“She was going to abandon you to the wolves?” Kate laughed. “Precious.”

  He chuckled. “Yeah. I was glad I had left my keys in my jeans’ pocket when I went running in the woods. So no more camping trips with Brenda. Most of the women I know are like that. One loved ski resorts, another enjoyed island retreats. But none of them liked camping.”

  “Well, I’m sure you’ll have a great time then.”

  “I have another social event coming up Monday night if you would like to go with me to that. I know it’s short notice, but—”

  “You wanted to see how this went between us first. I would have to check my calendar to know for certain, but I’m sure I have something I’m doing with Lexi. I’m a busy working woman, you know.”

  He smiled. “Okay, well, if you want to go, I’ll give you my number.”

  “Lexi has it.” Kate didn’t want Derek to think she would be his convenient date for all his social activities now until he found someone who was safer to be with—some woman who was not trying to marry him, at least not right away.

  He got a call on his phone and answered it on Bluetooth. “Hey, are you okay?” Brenda asked.

  “Yeah, what about you?”

  Kate was annoyed that Brenda would be calling Derek after she had broken up with him and he was still on a date with Kate, though she understood to an extent that Brenda would want to make sure he was okay after what they had thought initially was a shootout. But she didn’t think that was the only reason Brenda was calling him.

  “I’m good, though I broke my high heel in the crush of people trying to get out. I’m sure I got a few bruises too.”

  “What about your date?”

  “Oh, he left me. He was definitely not the hero type. He was out the door before I even realized he was gone. For an older man, he sure could move fast.”

  “I’m glad you’re both okay. I need to go. I’m taking Kate home.”

  Silence.

  Kate smiled. She was glad now that she had allowed Derek to drive her home.

  “Okay, well, if you need to talk about what happened, just give me a call when you get home,” Brenda said.

  “You’ll be in bed by then, surely,” Kate said. “Though, come to think of it, he might not even be going home tonight. We haven’t worked out the logistics quite yet.”

  Derek smiled at Kate for saying so, and then Brenda hung up on him.

  He pulled into Kate’s driveway. She got out before he could barely park the car, the Land Rover parking behind them.

  She quickly said good night, waved, and headed inside her house. If he was expecting a good-night kiss, he’d have to take another woman out on a date to get it.

  He finally drove off. What a night. She sighed. She was glad the incident at the clubhouse hadn’t been anything serious. And she was glad she’d said what she had to Brenda. It would give the other woman something to mull over.

  Recalling fondly how great the rest of the evening had gone, Kate twirled around in her foyer, imagining the fun she’d had in dancing with Derek—debonair as usual. She’d even managed to dodge the paparazzi and annoy Brenda in the process. Best of all, she’d had a great time. Another date with Derek? No way. Not when he had such a commitment phobia with she-wolves. What if she fell hard for him and then he broke her heart?

  She shouldn’t have invited him to the campout. She hoped she wouldn’t regret it. She and Mike would have served as bodyguards and just had a great time. She hadn’t needed to ask Derek to join them!

  He had his own way of life, and that was how he chose to live it—dating human women with no pledge to marry.

  Yet she was curious about how he would interact with everybody else on a campout—with her especially.

  Chapter 5

  Derek knew Kate wasn’t a beta wolf, but the way she had tucked tail and run into the safety of her house made him think of her that way. He sighed. He hadn’t meant to imply anything by asking her to accompany him as his date to another social function. He had just enjoyed being with her. And he thought they could have another fun social engagement out together, that was all.

  Maybe she worried about what others would think if the paparazzi began taking pictures of them being together too much. He could just imagine what his bodyguards were thinking. That he’d screwed up big time with her at the very end of the date and that was why she’d hurried off and hadn’t even let him walk her to the door.

