He kissed her nose and said, “This one is different. There is an old superstition that states that no evil can touch a man — no werewolf claw him, no vampire bite him, no devil claim him — if he loves someone and if someone loves him in return. Therefore, with a little time and a little trust, I think we can safely forget about the wolf. It won't be able to touch us.”
“
“I am?”
“Yes,” she said. “But tell me the same story tomorrow and see if I find it less forward than I do now.”
“Do you think you will?”
“That's a distinct possibility,” she said.
“I'll tell you that story every day from now on, if necessary,” Alex said. “Since you work here, I've got a captive audience.”
The snow had ceased altogether, and the wind was far less furious than it had been a few hours earlier. A pair of owls departed the rafters of the house, hooting as they began a search for prey. The sound of their hollow voices carried to Katherine and Alex and seemed, in their gentle way, to be presentiments for a more peaceful, happy future.
