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“I can’t say I heard anything,” I tease, winking at her.
Her smile makes me happy. It has been such a long time since she has teased me. Her happy personality that was duly missed through these very long months she was depressed, seems to be coming back. Even though the smile doesn’t reach her eyes, it’s a smile that wasn’t there before, a smile that means that she’s making progress and that hopefully soon she will be happy again.
“Maybe I’m wrong. With a growl like that, it might have just been Snap outside.”
I start laughing. If only she knew. Snap is our neighbors’ dog, a Pitbull that isn’t the friendliest, and I’m sure would snap the leg off anyone who dared to enter his owner’s property.
Blue is a wolf, and by his size when in wolf form, I’m sure Snap would be the one cowering if he saw Blue coming. I laugh harder, only to see Lee Ann raise her brow at my laughter, which has me laugh even more.
“Well, I didn’t think it was that funny, but okay,” she says with a snigger.
“You just tickled my funny bone, sorry,” I say with a grin. Our easy mood continues until we’re pulling up outside a beautiful church-looking building that has been converted into a restaurant. The restaurant looks as old as time. The interior has thick Oregon pine beams with lanterns that hang from those beams. The smell of roasted meat wafts through the place, making my stomach rumble, which has Blue looking down at me and grinning.
We head towards a table in the far corner, his arm resting around my shoulders. The heat of his body is comforting. Dixon is in front talking to Lee Ann while Frost and Fang are walking behind them, both imposing figures with their daunting good looks. Goliath is walking behind everyone, his tall, muscular form keeping anyone away that could ever think of approaching us.
I see Dixon greet one of the waitresses in a friendly manner which gives me the impression that the men might come here often and are known among the staff. “I see you men can’t stay away,” the waitress says with a beaming smile. She must be in her mid to late forties, with an open and friendly face.
“We sure can’t. How can we miss the opportunity of one of your breakfasts?” Dixon replies as he throws his arm around her shoulders and plants a big noisy kiss on her cheek. The woman slaps his chest playfully, her cheeks bright with happiness, then her eyes turn towards the rest of the men until they land on Blue.
“Oh look, we have a legend in the house today,” she says with a beaming smile at Blue, “I haven’t seen you in such a long time, Blue. I thought you didn’t love us anymore.”
Blue chuckles next to me, shaking his head.
“Guess we’re not good enough for you anymore,” she quips with a wink.
“You know that’s not true, Marie. No one makes breakfast like you do,” Blue says as he guides me into my chair before taking a seat next to me.
“And who might these pretty ladies be?” Marie asks, curiosity shining in her eyes. I like Marie, she seems like an openly good-hearted person.
“This is Siena, she’s my Ol’ lady,” Blue introduces as he places his hand on my thigh under the table.
“Well, good for you, she’s a beauty,” Marie says with a nod.
“And there next to Dixon is Lee Ann, my woman’s sister.” The fact that Blue is introducing me to his friends as his woman has a warmth filling my heart. Since my mother died, I’ve felt a bit lost, like there was a part of me that was missing. Even though I have Lee Ann, there has been something missing from the family we had.
I used to love it when we had our Sunday meals. We used to sit around after lunch on Sundays and talk about our week or what our thoughts were. I miss my mother. When she died, I felt like my pillar had gone, like my life was unstable. She was the one I turned to when I had a problem, the one I confided in, and even though I love my sister and share everything with her, I miss my mother. I miss the family feeling we had when we were together. Looking at the men around this table, I’m surprised to get that same feeling of family that I got before when my mom was alive.
I sit back, listening to Dixon banter with Goliath and Lee Ann, enjoying the moment—enjoying this new life which I have walked into. When the food arrives, I’m amazed at the amount of food that is brought to the table. Instead of the plated food usually served in other restaurants, here they give wide platters of scrambled eggs, sausages, grilled tomatoes, mushrooms and even a steak is placed in the middle.
The minute the food is on the table, Blue is adding food onto my plate and then his. All the men heap up their plates. I see that one of the men serves Lee Ann, but soon the food in the platters is gone. Looking down at my plate, I shake my head in amusement. There is no way I can eat all this food, but it was sweet of Blue.
Taking a piece of scrambled egg and mushroom onto my fork, I pop it into my mouth. “Oh wow,” I mumble in surprise after swallowing. “This is really good.” The guys were not joking when they said this place has the best breakfast. I don’t know what spices they use, but it is absolutely decadent. The men grin over my surprise. Dixon elbows Lee Ann lightly and winks, which has her smiling.
“It’s the best breakfast I’ve had anywhere,” Blue says just before he places a big piece of steak into his mouth. I eat more than I usually do, feeling absolutely stuffed, but even eating more, I’m not able to finish the surmountable quantity of food that Blue placed on my plate.
“I’m so full, but that was delicious.”
Blue looks down at my plate, then up at me and winks. “Don’t mind if I do!” he quips as he swaps his empty plate for mine. His boyish playfulness has me laughing.
“Unfair, you did that on purpose so you could have double,” Dixon accuses with an exaggerated frown that makes me grin.
“You can have the rest of mine too, if you like,” Lee Ann offers, which has Dixon’s expression changing into a wide grin.
“Well, aren’t you an angel?” he says dramatically as he swaps his plate with hers. It’s amazing how such dangerous looking, badass men can be so caring. I’ve noticed how all of them treat my little sister, as if she’s a delicate flower that they need to protect and nurture. I appreciate their caring and how protective they are towards her and me, too. I might have started out with bad intentions when I went to meet Blue, but it turns out that it was the start of a new chapter in my life.
BLUE 17
We’re about an hour away from home, the wind has picked up, and it looks like it might rain soon. I would like to get home before it comes down, I would rather not have Siena driving in this weather. It’s a long drive, which leaves me on edge. I love riding, but having my woman driving for hours on end makes me nervous. I love having a mate, but I never thought that having a mate would have me worrying about her well-being constantly.
