Justin listened to her as she spoke. Merely nodding his head to her stated question about him being in the military. â€œNever heard of it. Honestly not sure anyone in this town has. My friend Bart said this was the perfect place to go if you wanted a safe place where nobody really knows you. Where nobody cares who you were outside the town just who you are while you are in it.â€ He said with a grin. â€œI like who you are.â€ He added a moment later. He rubbed the back of his neck. â€œDo a little bit of everything. Even helped deliver a baby overseas. Assisted the local doctor with one here. Thankfully didnâ€™t have to do the actual baby delivering this time.â€ He chuckled a bit. â€œI guess you could call me a jack of all trades thanks to the military and personal hobbies Iâ€™ve picked up over the years. Iâ€™ll take you to the house later then. Perhaps after you finish eating.â€<br/><br/>He smiled at her warmly again. She brought out the playful wolf in him. His wolf was like run run run. Lets take her running under the moon. He had to rein it in and be like not right now. Iâ€™m just getting to know her. His eyes took in hers again. He wanted her to stay. As well as her friend if he was important to her. Something about the friend just was bugging him though. Not in the oh my god he wants her way. It was the something just isnâ€™t adding up here way. The fact he hadnâ€™t looked happy after that call was probably the culprit behind that something wasnâ€™t adding up way. Maybe he was just being over cautious but old habits die hard. You learn to live on the side of caution to an extent trying to live in an active war zone.<br/><br/>He listened to her as she stopped mid sentence. As she just halted what she was saying mid step. He looked at her curiously but didnâ€™t comment on it. His eyes showed for a second he was puzzled by the redirection of her comments. Nodding his head as she spoke. â€œLiving the big life. That is one thing Iâ€™m going to stay away from if at all possible...singing. Except if I ever have kids. Theyâ€™d get solo time with dad. Just because that is what my parents did when I was a kid. They would sing to me on alternating days. Didnâ€™t matter what just that it was quality time with my mom and dad.â€ He shook his head. â€œThat is one thing I regret about being in the military so long...that I couldnâ€™t be there for my mom when she was sick.â€ He looked at her with a smile a moment later. â€œYou should meet my old man. Guy is like eighty and still a firecracker.â€ He said with a laugh. His dad was also an old wolf.<br/><br/>He listened to her speak. â€œYeah...I made a guitar for my dad. It was a gift but he gave it back. I could never learn to play.â€ He said with a chuckle. â€œPerhaps Iâ€™ll give it to you. I just get the feeling you would put it to good use.â€ He shrugged a bit. â€œIâ€™ll call Kiki in a couple days. Let her know I got a close friend who would like to meet her. Let her know you are a guitarest and singer. Wonâ€™t matter to her who you are just that you have similar interests. Good kid.â€ he said with a chuckle. â€œSo I take it youâ€™ll be sticking around for awhile?â€ He said. He could not keep the happy hopefulness out of his tone.<br/><br/>He watched her look at the menu. Waiting then wrote down the order. He glanced to the door. Well there was the relief. Meant he could spend more time with Gypsy. Her friend too he supposed. He needed to get to know his mateâ€™s best friend. It was the right thing to do. A wolfs best friend was usually life long. Except when war kills them. War killed most of his friends. The woman whose baby he delivered moved back to Idaho. He shook his head. He had plenty of friends here but his close comrades had been sent home in caskets. They had been given a military burial. A flag placed on top of their coffins. Such a fact was a bitter memory of the things war could take from you. Which is why he vowed to never let Gypsy be taken from him. Even if it meant uprooting himself to follow her to the ends of the earth then so be it. He had his mate now and would fight to keep her. To keep her safe. No matter who he had to take on to do so.<br/><br/>He snapped from his thoughts when he saw her light up. Chuckling a bit. â€œOf course I donâ€™t have to. I want to though and plan to do so. Besides it is delicious and made from scratch. Iâ€™ll put it in so itâ€™ll be ready by the time you finish eating.