There was a speculative gleam in his eyes as he asked, “You think so?”
I nodded. “Yeah, she won’t be able to resist the combination of higher quality meat and free.”
“How much elk does the restaurant go through each month?”
Since I was in charge of ordering the meat for Timbers Treasures, it was easy for me to do a quick calculation in my head. “About two hundred and fifty to three hundred pounds.”
“I can get more than that with two kills a month.” He stretched his arm out to grab my cell phone off the bedside table. “Ask her if she’ll let you switch to two four-day weekends a month if we bring her an elk each time we’re up here for an extra day.”
She hadn’t balked at bringing my schedule down to four days a week, and the switch would give us a more equitable split between the two packs. And I liked how relaxed he was when we were at the cabin—excluding today’s encounter with the bad guys. “Great idea! I love how you think.”
A quick call to my boss had her agreeing to the change and promising to have someone cover my shift tomorrow. With that taken care of, now that we weren’t in a rush to get back to Timber Ridge, I tossed my phone back on the table and scooted back to wrap my fist around Rome’s hard length. “How about we celebrate my new schedule and declaring our love for each other the old-fashioned way, with lots of hot, sweaty sex.”
Rome showed me how much he loved how I thought two more times before we left the bed again.
Epilogue
Rome
I raised my head, and my brow shot up in surprise when Thora came stomping into Peppa’s office. She looked furious, and her ire was clearly directed at me. But she looked so adorable when she was riled up that I had to suppress a grin.
“Everything all right?” I asked, keeping my expression and tone neutral.
“You!” she snarled, pointing a finger at me. “This is all your fault.”
“Pardon?” I had no clue what she was talking about.
Thora grumbled as she came around the desk, then planted her hands on her hips and glared at me. “Peppa is sending me home.”
“What?” Anger sliced through me, and I fought the urge to seek out Thora’s boss and lay into her for making my mate unhappy. But I stayed calm, figuring I should find out more before flying off the handle.
Thora’s pretty green eyes welled with tears, and my heart clenched, prompting me to jump to my feet and pull her into my arms.
“I was working on the bacon-wrapped lobster tails, and my stomach lurched. I barely made it to the bathroom before I—” She stopped suddenly and clapped a hand over her mouth as she spun around and ran to the private bathroom attached to the office.
Worried, I quickly followed, and when I saw her drop to her knees and vomit, I grabbed her hair to hold it out of the way.
After a few heaves, there seemed to be nothing left, and she fell back onto her butt. “What’s wrong?” I demanded, terrified that she was sick and irrationally thinking of all the ways I could lose her.
“What do you think, Mr. I’m going to knock you up?” she grumbled.
My mind emptied for a moment, and I blinked at her as I tried to comprehend what she’d just said. Bacon. Throwing up. Knocking her—a grin suddenly split my face. “You’re pregnant?”
Thora sighed and tried to stand, prompting me to scoop her up and set her on the sink. “Obviously, I won’t know for sure until I take a test, but I’m pretty confident. I’m late, and my breasts have grown a little and been extra sensitive lately.”
I’d thought they’d gotten a little bigger but had chalked it up to my imagination. And I’d definitely noticed how much more responsive she was when I played with them. But for some reason, I hadn’t put it all together.
I whooped and picked her up again to spin us around, then promptly put her back down when she turned green. There was a stack of little plastic cups on the sink, so I filled one with water and handed it to her. She rinsed and spit a few times, then handed me the cup to toss in the trash. After rummaging around, I managed to also find a bottle of mouthwash among some other toiletries. Thora gave me a grateful smile and swished with that as well.
All the while, I studied her and thought about how she’d come storming angrily into the office. “Are you unhappy?” Please, don’t say yes.
Thora looked at me as though I’d grown another head. “Of course not!”
Relief flooded my veins.
“I just never considered that my job might be compromised if I throw up every time I smell bacon or any other meat that might upset my stomach. And it’s all your fault!” She poked her finger into my chest, and I couldn’t help laughing.