Azalea

“One more thing,” he said in a sexy tone, “you have a present coming this evening by courier. They’re bringing it to the front desk of the inn. See you tomorrow, Azalea.” The sound sent a warmth straight to my abdomen. Present? Why would he send me a present?

“Goodbye, Liam,” I said, smiling slightly. I hung up, knowing I wouldn't get back to work otherwise.

A guest arrived, so I checked them in before returning to the kitchen. The scent of Amy's chicken marinade greeted me.

“Mmmm. Are you grilling that tonight?” I asked.

“That’s the plan. What are you up to?” she asked, placing trays of meat in the refrigerator.

“Thinking of making a caramel mousse cake. Feeling pretty good right now.”

“Is this the result of certain men staying over last night?” she teased.

“I don’t know what you mean,” I said, feigning ignorance. I wasn’t ready to discuss yesterday’s events; I hadn’t processed them yet.

“Oh, you’re not getting off that easily. I’ve known you for two and a half years. You’ve never shown interest in any man who’s come through this inn—not even John, who constantly stares at you. Then this handsome childhood friend shows up, and suddenly you’re all flirty and secretive.”

“First of all, John doesn’t stare at me! We’re friends.”

“Yeah, no. That man is head over heels for you! When you’re not here, he only asks about you. He doesn’t even come in on your days off.”

“That’s not true, Ames. He likes the food and atmosphere here. He doesn’t come for me!”

“Whatever. You’re avoiding the real conversation. Lea, you went on a date yesterday! The only other ‘date’ you’ve ever been on was taking Abi to baby reading time at the library when my husband forgot to pick her up!”

I blushed; Amy was right. This was my first romantic interest. “Okay, I’ll tell you what happened, but I have one condition!”

“Anything!” she exclaimed.

“Only two questions after I’m finished. No more. I barely understand it myself.”

“Oh, Lea,” she said, hugging me. Releasing me, she continued, “I’m sorry. I was excited about your date and worried about this guy suddenly appearing. I didn’t consider how overwhelming it must be for you.”

“It’s okay, Ames. Maybe telling you will help me sort things out,” I said, smiling slightly. She nodded.

“Well, he’s from my childhood. We grew up in the same town but weren’t close. I was a loner; I left before graduation. When he saw me last week, he was surprised. I guess he hadn’t really noticed me before. We reconnected, and he’s been really sweet. When he asked me out, a part of me said yes. I don’t know how to explain it, Ames. He makes me feel safe and protected.”

My explanation was weak, harder to explain to a human who knew nothing of wolf ways. I couldn’t tell her anything. Humans were forbidden from learning about wolves unless they were a wolf’s mate or discovered it independently.

“Awww, Lea…” she cooed. I stuck my tongue out at her.

“First, we went to the coffee shop. After he put the waitress in her place—it was amazing. We talked. He asked about me and actually listened. It was nice. We stayed for a while. Then he took me to the sports complex; he’d set up a picnic dinner with a movie screen. He’d even made the dinner. We ate, watched a movie. He brought a blanket, knowing I’d get cold. Afterward, he walked me home. We had a moment on my doorstep, then he left.”

“Okay, but that doesn’t explain why he was still there in the morning,” she said. I glared. She threw up her hands. “I’m just saying, that’s not the end of the story.”

I sighed. “I freaked out. I thought I saw someone outside my apartment window, so I called him. I hoped he hadn’t left yet and didn’t know who else to call. He came back immediately. I was still scared, so he stayed the night. That’s all!” “Okay, two questions.”

“Alright, question one: What do you mean ‘we had a moment on my doorstep’?”

“You would ask that,” I said, scrunching my nose. “He… kissed me.”

Her eyes widened. “What?!” she almost screamed. “He kissed you goodnight? Oh my gosh, Lea, that’s so cute. Was that your first kiss?”

“Is that your second question?” I asked, retrieving ingredients from the cupboard.

“Arghhh, girl. You’re killing me. Fine, yes.”

