Simon knew her eagle was as annoyed at having to stay inside as his hawk was. Eagles and hawks didn’t hide from a threat. “True. All we need is a couple shifters willing to try and show that it’s safe.” Plenty of shifters would remain cautious, but he was sure there’d be others who wouldn’t mind sticking to one or two areas of the woods if it meant they could fly or run free.
“How long is she planning on staying?”
He shrugged. “She said it depended on how today’s meeting with you went, but she hoped to stay four weeks.”
“That’s long enough to talk to people and give it a chance. There are a lot of details to work out, and we obviously haven’t met the rest of her team yet.”
Simon nodded. You didn’t change years of cautious behavior overnight. “But this is a good first step.”
“Yes. Now, I’m sure you can’t wait to be with her again, so I won’t keep you. I’ll call her tomorrow to discuss how to proceed with the daily updates. We’ll go from there.”
“She’ll be glad to hear it.” He stood up. “Thank you for making time.”
The mayor nodded. “Of course. This is going to change things for us. Hopefully, eventually, for the better. I’m glad that if any ornithologist had to discover us, it’s someone like her and not Professor Brown. The arrogance of the man, completely ignoring me.” The mayor walked back to her desk. “All right, I have to see who else in town I need to talk to about this, and I’m sure you have better things to do as well.”
He definitely did. Groceries. Cleaning. Cooking. More cleaning. “Oh yeah. Busy day.”
When he closed the mayor’s office door behind him and saw the hallway was empty, his heart sank. He knew Madison had better things to do than wait around here, but it was still disappointing.
He walked past Rosemary, nodding at her in greeting before leaving. When he got outside, his hawk’s desire to take to the skies and find Madison only increased. He had to get his hawk’s single-minded attention onto something more useful.
We need to prepare our nest. We need to prepare food for our mate. Maybe that would help.
Mice! Snakes! We must hunt down a nice big mole for her!
Simon ignored his hawk’s suggestions in favor of the grocery store.
✽✽✽
Madison called him later that afternoon, both to apologize for leaving and to discuss plans for that evening. They’d ended up talking for nearly half an hour, and the only reason Simon hung up was because he really had to get started on dinner. His mind kept drifting to what she was doing out in the woods while he cooked and cleaned up around the house. By the time it was six o’clock, he was happy to have a lasagna in the oven at all, and a kitchen that looked acceptably clean. He eyed his kitchen counter critically, then shrugged it off.
She’d cooked for him last night on a camping stove and it had been the best dinner of his life. Tonight was going to be great. They’d talk some more about her research and their plan, and that seeing each other a lot was crucial.
He had to remember that asking her to move in with him immediately would be weird. She was human and had just found out shifters existed. He couldn’t rush her into anything. Maybe, if things went well tonight, he could tell her they were fated mates.
The doorbell rang before he could think about how to tell her, and he ran over to the door to let her in.
“Hi, come in, I hope you…” His brain gave out at the sight of her in a figure-hugging sky blue dress under the same bulky coat he’d borrowed last night. Her practical, baggy clothes had only hinted at her curves. “Hi.”
“You already said that.” Her cheeks were flushed as she smiled up at him. She’d pulled back her hair in a neater version of the ponytail she’d worn that afternoon.
He gestured for her to enter, smiling when he saw she was still wearing the hiking boots. His eyes trailed up her legs, and he re-considered dinner plans. Offering her a tour of the house was normal, right? And maybe that tour could include his bedroom…
No, dinner first.
“How were things with the mayor?” She shrugged off her coat. “Was she annoyed with you for telling me about shifters?”
He took her coat, noting the flash of anger in her eyes. How hadn’t he noticed her protective streak?
“No, just a few minor things.” He hung up her coat. “I have to check on the lasagna.” He headed down the hallway and back to his oven. It smelled good, but it needed a few more minutes.
Madison followed him, having taken off her hiking boots to walk around in thick socks. “And?”
“So far, so good.” He pulled open a kitchen cabinet. “Can I get you anything? Water? Wine? Tea? Orange juice?”
“A water’s fine.” She sat down at the set table, a soft smile on her face. “Candles?”
“Of course. But those candles are actually for dessert.” He grinned. “Our s’more experiment.”
She laughed at that, just as he’d hoped. “You won’t convince me they’re better with dark chocolate.”
“We’ll see.” He finished preparing the salad after pouring her a glass of water. She’d said she liked pretty much everything when it came to food, and he hoped that was true. She looked happy and relaxed, and he couldn’t wait for this to become normal. The two of them, in the kitchen, after a long day of work or a fun weekend.
When he carefully put the lasagna on the table, her eyes widened as she leaned closer. “That smells great!”
“Tastes even better.”
She laughed. “I’ll be the judge of that. Go on.” She offered him her plate.
It was very satisfying to
