“What—what happened?” Ginger asked as her eyes slowly opened. Sofia hovered above her head, her hair tickling her face.
“What the hell? She swatted Sofia’s hair away from her eyes and nose.
“Oh! Sorry! Are you okay? You fainted on us,” Sofia said as she backed up to give Ginger the space she needed.
Ginger pulled herself upright off the floor and returned to the couch, not wanting to risk fainting again.
“I—I don’t know what to say. I guess it’s all so much. Too much for my mind to handle at one time.”
She glanced around the room and saw the look of concern on all the faces staring back at her. The one in particular that stood out to her the most was the man who had entered the room.
“You’re my brother? The young boy from my memories? But I know you. We’ve met. I mean, just recently,” she asked quietly.
“Yep. Just the other night.” he said, laughing as he pointed to his black eye.
“James! The guy I smacked in the face with a pool cue. Oh, God!”
He slowly sat on the couch next to her. “I thought you were dead. We all did. You were with our parents when the witches attacked.”
“We truly thought you had died along with your parents.” Grace sat on the other side of Ginger, gently pulling Ginger’s hand into her own.
“Who am I? Really?” Ginger had to ask.
“Your name is Ginger Elizabeth Reynolds. You were born on December 23, 1996. Our parents are Gregory and Lorna Reynolds,” James said, filling in the missing details of her life.
“You mean I’ve been celebrating the wrong birthday all my life?” she laughed, feeling like she should pass out again or something. It would probably be easier than dealing with the truths that kept slapping her in the face.
Why Ginger had fixated on her birthday first was beyond her. She could have chosen the fact that her brother, who she never knew existed, was sitting beside her. Or the fact that she had known herself as Ginger Olivia Martinez. But no—of all things, she had to laugh about celebrating her birthday for her entire life on March 3, 1995.
“Sweetie, I know this is a lot to take in all at one time,” Sofia said.
“I—I don’t even know what to say. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever expect to find out who I truly was, that I have a brother, and I’m younger than I thought I was. Well played, Universe. Is there anything else I should find out about myself like right this second?”
Ginger wanted to take the words back as soon as they flew from her lips. Everyone knew, morons included, that you should never ask that question of the Fates, the Gods, or anyone else for that matter.
She already had more on her plate than she could possibly chew. It wasn’t that she wasn’t happy to find out about her parents or the brother, who sat right beside her. She was. She was just in shock.
“You’re really my brother?” Ginger asked again, needing to hear the confirmation just one more time even though her wolf knew full well who James was.
“I am,” James confirmed the obvious.
She leaned over and wrapped her arms around his neck.
“I know you don’t know me, but I’ve missed you so much,” James said.
“I plan on spending the rest of my life getting to know you.”
She didn’t know how it would work out, but it would. For as long as she could remember, Ginger wished to truly be part of a family of her own.
“Oh, hell!” Rafe said as he rushed to the front yard where two large wolves snarled and snapped at one another.
“Oh my God! Lars!” Sofia dashed through the door and into the front yard.
“Shit!” James said as he ran to the front yard.
“I guess we might as well follow them.” Grace stood and ushered Ginger outside to see what all the fuss was about.
“Shift, asshole!” Lars quickly shifted to human form and punched Chance in the snout.