“Yes, it was.”

“Lea! What! That’s amazing! How was it? How long did it last? What did he taste like? Did it take your breath away?”

“Woah, woah, woah. You asked your questions! Calm down. I’m a woman; I can kiss people.”

“Sorry, Lea, it’s just… there’s no romance in my life anymore. But this is a fairy tale. Not to mention, he’s drop-dead gorgeous. I don’t get why he’s still single.”

“Maybe he just never found the right one,” I said. I couldn’t tell her I’d messed up his chance at a second-chance mate by not rejecting him properly. The front desk buzzer rang.

“Someone’s at the front. Can you get the mixer for me? I want to start when I get back. And we’re done talking about Liam, my date, and him spending the night.”

“For now,” she said, smiling. I rolled my eyes and left.

A courier waited with a small box. “Hi, can I help you?”

“Are you Azalea?”

“Yes. Is this for me?”

“Yes, ma’am. Just a signature here,” he said, offering a clipboard. I signed and returned it. “Oh, and this,” he added, handing me a small envelope.

“Thank you,” I said, taking the box. I sat down and opened the envelope. It contained a card:

Azalea, I hope you’ll accept my gift. I thought this might help us communicate better. It’s yours, completely paid for. My number is already programmed in; you can call or message me anytime. I hope you will. Looking forward to seeing you again, Liam x

I looked at the small box. What did he send? I unwrapped it; inside was a plain white box. A cellphone. Did he send me a phone?

“Hey, could you whip up some biscuits for the chicken?” Amy called, entering reception. “What’s that?” she asked, noticing the box.

“Um, it’s a cellphone,” I said, shocked.

“Who sent it? Let me see,” she said.

“Liam,” I said, handing her the box.

“Lea, this is brand new! He sent you this?”

“Yeah. His note said he thought it would help us talk more.”

“Wow, that’s a nice present. You should call him and thank him,” Amy said, returning the box.

“Yeah, I will.”

“Then do you think you have time for biscuits?” she asked sweetly.

“Sure,” I laughed. “We can save the cake for tomorrow.”

“You’re the best,” she said, returning to the kitchen.

I turned the phone on. A picture of us from last night appeared—me in his lap, watching the movie, both smiling. How he took it, I didn’t know.

I pressed his contact, and it started to ring.

“Hmmm ‘lo?” His low voice. He sounded asleep.

“Oh no, Liam, did I wake you?” I asked, looking at the clock—it wasn’t even dinner time. “Were you sleeping?”

“It’s okay, beautiful,” he said, yawning. “Just napping. Have things to take care of late tonight, but I’m always available when you call.”

“I just wanted to thank you. This is a lovely present. But I can let you go back to sleep.”

“No, kitten. It’s okay. I’m glad you like it. I thought it might be easier to talk or text if you had your own phone,” he said happily.

“Well, thank you, Liam. It’s lovely. I’ll need Amy to show me how to use it, though. I’ve never really used a cellphone before.”

“I figured. You can call me by pressing one on the dial pad. I’ll always answer. I downloaded some reading apps too.”

“You can do that?” I asked, amazed.

“Yep. Use it however you like.”

“Wow, thank you, Liam.”

“Anything for you, Azalea,” he said sweetly.

“I should probably go…” I paused. “Please be safe tonight, Liam,” I pleaded. If the Alpha was handling business personally at night, it had to be serious.

“Don’t worry, beautiful, nothing can hurt this big, bad Alpha,” he chuckled. I could picture his cocky grin.

“If it weren’t serious, you’d be sending warriors. So, be careful,” I said sadly.

“I promise, Azalea. Everything will be fine. I’ll see you tomorrow for dinner, I promise,” he said seriously.

“Okay. See you then,” I said, hanging up.

I sighed. I’d worry about him all night. Sometimes, werewolf realities weren’t pretty. I went to the kitchen to make Amy biscuits. After dinner, she’d show me how to use this thing.