Page 4 of Midlife Wolf Captured My Heart

His mind ventured back to Sadie. “Sadie Andrews. I went to school with James Andrews. He was dating Opal, who had red hair and green eyes.”

Dakota shook his head. “I may have just spent a very pleasurable evening with the adult daughter of an old schoolmate.”

Laughing, he shook his head and forced his thoughts back to his plans. He figured he would spend the winter in Angel’s Creek focusing on his next project on the lives of wolves. Dakota had always avoided the topic in the past because it made him feel like an imposter.

Although he was excited about his upcoming gallery showing and his future plans, images of a green-eyed, red-haired beauty floated in his mind as he fell asleep.

Dakota was workingthe next afternoon when his computer notified him that he had an email. His heart skipped a beat when he saw that it was from Sadie.

Good afternoon. It was so great to meet you yesterday. Can you do your presentation the day after tomorrow?

He grinned and typed back.That sounds terrific. Let me know what time I should be there.

His computer beeped a minute later.How does ten sound?

Dakota grinned. He wondered what it would be like to give a presentation at the same high school he graduated from.That sounds great. Do you want to meet at Howlers’ tonight to go over the presentation?

He had to shake his head at himself. All he needed to know was how much time he would have for the presentation and he could easily plan it himself. However, he felt compelled to see her again.

For a few minutes, he thought she wasn’t going to respond. Then, his computer beeped again.Why don’t you come over to my place? I’ll cook.She sent her address.

He couldn’t stop the smile that spread over his face.What time?

Seven.

Still grinning he typed back.I’ll be there.

Dakota sat back in his chair and put his hands behind his head. He realized that he was looking forward to seeing Sadie again and not just because he was excited about the presentation. He wanted to be near her – to breathe in her scent and see her beautiful smile.

He discovered that he was hungry right now, so he decided to head over toHowlers’for lunch. As he drove through town, he was floored by how much Angel’s Creek had changed and how it really hadn’t. Some of the store names had changed. However, it seemed like the town hadn’t grown any. It hadn’t gotten smaller, either.

The bar and grill was busy and there weren’t any tables so Dakota slid onto one of the bar stools at the counter. A tall, red-haired man slid a coaster and menu across the bar toward him. “Hello, friend. Welcome toHowlers’’”

“Thank you.”

“Where do you hale from? We don’t get too many people passing through.”

Dakota shook his head and laughed. “Son, I was born and raised in Angel’s Creek. I knew your father. You look a lot like him.”

Sean opened his eyes wide and cocked his head to one side.

“Your father was Levi McCullum. You were born not too long before I left town. What’s your daddy and mama been up to these days?”

“They’re retired. They travel some. Dad likes to make small wooden crafts and Mom crochets. They do craft shows sometimes. What’s your name?”

“Dakota Higgins.”

“I know who you are. You are our hometown hero so to speak. You’re famous in these parts.”

“Really? I’m not a movie star or anything like that.”

“No, but you’re the closest thing we have. You wrote a lot of books and everyone watches the nature channel around here.”

“That’s awesome.”

After lunch, Dakota spent the rest of the afternoon planning his presentation. Kids typically liked all different animals, so he figured he would do a quick show depicting one or two photos of each animal. He had some short, cute or funny stories about several of the animals he could share. If he could get just one kid interested in photography or animals, then his time would be well spent.

He picked up a bottle of red wine on the way and was on her doorstep promptly at seven. Dakota had no idea why he felt like a schoolboy about to pick up his prom date.

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