“Too bad. I’m not cooking. This is as good as it’s going to get. At least it’s a meat lover’s pizza.”
True. Better than that rabbit food you love so damn much that it makes me want to hurl. Now, if I were a rabbit, I’d be down with that.
“Eww, hush! Or we’re gonna starve tonight if you pop another one of those images up in my head while I’m trying to eat.”
Whatever. We spend far too much time denying who we really are. When’s the last time I got to take over and run? Spend the day doing what I want?Her animal complained.
“I get it. I do, but there’s not really anywhere we can just go and run. It’s not like our species is native to this area. It would be hard to keep a huge Siberian tiger hidden. It’s not something the locals see running around here on a regular basis.”
Fine! Her animal sighed.
“Maybe we can go away for a couple of days. Take a trip up to the mountains or something. That way, you can spend some time out in the wild. I think we’re well past the need for it.”
Do you really mean it?
“I do. Now, let’s choke down this pizza and grab some sleep. We’ll leave first thing in the morning since I’m off work for the next two days.”
For the first time in months, Allie would put her stress and worries behind her and take the time she needed for her own mental health.
Allie’s phone dinged. She glanced down at the incoming call.
“Well, well, well,” she said, wondering why Gerri was calling. “Hello,” she answered the call.
“Hi, Allie. I wanted to see if you were available for a date tomorrow night. I have someone you’ll love to meet.”
“Can you tell me more about him?” Allie asked, feeling hopeful for the first time since she’d left her office.
“Actually, I’d rather you just meet him and see what you think,” Gerri said.
“Oh.” Her hope quickly faded. “Can it wait? I’m leaving first thing in the morning to go camping for a few days. I’ve been dying to decompress and stretch my legs. I’m sure you understand.” Allie hoped she didn’t upset Gerri with her answer. But what the hell? If he was her true mate, he’d wait for her. If not. Oh, well.
“Oh, how fun! Where are you off to?” Gerri asked.
“Moonheart Lake.”
“That’s such a beautiful area and a great place to escape to. Just text or call me when you get back.”
“I will. Thanks.”
“Have a good time. Talk soon,” Gerri said and ended the call.
Allie looked down at her phone once more, confused by her second conversation with Gerri. It wasn’t that Gerri had been rude or anything. She’d just seemed cryptic. To say the least.
“Whatever.” Allie let it go and continued with her plans to spend the weekend at Moonheart Lake. She’d deal with Gerri and the date she wanted her to go on when she got back.
TWO
MARC
Marc Romero drove like a bat out of hell to make it to the spot in time. His friend Gerri had given him the lowdown on a woman who may be of interest to him. Not justof interest, she might actually bethe one. Well, that was what Gerri had told him anyway. He just hadn’t wanted to get his hopes up. Yeah, right! His hopes were higher than a 747 at cruising altitude.
The whole idea of finding his mate had him chasing his damn tail. It had been years since he’d heard of a single female like him. Most female tigers lived in close, tight-knit communities where they often subscribed to arranged marriages. Those people were something else altogether.
He’d tried like hell to fit in with their community, but they wanted doctors and lawyers. Not blue-collared workers and definitely not someone who fights fires for a living. To people like that, he’d been considered insane right off the bat.
It wasn’t that he had anything against doctors or lawyers, but that hadn’t been his calling. Marc had always wanted to help people. With his size and speed, he had the ability to do so. Saving people in perilous situations and making a difference is what mattered to him. Not that doctors didn’t save people. They did, but they didn’t run into burning buildings to do their job.
They had looked down on him and his life choices, and that was fine by him. He didn’t feel the need to prove himself to any of those uptight SOBs. Sadly, that had meant zero access to his possible mate. That had never set right with him, but there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it.