Her White Wolf

Chapter Eleven

The walk from the restaurant back into the village was pleasant and filled with small talk. James had kept his arm around Cleo's waist the entire walk and couldn't keep the smile off his face. He knew Steve would nag him but it just felt good to feel happy for once.

When they reached the split in the path that would take them to either home, James looked down at Cleo. "Which... what..." he sighed. "Do you want to be with me tonight?"

There was a tingle of nerves that spread through her belly. He would give her butterflies for a long time, she was sure. She smiled warmly and bit her lip. "Yeah, I do."

"Which place?" He asked softly. "If it's mine... I've never used the bed. Steve uses it."

"You don't sleep on the bed?" Cleo asked, raising her brows. He'd slept in her bed... but that was only for a short while. "Let Steve use it. Grab Eagle and we'll go to my place."

"You go ahead and I'll meet you there." He bent to kiss her softly. "I won't be long."

She smiled against his lips and nodded. "See you soon," she said, giving his hand a squeeze before she stepped away from him. She ran her fingers through her long hair as she headed back home. The last twenty four hours had been unbelievable. The shift she'd experienced along with the one she saw in him blew her away.

When Cleo arrived at home she slipped her shoes off at the door, meandering towards the bedroom and once she was there, she went about making the bed. It was wrinkled from the last rendezvous and while she hoped there might be a round two, she went about the routine anyway.

Meanwhile James made his way to his home and watched as Steve lit a campfire. Eagle was already wandering around at his feet. "Hey... do you mind if I stayed with Cleo tonight?" He asked.

Steve raised his brows and shook his head before a smile warmed his face. "Absolutely not. And I'm really glad that you're putting yourself out there."

"I don't know if it would be called that if it's with one person, Steve." He rubbed the back of his neck and looked out across the small pond. "Am I doing the right thing? Doing this?"

"Doing what? Following your heart?" Steve asked, settling into a chair beside the fire. "As long as you both want to be there, then yeah. You're doing the right thing."

James let out a breath and looked at his best friend and brother. "I worry I'm moving too fast. We've... already slept together."

That news surprised Steve but it wasn't a bad surprise. "Wow, it sounds like she's sort of... woken something up," he observed. "Are you worried about what might happen if she sees you struggling?"

"That's part of it," he admitted. "I don't know what I'll do if I accidentally hurt her because of a nightmare. Sometimes they're pretty rough, Steve."

"I know, Buck," he sighed, wishing he had the right thing to say to make this better. "There are a lot of ifs in life. But living waiting for the if to happen isn't living. You could... talk to her about it, tell her what you're worried about. Maybe you guys can create some kind of... plan."

James nodded, rubbing at the back of his neck again, his nerves running on edge. "That's not a bad idea. I just don't want to hurt her." He met his friend's eyes and sighed. "If something happened to her and it was my fault... Steve, it would kill me."

Steve rose from his chair and made his way to his friend's side. "I know it would, I hear you. Something to remember in all this, though, is that Cleo gets to choose in some of this too. If she knows the risks and chooses to be there, there's a lot to respect in that."

He nodded and took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. "You're right," he sighed softly. "I respect her for it enough already for trusting me enough to be with her." James looked down, feeling a small weight against his leg, and saw Eagle, pushing his whole weight against his leg. It made him smile... made him feel a little more grounded.