Right Wolf, Right Time Read Free Page A

her table, where she’d dithered for an hour before he’d arrived. Afraid he might get the right idea and know how much she desired to increase the intimacy between them, she’d stashed the candles. Instead, she used a vase as the centerpiece, where she’d put the flowers he’d brought her.
    The raggedly things looked right between them. A gesture of Monty’s affection…and not just politeness, she hoped.
    “This is the best meal I’ve had in months. Don’t tell Rachel this, but the woman isn’t the best cook. Maggie’s not bad.” Joel’s—the bear’s—wife. “But dessert’s her thing.”
    “What about the other cats?”
    “Dean and Grady act like they’re all thumbs anytime anyone mentions cooking, and their mates are just as bad. The foxes help if asked, but Rachel’s pretty territorial. She doesn’t want Burke screwing up her kitchen, so it’s pretty much just her and Maggie. The Miami cats are hopeless.” He meant the other female cats that had recently joined the pride. Their brother had apparently left, according to town gossip.
    “What’s it like with so many cats there now? It used to just be the Chastells. Now you have four more women.” Females living close to Monty. She didn’t like that. Not one bit.
    “Three, actually. Joy is still down in Miami.” He frowned. “But none of her sisters have heard from her in a while. I think there’s more trouble brewing than we know about.”
    She paused. Trouble and Monty seemed to go hand in hand. “Will they need your help?” From what she knew about Monty, he could track anything anywhere. Even the gray wolf alpha turned to him when real trouble hit close to home.
    “Maybe. I’m pride. Whatever’s needed, I’ll do. Even if the Miami cats are slow to settle in, they’re family.”
    “Oh, right.” Being an outsider, she wasn’t used to belonging. The order allowed her latitude because she still had issues with other wolves. But she knew the time was coming when they’d insist she start looking for a mate. With the low number of she-wolves in town, Sophie brought more than just another Shifter to Cougar Falls. She brought the possibility of a new generation of wolves with her.
    Her gaze caught Monty’s. What would it be like to belong to someone who had that sense of loyalty? Who would always have her back and make sure she never wanted for anything?
    “Can I help you clear the table?” Monty was moving before she could answer.
    She refused to let him do any dishes. Instead, she sliced him up a plate of his favorite dessert—New York-style cheesecake with cherries on top.
    “Man, Sophie. You are the absolute best.”
    Monty ate up half the pie, and she wrapped the rest for him to take home. They adjourned to the living room and shared the couch, though he took one end and she the other. They watched a few sitcoms as the evening turned into night.
    She had hopes, though his gaze continued to stray toward the clock in her living room. The silence between them grew strained while her need to kiss him grew stronger. Her wolf badgered her to take what she wanted, telling her that she’d waited for him long enough.
    But when she tried to breach the distance between them, Monty shot off the couch as if he’d been prodded with a branding iron.
    “Damn. It’s getting late. I’d best be going.”
    Of course he had to be going. Every time she gathered her courage to blurt out how she felt, he left. The mixed signals baffled her. Did he like her or not? Because right now, he definitely put out stay away vibes.
    “Don’t forget your pie.”
    He smiled. “Like I could forget that.”
    While he moved to the kitchen to retrieve it, she acted like the perfect hostess and waited for him by the front door. “Thanks for coming over, Monty. It meant a lot to me.”
    “Me too, Soph.” The gravity of his response surprised her.
    “Monty?”
    Then he kissed her on the forehead and left before she could blink. She said good night to his back