Chapter 9 #2
The clan shift went really well, and I got to introduce my family to everyone.
Of course, they knew Porter and were thrilled to meet his brother, Jace, who they hadn’t known existed until recently.
Lots of drama surrounding the father they shared.
It was somewhat scandalous among our clan for a while, and Porter’s mother had to deal with a lot of gossip.
It died down quickly, thankfully for the poor woman.
Eventually, the topic came around to my new friends’ mates.
“All humans?” my mother breathed. “I never…”
Anthony motioned to Skye, and she came over toting their youngest baby. “This is my wife, Skye.”
Kaylee followed close behind, and Porter put his arm around her. “And this is my Kaylee.”
My mother beamed at them. “There sure does seem to be something in the water here. Can you ladies work some magic and rustle my Toby up a lovely woman like yourselves?”
Everyone swung their gazes to me, looking very confused. By now, they all knew about Liza. “Mom, cut them some slack. It’ll happen when it happens.”
Anthony nodded quickly. “That’s right, these things happen in their own good time.” He cleared his throat. “Well, let’s shift, shall we?”
I mouthed a thank you to him as we all turned and prepared to take to the sky.
We’d had a great weekend, and by the time I went back to work on Tuesday, I felt like a new man. Having my family around had made me happier than I’d expected it to. I liked having a house full of people.
Maybe one day I’d have a lot of kids. We’d have a lot.
Most of Tuesday was spent with my head in the clouds. I didn’t get nearly enough done, so Wednesday I had to force myself to focus.
Until lunch when my tattoo burned fiercely. Liza was here. I’d suspected since she worked Saturday, she was off early in the week.
“Hello,” I said, sliding into line behind her. “Having a nice week?”
Liza turned her big green eyes toward me and smiled. “Yes, and you?”
I kept it light and didn’t even try to sit with her. One of the things I’d learned in my eavesdropping was that she loved to read. She sat down as I looked around for a table, so I put myself directly in her line of sight and pulled a book out of my back pocket, a little Western I’d always liked.
It was a good thing I liked reading as well. This was my not-so-subtle way of telling her we had common interests without having to come out and say it.
I hoped I was being as slick as I meant to be.
A few minutes into my solo lunch, Abby slid into the booth across from me, uninvited, and with her blouse unbuttoned enough to show off her ample cleavage. “Hello,” she breathed.
And I nearly choked on her perfume.
I had absolutely no desire to be rude to the woman, but I had to get things straight with her. “Did you have a nice weekend?” I asked. This was the first I’d seen her since last week.
“I did,” she said with a wide smile. “And you?”
“Great, actually. I went to a jazz concert Friday with a lady friend,” I said with a wink, as if she was my good friend and I was letting her in on the secret that I was dating someone. “Then my parents came into town Saturday. They’re here all week.”
Abby sat back, and her tone cooled considerably. “How nice.”
Great. She’d gotten the hint. I hated to hurt her feelings, but it was the kindest way I could think to let her know I just was not interested.
“Are you seeing someone else?” Abby asked bluntly.
I didn’t want to lie. “No,” I said. My tattoo throbbed, telling me I should’ve been seeing Liza by now. “But there is someone I’m interested in pursuing.”
That seemed to placate her, but it put me on edge. I glanced over at Liza, and my mood improved drastically when I caught her looking at me.
“Oh, I see someone I must speak with,” she said a few awkward minutes later. “I’ll see you soon, okay?”
“Sure, sure. Have a nice day.” I couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief when she was gone.
I didn’t see Liza again all week. Friday, I came back to my office after lunch to find it filled with plants, a couple of pictures of family, and a big, framed print that looked suspiciously like the mountains I’d grown up in.
My mother had been busy.
But her touches altered my mood. I had a supportive family who loved me. I had a great job, and a clan I loved—and a foster clan that was great.
I was going to try to escalate things with my mate. We had to move beyond casual and into dating, or at the least getting to know one another. Anything more would help. I wasn’t greedy. We didn’t have to jump straight into the mating bond like a couple of dragons might’ve done.
On my way out the door, I went up to the fourth floor and lucked out. Liza sat at the nurses’ station. “Excuse me,” I said softly.
She swiveled in her chair, and I was sure I didn’t imagine the flash of happiness in her eyes when she saw me. “Hello, Toby. How are you?”
I leaned against the tall counter. “I’m well. I came to ask if you’d like to go to dinner with me tomorrow evening. My parents are in town, but I’ll be putting them on a plane later in the afternoon. Could I pick you up after?”
She nodded. “I’d like that. Let me know when you’re finished with them, and I’ll text you my address.” She wrote her number on a piece of paper and handed it to me.
I glanced down at the paper and noticed a plate of cookies that looked remarkably like the ones my mother had made all my life. “Those look good,” I murmured.
“Oh, they are.” She sighed. “Too good. Have one!”
My suspicion grew as I grabbed one and took a bite. As soon as the nutty flavor exploded in my mouth, I sighed.
My mother. “Can I ask where you got these?”
“It was the funniest thing. I was on my way out the door when a tiny woman who looked so familiar handed them to me. She was standing and talking to my doorman, Bert, with several bags in her hands.”
Her doorman. Bert.
A tiny woman.
Holy hell.
I lived in the same building as Liza. Nearly choking on my cookie, I smiled and swallowed. “Well, I’ll see you tomorrow.”
I lived in the same building as my mate… and my mother gave her cookies.
Bluewater was freaking magic.