Grayson sat in his car needing a few minutes to collect his thoughts.

He’d been running himself ragged for the past couple weeks building his client list. So far, he concentrated on in-home personal training, physical therapy, and massages. Grayson looked at the windows of his parents’ home and sighed.

Grayson liked being home and being with his family, but he also liked his privacy. He’d been thinking of moving out, and each time he brought up the subject, they changed the subject. But sooner or later it was going to happen.

Grayson also knew what his parents were up to. They weren’t as smooth as they thought they were. The lights were off as if no one was home, and he knew they were all lying in wait for him to walk through the door.

Although there weren’t any cars parked in front of his house or in the driveway, he’d recognized a few of the cars parked in front of a few of his neighbors’ homes. He and Monique were lucky enough to be born a couple of days before Halloween. They used to celebrate their birthday together but the older they got they started doing their own thing.

He’d been so busy, he’d all but forgotten that it was his birthday until he got a text from Anita. When he lived in Chamberlin City, he and Anita used to wait until Halloween to celebrate his birthday. She used to call it their special day. Grayson knew something was up when Monique hadn’t even told him happy birthday either. It only meant she was in on the surprise.

Grayson was fine with his parents throwing him a surprise birthday party, but he hoped they didn’t buy him anything. They were already doing enough by helping him out with the repairs and sports equipment of his health center. He’d used most of his inheritance to buy one of the newer buildings in town.

There wasn’t a lot that needed to be done on the outside, but the inside needed to be renovated. He had a vision in mind and hoped that Quintus, who was not only the contractor but his friend, would be able to finish things in the time he wanted to open the center. In between seeing clients, he was in the building cleaning up and trying to stay out of the contractor’s way.

Grayson had ordered some of the equipment as well as scheduled the deliveries for the next couple of weeks. The next thing he needed to do was hire a competent staff and begin their training. With all that he had to do, he was trying not to let his to-do list stress him out. But he was also worried that his health center might not be as successful as he was hoping for it to be.

Maybe Anita’s right and I should have just stayed and opened my health center in a big city. And not in a small town where supernaturals can live longer than their human counterparts much less get sick or hurt.

His clientele at the moment, consisted of half were-creatures, and the rest that made up the list were humans, and that wasn’t so bad. Maybe I’m worried for nothing. Sighing, Grayson closed his mind off, he didn’t need for his friends and family to pick up on his doubts.

Friends, Grayson scoffed, he’d been so busy he’d hardly had time to stop and have fun. If Quintus weren’t his contractor, he wouldn’t see his friend at all the way he’d been so busy. Pulling down the visor, he tried practicing his surprise face and hoped he wouldn’t give it away that he knew what his parents had been up to.

“Oh my!” he said with his hand on his chest and his mouth and eyes open. “No that won’t work, it sounds too phony.” He went through a couple more practices before grabbing the gift he’d made for Monique as he got out of his car and walked up to the door and stopped before opening it.

“You didn’t need to leave a thank you note.”

Grayson spun around quickly and connected into Chance who caught him before they both fell into his mom’s prized rose bushes. They stared at each other and Grayson couldn’t ignore the masculine scent reminding him of fresh dew in the morning, engulfing him, making him dizzy. He wanted to bury his nose in the man’s chest and cover his body with the man’s scent. He’d never shifted into his wolf, only his mermaid form, but in that second, Grayson felt he could. It was as if something inside of Chance was calling to him. It was the same need he felt the night they were together.

Grayson hadn’t seen the older man since he left him sleeping the morning after their night together. He also hadn’t stopped thinking about the man either. Whenever he wasn’t working, he thought about Chance. He was trying to work out why during their time together he wanted to give Chance every ounce of control. Chance was commanding, and he didn’t need to tell Grayson what he wanted with words, it was all in his touch. He’d thought about going to see him and explain things, but work kept pulling him away.

How come I didn’t hear him pull up?

“I walked,” Chance said.

Did I say that out loud? Or is he reading my mind? How am I able to fucking think with him standing so close to me?

“I…”

“Open the door.”

“What?” he asked completely confused. “Open what?”

“The door, open it and let your family surprise you even if you know about it.”

“How?”

“How did I know about the party or figure out who you were?” All Grayson could do was nod. Chance smirked, and it was the sexiest thing he’d ever seen. “We’ll talk later. Now go enjoy your party.” He released Grayson and stepped back without taking his eyes off him.

Chance nodded at him in encouragement and Grayson turned and opened the door. The lights immediately came on, and everyone yelled surprise before he could fully step inside the house.

“Shit!” he yelled snapping out of his daze and stepping back observing the sea of happy faces in front of him. His parents, grandmother, sister, and her husband, as well as neighbors and a few of his new clients, who had managed to keep him busy all day. His mother pulled him to her, hugging him so tightly.

“We did it!” she exclaimed pulling back and cupping his cheeks. “Even though you knew what your dad and I were up to.”

“I did.” He laughed. “But I have to admit you still surprised me.” He looked at Monique then grabbed her. “Happy birthday, little sis.”

“You too, big bro.”

He handed her the gift box, and she beamed. “I made a few to help you out during your pregnancy as well as morning sickness.”

“Always looking out for me.”

“It’s what big brother’s do.”

“Only by a few minutes, brat,” she joked.

“But I’m still the oldest.”

“Come on, you two, let’s get this party swinging,” his grandmother Rosemary said getting their attention. “Oh, and, Chance, thank you for distracting my grandson long enough for us to really surprise him.”

Grayson looked at his grandmother and then at Chance who was seemed confused.

“I didn’t do anything,” he told her.

“If you say so, my boy.”

“Nana,” he started, but she cut him off.

“Oh, hush now, boy,” she said pulling him into the house. “It’s your twenty-fifth birthday, and graduation party all rolled up in one, so let’s have some fun.”

