Bruce could not get the girl with the angelic voice out of his mind. She was like a singing vision materialising in front of him out of the blue.
"What an amazing voice to hear while I was by myself out in the woods. I first heard the voice and then I saw the girl," he told his cousin Lyle, who had arrived earlier in the week, as they sat out on the patio of his home on the following day.
"You should invite her over to come and sing for one of your fashion galas here," Lyle had advised as he sipped on his glass of gin and tonic.
"I think I should first get to know her as a friend maybe? Otherwise, it's just business and a little bit opportunistic, know?" Bruce had responded in an uncertain tone.
"Well, she can just sing for you and you can have a long contract to negotiate, if she's only singing professionally.
But, if you're friends first then your contract will not be so formal and it won't take too long.
If she's not a professional singer then you've got all the winning cards. You can ask her to sing as a favour and then pay her in the form of a gift instead of cash," Lyle had commented.
"That's interesting. If I just know her as a friend and ask her to sing, I would be asking her as a friend only and there would be no formalities involved," Bruce had responded with an indulgent smile on his tanned face. His grey eyes twinkled as he spoke.
"Yes and unfortunately for you, she can only be a friend and nothing else because she's most likely completely human," Lyle commented with a teasing grin as he looked at his cousin's hopeful facial expression.
"You never know. I might be surprised. She just might turn out to be a Canadian wolf," Bruce responded without losing the grin on his face.
"It's not easy, I know. You need your occasional crush, but it cannot grow into anything more. Remember your last disappointment," Lyle had remarked with a kind smile on his face.
"I know that I can't lose myself into someone else, whether it's a human or a wolf. I have to be a strong leader who doesn't become crushed and ruined by love again," Bruce replied with a far-off look in his eyes.
"I know, it's hard to be strong but it's a good feeling to know that you are in full control of your clan, your business and your personal life, isn't it?" Lyle had stated with a contented smile on his face.
He himself was married to his mate and they had a peaceful relationship, even if it was not full of passion.
"If only you had seen and heard her," Bruce had responded.
"Maybe the enchanting atmosphere of the woods made everything seem a bit more perfect than it really is," Lyle had responded as he regarded his cousin carefully.
"She might turn out quite ordinary in a normal setting, like next to another singer or one of your models. Even just inside a normal house she could suddenly appear to be very average. Lovely, but not outstanding," he added as he glanced at his glass which was beginning to look empty.
"You might be right, but I must say that I had something close to a fantasy afternoon and I would love to see her again," Bruce had responded with his charming smile which worked well for him during fashion shows.
"You must get her to come and visit, so you can see her under normal circumstances, otherwise you will have to stick to meeting in the woods to keep the charm going and in that way your personal life does not take over your life.
You can have a fantasy in the woods," Lyle had responded with a light-hearted chuckle.
"I don't know if I'm going to see her in the woods again. Maybe it was a rare outing for her. But, I did invite her here," Bruce had responded with a confident smile.
"So when is she coming?" Lyle asked with his eyebrows raised curiously.
"She said that she would pop in some time. I think it might be soon," Bruce had replied with a relaxed smile on his lips.
"Well, then you will meet her and maybe I will still be here and I can check her out for myself. If she's a wolf, you will have no problems if you get fond of her. But if she isn't, you're going to have to make many compromises as well as withhold your true identity, just to keep her interested," Lyle had advised with a pensive look in his eyes.
"Yes, there's quite a lot of explaining to do to someone who doesn't understand wolf culture," Bruce had agreed reluctantly.
"Try explaining how you're fifty years older than you look for instance. That would drive any human girl away very fast," Lyle had added with a resigned sigh.
"Unless one develops a relationship that's beyond the ordinary before making any revelations," Bruce responded with a dreamy look in his eyes.
"Well, I hope the infatuation is only temporary," Lyle had commented with a raised eyebrow as he observed his cousin of many years.
Later that night, Bruce had stood in front of his bedroom mirror wondering why he was so fascinated with the girl with the amazing voice.
"Surely I have heard absolutely unbelievable singing many times before," he told himself.
"But there was something else in her voice which had nothing to do with any echo's in the woods. We weren't in a cave or anything, so it was just her plain voice.
"And I was in my full senses as well," he thought.
"Then there was her face which just matches so well with her voice. Maybe I do sound like an infatuated schoolboy. Perhaps it's a good idea for Lyle to check her out for himself as he said.
"But what of she's already a professional singer? Then my compliments won't carry much weight with her. She will have heard it all before.
She didn't seem to be a spoilt diva though," he thought, rubbing his chin.
"So, let's hope that she shows up and that Lyle will be impressed. Maybe she will be impressed with what we have going on here as well in the form of fashion entertainment?" Bruce asked himself.
"If she doesn't show up in the next week, I will have to make some enquiries about her," Bruce decided firmly before walking out of his bedroom with more of a sense of direction than he had displayed over the past while since meeting Mishka.