Epilogue
JULIET
When Zoey said double date, I imagined the four of us shooting pool at The Rabbit Hole or maybe going on a hike together.
Not driving a town over to visit an animal rescue. Crossing the territory line was surprisingly easy. No panic at being away from my new home.
Knowing Cory doesn’t have his memories of me anymore is a world-altering relief. As is having a badass witch at my back and a powerful alpha at my side.
“You told me Roderick fixed your fence,” Zoey explains as she slips a crocheted sweater onto an old Jack Russell. “And that you always wanted a dog. I thought you might want to feel some pups out.”
“You mean like Warner is?” I point toward the large window, where we can see her partner full-on wrestling with a pit bull. The exchange is all friendly play, but the werewolf is half covered in mud.
Zoey snorts. “Maybe look at the dogs at your energy level.” She offers me a handful of bone-shaped biscuits. “Go. Mingle.”
I navigate down a line of kennels, slipping treats through the chain-link and trying not to fall in love with each set of big brown eyes I meet. Every pup wags their tail and yaps at me, and I want to give them all a home.
But I don’t know how my werewolf would feel about adopting one dog, much less a whole pack.
Speaking of, I find Roderick in the far corner, a squirming bundle cradled in his arms.
“What do you have there?” I ask, sidling up to him.
Roderick glances my way, then back to the creature he holds. If I had to ascribe it a breed, I would say the animal is a purebred matted mud monster.
Soon to be added to the American Kennel Club, I’m sure.
“My wolf wants this one,” he mumbles.
I laugh at the perturbed tone. “Oh, he does, does he?”
Roderick tried to describe the connection he had with his more beastly side. How he and the animal almost converse. And how the wolf wanted me within seconds of meeting me.
Gotta say, I like his other half more and more every day.
And obviously, the wolf has good taste. Still, I can’t help teasing him.
“I thought if you wanted a dog, you’d opt for something bigger. Like a German shepherd.”
The pup in his arms can’t weigh more than twenty-five pounds soaking wet.
His brows dip. “Why would I want that? I’m a big dog.”
I chuckle. The little mud muppet snuggles further into Roderick’s chest, as if it senses a kindred canine. I can’t even pretend to hold out when faced with such an adorable sight. The main thing that bums me out is, clearly, our dog is going to love Roderick more.
Unacceptable. Once we take the furball home, I’ll make it my mission to find out what bribes work best. Treats? Squeaky toys? Car rides and chicken nuggets in the drive-through?
Whatever it is, the doggo will get a daily dose until it loves Mommy way more than Daddy.
“Okay,” I whisper, “I approve.”
With careful movements, I hold my fingers out for the quivering mess to sniff. Watery brown eyes examine the offering, and then a tentative lick breaks my heart and mends it back together.
Yeah. This is our dog.
“You sure?” Even though Roderick asks, I’m guessing an employee would have to pry the puppy out of his reluctant hold.
When Roderick and his wolf both decide they want something, there’s no reversing the decision.
I should know. Once they both settled on me, I was done for.
“I’m sure. Now the only question is … do we stop at one?”
Roderick snorts, tilting his head just enough to steal a quick kiss. “Whatever my mate wants.”
His mate. It’s been a month, but I’m still surprised by that word.
Once I decided Roderick would be mine forever, I didn’t want to wait.
So, a week after the standoff with the Bear Valley pack, the Pine Falls pack gathered in the snowy backyard of the Jameson household.
With the mountains in the background and the sky turning purple with twilight, I fed Roderick my perfect éclair, and he offered me lemon cream pie off his fingers, asking me to lick them clean.
I bit him, blood mixing with the lingering tart flavor. He groaned. In a happy way.
And when his teeth marked just above my heart, I didn’t flinch, not even when the buzz of magic flowed through me.
Now, I hear the word mate every day, and I love it. We’ve tied enough positive memories to the label to drown out the negative ones.
That’s not to say that I don’t still have anxiety attacks brought on by random things that remind me of Cory. Last one was a jingle of keys that sounded exactly like his set. The sound I would hear a moment before he walked through the front door.
But this time, when my mind wrenched me back to the past and I panicked outside of the grocery store, Roderick stood close, whispering reassuring words until I was calm enough for him to hold me.
It helps that I know my ex doesn’t remember me anymore. That he won’t be testing the Pine Falls territory boundary because he has no reason to. I’m free of him, and I can build my new life—and my new family—without worry.
“Bruce will eat her whole.” I mention Warner and Zoey’s giant mastiff.
“No. If she’s anything like her mama”—he tugs the end of my ponytail playfully—“she’ll have that big dog following her around like a sappy, lovesick puppy.”
I wrap an arm around Roderick’s waist and rest my head on his shoulder. “She should have a yard.”
“That’s why I fixed the fence.”
“And she should have her daddy living with her.”
Roderick’s muscles tense, then relax. “Is this your way of officially asking me to move in?”
“Well, you’re at my house most of the time anyway. We’re mated. Might as well make it official.” Glancing up, my eyes lock with his. “As long as you don’t mind living next door to your in-law.”
Roderick smiles wide. “Makes me feel better. Having a witch who loves you just down the road.”
“Makes me feel better too.” Though where the alpha wolf is thinking about safety, I’m thinking about family.
I still can’t believe how lucky I am to have found Pine Falls and all the wonderful people here.
One day, I hope Roderick can have all his people again too.
He received a postcard from Texas on Christmas, with a short message from his mom, explaining she has a job on a ranch, driving cattle.
Maybe the rough work and time on her own will give Rebecca the space she needs to understand the hurt she caused and find a way to pay proper penance.
But life isn’t perfect. Sometimes, you lose the ones you love.
Today though, I have the chance to make my family grow.
“What do you want to name her?” I scratch behind the pup’s ear, and she licks my hand.
Roderick dips his chin until he’s eye to eye with the puppy. After a minute of contemplation, he straightens up.
“Pie.”
“You want to name our dog Pie?”
“It’s something we both love.”
“Good point.”
When we return to our little house on the outskirts of town with our new fur baby in tow, Roderick carries Pie to the tub for a bath while I pull out my box of paper crafts and start cutting out triangle-shaped cards.
Readying announcements to be sent around town so that everyone can welcome Pie to the Adair-Jameson family.
I’m keeping my new name. Just like I’m keeping my new life.
As I work, my wolf settles Pie onto a plush bed in the corner of the kitchen. Then he presses a kiss to my lips before slipping on his apron and setting to work on our dog’s namesake.
I breathe in deep and sigh out a breath of pure happiness as I take in my little family.
Finally, I’m home.