A Twisted Anthology: A Twisted Design Book

Forever Home Part 4

The next morning, I woke to the smell of bacon and sausage cooking. For a moment, I forgot where I was. For just a moment, I was back home on a Saturday morning and my mom was cooking breakfast for all of us.

When I opened my eyes, reality came back to me. I looked around the room Dillon and Jean-Claude had built for me. It was like losing my parents all over again. I hadn’t felt this way in years.

After pulling myself together, I went into the adjoining bathroom and cleaned my face. I pulled out jeans and a sweater and got dressed. I needed to go help the littles with their clothes.

Their bedroom door was open when I got there. I peeked in and saw Jean-Claude helping Addy with her socks while Aaron hung on his back. They really loved him. I smiled.

“Good morning, Kay.” He said as he turned around. “Did you sleep well?”

“Yes, thank you. It was just so quiet in a room on my own, that I had a hard time falling asleep.” I admitted.

“You’ll get used to it.” Jean-Claude said and scooped up Addy in his arms.

“If you carry her around all the time, she’s going to expect it every time.” I giggled.

“I’ll risk it.” He told me with a wink. “Come on, Dillon has breakfast cooking. He has some big plans for today.”

He carried Addy, while Aaron clung to his back and led me down the hall to the dining room. Jean-Claude set each of the kids down in chairs with booster seats on them. I went into the kitchen to see if Dillon needed any help.

Bobby sat at the counter, sneaking bacon, and talking to Dillon about computer games. Dillon was animated in his discussion with Bobby, but still focused on the sausage and pancakes he was cooking.

“Good morning, Kay. Can you set the table?” Dillon asked.

“Sure thing.” I smiled, ruffling Bobby’s hair in a way that he totally hated.

I moved around the little kitchen, finding everything I needed and heading to the dining room to get them set out. Jean-Claude was entertaining the littles with stories. He helped me get everything set up while still telling the kids stories.

Just as we finished, Dillon and Bobby brought out serving platters with sausage, bacon, and pancakes, plus bottles of milk and orange juice. Dillon went back into the kitchen and returned with a pot of coffee, butter, syrup, and three mugs. We all settled in and started filling our plates.

Dillon and Jean-Claude helped cut up food for Addy and Aaron. It was the first time in two years that I actually got to eat my own meal while it was warm, because someone else was taking care of the twins. Bobby caught my eye and grinned.

I could tell that he was actually hopeful. It was the first time in years that he didn’t look strained. I could imagine that I had the same expression.

After breakfast, Bobby and I cleaned up the table while Dillon and Jean-Claude cleaned up the twins. When I came in to gather more stuff, I saw them leaning over the twins and kissing each other. It reminded me of mom and dad. They were really in love.

They took us to the main street of the village and we walked around. Jean-Claude pointed things out. Dillon mostly tended to the littles. When the twins started complaining about being tired and cold, we ducked into a little café.

While we’d been walking, people had been watching us. I could see it more in the café. They were all curious about us.

Dillon went up to the counter and came back with hot chocolate for everyone. The twins loved hot chocolate. They’d drink it all year long, if they could.

“How did you two meet?” I asked.

Jean-Claude smiled at Dillon and took his hand. “A year and a half ago, my long lost cousin saved my Alpha from vampires. They fell in love and marked each other. When she moved here, she brought Dillon with her. I was standing in the greeting line with the rest of the ranked family members, when he got off the bus and my whole world stopped. He was in the nearest pack to us this whole time and I had no idea.”

“I didn’t think I’d ever find my mate. When I saw Jean-Claude, I couldn’t take my eyes off him. It took everything I had to stay in formation and not rush over to him as soon as I got off the bus. I’d already decided to move here before I found him, but I like to think that was the goddess guiding me to my mate.” Dillon said and pulled Jean-Claude’s hand up to kiss it.

I smiled and sipped my drink. No one seemed to be focused on them. The pack was used to them, just not us. I could hear whispers as people tried to figure out who we were. I wasn’t used to so much attention.

“They’ll get used to you eventually.” Dillon smiled. “Packs are always excited about new members and pretty much everyone knows that you four are prospective members. They just want to know about you, without scaring you off.”

“I can imagine you’ll be fairly popular once you start school here.” Jean-Claude said.

Part of me loved that they were talking like this was a foregone conclusion. Another part of me was nervous about it. They really wanted us. What if something happened that made us change our minds?

In the end, it wasn’t our choice. It was mine. As head of our family, I could make decisions without consulting the others and they would have to go along with it.

