Page 11 of Caligo

Jasper, all the power to him, merely stood and smiled at Mollie, casually holding a hand to her as if they hadn’t walked in on us fooling around on their couch. “I’m Jasper. It’s nice to officially meet you, Mollie.”

Mollie gave him a tight smile, taking in his overall appearance. “You too.” I knew what she was thinking. Jasper, for all intents and purposes, looked dangerous. Until you got to know him, like I had. Mollie only knew the bad stuff about Jasper, and it hadn’t exactly left her eager to meet him. She set down a glass of wine to give me a hug.

I hugged her back. “I feel like I haven’t seen you in ages!” I told her, taking the wine.

Mollie rolled her eyes, glancing over to where Jasper stood making small talk with Ben. “Yeah, well you’ve obviously been busy.”

I glared at her over the rim of my glass. “You promised you would give him a chance, Mollie.”

She sighed. “I know, I know. I will. For you. But I don’t like it. He’s already hurt you, and I don’t know if I can get past that. And look what he’s turned you into! Going at it on my couch.” Mollie pulled a face, taking a long drink of her wine.

“Mol, I told you that whole thing was a misunderstanding.” I could already feel my blood pressure rising. “And it’s your own fault. You told me I needed to find a nice guy. And if anything, he’s made me more confident in myself. Stronger.”

She looked at me hard, as if searching for some sign of weakness. Finally, she nodded, and I heaved a sigh of relief -- I had won the first battle. Mollie called everyone to the dinner table, and I wandered into the dining room while Ben and Mollie grabbed the food from the kitchen.

Jasper trailed me closely, and whispered, “I think Ben likes me.”

I tipped my face towards him, pulling my usual chair at the table out. “Yeah?”

He nodded. “I guess he’s a big hiker, so I was filling him in on my favourite local trails.”

I raised my eyebrow at him, knowing exactly what he meant by hiking experiences. “Did you tell him most of these experiences took place in wolf form?”

Jasper shook his head, laughter in his gaze. “Not exactly.” He stretched his arms above his head, rubbing the back of his neck. “Speaking of, I haven’t gone on a run in a few days. Feel like doing some late-night training after this? We could take sparring up a notch.”

Was he asking me if I wanted to spar with him in wolf form? I didn’t think I was strong enough yet. He laughed at my shocked expression. “You’re stronger than you think you are, Green. Believe me.”

I did. I grasped his hand, just as Mollie and Ben returned with delicious smelling dishes. As soon as we all settled down with some of Mollie’s specialty, roast chicken, she turned her sharp gaze onto Jasper. “Jasper, what do you do for a living again?”

Ben rested his hand on Mollie’s forearm, and I knew he was trying to keep her from being too overprotective. Jasper cut into his chicken, unbothered by Mollie’s intrusive tone. “I’m a private investigator, freelance.”

She cut into her food. “Sounds dangerous.”

He put down his fork and knife, and stared at her quietly. “What exactly are you implying?”

I focused on breathing in and out slowly, hoping this would blow over. In and out. In and out. Mollie met his gaze. “I’m wondering if such a dangerous job would allow you to fully commit to a relationship with Ava.”

Jasper laughed, breaking the tension in the room. “Maybe you should ask Ava, instead.”

Mollie looked surprised, and glanced at me. “Ava? What does he mean?”

I looked down at my plate, not wanting to get into the whole situation. “Well, you see…”

Jasper reached for my hand, saving me from the uncomfortable situation. “Ava only admitted she was my girlfriend today after weeks of me trying to get her to say otherwise.” He grinned, still enthused by my earlier admission.

Mollie’s jaw dropped. This wasn’t the Ava she had grown up with. That Ava would have needed the label of a real relationship for validation. “Is that true?”

“Well…” I started, “Yeah.”

“Weeks of grovelling it took me.” Jasper moved his hand down to my thigh before he continued. “Showing her how good we could be together. A slip of the tongue was her downfall. Otherwise, I could’ve been waiting years to find out if I had a girlfriend or not!”

That was all it took. Mollie beamed at Jasper. “You really are good for her!” She leapt out of her seat and ran around the table, snaring us both in a big hug. “Ava! I’m so proud of you. And Jasper! I’m sorry I’ve been tough, but I had to make sure you weren’t going to hurt her again.”

Jasper turned to me, questioning, and I mouthed “I’ll explain later” over Mollie’s head.

“I’m glad Ava has a friend like you, Mollie,” Jasper told her, trying to detach himself. “She deserves it.”

She grinned, and raced back to her seat. The rest of dinner went smoothly, now I knew my best friend approved of Jasper. We talked about hiking, and travelling, and food, and by the time we were heading out the door, Jasper and Ben were making plans to meet up at the local sports bar later in the week. Apparently, they shared the same favourite football team. Mollie rolled her eyes at me, and pulled me in for another hug. “I’m happy for you, girl.”

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