but it didn’t faze him at all; he was too pleased with himself. I took the cookies out of the oven, and turned to get the milk. When I handed him a glass, Ren had already downed one very hot cookie and was on his second.
“These are delicious! What are they?”
“Double chocolate chip with peanut butter filling.”
“They’re the second best thing I’ve ever tasted.”
I laughed. “You said the same thing at dinner.”
“I recently readjusted the ranking.”
“So what ranks first now? Is it still peanut butter pancakes?”
“Nope—you. But it’s close.” His smiled dimmed. “It’s time for me to change, Kells.”
I felt a slight tremor go through his arm. He kissed me sweetly one more time and then morphed into his tiger form. He moved over to the stairs, leapt up in two strides, and headed for my bedroom.
Ren made himself comfortable on the throw rug near my bed while I changed into my pajamas in the bathroom. After brushing my teeth, I knelt beside him.
Putting my arms around his neck, I whispered, “Mujhe tumse pyarhai, Ren.” He started purring while I pulled my blanket over me. I hadn’t seen the tiger half of him since he showed up on Christmas Day and I’d missed him. I wrapped my arms around him and stroked his soft fur. Snuggling next to him, I used his soft paws as a pillow and drifted off feeling at peace for the first time since I’d left India.
On Saturday, I woke up in my bed clutching my stuffed white tiger. Ren was straddling a chair and resting his head on his arms, watching me. I groaned and threw the blanket over my head.
“Good morning, sleepyhead. You know, if you wanted to sleep with a tiger, all you had to do was ask.” He picked up the toy tiger. “When did you buy this?”
“The first week I got here.”
He grinned. “So you missed me?”
I sighed and smiled. “Like a fish misses water.”
“It’s nice to know I’m so necessary to your survival.” He knelt by the bed and brushed the hair away from my face. “Did I ever tell you, you’re the most beautiful in the mornings?”
I laughed. “No way. My hair is a mess and I’m in my pajamas.”
“I like watching you wake up. You sigh and start wiggling. You roll back and forth a few times and usually mumble something about me.” He grinned.
I leaned up on my elbow. “So I talk in my sleep, huh? Well, that’s embarrassing.”
“I like it. Then you open your eyes and smile at me, even when I’m a tiger.”
“What girl wouldn’t smile when you’re the first thing she sees? It’s like waking up on Christmas morning to the best present ever.”
He laughed and kissed my cheek. “I want to go see Silver Falls today, so get your lazy bones out of bed. I’ll wait for you downstairs.”
On the way to the falls, we stopped at White’s in Salem, a little diner that had been in business for decades. Ren ordered a Large Mess, which was their specialty: hash browns, eggs, sausage, bacon, and gravy scrambled together in a big pile. I’d never seen anybody finish it, but Ren polished it off and then stole my toast as well.
“You’ve got quite the appetite,” I commented. “Haven’t you been eating?”
He shrugged. “Mr. Kadam set up a grocery service, but I only know how to make popcorn and sandwiches.”
“You should have told me. I would’ve cooked for you more often.”
He took my hand and kissed it. “I wanted to keep you otherwise occupied.”
The drive was beautiful. Miles and miles of Christmas tree farms on both sides of the winding road led up into hilly, forested country.
We spent the day hiking to South Falls, Winter Falls, and Middle North Falls and were headed to three others. It was cold, and I’d forgotten my gloves. Ren immediately pulled a pair of gloves out of his jacket pocket and slipped them over my hands. They were too big, but they were lined and warm. The gesture brought me back to my awful date with Artie. Ren and Artie were like night and day.
We’d been discussing the difference between the forests of India and the forests of Oregon when I had a thought and interrupted, “Ren, during that whole time I was dating Li, weren’t you even a tiny bit jealous?”
“I was extremely jealous. I see red anytime someone else comes near you.”
“You didn’t really act like it.”
“I almost went ballistic. I couldn’t think straight. When another guy