Chapter Sixteen
Sixteen
Tegan
A silver truck rumbled down the driveway, the tires crunching over the gravel.
I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t at the window watching—waiting—for Atlas.
It felt like it had taken us ages to get to this point, the two of us dancing around each other, drifting close only to pull away again, but not anymore.
Today was our first date, and I was going to make the most of it.
I hoped what I was wearing was okay for whatever it was he had planned.
Dressing casually for a date with a hot wolven proved harder than I expected, but after a frantic FaceTime call with Selene, I’d settled on a tight-fitting pair of jeans, a low-cut bodysuit that accentuated my chest, and a cute pair of flats.
I looked and felt good, and I hoped Atlas thought so, too.
The truck pulled to a stop in front of my house, and while I waited for a text message from Atlas telling me he was here or a honk of his horn—Atlas hopped out of his truck.
He was really coming up to my front door to get me.
What a gentleman.
I darted away from the window so fast, I couldn’t even get a good look at him.
There was a surprisingly soft knock on the front door. I gave myself a once-over in the hall mirror, making sure my messy bun was the perfectly curated type of messy.
I opened the door and was greeted by Atlas’s smiling face. Dressed in jeans and a short-sleeve button-down, he looked just as handsome as ever.
“Hi,” I said, my voice breathy.
“Hey,” he replied shyly.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
There was the tail wag, his body swaying slightly from the force of it. I couldn’t keep myself from grinning. It was just too damn cute.
“Um, this is for you.” I hadn’t even noticed the potted plant he was holding. It was a mix of pansies, violets, and violas, nicely arranged in a big pink flowerpot. It was perfect for brightening up my porch for spring.
“It’s beautiful.” And so thoughtful.
“You didn’t strike me as a cut-flowers kind of girl.”
I nodded. “I’d rather have something that’ll last.”
“Me, too. Where would you like me to put it?” he asked.
I pointed to the perfect spot. “Right there by the door would be good.”
He set the pot on the porch, rotating it until he was happy with how the flowers looked. “This look good?” he asked.
“Perfect. Thank you.” I wrapped my arms around him in a hug, pressing my face against his chest, inhaling his scent. He seemed taken aback at first, going rigid before he hugged me back.
“I’m glad you like it,” he said, nuzzling my temple. His fur was so soft against my skin, and when he pulled away, I immediately missed the feeling of being in his arms. “You ready to get going?” he asked.
“Mhm.” I walked with him over to his truck. “What do you have planned for us today?”
He opened the passenger door, holding his hand out to help me climb into the truck. So chivalrous.
He shrugged. “You’ll just have to wait and see.”
“I like surprises.” It was nice to let someone else take the reins, to be a participant rather than the one in charge.
“Good. Because I’m full of them,” he said slyly, closing the door before I could say anything else.
It was much easier for Atlas to get in the truck than it was for me. He pretty much stepped inside the thing, slid into the driver’s seat, and we were on our merry way. To where, I didn’t know, but we were definitely heading out of Briar Glenn’s town limits.
“You greeting me at the door with flowers was a nice touch. Potted ones, at that,” I said, grinning from ear to ear. Things were already off to a great start.
He took his eyes off the road for a second, looking over to smile at me. “You liked that?”
I nodded. “Very much.”
“I’ll remember that.”
We’d just started dating, but why did things with Atlas feel so comfortable?
Wait.
Were we dating? I mean, we were going out on a date, but did dating imply that we were an item or we were exclusive?
I was getting ahead of myself.
He pulled the truck onto the highway, heading in the direction of Rock Harbor.
It was about forty minutes away from Briar Glenn, the closest “big” city, if you could even call it that.
With waterfront bars, restaurants, and nightclubs, it was a popular destination for Briar Glenn residents when they wanted a night out.
I wasn’t sure how well that translated to an afternoon date, but I knew Atlas had something up his sleeve.
He parked in the parking garage for the Rock Harbor waterfront. I was excited because I hadn’t been to the waterfront since college.
