Fane had taken a shower after getting home from his motorcycle ride. He didn’t want to smell like the outdoors when he went to Jacque’s house. He found it amusing that he was so suddenly conscious of himself now that he’d met his mate. He so wanted her approval, as did his wolf.
He actually made an attempt to comb his hair out of his face, but it just fell right back in front of his left eye.
He had chosen a deep red, polo style shirt. It contrasted nicely with the markings on his neck, which at the moment he thought looked pretty cool. He grabbed his phone and wallet and put them in his back pockets and headed downstairs.
Sara and Brian were waiting in the living room. Sara had the brownie pan in her hands and Brian was carrying some games, one of which Fane recognized as Dominoes. This he was familiar with because his family liked to play.
He went over to Sara and took the brownie pan from her, simply saying, “I will take these for you.”
Sara smiled at him in appreciation.
“Ready?” Brian asked them.
Both Sara and Fane nodded yes.
Sara knocked on Lilly and Jacquelyn’s door, and he felt his neck markings sting just a little as he turned and saw a car driving slowly by. Fane let his wolf out just enough to see who was driving abnormally slow past his mate’s house. Fane was on edge. He now knew there were other Greys in the area and his father had informed him that Jacquelyn was in danger. He'd also received an anonymous phone call from a wolf claiming to be Alpha of the Coldspring pack, stating that Jacque had already been claimed by another wolf and that Fane was to leave immediately.
Jacque was the one who answered the door and Fane couldn’t help the smile that came across his face. She was, after all, his fiery miracle. He could have had to wait centuries before he found her and all it had taken was a mere seventeen years. How he was blessed.
“Come in, ya’ll,” she said politely.
Obediently, they all filed into the entry way. She pointed them in the direction of the kitchen and Fane could smell the aroma of the already delivered pizza.
“Hi, you guys,” Lilly greeted them. “I’m so glad you could come over!” Lilly and Sara hugged. Jen and Sally were already filling their plates when Lilly looked at them, “What, ya’ll couldn’t wait on the guests?”
“Hey, we were doing you guys a favor,” Jen said.
“Oh, really,” Lilly said. “And just exactly what favor is that?”
“Ya know, testing out the product, making sure it’s safe. Would hate to unknowingly poison our Romanian guest, although it would make for a great headline,” Jen answered.
“Jen, do you always have to say what you are thinking? Have you ever thought to yourself, ‘Hey self, maybe I should keep my trap shut. Yeah, good idea self’?” Jacquelyn glared at her best friend.
“You’re just cranky because you’ve been thinking about Trent,” Jen stated, snotty-like.
Fane couldn’t help the low rumble in his chest that escaped at the name of Jacquelyn’s all too recent old flame.
Lilly’s head snapped around to look at him. Fane cocked his head to the side as his wolf perked up at her perceptive gaze. Interesting, Fane thought to himself, she knows something.
Jacquelyn caught that last thought.“She knows something about what?”
Fane looked away from Lilly and turned to look at his Luna’s confused face. He was going to have to tell her. If not tonight, then soon, and he was going to have to talk to Lilly. Something told him that she was not unaware of who and what he was.
“Fane, what are you thinking about?” Jacque asked again.
“We will need to talk later, Jacquelyn, and your mom needs to be present as well,” Fane told her.
“There are paper plates there on the counter,” Lilly pointed out. “And cups with ice in them. The drink choices are lined up for you. Dig in!”
Everyone formed a line and began to fill their plates. No one talked for a few minutes as they gathered their food and drinks. Finally they were all seated at the dining room table.
Fane noticed that Jen and Sally had managed to maneuver it so that Jacquelyn and he had to sit next to each other. He found this amusing.
“So, are you kids looking forward to starting your senior year? Do you know what classes you will take?” Brian asked.
Mouths full of pizza they all nodded simultaneously. Jen was the first to be able to talk and naturally had something interesting to add. She didn’t disappoint. “Naturally, I’m taking Anatomy and Physiology.”
“Really, is that because you like…” Brian started to ask.