  Still, he drove home, feeling like a billion bucks. He hadn’t felt that good in a long time. Partly it was because he had a great time being with Kate, dancing with her, visiting with her, eating with her, but he’d also enjoyed dining with his fellow wolf friends for a change, like he was part of the pack again because he hadn’t had a human female on his arm this time.

  Maybe he could convince Kate to go with him to a different charity event after the campout, as long as they had a great time at it. He was really looking forward to the campout in any case. He wished he’d gotten another sizzling kiss from Kate when he dropped her off at her home to confirm what he’d felt was real between them—that moment of connection between two wolves when sparks fly. He hadn’t expected that or for her to disappear so quickly before he had a chance to kiss her again. He suspected that way of thinking was going to get him into trouble again with the she-wolf.

  Still, tonight, he couldn’t help but think about the camping trip coming up and seeing Kate again.

  He entered his home, greeted Foxy and Red, and waved good night to his bodyguards. He wished he could have brought Kate to his home for a nightcap or more. So much for not wanting to get involved with her. But she wasn’t working for him, so why not? At least she didn’t seem to be upset with him any longer for not hiring her.

  ***

  Kate could barely sleep that night. All she thought about was shimmying to the music with Derek and how much fun she’d had. She was already thinking that maybe there was just an inkling of a possibility between them. She always wondered that when she dated a wolf. This time, she really was having a hard time putting aside the thoughts—of him and her dancing the years away, all the way into their golden years. Silly of her, really. He would go back to dating human women, and she would go back to dating a wolf every once in a while.

  When Kate woke the next morning, she was still thinking about Derek. Give it up for the moment! She dressed and went over to Lexi’s house to work on some more promotional campaign ideas.

  Spirit bounded to the door and greeted Kate. Kate gave Spirit hugs and petted her, then Ryder came and got her so Kate could join Lexi in her office.

  “Hey, how did it go with Derek last night?” Lexi asked Kate as they sat down to have mimosas.

  Okay, so maybe Kate wasn’t going to get away from thinking of him like she thought she was.

  Kate took a couple of sips of her mimosa, delicious as usual. They always tried to make work fun and usually had fruity teas with their early morning business routine. Usually mimosas were reserved for celebrations. Kate hoped Lexi wasn’t celebrating Kate’s conquest over Derek.

  “It was fine. We had fun dancing.” Kate had thought she and Lexi were going to do a few things quickly on the website this morning and then Lexi was taking off the rest of the day to spend with Ryder. Which meant Kate had the rest of the day off too. She wasn’t sure what she was going to do with it. Maybe catch up on some movies. Though she really wanted to get some exercise in.

  “Every dance after dinner.” Lexi smiled at her.

  “He likes to dance. I like to dance, so sure. You told me to have fun.”

  Lexi laughed. “You looked like you were having a great time. We didn’t expect you to invite him camping.”

  Kate was afraid that might come back to bite her. “Yeah, I’m sorry about that. I shouldn’t have invited him. It was up to one of you to do it.” Kate swore the champagne had done the talking for her last night.

  “Not at all. You know we told you if you wanted to invite any wolf camping, you were welcome to.”

  “Yeah, but he hasn’t gone camping with his friends in ages, and after I proposed he could join us, I felt I’d overstepped my bounds.”

  “Nonsense. Ryder said Rafe and Aidan are thrilled Derek would come, just like the good old days. They’ve been friends with him forever. They’ve asked him in the past, but Derek didn’t want to go by himself and feel like a fifth wheel to them and their mates. And he was always dating a human woman he couldn’t bring along.”

  Besides the fact that the ones he had dated hadn’t liked camping. Kate smiled at the thought.

  “Ryder got a kick out of how Derek jumped at the chance when you offered for him to come.”

  “Yeah, I noticed. I was afraid Derek got the wrong impression—that he thought I was offering to share my tent with him. No way.”

  “Not unless he needs a bodyguard.”

  Kate scoffed. “He has two very capable bodyguards of his own. Besides, Derek would have to pay me double time for the job because the time period would be over the weekend and through the night. But like I told him, I so much prefer working for you.”