â€ He said. Writing it down on the pad of paper. He liked the dreamy look on her face about the cake. It was delish. Beyond delish. It was a slice of heaven that you could chow down on. He heard Jared approach and caught the scent even before he sat down. Looking to him. Tension. Subtle but there. Strain like someone had just tried to pry his teeth out of his mouth with pliers. He could smell the nerves beading on his skin as subtle drops of sweat. Something was bothering this man. A mixture of training in observation and heightened sense of smell told him this much. Question is...what was bothering him?<br/><br/>If it was harmful to Gypsyâ€™s well being he would not hesitate to deal with that issue. Should the time come he needed to do something he would. He was trained for combat. He knew how to fight in wolf form and even more deadly in his human form. The best of his branch of the military. He had just needed an out. He hadnâ€™t wanted to see anymore deaths. Do anymore killing if he could keep from doing so. He needed to go home. He was glad now he had. It had to have been subconscious. Something telling him it was time to go home and that it was important to do so. He looked at Jared then back to Gypsy. He looked to Jared again as he spoke. â€œYes sir. Indeed I did. Iâ€™m buying her chocolate lava cake. It is the bomb. I enjoyed it with every fiber of my being growing up.â€<br/><br/>He stood up and twisted the chair around. Sliding it back under the table for now. He heard the owner call his name. â€œYes maâ€™am? Oh good. Iâ€™m glad they arrived. Yeah. Iâ€™ll finish up this table.â€ He said. Saluting the woman and ripped the order slip off the pad. He looked at Gypsy. â€œBe right back Gypsy. Wonâ€™t take but a moment.â€ He said as he walked away to the kitchen. â€œSteak with the mushroom and unions. A large flounder fried. Seasoned fries. Chocolate lava cake.â€ He put the slip up and wrote down his own order. It was time he fed his bottomless pit stomach. It wasnâ€™t really but he had worked up quite the wolfish appetite. â€œA steak with mushrooms and onions with a side of cheese fries extra bacon.â€ He put his slip up there.<br/><br/>He took off the apron and hung it back up. â€œThank you Justin. You were a big help.â€ Justin nodded his head. â€œYouâ€™re welcome maâ€™am. Anytime.â€ He then headed back over to the table. Spinning the chair around and pulled up a seat at the booth. He waved over the teenager. â€œRoot beer.â€ He said. The teenager ran off to get him the drink. He looked at Jared with a studying gaze before his gaze roamed back over to Gypsy. â€œSo after this instead of going back to the motel you can come with me to the house. Iâ€™ll even give you a piggy back ride so you wonâ€™t have to walk that long way.â€ he teased playfully. His guard up around Jared though. He winked at Gypsy. â€œIâ€™m sure youâ€™ll like the house maâ€™am. You wanna buy it then Iâ€™ll let you decide what color to paint the outside and the walls.â€<br/><br/>He looked at Jared. â€œSo you sticking around long term or you just breezing on through?â€ He asked. Wondering if her friend planned to ditch the town and his bestie for his old life. That old saying you canâ€™t teach an old dog new tricks wasnâ€™t always accurate. Very often you could teach them a new trick. The tricky part was getting them to follow through with it. He received his root beer and took a big sip out of it. Mmmmmmm!!! That tasted so good after being parched from mechanics and maintanence within thirty minutes of each other. â€œShe ordered you the flounder sir. It is actually very good. Very flakey. Fall off your fork it is cooked just right.â€ He couldnâ€™t keep his eyes off his mate. His. Mate. His. It sounded nice to hear those words even if just in his head. He smiled at Gypsy. A smile that kept being absent when he turned his attention to Jared.<br/><br/>â€œDonâ€™t worry sir...Iâ€™ll take care of her. The house thing is kind of a date.â€ He said with a grin. Looking at Jared. â€œIâ€™ll take you both back to see it when it is finished.â€ He aded in a serious voice. He looked Gypsy in the eyes. â€œYour eyes are beautiful. The most beautiful color I have ever seen for eyes. Iâ€™ve seen a lot of eyes staring down the enemy from the barrel of my rifle. None as beautiful and powerful as yours. So full of life and they sparkle. Like little emeralds.â€ He shook his head. Smiling at her warmly. He couldnâ€™t help it. She brought out the softy in this old military â€œdogâ€. He looked at Jared. â€œSo what do you do Jared?â€ He asked. â€œIâ€™m ex-military by six months.â€