“Tonight, we have a family dinner in the Gamma’s quarters. My father is getting ready to turn over the title of Gamma to my twin brother, so we will move to my parent’s house for family dinners after they turn over the Gamma’s quarters to Richard.” Jean-Claude told us.

“Do you get along with your brother? I know a lot of siblings who don’t like each other.” I questioned.

“He loves his brother. It gets Griff, my wolf, all antsy. Sometimes, they’ll just randomly start holding hands. They’re really close. I know they’re brothers, but, sometimes, all my wolf sees is my mate being close with an unmated male.” Dillon admitted.

“Last night, I heard you saying you hoped I was Richard’s second chance mate.” I told them.

“Yeah. His mate died before he could meet her. He’s been sulky ever since. I don’t know what that feels like, but I want him to find his mate. He wants it more than anyone else. I just hope she’s as smart and responsible as you.” Dillon smiled.

I nodded. I understood. My parents told me how important mates were for ranked members of a pack. They tempered them, supported them, and cared for them. It wasn’t simply the need for a breeding partner, but someone they could show their true selves to.

“Wait, some things are passed down, like rank. Does that mean that you expect one of us to become the head warrior?” I asked.

“No. Richard’s second son will be the head warrior. It’s tradition. Though, I think Bobby might take over for Dillon when he grows up.” Jean-Claude winked.

“You really think so?!” Bobby grinned and bounced in his chair.

“I think you could totally do it.” Dillon smiled at him.

When we finished our hot chocolate and had warmed up, we headed back out to finish the tour. They took us to a restaurant for lunch where everyone was friendly. We ended up getting in a conversation with the family next to us and they asked if we were headed to the indoor playground. The twins started cheering and saying ‘playground’ in various cute ways while batting their eyelashes at me, Dillon, and Jean-Claude.

Dillon said that it might be a good idea for running out their energy before naptime. We trekked to the large building with the other family and went in. Their youngest showed the twins where to put their shoes and jackets, then pulled them off to play.

The indoor playground had tubes, nets, ropes, a ball pit, a foam pit, and an obstacle course. Bobby put his things up and ran off to play as well. Within a few minutes, I saw him with a few other little boys, climbing through a spider web of ropes.

“There are some teens over there, playing cards. I think they’ll let you join if you want.” Dillon offered.

“I’d rather talk to you two, right now.” I told him and motioned over to a table with a few chairs around it.

We sat down and I took a deep breath. “This is a lot of fun and I really appreciate you taking us for the weekend.” I started.

Dillon looked panicked. “Please don’t tell us it’s a no.”

“That’s not what I’m saying. You two seem really nice and you have a huge support system. The twins love you and they don’t bond with people quickly. There’s a lot going right, but life isn’t all playgrounds and family meals.” I said.

“What do you want? What can we show you that will make you say yes?” Jean-Claude asked.

“I don’t really know. Can we stay in for most of tomorrow? I want to see what it looks like when there’s nothing to do and the kids start to get annoying. I need to see how you react to the mundane stuff.” I replied.

“We can do that. Anything to show you that we can do this.” Dillon insisted.

“For now, let’s get to know each other better. I would rather know everything I can find out about the two of you, than go meet new people. I can make friends if we move here.” I told them.

We spent the next two hours talking. They told me a lot about themselves, their families, their friends, and their work. Sometimes, one of the twins would come pull Jean-Claude away, but Dillon stayed with me the whole time. He answered every question fully and honestly.

By the time we left, I felt like I had a good idea of who they were. The rest of the day seemed to fly by. Dillon and Jean-Claude went over chore charts and household rules with me and Bobby. They talked to us about allowances and special privileges. Bobby was still all smiles when we left for dinner with the Gamma and the rest of the family.

It was like a repeat of last night’s dinner, but with fewer people. Simone and Robert fawned over the littles. Jean-Claude’s little sisters, Felicia and Isabelle, sat next to me on the couch and peppered me with questions about what it was like being so close to getting my wolf, what high school was like, if I did sports or clubs, and if there were any boys I liked.

The girls were thirteen and wanted to know everything. I tried to keep up with them, but it was hard. I was trying to keep track of everyone else. Bobby was talking to Richard and Dillon. Jean-Claude seemed to be watching over everyone. He saw me looking around.

“Girls, why don’t you give Kay a break? I’m sure she’ll be happy to answer more questions later.” Jean-Claude said. “You should get to know everyone else. Bobby is only one year behind you in school.”

They sighed and scooted over to join the conversation with my brother. I got up and headed to the restroom. I needed some quiet space. The rest of the evening was full of friendly conversation and good food.