Page 50 of Not Your Ordinary Shifter

“Are you sure? Because it feels like you’ve put as much distance between yourself and your family as possible so that you aren’t reminded. That’s not quite the same as moving on,” she said in a gentle tone.

“Mom…” He wanted to argue, but she was right. He hadn’t so much adjusted to the reality, as he’d given up and tried not to think about it. But maybe that was the only thing he could do.

Wanting to be like everyone else wasn’t enough to make it true. He was always going to be the outsider in his family. Maybe he’d never fully get over that, but he could fake it.

“Jacob, please come home. I miss you. Everyone misses you.” There was a low huskiness to the words, hinting at emotions being held in check. “I promise to talk with them. I’ll tell them not to bring up the subject or push you to try new things. Please?”

He sighed. “Okay, Mom. I’ll see what I can do about getting the time off. It might be too late, but I’ll try.” There was a pretty good chance he was going to regret it, but it was hard to say no when his mother so rarely asked her children for anything.

Her tone immediately brightened, “That’s all I ask, sweetie. I’m so glad. Oh, did you hear about…” And she was off rambling about family gossip.

Since he was probably going to be seeing everyone soon, he made an effort to pay attention to the list of who was dating, who had found love, who was starting a new career. At least on the last point he could hold his own. He was proud of how much he’d achieved.

But suddenly something caught his attention. “Wait, go back. Did you say Gavin was engaged?”Holy shit.

“Yes, remember I told you he met a nice girl a while back? She’s the one who took over the used bookstore.”

He had absolutely no recollection. He’d probably tuned it out with the other news. “Huh, that’s really great.” Except itdid mean that Jacob would be the last of his siblings not to have settled down. Most of the cousins were in committed relationships as well.

Just another way he stood out.

Still, he was happy for Gavin. His brother had always been a bit of an introvert and didn’t get out to meet women very often. He wondered if the wedding was set in stone. “Will she… uh, be at the reunion?” he asked.

“Oh yes, Gabby fits in nicely. Everyone loves her,”

He relaxed. A slight smile curved his mouth up at one side. That meant the wedding was probably a sure thing, barring normal relationship issues that might crop up.

The question was an important one. His family could appear cliquish from the outside—with good reason. Even marrying in wasn’t a guarantee of welcome.

There was a process for vetting outsiders and some, no matter how wonderful they were, just didn’t make the cut. Potential partners didn’t tend to last if they weren’t accepted by the whole family. There was no rule about it… they just ended up feeling shut out.

If she’d been invited to join them during the big get-together, it meant she would have no worries on that score. The elders of the family wereverycareful about extending invitations. Some of their customs could be a little… unusual, and they could startle people who weren’t already invested.

“Gabby and Gavin huh? That’s going to get some teasing.”

“It already has, but I quite like herandher name. She’s a sweet thing, but you’ll meet herwhen you come home.”

Jacob didn’t miss the emphasis and rolled his eyes. “I promised totry, Mom,” he said with some emphasis of his own. “I own the business, which can make it hard when it comes to getting time off, but I’ll do my best.”

That seemed to please her well enough, though she continued to act like it was a done deal until they hung up a few minutes later.

He sighed, knowing full well that she wasn’t going to accept anything less than his presence. And if he didn’t want half the family showing up to escort him there under duress, he was just going to have to make it happen.

Fuck my life.

Chapter

Two

There were plenty of offers in the group chat to pick him up at the airport when he flew in, but he preferred to rent a car. It gave him more freedom to escape situations if it became necessary. He had a feeling, despite his mother’s promises, that he would end up needing to bail at least once before people got the message.

The long drive from the airport did nothing for his nerves. He had hoped being behind the wheel would help him relax, but the stress lingered, keeping his body tense and his neck tight. When he finally got to town there was an ache at the base of his skull.

He found himself looking to delay the inevitable a little longer. They’d be waiting for him at his parents’ sprawling home by the lake, but he wasn’t ready for the crowd. Not yet.

It wasn’t a conscious decision that had him pulling into the parking lot of the restaurant, more an instinct. He doubted the family had planned dinner around him, he’d been vague about his arrival time for a reason, and once he parked, he realized the gnawing hunger in his middle had guided the choice.

Nerves had kept him from eating before the flight, and other than a bag of pretzels, there had been nothing during. Stoppingfor a bite to eat was a completely reasonable excuse for stalling and no one would question it.

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