Page 36 of Wolf's Midlife Baby

Pierce smiled, pleased to know she was starting to think about how well this could work. It was only yesterday that everything felt impossible. “I’ll look later today and see if the fire department out there has any openings.”

“Going to go ahead and get started?”

“I’m ready to dive in with both feet. Speaking of, am I going to have to pull you out of the ocean all the time once we’re out there? Or do you only like to drown in rivers?”

She playfully smacked his chest before curling up under his arm again and pressing her cheek against him. “You’re terrible.”

“And just a moment ago, you told me how sweet I was,” he reminded her, grinning.

“I guess that means you can be both.” Holly laid her hand on his chest and ran her fingers slowly through the fine smattering of hair there. “You sure you’re not going to miss living here?”

It was something he’d asked himself the previous night—or rather, in the early hours of the morning—after he’d dropped her off and gone back home. The answer had come to him quickly. “I’ve never lived anywhere else, but I think it’s time I did. I like my job, but it’s still just a job. I can get one anywhere. You’ve seen my apartment; it’s nothing special. My family is here, but I can come back and visit. You’re what I’d miss the most if I stayed.”

“And now I get the sweet version of you again,” she mumbled. Her breathing was getting slower, and she leaned more heavily on him.

She had to be exhausted. Now that they were safe and happy together, Pierce felt some of that exhaustion draping over him, too. It’d been a very long night, and he hadn’t slept at all. Pierce yawned, though his mind was still working over the logistics of his impending move. “I think the only thing I’ll feel sad about leaving behind is my dad. He can take over my apartment, so that’s easy enough, but I feel bad for him. He lost the house he’d spent pretty much his entire adult life in. The insurance money will come through, but it won’t feel the same.”

“He should just come live with us.”

Pierce was suddenly awake again. “Do you mean that?”

“Yeah, if you think he’d want to.” She rolled again so that she lay on her back. “My house isn’t huge, but there’s an apartment over the garage. It needs a little fixing up. I was going to rent it out, but I’d never gotten around to getting it all done.”

The idea was getting him even more excited about the move. It would be good for Rick to get out of this town full of memories and create some new ones. “I’m sure he wouldn’t need to live with us for very long, and then he could find a new place of his own.”

When she shook her head, her hair rubbed softly against his skin. “Why? He could just stay there, and then we’d have help with the baby. I think it’d be kind of nice.”

“Me, too.” Pierce grazed his fingers over her arm as he leaned against the pillow and thought about it. Holly already had family and friends out in Massachusetts. He only had her, but he could have his father, too. “I’ll ask him about it today.”

She didn’t respond.

Pierce waited a moment and then realized she’d fallen asleep. She needed it, and he was content to hold her until she woke up again. Everything else in the world could wait. He craned his neck so he could see her face, soft and gentle as she rested. Would their child look like her, with her wide eyes and slim face? Would its eyes be soft gray like hers or dark blue like his? Would it be a bear or a wolf? He didn’t care one way or another, just as long as it was happy and healthy.

17

Pierce walked into the guest bedroom, checking the closet and behind the door. He moved into the bedroom that had been his own for the last five years, once he’d moved out of a tinier apartment and thought he might like a little extra space. It looked smaller without the king-sized bed and dresser taking up most of the floor. He retrieved a tie tack that’d probably fallen out of a drawer when it was being moved out.

“Everything is good on this side,” he said as he headed into the empty living room. His voice echoed as he looked in the kitchen. “How about in there?”

“Just an expired box of cake mix that got left in the back of the cabinet,” she announced as she closed the cabinet door. “I didn’t know you like to bake.”

“I don’t, which is exactly why it’s expired,” he quipped.

Holly pitched the box into the trash can, the only thing remaining in the apartment. “Lucky for you, I do like to bake every now and then.”

“What kind of confectionery delights do I have to look forward to?” Pierce asked as he tied up the trash bag and lifted it out of the can.

“Nothing crazy,” she replied. “Just cookies and muffins. Maybe some brownies.”

“So you’re good in the kitchen, at the keyboard, and in bed. I definitely scored.” He winked at her and dodged out the door, where she wouldn’t have a chance to give him too much of a retort without potentially being overheard by their neighbors.

“It’s going to be a long drive to Massachusetts, isn’t it?”

Pierce made sure the door was locked before they headed down the stairs. “Definitely.”

“Go to your left. No, your other left. There. Perfect.” Rick put down his end of the dresser on the back of the moving van and then came around to help Jack push it in place. “Great job, buddy.”

“I’ve had a little experience with it lately,” Jack replied. “Are you going to come back and see us?”

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