Page 15 of Hope in his Darkness
“Nope, definitely not that, but that’s fair enough. So let me ask you a question before I start. How do you feel when you are near Brody?” I glance nervously toward the living room, knowing Brody can hear what I say. Do I want him to know how I feel when I am near him? My face flames as I think about the way he makes me feel when he’s near.
“Okay, none of that. I don’t need to know any of what is going through that pretty little head of yours. Let me phrase it another way. What does he make you feel here?” Clay points to his heart and my mouth goes dry. This time when I look toward the living room, Brody is standing there, his intense stare boring into me.
“Um...” I wet my lips and Brody looks at me like I’m the prey and he’s the predator ready to pounce.
“How about I help her out with that one. You feel a pull, like a magnet being pulled toward metal.” Clay moves so quickly I hardly register he’s moved before he’s shoving Brody out the door and slamming it shut behind him.
“We’ll never get anywhere if he sticks around putting his two cents in. Now answer my question, and don’t worry about him, just tell me the truth. What do you feel when he is near?” Clay goes back to his potato peeling and I briefly wonder who else he is feeding because he’s almost through with a whole five-pound bag and hasn’t stopped.
“Well, when he doesn’t piss me off, it's kind of like he said. There’s this intangible thing that wants to pull me toward him, even when he’s not around. This is weird because I barely know him and he’s a total asshole most of the time. Maybe I have a thing for assholes, maybe that’s my type. I’ve never dated really so I don’t really know what my type is.” I’m rambling, but Clay doesn’t seem to be bothered by that fact.
“Well, there aren’t any rules that say you can’t get pissed at your mate every now and then. My Lillian certainly did, probably more often than I care to admit. That woman had a temper.” Clay chuckles to himself as he chops the potatoes into cubes. There is that word again ‘mate’, what the hell were they all talking about. Before I get a chance to ask, Clay continues.
“I remember when I told her what I was, at first she thought I was crazy. So basically, it went about as well as Brody and Cole trying to tell you. Then when I showed her the truth, she was pissed I didn’t tell her sooner. Oooh, doggy was she madder than a hornet’s nest. I think I felt her slap for a week after I told her.” Clay rubs his cheek with a sad smile on his face. The love in his eyes for his wife brought tears to my eyes.
“So now that I think he’s crazy, should I slap him then and he will explain it better?” Clay gives me a wide smile and chuckles.
“That might help, but no I’m going to explain things and then he’s going to show you the truth of my words. After that, you will have some tough decisions to make about your future. I only ask that you think long and hard before you make those decisions.” Clay gives me a serious look before he starts cracking eggs into a bowl and mixing them with a whisk. The potatoes and onions mix are sizzling in the pan and the smell makes my stomach rumble. I have a feeling whatever decision I am going to need to make will require a full stomach.
“How much do you believe in soulmates or fate?” I can’t help the laugh that escapes my lips. Clay looks over at me questioningly, much too serious for it to be a joke. Was he serious? Fate and soulmates, it was laughable there was no such thing as either.
“Sorry to say I don’t believe in either. Soulmates are like saying there is this one person out there that is your perfect match and I’ve seen enough relationships to know that shit is not possible. So, if that’s what you’re selling, I’m not buying it.” I reply with a shrug.
“And in the human world, I would agree with you. They tend to think everyone they love is their soulmate. But in our world, it’s different, in our world we know as soon as we meet them. We feel this connection that’s so instantaneous that it can shock your whole body with it. I can see by your reaction you felt the spark, probably not as strongly as Brody did, but you still felt it.” When he’d said ‘shock to your whole body’ I knew the feeling he meant, but that doesn’t mean we are soulmates.
“It was probably static electricity from our clothes or my hair. That doesn’t mean anything. And what do you mean by “your world”? You live in this world, on planet Earth, just like me.” He’s starting to sound crazy again, maybe I should slap him like his wife did. On second thought, Clay’s a big dude. I don’t think I’ll take the chance he might squash me like a bug.
“Our world, meaning shifters, honey, that’s what those boys were trying to explain to you earlier. Me, Brody, Cole, and my younger son, Dom, are all shifters.” Clay pulls out a plate and starts piling food on it while I digest his words without freaking the fuck out. Shifters, they believe, they are shifters. Okay, so the whole family is delusional.
“Like as in werewolves? You think you’re werewolves?” Clay laughs a little before placing the plate full of food in front of me.
“Werewolves are shifters, but that’s not what we are. I’ll let Brody show you that later. For now, eat up. I could hear your stomach all the way upstairs earlier.” There’s no way he heard my stomach all the way upstairs. Instead of arguing with him, I start to dig in.
“Omigod, this is good. What kind of magic voodoo shit did you do to this food?” I moan as I spoon more potatoes and onions into my mouth. Clay shakes his head, laughing at me while he fills three more plates full of food, setting them down on the table across from me. It doesn’t take long before Cole is sliding in through the back door and into one of the seats. Brody is only a few minutes behind, and I find it a bit odd that Clay didn’t even have to call them to eat. Cole taps his nose, then his ear with his butter knife.
“Shifter sense of smell. We could smell the food cooking. Then we could hear Dad plating it up.” My mouth fell open, there is no way he is telling the truth. They are all delusional about this shifter thing. There was a logical explanation for what just happened. They know how long it takes their dad to cook, that’s all. Nope, I do not believe in shifters.