  Lexi laughed.

  “Well, I do. I get to do all this fun stuff with you”—Kate motioned to the website—“when I would have been bored to tears working for him. All he would think of was that I would be after his money.”

  Lexi smiled. “I noticed you kissed him a couple of times.”

  “Oh, sure. I was playing my role to the hilt. I had thought of letting him just hang out with Brenda a while longer, but some wolfish part of me made me step in and haul him off to dance with me. The woman had the nerve to talk to him when she was with someone else and so was Derek.”

  “I know, right? Brenda was glowering at you from the edge of the dance floor all night. But it was her choice to tell him to marry her or else. She had a nice thing going for her before that happened. He always took her to the best places, and he didn’t expect anything in return,” Lexi said.

  “He asked me to go with him to a charity dinner on Monday.” After Kate mentioned it, she wondered why she had! She knew Lexi would give her the time off to see him and probably even encourage her to go if Kate was hesitant. Which she was at this point. Why should she be the fill-in date until he found a human woman to see who seemed safer than dating a she-wolf?

  “Hmm, so are you going?” Lexi asked.

  “No. I told him I would probably be busy.” Kate was beginning to think Lexi had just asked her over to her house to grill her about Derek, which couldn’t help but amuse Kate.

  Smiling, Lexi shook her head. “You are never too busy to go out with someone socially. I want you to have fun. Oh, and if you’re worried someone might consider you and Derek an item, you don’t have to worry about it. It’s all over the tabloids, so everyone believes it anyway. I’ve already been asked to give an interview to tell them all about you. Of course, I wouldn’t say anything. I do want to ask you something important though. Would you consider being my partner in the cosmetic business?”

  “Are you serious?”

  Lexi smiled. “You have increased my sales tenfold. As of this morning, I’m making you a partner. As long as that’s okay with you.”

  “Ohmigod, are you kidding?” Kate couldn’t believe it! She was thrilled!

  “No, I’m not kidding. With all the promotional ideas you come up with and all the help you are at marketing, you’re much more than an assistant. And you’re way more than just a friend. You’re like a sister to me, part of my family. Not to mention I need a business partner. If I were to lose you—”

  “I feel the same way about you.” Kate wiped away a couple of tears. She couldn’t believe how generous Lexi was to her or how much she appreciated that Lexi felt like her sister too. “Don’t tell me you think I’m going to get hitched to a hot wolf and leave you alone. Didn’t I tell you that’s going to be part of my dating regimen? Whoever I find to mate has to agree to my conditions—that I continue to work full-time for you.”

  “As a business partner. He can come along, whoever he ends up being.” Lexi gave Kate a big hug.

  Kate hugged her back. “You’re not doing this because you think I’m going to mate Derek, are you? And then I would be too busy with him, jet-setting around the world or whatever it is he does, to spend time working with you, right?”

  “You might end up with him, but regardless, I want you to have vested interest in the company. You’ve helped me really make the company take off and be as successful as it has been. I couldn’t have done it without you.”

  “I accept. How much do I need to pay to buy into the business?”

  “We’re splitting the net profits. I’m giving you half the shares as a bonus. We’re going to make this company even better.”

  Kate smiled. “I never thought a bodyguard position could turn into so much more. Wait until Brenda hears I’m not just your personal assistant any longer.”

  Lexi laughed. “She’ll really be annoyed more than she is already. From what I’ve learned about her, she does nothing all day. I can’t imagine a more boring lifestyle. All her wealth is inherited, and she prefers spending her date’s money rather than her own.” Lexi drank some of her mimosa. “Oh, and the lawyer will be over in an hour with the documents for us to both sign. I’m making an announcement to the press shortly after that so everyone knows. I’m so glad you’re going to be my partner…especially because Ryder and I are having twins next year.”

