Page 24 of The Bear's Reluctant Mate

“Oh,” he looked incredibly disappointed. And she felt the same, but it was time for her and Charlie to get going. She’d onlyplanned on being out for the morning, and it was way past noon. The cake might have been amazing, but Charlie needed a proper meal for lunch.

“We’re leaving?” Charlie complained, standing behind her, staring out at the butterflies fluttering around the potted plants near the window.

“We have to go, buddy. We still need to unpack those boxes in your room,” Marion reminded him, sensing she might have a tantrum on her hands if she wasn’t careful.

Although he had once outgrown such outbursts, he now resorted to them as a means of expressing his frustrations. It felt as though, in some respects, he had reverted to a more childlike state because of his turbulent home life under Razor’s roof.

Marion knew he didn’t mean anything by these outbursts, and he was always apologetic afterward. But a full-blown tantrum in the middle of a crowded café would spoil their otherwise amazing morning.

Charlie’s shoulders slumped. “But I wanted to ask Alfie more about the caterpillars.”

Alfie stood up, brushing crumbs from his shirt. “Well, you think of all the questions you want to ask and next time I see you, I’ll answer them all.”

“When?” Charlie asked his tone on the verge of demanding as he fixed Alfie with an intense stare that made the man blink in surprise.

Alfie’s mouth opened, then closed again as he looked at Marion, clearly hesitant to make promises without her approval. The question hung in the air between them, and Marion was grateful to Alfie for not making plans without consulting her first.

For a moment, Marion’s mind flashed to Razor. How he’d always made plans involving Charlie without consulting her sister. After they met, he’d quickly positioned himself as the decision-maker. Often railroading Heather into agreeing to things she didn’t want to do. It was as if Razor had held Heather in his thrall.

But Alfie was different. The contrast couldn’t be more stark.

Or maybe he was just better at the long game? No. She pushed the cynical thought away. She couldn’t judge every man by Razor’s standards. That wasn’t fair, not to Alfie, and not to herself or Charlie, either.

“Um,” Alfie said, rubbing the back of his neck. “That would be up to your aunt, buddy.”

Marion smiled, making her decision. “We’re coming back to the garden project next Saturday. Maybe Alfie could meet us there?”

“I’ll be there,” Alfie said with a nod. “Maybe we can make a log garden.”

“A log garden?” Charlie tugged his brows together and added a pout. “Logs don’t grow in a garden.”

“Oh, no,” Alfie waved his hand at Charlie. “We don’t plant the logs. We make piles of them in among the plants. Places for the bugs to hide.”

“Oh,” Charlie said, his expression clearing. He’d thought Alfie was teasing him, belittling him like Razor used to. It was painful for Marion to watch as it brought back a whole lot of other memories she’d tried to forget.

“I’ll gather up some logs we can use. There’s a woodland at the top of the vineyard and there’s always lots of fallen branches I can collect.” Alfie had a wistful look in his eyes as he spoke about the vineyard.

“Can I help?” Charlie piped up.

“Oh, err…” Alfie cast a questioning look at Marion, which did not go unnoticed.

“Can we?” Charlie asked, turning those pleading eyes on Marion. “It’s for the garden project. It needs bugs.”

Marion hesitated, then nodded. “If you’re sure it’s okay with your parents.”

“They would love to meet you both,” Alfie replied, then looked a little flustered as if he’d said too much.

“How about Wednesday after school?” Marion suggested. She’d love to see the vineyard.

And Alfie.

She pushed that treacherous thought from her mind, but it was persistent. Spending the morning with Alfie had been wonderful. She’d be lying to herself if she denied it.

But she’d be a fool to read too much into it.

“Wednesday is perfect,” he replied, his smile growing wider. “I’m at the garden center all day, but I can come by and pick you up around four?”

“Four works for us,” Marion said, surprised at how natural it felt to be making plans with this man she’d only met hours ago.

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