Atlas opened my door, holding his hand out again to help me climb out of the truck. I placed my palm in his, using him to steady myself as I climbed down, but even when my feet touched the ground—he was still holding my hand.
Sure, we’d held hands before. At the wedding I’d dragged him all over.
But this was different. Intentional on his part. It made my heart feel like it was going to leap out of my chest.
“This way,” he said, leading me toward the waterfront.
I was expecting the musty smell of the harbor but was met with a light, sweet scent instead. The cherry blossoms lining the promenade were in bloom, their cotton candy petals fluttering in the breeze.
“Wow,” I said in a daze. I knew about the cherry blossoms, most folks who lived in Briar Glenn did, but this was my first time seeing them in full bloom.
“I thought you’d like them.” Atlas stroked the back of my hand. “Wanna walk for a bit?”
“I’d love to.”
We started down the paved path that ran along the waterfront.
Because it was a Saturday, there were quite a few people out enjoying the nice weather.
Families picnicked beneath the trees and couples like us walked hand in hand along the harbor.
The occasional cyclist rolled by, taking care not to ride too close to us or the water. It was a picture-perfect afternoon.
“Being down here—does it make you regret opening a gym in Briar Glenn instead?” I asked.
“Not at all. There’s a lot of beautiful, unexpected things in Briar Glenn. Things I never would have ever found in Rock Harbor,” he said, staring at me.
I looked away, feeling my cheeks heat because I knew exactly what he was referring to.
Me.
“Did you come here a lot when you were a kid?” he asked.
“When I was a teenager, I’d beg my mom to drive me to the Rock Harbor Mall on Friday nights. It was the cool thing to do.”
“You didn’t drive?”
“I had my learner’s permit, but I was too afraid to drive on the highway.” One bad merging incident had scared me away from highway driving well into adulthood.
“Okay, that is super cute.”
“No, it’s not! I was so lame!” I laughed.
He shrugged. “I would have thought it was cute. And I would have happily driven you around to wherever you wanted to go.”
It was never good to make assumptions, but I was under the impression that we hung out with opposite crowds in high school. Given what his About Me section on the gym website said, Atlas was definitely a jock in high school.
“What were you like in high school?” I asked, wanting to hear it straight from the wolven’s mouth.
His furry brows drew back. “What do you think I was like?”
“I don’t like making assumptions about people,” I said, playfully shrugging my shoulders.
“I’m sure it’s no surprise that I was a total jock. It’s the reason I started driving, actually. So my parents didn’t have to pick me up from practice. What about you? What were you like?”
“An emo kid.”
“No. Way.” The way he punctuated the words made me laugh.
“Yep. White studded belt. Checkered Vans. For a while there my parents were convinced I only had one eye.” He cocked his head, obviously not getting it. “You know, the whole bangs-covering-one-eye thing?”
He laughed. “I can’t picture it. You’re going to have to show me some pictures.”
“If you’re a good boy, I’ll think about it,” I teased.
He nearly stumbled over his own feet.
Looks like I wasn’t the only one with a praise kink.
—
We spent the better part of the afternoon walking the promenade. As the sun started to set, my feet were practically screaming. It didn’t take long for Atlas to notice.
“You doing okay over there?” he asked.
“My feet are starting to hurt,” I said, shifting my weight to ease some of the pressure. “I should have worn different shoes.”
His ears drooped. “Shit. Sorry about that.”
I gave his biceps a little squeeze. “It’s okay. It’s not your fault. I should have worn something more comfortable.”
“There’s a bench over there.” He pointed to an empty park bench right underneath one of the flowering trees. “Why don’t we take a break?”
“Okay.”
Atlas swept away the fallen petals covering the bench, motioning for me to sit. I slipped my flats off, wiggling my toes and resting my feet on top. It felt so good to be out of those fucking shoes.
I closed my eyes and tipped my head back, soaking in our afternoon together.
“This reminds me of the night at the wedding. When we sat on the bench in the garden.” I opened my eyes, looking over to find him staring at me.
