Cally handed the phone back to Marcus. "So have you had breakfast?" she asked. Marcus was nearing 150 years. He thought he had seen nearly everything. He thought he had a clear understanding of their world. Right up till Olen passed, he thought he had a certain amount of control over his world. He liked the control that time and experience gives one. Cally was like a whirlwind. He just had too many questions about her for his peace of mind.

"Yes, I had something sent up earlier. Cally how did you know Rosemount would call?" Cally was slightly disappointed he had eaten already. "Oh, easy peasy, Jean Michel is a creature of habit. He would wait until official office hours to contact you. Yours was the phone I used to speak to him before with. And he would be too nervous to try to come to my door knowing that my priceless jewels had been taken away." "So you knew something was missing?" "Certainly, I could smell anything that had left my rooms. The crown was kept in an oaken box with a satin liner. All distinctive smells. I knew it had left my rooms but was not in the mood at that time to chase after it. If it was still on the premises it would have been returned by nightfall."

Marcus followed the perfect logic of her explanation. However he was aware that for her to smell an object and identify it after not seeing it for so long was of course again amazing. Marcus noticed a certain smile had just come across her face. "What?" he asked. That was a sneaky smile if he ever saw one. "Have you had dinner?' she asked. "Cally it's 7 in the morning. I just had breakfast." Ah! he saw the trap too late. "Cool! I'll pick you up at 7 tonight then. Good for you?" She quickly stood up and started for the door.

Cally took a couple of steps toward the door and stopped. She took a deep breath and without turning said to him, "Marcus, I know you are interested in me at least a little romantically after the kiss we shared. I also know that you are weary of me because I am different than anything you have ever come across." Cally had been looking down at the carpet; she sighed and looked out the window and continued, " You want to understand me more before you want to get into a relationship with me. Caution is a good thing. But please don't try to understand everything about me before giving me a chance. I am old, so old that no one should want me. But what you see, what you should be seeing is a new me." Cally laughed derisively, she glanced over her shoulder, "You could look at it as if I am newly out of rehab and starting fresh. See you tonight?" This time she asked.

Marcus stood and walked around his desk. He grabbed her hands and turned her around to face him. He looked at her lovely face for a quiet moment and said, " I am not a hesitant man nor am I afraid of the unexpected." He gave her a rare smile. It filled his usually stern face. " You weren't born yesterday. More like a little more than week ago. We just met after all. To me being near you is like watching a tightly wrapped rose bud blooming. So if you will allow this old wolf? I shall pick YOU up at 7 tonight." With that he leaned forward and pushed his face into the area between her chin and collarbone and breathed her in.

He pulled her scent deep into his lungs. It was a highly intimate thing to do especially for wolves. Her skin was as soft as a petal and her smell went straight to his head. Cally stood still. She thought over his words and more than that his actions. When he raised his head she gave him her beautiful smile. She raised a hand and caressed his face briefly. "Thank you Marcus." She opened the door and slipped out. He stood there a few more minutes. Speaking to himself, "You stupid bastard what are you getting yourself into?" This was the feeling he had before he went skydiving the first time.