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Ethan and Charlene finished their drinks and then he drove her home.

He couldn t believe that everything had changed for him when he had met Charlene and she ended up in Oyster Bay too.

He was totally thinking of making this his permanent home.

He loved it here and he loved being with Charlene.

When he parked at her place, he walked her to her front door.

I had a lovely day with you, he repeated, and she agreed, right before he kissed her.

She kissed his mouth with delicious intent, really getting into the kiss. She was so amazing—confident, caring, fun to be with, had a great sense of humor, and eager to go on all kinds of adventures—and he knew she was enjoying the intimacy between them as much as he was. Things were so looking up.

Then she pulled her mouth away from his and sighed. Why don t you come over for breakfast in the morning and then we ll go hiking for berries.

Yeah, I m all for it.

Don t hesitate to tell me if you have to do something work-related or if you re feeling like you need to rest a bit because of your injury. Other than seeing you wince some, I keep forgetting about your bullet wound, she said.

So far, so good. I ll let you know though if anything s going on that you need to know.

Okay.

They kissed briefly and said goodnight. He was already wanting to stay the night with her, and he hadn t felt that way for another she-wolf ever.

He d been happy to date them and kiss them good night and that was it.

He had been feeling some pain from his wound, but he d been sucking it up so he could enjoy the time he was spending with Charlene.

He didn t want anything to interfere with their plans.

At home, he took a shower, then headed for bed, glad that the mystery of who had sent the flowers to Charlene had been resolved. He wondered how Tori, Adam, and Sierra were going to subtly mention that Ethan was seeing Charlene in front of Renault and how he would react.

Ethan closed his eyes and swore he could still feel Charlene s sensuous mouth pressed against his, the way she licked the seam of his mouth and gained entrance, the way her pheromones always sent out devilishly sexy hints that she was as into him as much as he was into her.

For the first time since he d met a she-wolf that he d dated, he had wanted so badly to show her that he was the right wolf for her.

***

Ethan woke early the next morning, ready to have some more fun with Charlene and was thinking that if she was interested, he would grill some steaks for them tonight for supper.

He dressed in cargo pants, a long-sleeved shirt, and hiking boots.

This time he took a hiking bag with bottled waters, energy bars, and a first aid kit.

He called Charlene before he headed over, just to make sure she still wanted to do this.

Hey, it s me. I m about to come over, if you re ready for me.

I was thinking about grilling steaks for us tonight too, if you would like to do that.

Oh, absolutely. I ll see you in a minute.

I m on my way over. He drove over to Charlene s house, and she had left the door open for him. Grabbing his backpack from the car, he walked inside her home, calling out, It s just me.

I m in the kitchen. I love how close we live to each other. How would you like your eggs?

Over easy would be great.

Sausage or ham or both? she asked.

Sausage appeals this morning. He put his backpack next to the door and joined her in the kitchen. Do you want me to make the coffee?

Yes, thanks.

But first, he wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her cheek as she slipped some sausage links into a frying pan. Good morning.

She turned her head to smile at him and kiss him back. Hmm, good morning.

Then he let go of her and made them some coffee. Have you scoped out the area where the berry patches are?

I saw a few when I went through the forest on my first trip here. We went a different path when we were running as wolves that one night and I saw a few that way too. Oh, if we re going to have dinner here, we might as well run as wolves afterward too.

Yeah, that sounds like a winning plan. But he realized that s probably why his arm had been bothering him when they ran the first night as wolves.

It didn t matter. He was healing up day by day, and he wasn t giving up the opportunity to run with her if that s what she wanted to do.

Then he got a call on his phone and pulled his cell out of his pocket. It s…Renault.

Charlene nearly dropped her spatula into the frying pan that she was cooking home-fried potatoes in. No.

Yep. Ethan answered the call, pretending he had no clue why Renault would be calling him, and said, Hey, how s the job going without me?

He put the call on speakerphone in case Tori and his friends had already let the cat out of the bag about Ethan dating Charlene and that was what Renault was calling him about.