“Do you know how happy I felt, running into you like that again? There I was, feeling so alone in a room full of people, and then you showed up.”
It was a feeling I could empathize with, because before I met him, I’d felt alone, too.
I reached for his hand, staring into his eyes as I gave it a little squeeze. “I promise that as long as I’m around, you’ll never feel alone.”
A light breeze swept by, bringing a shower of cherry blossom petals with it.
One dainty little petal stuck to the tip of Atlas’s shiny nose.
“You have a cherry blossom on your nose.”
“I do?” His ears perked up, his golden eyes crossing as he looked down his snout. It made me giggle, which caused his tail to wag.
“Stay still,” I instructed. “I’ll get it.”
I leaned in, bringing my face closer to his muzzle while I plucked the silky pink petal from his nose.
“There,” I said, letting it flutter onto my lap between us.
I was still in his space, and neither of us pulled away.
“Do you know what cherry blossoms symbolize?” I asked, my voice a low whisper.
“No.”
“Lots of things. Beauty. Life and death.” I paused for a second, digging my teeth into my lip. “New beginnings.”
His furry brows drew back, a smile curling up one corner of his muzzle. “New beginnings?”
“Mhm.” I couldn’t believe I’d said it, and on our first date, no less, but there was something building between us. Something I couldn’t quite put my finger on. Something inexplicable.
“Tegan.” He reached out, gently cupping my face with one of his massive palms.
“Atlas,” I said, a hint of a smile in my voice.
He stared at me intently, those full-moon eyes fixed right on my lips. “I’m going to kiss you now.”
I tried to play it cool, but my heart soared with this over-the-moon feeling that hinted at just how much I liked Atlas. I’d imagined this moment countless times since our almost kiss at the wedding, and it was finally coming to fruition.
“About time.”
He chuckled softly and angled his head, bringing his lips to mine.
His textured tongue brushed against mine, his soft fur tickling my face.
Because of his snout, it was a shallower kiss than I was used to, which was fine because we were in public and it didn’t need to be a full-on make-out session, but I wanted to explore things with him more.
See the ways we could work around our anatomy.
He eased up, smiling against my lips for a second before he finally pulled away. “That was even better than I imagined.”
“It really was,” I said breathlessly.
Atlas’s tail wagged, gently thumping against my lower back, letting me know how happy he was about what just happened. He was always so expressive, his tail or his ears giving away exactly what he was thinking or feeling. It was a type of honesty I wasn’t used to with humans.
We sat on the bench and held hands, taking in the sunset. Orange rays of light lit up the surface of the water, rippling as another cool spring breeze blew by.
“We should probably get going,” Atlas suggested. “It’s starting to get chilly.”
“Yeah,” I said sadly, not wanting our date to end.
“I can carry you back to the car if you want.”
I snorted. “No thank you.”
“Come on,” he said, crouching slightly and holding his arms out at his sides like he was a linebacker—like he was ready for me to jump on his back.
“Atlas. What are people going to think if they see you carrying me?”
“Who cares what they think. You’re my girlfriend and I’ll carry you if I want to.”
My heart raced and my mouth hung open. I wasn’t expecting that today. I didn’t even know what to say.
He stood up straight, looking at me with soft, hopeful eyes. “I mean, I want you to be,” he said, slightly embarrassed.
I wanted that, too.
When it came to a relationship with him, I was all in.
“Crouch down again,” I instructed.
He cocked his head to the side. “Are you going to say anything or—”
“Will you just crouch down again!”
“All right, all right.” He laughed, resuming his piggyback stance.
I took a deep breath and hopped on his back, wrapping my arms around his neck while he scooped my thighs under his arms.
He hoisted me up and started to walk back to the parking garage. We didn’t get nearly as many strange looks as I thought we would, but I didn’t even care. I felt safe and secure with him holding me.
“Atlas?” I asked as the parking garage came into view.
“Yeah?”
I rested my head on his shoulder, leaning in to whisper, “I would love to be your girlfriend.”