Furever Yours by Catherine Vale Page B

as the one they usually got, draped in ribbons and
ornaments and twinkling lights of all different colors. An enormous pile of
presents sat beneath the tree, some of them with her name on them in a bold,
masculine script she did not recognize.
                "Oh
Abuelito... ” she whispered, staring
up at the tree in awe. “Did you do this last night?”
                Abuelito
shook his head. “Not
me. I received a very generous donation yesterday evening from a wonderful man,
which included this tree and all these presents.” His eyes twinkled.
                "We ’ll be able to make the upgrades to the Lodge
and fix all the plumbing and electrical issues for real now,” Abuelita added,
her eyes shining as she joined them.   
                Jade
was flabbergasted. “Who...
who would make such a generous donation?” She wondered, her mind whirling as
she tried to figure out what she was missing.
                Her
grandmother smiled. “If you
want to know, he’s waiting outside. Why don’t you go and see?”
                Jade ’s heart began thumping hard in her chest as she
began to realize who it might be. Hesitantly, she crossed the lobby, one small
step at a time until she reached the double doors that would lead out into the
snowy cold. Her hand hesitated on the brass handle, unsure as to what exactly
she would find when she went outside.
                "Go
on, ” her grandfather urged. “It’ll
be fine.”
                She
opened the door and stepped out onto the porch and then gasped. Sitting at the
foot of the porch was a huge, white wolf with silver eyes staring up at her , patiently. His tail wagged at the sight of
her, and, as he opened his mouth, tongue lolling, she knew that it was Dawson.
                But , he wasn’t the only wolf out there.
                Spread
out on the lawn behind him were at least fifty other wolves, all of different
colors and sizes... and they were playing in the snow. Some were at least as
huge as Dawson while others looked adolescent, as if they were just coming into
puberty. They pounced on each other and rolled in the snow, spraying white
fluffy flakes all over with their wagging tails and bodies.
                "Oh,
how cute, ” she murmured as she caught
sight of a trio of wolf cubs frolicking in the snow. Dawson flicked his ears
and then turned and barked at the cubs. Instantly they broke apart, tails wagging,
and trotted through the snow and up the steps toward her.
                "Oh
my goodness. ” She crouched down so
she could pet one of them, and it surprised her by jumping straight into her
lap, knocking her down. The other two followed suit, and she giggled as their
wet, rough tongues laved at her face and neck, their little paws pressing into
her arms and chest.
                "Alright,
alright. ” Dawson’s voice startled her,
and she sat up to see him standing next to her, in human form now, dressed in
his heavy winter gear. His lips curved into a smile. “That’s enough, boys. Let
her up now.”         
                The
cubs scrambled off her, and Dawson helped her to her feet. “Dawson...” Jade said slowly, searching his
face. “What... what is all this?”
                "I
came here late last night with the pack while you were sleeping, ” Dawson explained, rubbing his thumb across her
cheek, “to talk to your grandparents and explain. I knew they were having
trouble with the Lodge, so I offered them the money needed to fix things up,
and explained to them just how much you mean to me.” His eyes twinkled.
“Apparently they already knew I was a wolf shifter, so I was denied the
pleasure of shocking them with that news.”
                Jade
smiled a little. “I told
them last night while I was trying to explain everything to them.” She bit her
lip as she looked up at him