Page 21 of Wolf's Midlife Baby

“No,” Kyle said, more forcefully now. “Not ridiculous things like that. I’m looking for real stories.”

Holly caught the woman’s eye. “Sorry,” she mouthed, knowing that Kyle was taking up her time.

The corner of Tiffany’s mouth ticked up slightly. “Oh, the Sasquatch is definitely real. I’m sure some of the sightings are just excited campers who hear a deer in the woods and want it to be something more, but I know people who’ve actually seen him. Right up close and personal.”

She was playing with him! It was getting harder to hold herself together now, knowing that this woman was purposely derailing Kyle’s line of questioning instead of just saying no.

“Never mind,” Kyle finally grumbled.

“I’ll have your food right out,” Tiffany promised.

Once she finally felt like she could speak without laughing, Holly leaned forward. “Do you find that people actually just open up and tell you things? Strangers in a café just confessing their weird experiences?”

“Yes, actually.” His voice was hard. Tiffany dropped off their drinks, and then he continued. “Usually, when something like this is going on, someone knows about it, and they’re just waiting for the right person to come along and listen to them. If it’s not this woman, it’s someone else.”

“Hopefully.”

“Think about it, Holly,” Kyle insisted. “If people are into Bigfoot around here?—”

“Sasquatch,” she corrected.

He glared at her. “Anyway, if they believe in that, then what we’re looking for can’t be too much of a stretch.”

“Maybe not.” She’d have to continue to play along for now. Their encounter with Tiffany reminded her of just how closely most people of their kind guarded their secret. A few young guys from the club had messed up, but everyone else would make up for it. Kyle would never find proof. If she babysat him for just a little longer, she could return to her regular life.

Their food arrived, and it was just as delicious as Holly had imagined. The textures and flavors put her in absolute heaven. She quickly made mental notes about the experience, and of course, she’d be leaving Kyle out of the picture if she did end up writing about it.

As they returned to the car a while later, Holly looked around. She only knew a handful of people in Eugene, and they were the ones who worked at Newman headquarters. Then there was Pierce. What were the chances she might run into him? What would she say if she did?

“You know, maybe the Bigfoot thing isn’t so far off,” Kyle speculated as they got in his sedan.

“Hm?”

“What are the chances that people are seeing a monster in the woods and then attributing it to a legendary creature that they’re familiar with? A large man with fur all over his body doesn’t sound so far off from a shifter, really. Hell, I saw those guys turn into wolves, but there’s always a chance that these people can do some other sort of shapeshifting.”

“Lions, tigers, and bears?” she asked, unable to resist.

He hit the brakes a little too hard at a stop sign. “I thought you were in on this.”

She’d gone too far, and she’d have to fix that before he realized the very subject he wanted to study was right under his nose. “I am. I’m sorry. I just use humor when I get a little scared, and the idea of these things wandering around has gotten me a little worried.” Maybe that was swiveling too far back in the other direction, but it played to his lack of sensibility perfectly.

His jaw and his eyes hardened. “Don’t worry about that, Holly. I’m going to keep you safe. I’m going to keep all of humanity safe from these beasts.”

He couldn’t see her smirk as she turned to look out the window. She caught sight of a man walking into the bank and, for a moment, thought it was Pierce, but when he turned his head, she saw that it wasn’t. He’d looked so sad when he’d come to say goodbye to her, and she’d felt so guilty. She still did because she hadn’t been honest with him. He’d been sweet enough to see her one last time before she left town, but she hadn’t left at all. Several times in those short few minutes they’d been together, she’d almost told him about Kyle’s project. She’d even convinced herself that he might be able to help her. But Holly wanted to protect him and all the other shifters in the area from Kyle, and she couldn’t do that if Pierce were right there with her.

No, she probably wouldn’t see him again. She’d been able to extend her stay at the little Airbnb, and unless she set fire to it, Pierce was a thing of her past. It was for the best, she knew, but her bear roiled inside her every time they turned a corner. It longed for him.

Holly knew she’d just have to get used to that feeling, no matter how awful it was.

10

“I can’t believe Jack is already looking at colleges,” Hayden said wistfully, shaking his head. He sat on the couch at the firehouse, flipping through several brochures and booklets his son had given him. “Don’t get me wrong. I’m not complaining, especially since it wasn’t all that long ago that I didn’t even know if he was going to live. I’m just overwhelmed by how much there is to think about now that he’s getting toward the end of high school.”

Pierce drummed his fingers on the arm of his chair. “He’s a smart kid. He’s going to do well.”

“I’m hoping being on the track team will help him get some scholarship money. It’ll only be a few years after he gets started that we’ll be sending Paige off to college, too.” Hayden set one booklet down and picked up another.

“She just turned fourteen,” Pierce noted. “You’ve got time.”

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