He shook his head. “Nope. It’s easy to be there for you, Lila. I’m the one who should thankyou. You’re a wonder, and you love me. How amazing is that? A whole life here in Half Moon Key with you is exactly what I never knew I always wanted.” He swatted her ass. “Now get back to work.” Mason grinned at her and smiled. “You better get back out there. The boss is a real hard-ass.”
It was her turn to laugh loudly. The sound went straight to his heart. Here he was, a wolf on the run who had finally found where he belonged.
Not just in Half Moon Key with his brother and last remaining relative, but here, in Moony’s with his mate. With his Lila.
So when are you going to tell her about me?His wolf asked, grumbling low.You’ll have to tell her that you’re a wolf shifter. You’ll also have to tell her that she is our mate. That will make everything better. You should tell her.
Mason knew his wolf was right. He wouldn’t keep such a massive secret from Lila. Not when he was already sitting on a pretty big doozie.
He would tell her tonight during their date after work. It would all work out, too, because they were fated mates and meant to be together.
Forever.
FOURTEEN
LILA
Lila had barely had any wine, but her head was full of bubbles and joy. Her feet weren’t as sore as they usually were at this time of the evening. It helped that there was help at the diner now. She could do a whole bunch of stuff around the restaurant while a couple of the high school kids took care of the patrons. That meant sitting down to do the books and other crucial administrative work that she always neglected to keep her head above water during the rushes.
Sure, Lila still had to be the one to serve the adults booze, but it gave her plenty of time to keep on top of things. She didn’t have to crawl out of the diner exhausted by ten or eleven at night.
It was 10:30, and not only had the diner closed at nine, right on time, but Lila and Mason had been home for well over an hour now.
In fact, the homemade pizza that Mason had made for them was almost polished off and forgotten on the coffee table. Both she and Mason were sipping from their wine glasses, leisurely hanging out on her couch.
“Did you like red wine the first time you had it?” he asked her, pouring a little bit more into her glass.
She giggled. “No way. I hated it, but a friend of mine in college gave me some. We were at this party. My first every city party. I didn’t want to look like the small-town bumpkin, so I drank it all down.” She pulled a face. “So gross.”
“Yeah, I think wine is an acquired taste for some. I liked it, but I have heightened …” He stopped and cleared his throat as if he had changed his sentence halfway through its way out of his mouth. “I’ve got a really developed palette.”
“Oh, duh! You’re a chef. That makes sense. You can get all of the undertones and subtleties because you’reyou.”
He grinned and nodded. “I actually really like thinking about it like that. Your mind is a fun place to be, Lila.”
She rolled her eyes. “Easy, there. You’re being very sweet.”
“Not a bad thing,” he pointed out.
She considered this for a moment. “Nope. Not a bad thing.” Her face was completely flushed from his compliment and his mere presence. “Did you go to culinary school?” she asked to get the focus off her.
“Of course. My parents refused to send me out in the world to be a chef without getting me the education I needed to be what I wanted to be. I was lucky to have those resources. I think my dad would’ve liked to have supported something a bit more useful. Something that could contribute to society, but no luck for him and his hopes and dreams for me. Though I’ll be honest, I always kinda thought I could make a difference as a chef.”
“Are you kidding me? You do, though. You totally bonded with Mrs. Francis. You also have all the fishermen wrapped around your pinky. They already told you that you should join them one day. Bring the Sheriff along. You did that by being a cook in a local diner and being your genuinely adorable self.”
“Genuinely adorable, huh?” he chuckled, making her flush. She hadn’t exactly intended on sayingthat. “I like that,” Mason laughed again. “I’m gonna remember you said that.”
“Well, it’s true. Not everyone who comes into Half Moon Key is such a fit. Erik wasn’t. He hated that there was no steady internet. He got so pissed when the coffee machine wouldn’t work because the electricity was on the fritz. He didn’t fit in here. Mrs. Francis didn’t like him. Neither did Danielle, actually.”
“Look at that. Not only wasn’t he good enough for you but then there is also the very real fact that he didn’t fit into your hometown. That guy was all wrong for you, and now you know why.” He grinned.
“Because you were on your way to me,” she said, stunning him. If she was honest with herself, she stunned herself with that one. The wine obviously went straight to her head, making her spill all her secret thoughts.
“I was gonna make a joke about it, but yeah. I totally agree with that statement.” He winked at her while his free hand dropped on her thigh.
“You can really see a future in Half Moon Key?”
“Totally. We’ll keep on hiring high schoolers until one of them falls in love with cooking. Then boom. We’ll have a replacement for me. All we’ll need is someone with some waitressing experience to work up front to replace you. Bobbie can do the books for you in a pinch. Maybe, eventually, we can even get someone to do that side of the business on a more regular basis.”