Page 12 of Faking it with the Hybrid

“Okay, get ready,” Mattie said under her breath, as they stood outside the door of her parent’s home and prepared to knock. It was an old nineteenth century farmhouse which had been lovingly restored and it looked positively picturesque in the deepening dusk. “My mom can get kind of excited—she nearly gave me a migraine, she shouted so loud over the Think-me when I told her I was bringing a man home!”

Grath raised an eyebrow.

“She mustreallywant you to get mated.”

“She does—sometimes I think it’sallshe ever thinks about,” Mattie admitted, her breath puffing out in a little cloud of steam. There was already snow on the ground and the temperature was much colder than she liked. She blew on her hands and stamped her feet. Damn it—she always forgot how much she hated the cold until she came back home during the holidays!

“Should I do or say anything in particular when I meet your parents?” Grath sounded anxious—almost as though he was a real boyfriend she was bringing home who actually wanted to impress her family, she thought dryly.

“Just follow their lead,” Mattie told him. “Are you ready? Here goes.”

She knocked on the door and a moment later they heard bustling footsteps and then the door was unlocked and thrown open.

“Oh, Mattie!” Her mom was wiping her hands on a flowered apron, her eyes sparkling with excitement. Her gray hair was in a bun at her neck and her spectacles were perched on the end of her nose. She reached for Mattie and enfolded her in a lemon verbena scented hug. “I’m so glad to see you, sweetheart!” she said in Mattie’s ear. Then she pulled back and looked up at Grath. “And you must be Mattie’s new boyfriend! My goodness, I’msohappy to meet you!”

“I’m very glad to meet you too, Mrs. Porter,” Grath rumbled. He looked uncertain of what to do but Mattie’s mom didn’t let him wonder for long—she practically tackled him with a hug and then stood on her tiptoes to kiss him on the cheek.

Grath looked surprised but kissed her back, also on the cheek, while saying,

“Thank you for letting me come to your holiday festivities.”

“Oh my goodness, you’re so welcome, young man! I’ve been trying to get Mattie to bring someone home forages!”her mother exclaimed. “But the two of you must be freezing—come in, come in!”

She beckoned them excitedly into the house and they followed her through the front living area around to the back where the big, farmhouse kitchen was packed with Mattie’s family standing around the stove and the hand-carved kitchen island.

“Mattie!” her older sister Anna exclaimed, reaching for her at once.

Mattie hugged her, feeling her sister’s baby bump pressing against her own stomach. She laughed as they pulled apart.

“Oh my God, you’rehuge!”

“I am, aren’t I?” Anna grinned, caressing her rounded stomach protectively. “I’m due in two months! But who’s you’re man?”

She nodded up at Grath, who loomed head and shoulders above all of them.

For the first time, Mattie felt guilty for lying. She’d always been close with her older sister—the two of them had used to share everything. They had only grown apart when Mattie had moved up to the Kindred Mother Ship. Still, she had to keep the real nature of her relationship with Grath secret or the jig would be up and she would never get that assignment to Vi’ri’tex Delta.

“This is Grath. He’s my Protector and my…” Mattie swallowed. “And my date for the holidays.”

“Pleased to meet you,” Grath rumbled. Leaning down, he swept Anna into a hug and kissed her on the cheek, just as he had done with Mattie’s mom.

“Oh my! Nice to meet you, too!” Anna looked quite flushed and overwhelmed when Grath let her go. “He’s sobig!”she whispered to Mattie.

“He’s Kindred—they all are.” Mattie shrugged. She supposed she had gotten used to how huge the Kindred warriors all were, since she’d been living among them for months now.

“Grath, this is my husband, Ethan,” Anna said, nodding at her spouse.

Ethan was only a few inches taller than she was with sandy brown hair and mild brown eyes.

“Pleased to meet you,” he said, holding out a hand.

But Grath ignored the offered hand and gathered the much smaller man into a bear hug, just as he had with Mattie’s mother and sister.

“Ooof!” Ethan gasped as the muscular arms encircled him and then Grath kissed him soundly on the cheek before letting him go.

Mattie couldn’t help grinning at her brother-in-law’s shocked look. But she moved hurriedly to intervene before Grath could also grab her Dad in a bear hug.

“No, wait—youshake handswith human men,” she said quickly, as her Dad eyed the huge warrior uncertainly.

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