Despite my parents’ anger and my fight with Rando, Cap remains completely relaxed. He takes a plate of food onto the back deck and settles into a chair at the long wooden picnic table. I sit nearby, thinking about how miserable I’ve made my parents by having Cap here.

“Why are you so wound up?” Cap asks after finishing the corn on the cob.

“My mom looks so sad, and my pop is angry. Sure, I’m a pain in the ass, but that doesn’t mean I want to make them miserable.”

“Let me dump some shrink shit on your pretty head, Pip. Starting with your mom. Now you said she had a shitty upbringing, right? Well, often times, kids like that need a lot of predictability in their adult lives. So has your mom always taught the same grade?”

“Yeah.”

“And does she keep a comfortable routine and get tense when the schedule is fucked?”

“Yeah.”

“So we’re messing with her schedule. You said she got upset when Lily’s lame fiancé wanted to move somewhere lame, right? Well, that’s her way. So even if you moved in a year, she’d still get upset because new shit throws her off. That’s how she rolls, and you’ll just need to hug her more. No fixing how a person is wired.”

“And Pop?”

Cap holds a finger up to have me wait until he finishes a rib. Wiping his hands, he swallows. “You weren’t kidding about your father’s barbecue.”

“He’ll be thrilled to know you approve.”

Smirking, Cap continues his shrink shit. “When Keanu was a teenager, he got the idea to adopt a dog. Now his mom has a sort of hippy vibe, and she is a big believer in helping those in need. So they didn’t adopt a puppy since everyone likes puppies. She wanted an older dog that would likely be put down. At the shelter, Keanu liked one dog, and his little sister wanted a different dog. Their mom couldn’t leave one to die, so she adopted both mutts. Sounds heartwarming, don’t it?”

Nodding, I watch him devour a giant spoonful of coleslaw. He wasn’t kidding about his hunger. I wonder if he’d go cannibal, if the food weren’t offered.

“So Dill was a shepherd mix, and Scud was a lab mix. I think Keanu’s family just assumed these saved animals would be so thrilled to be adopted that they wouldn’t bitch and moan. Well, those dogs had one particular thing they fought over every single fucking night. They both wanted the prime spot between Keanu and Calypso’s beanbag chairs. For years, they growled and snapped at each other over who got to sit in the best spot. It was like they hated each other. Then one day, Scud got loose from Calypso during a walk and ran in front of a truck. Keanu’s dad said the dog committed suicide, which sounds like bullshit. Except weeks later, Dill was diagnosed with cancer and needed to be put to sleep. Keanu’s mom decided Scud knew Dill was dying and couldn’t bear to live without him.”

“I’m missing your point.”

“Yeah, I lost track of my story there,” he says and wipes his smiling lips. “So your dad and I are those dogs. We don’t hate each other, but we both want that prime spot between the beanbag chairs which is you in this scenario.”

“But he wanted us to date.”

“In his head, we make sense. His heart says no one is good enough for you.”

“He didn’t get like this when Lily dated Jay.”

“Jay was a beta who tucked his tail and bowed to your alpha daddy’s will. I will never bow, and that riles up a man like your dad. He’s the king of the alphas in these parts. Other alphas kiss his ass. Why do you think he gets cranky as fuck around my dad? Two alphas, neither willing to bow, we’re lucky they haven’t come to blows yet.”

“So he’ll never like you?”

“No, he’ll like me just like Scud and Dill liked each other. Don’t get distracted by the growling we do at each other. It’s how men like us are built. In fact, his lack of violence should be viewed as silent consent.”

“Everything sounds so easy when you say it,” I say, staring out at the dark woods. “I’ve never accomplished anything important in my life. If I walk away when they tell me to stay, I think maybe they’ll see me as a failure.”

Cap’s fingers stroke my hair. “That’s all in your head. No way can your parents write you off. It’s not how they’re built.”

“What am I accomplishing by moving to a town I don’t know to be with a man I don’t know?” I ask, panicking at the idea of sleeping alone in that odd house so far away from my family.

“You’re adventurous, Pip. That’s a good quality. You’re seizing onto a chance to try something new. That takes courage, and your father at least respects big balls. He’ll like how you were brave enough to try being with me. I mean, he doesn’t know how you and I are fucking perfect together and how there’s no real danger in you failing. While your siblings remain at home, you choose to make a big move. I view you as a winner.”

“Winner of what?”

“Of whatever you need to be a winner of. I don’t care. My goal is for you to stop pouting because I want to hang out tonight and learn more about your life here. You looking as if someone pissed in your cereal isn’t a solid way to start my visit.”

“It’s not all about you,” I say, feeling guilty for wanting to run off with a stranger rather than remain with my family.

“You are my woman, and that makes you an extension of me. Just as my family is and Keanu too. I hope you appreciate how you belong to a select group of awesome fuckers, Pip.”

I look out at the woods lining our backyard. The approaching night puts an extra chill in the air, causing me to shiver. Cap instantly stands and removes his jacket so he can wrap it around my shoulders.

“Your mama taught you right.”

“That she did,” he says and kisses the top of my head. “Do you want to know a secret?”

“Sure.”

“It’s fucking fine if you aren’t ready to move to White Horse this week. I’ll come back next week and the week after that and I’ll keep coming. And you know what? During each visit, I’ll steal a few of your things. Eventually, you’ll realize most of your shit is already in White Horse so you might as well move there.”

Grinning, I reach for his hand. “The funny thing is I believe you’d do that.”

“Why wouldn’t I? Gotta move your shit down anyway. Seems right to turn it into a game.”

Searching his handsome face, I can’t imagine going days without seeing him. My parents think I’m nuts, and a part of me agrees with them.

Yet moving to White Horse to be with Cap makes more sense than anything I’ve ever done. He’s completely certain I’m the woman for him. For the first time, we’re on the exact same page.