Page 55 of Drive me Wild (South Island Shifters)

“I’ve barely met your brother,” she remarks, “but I’m ready.” She squeezes my hand.

We exit the car and make our way towards the door. I knock and then enter, finding my Nana in the kitchen.

She smiles brightly at us. “This must be Winter,” she says, coming towards us, stopping in front of Winter. “Welcome.”

“Hi, Mrs Stone. It’s lovely to meet you,” Winter replies.

“Please call me Margaret.”

“I hope you don’t mind, but I brought something for everyone.” Winter holds out a container filled with the chocolate fudge she made earlier today. My Nana’s face lights up as she looks up at me.

“Declan, you naughty boy. You told her it’s my favourite treat,” my Nana says.

“Is it? He never said anything. I was a little bored at his house, so I decided to bake.”

“She baked so much food, Nana. I had to help by sampling it all,” Zane says as we walk into the lounge.

Ravin gets out of her seat and immediately hugs Winter like she’s been part of the family for years and not just merely weeks. Smiling, I watch as Ravin places Indigo on her baby chair and sits down to enjoy a cup of coffee.

Winter comes to sit beside me. My Nana joins us in the lounge with a tray holding cups, coffee and tea containers, as well as milk. She bustles back into the kitchen, returning moments later with another tray of food, and right in centre place is the fudge that Winter baked. Yeah, it’s safe to say this one makes my Nana happy.

Winter makes herself a cup of coffee, and my Nana sits down. “Declan tells us you’re a midwife? What an exciting job.”

“I work at the birthing centre in Clyde, and I’ve been fully qualified for six years. I first gained a nursing degree at University before deciding I wanted to become a midwife.”

“Hey! You don’t happen to know an Autumn Dallow, do you? She’s an ambulance officer, long blonde hair. I just wondered because your name is Winter, and hers is Autumn,” Zane says.

Winter nods. “She’s my younger sister. I have two older ones as well: Summer and Spring.”

Zane chuckles. “What would your parents have done if they’d had a son?”

“They would’ve named him River, and I know that because I was supposed to be a boy,” Winter replies.

“I bet they were surprised when you were born,” Zane says.

“My older siblings wanted a brother. They were very disappointed.”

“Declan didn’t want a younger brother either. If I recall, when Zane was born, Declan, you promptly told your mother to return him to the hospital and come back with a girl,” my Nana says.

The entire room laughs.

“I still don’t want him now,” I grumble.

Zane wraps an arm around me. “You love me and think I’m adorable.”

“Adorably stupid,” I retort, earning a thump from him.

“I bet you were delighted when I arrived,” Ravin chimes in as she hands me my niece.

“He was over the moon when you were born,” my Nana says. “I remember the day your father brought you home. He was as proud as punch to have a daughter, not that your parents ever cared what they were having. A child was a blessing to them.” Tears twinkle in her eyes as she tells stories of our dad. He was her only child, so she didn’t like to talk about that time of their lives very much.

My Nana turns to Winter, “Sorry, love, we must be boring you.”

“Not at all. I’m enjoying hearing about Declan growing up. Tell me more.”

My Nan smiles and looks at me. “Let me see…more stories about Declan growing up.”

I groan. “Don’t tell her too many embarrassing ones.”

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