Page 12 of In Plain Sight

“You got it. One large steak dinner, baked potato, and green beans, and a meatloaf with carrots and French fries,” she said, reading it back to me.

“Sounds perfect. About how long will that take?”

“Pretty busy tonight, give me twenty.”

“You’re the best. Love you,” I said hanging up.

Bran raised an eyebrow at me. “You say ‘I love you’ to the diner waitress?”

“Yes, doesn’t everyone?” I asked, feeling snarky. I knew he didn’t understand and burst out laughing at the strange look he was giving me. “Peyton’s one of my sisters,” I finally told him.

“That makes so much more sense,” he said, looking relieved.

“Now come on and meet Clara and Gage.”

We got out of the car and met around the front of it. He took my hand in his, linking our fingers together. I relaxed at his touch. I couldn’t believe how nervous I was, introducing him to part of my family.

“Hey,” Clara said when we reached the porch as she hugged me. “You holding up okay?”

I smiled and nodded. “Sure am. Clara, Gage, this is Bran, my mate.”

Bran shook hands with Gage and offered a one-armed hug to Clara as he never let go of my hand.

“Would you like to come in for a few minutes?” Clara asked hopefully.

“We have twenty minutes, then Pey is gonna smuggle dinner out for us, as apparently we’re the talk of the town.” I rolled my eyes and groaned.

“Since when did you ever mind being the center of attention?” Clara teased as we walked into their home and took seats on the couch.

“I know. This is just different,” I said, and she and Gage shared a look like they truly understood.

“So Bran, what brings you to Collier?” Gage asked. He was just making small talk, but I felt Bran stiffen next to me.

“Work. Ran into some shifters over in Boise and they were telling me that there may be seasonal work around here. I figured it was worth a shot.”

I didn’t know how I knew for certain, but I knew that wasn’t entirely the truth. I gave him the benefit of the doubt and figured he was just embarrassed about his circumstances. I didn’t care. He was my mate and I had more than enough to provide for the both of us.

“I’m sure that can be arranged. There’s always plenty to do around the farm,” Gage said.

I had been a little skeptical at first, but had grown to love Gage in time. He had plenty of his own baggage from his past, but he was a good guy and he was good for my sister.

We chatted for a bit, losing track of time until my phone dinged with a new text from Peyton.

“Looks like time’s up. When things settle down a little, I’ll take this guy shopping and return your things. Thanks for letting him borrow them,” I told Gage as I hugged him bye.

Gage stiffened a little in surprise and quickly shot a look over to Bran.

“What?” I asked, not one to just let things like that slide.

“He didn’t growl,” Clara said curiously. “Most mating males are super protective and can’t stand for their mates to be near another male, let alone hug one.”

Bran shrugged. “Gage is already happily mated and sealing the bond helps control that a lot. My wolf doesn’t find him a threat and neither do I.”

Clara’s eyes were huge as she grabbed my head and twisted it to one side. The mark of our bond was clearly visible.

“When did you meet? How long has this been going on?” she demanded.

“This morning,” I told her, trying not to make a big deal of it.

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