I hear you re dating Charlene. Renault sounded perturbed.

No good morning, hello, no talking about work, just the topic of Charlene—which indicated to Ethan that Renault had really wanted to make something more of getting together with Charlene.

Uh, yeah, news travels far and wide and…

fast. She told me that you and she had known each other through your friendship with her ex-boyfriend.

But she had been ready to move on. Did you know that she and Noah had broken up two months ago and he hadn t even realized she was living in Oregon for a month?

She said Noah still wouldn t have known except that you saw her at her place and told Noah about it.

Ethan was trying to catch Renault in a lie while he made some toast for them, then found the butter and strawberry jelly in the fridge and set them on the table.

Right. I wanted to make sure they weren t together any longer—which was the only reason I called him about her.

I really thought he would say they d broken up for good.

Instead, he was furious that she was living in Portland and never told him she was leaving.

There was a significant pause before Renault said anything further. You re really dating her?

Yep. I ve found a kindred spirit in Charlene. Wolf-wise for sure, and he loved being with her. He set the table. We have a lot in common. We just suit each other. I hope everything s going well for you at work.

But Renault wasn t done talking about Charlene. Noah applied to take your vacant position and the boss just hired him, so I would watch your back if I were you. He s not happy with Charlene either.

Charlene quickly dished up their eggs, sausage, and potatoes before she burned them.

She appeared a little off-kilter when she heard that Noah would be in Portland.

Ethan poured cups of coffee for them, then rubbed her back to reassure her that everything would be fine.

He couldn t believe it. Would Charlene even want to return to Portland and be with her ex-boyfriend now?

He didn t think so, but now he was going to have to deal with the wolf.

Which he had no problems with, but he didn t want it to become a wedge between him and Charlene if she still had some feelings for Noah.

Okay, that s good to know.

The boss probably already told you that Kroner was mistakenly released from jail and now he s in the wind. You know he wants your hide.

Yeah, but I m retired now, and I won t be as important to him as others who are still working for the DEA and pursuing him so they can return him to jail.

Ethan swore that Renault wanted to give him all the bad news just because he was now dating Charlene.

Ethan didn t want to rub it in that he was having breakfast with her, which could sound like he d stayed overnight with her, so he didn t mention it.

But then Charlene did. She grabbed the slices of toast and added them to their plates. Hey, Renault, you didn t send me some roses, did you?

Silence ensued. She had really surprised Renault that she and Ethan were together this morning and that she had been listening in on the conversation the whole time.

Uh, no. Why?

Oh, I just thought they were lovely, but the gift tag had gotten wet and so I couldn t read the ink-stained words.

I just thought maybe, since you realized I was in the area, you had sent me a housewarming bouquet of flowers, she said, sitting down with Ethan to eat.

I was afraid to ask you though in case you hadn t sent them.

Ethan just smiled at her and shook his head.

No, I didn t send you any flowers. I didn t realize I was interrupting anything. I ve got to get to work. Glad you re both enjoying each other s company. Talk later. Then Renault hung up on them.

Charlene speared a sausage link with her fork and pointed it at Ethan. I wanted him to know that we are really together. Just in case he had hopes that we weren t. Though with Noah being in the area, Renault would give up pursuing me in a heartbeat, knowing him.

Renault will be sure to tell Noah. I can t believe my boss hired him.

Though my position is technically vacant, and if Noah met all the qualifications, I could understand why he got the job.

But hell, now he ll be in the area and how much do you want to bet that he ll be pestering you again?

Ethan scarfed up some of his eggs. These are great tasting, by the way.

I love the lemon and pepper seasoning you added to them.

Thanks. I should have asked if you would like that first. She took a sip of her coffee.

Noah will be three hours away and I have a wolf at my back now.

She smiled at Ethan, then bit into her sausage.

Why did Renault think Kroner would be after you instead of the DEA agents who are still on the payroll and have to be tracking him down?