  “Ohmigod, I was so hoping you would give me the good news soon. That is wonderful.” Kate hugged her again. “Oh, that’s why you want me to help run the company.”

  “Yep. That’s my devious ulterior motive. I’ll have a nanny to help out with the kids, but I’ll need you to run the company—not as my assistant but as part owner. You’ve managed the business on your own anytime I’ve needed you to. Heck, when we go on trips together, even when they’re supposed to be vacation trips, you’re working. So yeah, that’s another reason.”

  “I’ve got this. Do you know what sex the twins are going to be?”

  “Not yet, but soon. Are you happy with the idea of being a partner? I know I should have discussed it with you more, but I just thought you would be thrilled, and I know I am,” Lexi said.

  “Yes! I couldn’t be any happier.” Kate was ecstatic.

  “Good. Oh, and about the tabloids, they managed to grab some photos of you and Derek dancing and kissing. I love the one where you’re dragging him into the clubhouse. That was Ryder’s favorite too. He said he’d never seen anyone take charge of Derek—dance with him—like you did. We were all smiling about it.”

  Kate sighed. “Someone had to do it.” Then she thought of the campout and Lexi carrying twins. “So what about camping now that you’re pregnant?”

  “I’ve been feeling fine. I haven’t had any Braxton-Hicks contractions at all. And it’s early enough that I won’t have any discomfort with carrying a couple of babies,” Lexi said.

  “Okay, good.” Then Kate frowned. “Your mimosa! You were drinking champagne with your orange juice.”

  “Mine had carbonated mineral water. Yours had the champagne.”

  “Oh, okay, great!”

  Then Lexi and Kate began to work some more on the website.

  “Rafe said he’d never seen anyone move him like you could in all the years he has known him. Aidan agreed. And when you kissed Derek in front of the ex-girlfriend? If Derek is looking to date another woman soon, he might have to explain all about you,” Lexi said.

  “There’s nothing to explain.”

  Lexi smiled. “Yeah, well, you know what they say. A picture is worth a thousand words. I’m glad you convinced Derek to come to the campout though. I was thinking we could do another woodsy video session for the cosmetics. Holly and Jade said they would be glad to be models for the products. The guys said they would help us set up and then they’re going fishing.”

  “That would be great.” Kate loved it when they still had their girl time together.

  Chapter 6

  After signing the paperwork to make Kate a partner in the Clair de Lune Cosmetics company, Kate congratulated Lexi on the babies and thanked her again. Then she walked back home to do some gardening. Even though Lexi had gardeners for the property, Kate liked to tend to her own flower beds. Before Ryder became Lexi’s mate and Mike moved onto the premises as their bodyguard, Kate had lived at the house with them. But to give them privacy and a place of her own, Lexi had built Kate the guest house. So Kate had a home of her own that was within walking distance of the main house.

  That way too, when Lexi’s parents visited from Silver Town, they would stay with Lexi and Ryder. Mike continued to stay at the main house to provide around-the-clock protection.

  Kate dressed in her old clothes, opened the garage door, and grabbed the gardening tools. She settled down to work in her garden, weeding—a necessary evil—before she could plant her purple coneflowers; black-eyed Susans; red, purple, pink, and yellow zinnias; and blanket flowers—what she truly loved. While Kate was weeding, Spirit bounded up to her and poked Kate with her nose, wanting Kate to pet her. Kate had to oblige and gave her a hug. “Are you supposed to be out here?”

  “Nope, she’s not.” Mike hurried after her so he could take her back to Lexi’s fenced-in yard. “But when she saw you out here gardening, she had to check on you. As soon as I opened the gate, she bolted.”

  “I’m glad you were there to see her.”

  “Did you need any help with that?”

  “Gardening? Nah. You’re dressed so nicely, and I’m just in my old clothes. But thanks for taking Spirit back. She won’t dig in my garden, thankfully, but she’ll want to be petted the whole time she’s out here, and you know how hard it is to ignore her.”