and said, “We’ve been here for a couple of hours, and I think Apollo has business to attend to.”

The owner of the café loved Apollo and always made him a special plate when they came in. She often made the same comment that Sean did in that Apollo behaved better than some customers.

“I need to get back, too,” Olivia said.

“It’s my turn to pay,” Angie said, throwing enough money on the table to cover their food and a fifty percent tip.

The four women hugged and went their separate ways, promising to meet up again soon.

An hour later Noah called Angie. “I was thinking about going to the mountain for a run. Do you want to go with me?”

Thinking about the lecture she just got from her friends, Angie hesitated. But she couldn’t resist. “Sounds nice.”

While Angie and Apollo were by the creek waiting for Noah, dark clouds started to roll in. The air became chilled and there was a hint of moisture in the air. Just before the heavens broke loose, Noah ran up to them.

“We’d better go,” he said.

“You think, Captain Obvious?” she asked.

They were drenched by the time they got into Angie’s SUV.

“Don’t you do it,” Angie said, pointing at Apollo.

The dog ignored her and shook hard, sending water droplets everywhere.

Angie found a pair of sweats and a t-shirt that had belonged to her father that would fit Noah. They changed clothes and she threw his into the dryer.

She poured them both some sweet iced tea and challenged him to a couple games of dominoes. They both won a game. They were about to start a rematch when the dryer notified her that Noah’s clothes were ready.

After he changed, she asked, “When are you going back to the shifter world?”

“Do you want me to go back?”

“No, but you are the alpha, and you can’t hang out in the human world with me forever. You have duties to your pack.”

“You are right. I will have to go back very soon,” Noah admitted.

Angie was quiet for a second, trying not to cry. She took a couple of deep breaths and said, “I’ve had so much fun with you and I’ve enjoyed my time with you. I’ll always cherish the memories that we made together. The problem is that I don’t want to get hurt any more than I already will. I’ve started to care about you and this isn’t going to end well for me. If you stay longer, if we spend more time together, I will only start to care about you more,” she said.

Noah looked at her as though he was trying to find something to say. There really wasn’t anything that he could say. Angie was right. There could be no happily ever after for them.

“Thank you so much for the fun and the memories. I need you to go,” Angie said, wiping away the tears that coursed down her face.

He looked at her as though he wanted to argue. His hazel eyes were pools of unreadable emotions. Finally, he nodded.

“Thank you for everything,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper. “I never meant to hurt you.”

Noah pulled Angie into a hug and held her there for a long minute. She clung tightly to him, desperately wanting to melt against him. He let go, brushed a kiss across her lips, hugged Apollo, and left.

Apollo whined. Angie knelt down next to him, wrapped her arms round him, and buried her face into his fur sobbing.

After a few minutes, Angie stood up, wiped the tears from her face, and picked up her phone.

“Flora, are you busy tonight?”

“No, why?”

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