She didn’t give Grayson a chance to object and guided him around, introducing him to some of the new faces. It was a bit overwhelming having been away from home for so long. He could hear the pride in his grandmother’s voice when she introduced him, but still, Grayson needed to get away to breathe just for a second.

Grayson glanced around the room and spotted Chance in the corner talking with Vic the alpha werewolf who came to Vale Valley a little over ten years ago. It was sad what happened to his pack and him being one of the few survivors that found their way to Vale Valley. Vic was sort of a loner in only sticking to the small members of his pack, but he also seemed to be doing well for himself, being the owner of the Vale Valley Inn and Resort.

Grayson’s gazed moved back to Chance who appeared relaxed and completely at ease in his home. He hadn’t been able to get a good look at what the man was wearing before, but now he noticed the painted on black jeans, paired with a cobalt blue button up shirt leaving the top two undone, giving Grayson and anyone who was paying attention, a teasing view of his smooth, soft skin. The sleeves on his shirt were rolled up to his elbows showing off his tattoos. Grayson’s eyes were drawn to the large leather bracelet on his wrist with two linked silver cuffs on the top. Grayson knew the kind of men who wore bracelets like that usually referred to themselves as dominants.

Is Chance a Dom? Is that why I wanted to call him mate and master at the same time during our night together?

Chance must have felt eyes on him, and his gaze landed on Grayson. Chance quirked an eyebrow, and it was one of the sexiest things he’d ever seen.

“I see your crush is still alive and strong or did it turn into something more?” Grayson’s gaze fell to his grandmother who was looking up at him with a knowing grin on her face. “I must admit he will make a good mate for you. I’d always thought he would be the perfect alpha for the pack, if he was a werewolf. But since he’s human, that position is out of the question.”

“What about dad?”

“Your father is settled in his position as the sheriff and nothing else. I’ve thought about combining our pack with Vic’s, but I don’t have the heart to do it. Vic is a wonderful alpha, and we work well together, but a family member should run the Vale pack. Call me selfish, but I would love for Chance to be the one to take my place as alpha. I’m getting older, and one day I will have to step down as the alpha and mayor, maybe not both at the same time. But one day Vale will tell me who should be its next protector.”

Grayson wondered what his grandmother could be up to, and she had that look in her eyes like when she tries to play matchmaker. Rosemary Vale was not only the founder and mayor of Vale Valley, but she was also the pack alpha for over five hundred were-creatures. Vic was one of the smaller packs who found their way to Vale Valley for a new start.

“What’s your plan, Nana? And how much trouble am I going to be in when the parents find out?”

She sighed, not looking away from Chance. “Never you mind child.”

Seriously what the is she up to now? It was obvious she wasn’t going to tell him, so he decided to drop the subject.

“You just focus on getting your man, and let me do what I need to do,” she said looking at him.

“Nana, how did you know I have a thing for Chance?”

His grandmother rolled her eyes in apparent exasperation. “I think everyone knows but him.”

“Have I been that evident?”

“Only to those that know you,” she looked over in Chance’s direction. “He’s a special man, sure he might consider himself an old man. Compared to me he’s still young, trying to find his way.” She turned her gaze to Grayson. “You two will find a way to make things happen. You are what he needs, and he’s what you need.”

“When did you become a fortune teller,” he joked.

“Hush, boy, now tell me why you’re standing over here and not over there with him? It’s not like you two haven’t slept together.” Grayson gasped. “What, you think I couldn’t smell him all over you the morning you came home from wherever you were?”

“It was just one night, Nana, and I doubt it will happen again. Besides, he didn’t know it was me the night we slept together.”

“How could he not, he’s known you since you were a kid.”

“I look completely different now than I did before I went off to university.”

She stepped in front of him and peered into his face. “You look the same to me.”

“That’s because I’m your grandson. I will always look the same to you.”

“Whatever. Go on over there and get your man,” she said giving him a slight shove. “He is a guest at your party after all.”

Grayson was about to do what his grandmother suggested, but when he looked in Chance’s direction, he was no longer talking to Vic but to Erica Torrent. A pang of jealousy rose up inside of him when he saw the happiness she brought to Chance’s face. He’d known for years that they were close, but at times he wished he could talk to Chance with the same ease as Erica. Sighing, he turned the other way and walked out of the living room to the backyard needing some air.

“You seem kind of distracted tonight,” Erica said to him.

“Why do you think that?”

She was right, he was more than a bit distracted. He was mentally beating himself up for not realizing that Grayson Vale was the kid he’d slept with a couple of weeks ago.

How could I have missed the family resemblance?

Although Grayson and his sister were twins, the kid had more of his grandfather Trenton’s features. Even though the man had died twenty years ago, there were pictures of him all over town. Trenton Vale was the town’s first sheriff and protected Vale Valley well before he was killed. Trenton was hailed as a hero and rightly deserved, in Chance’s opinion.

Still, how the fuck didn’t, I realize the kid was a Vale?

Chance had decided to walk to the Vale’s home for the party. It was cold and held the scent of snow in the air. But he’d never minded cold weather, for some reason he tended to run hot. He was a bit taken aback when he’d seen the kid sitting in his car staring at the house. It was then he’d put two and two together and realized that “G” stood for Grayson. Chance could only blame it on his adrenaline from having a good night playing with his band.

So that means the kid knew who I was that night.

“I don’t know,” she said getting his attention. “You keep watching the room as if you’re expecting someone?” She paused then grabbed his face in between her hands so that he could face her. “Did you bring a date? Isn’t that who you’re looking around for? Where is he? Where did you meet him?” She was looking around the room, shaking with excitement.

He shook his head chuckling. “I hate to burst your bubble, but I came alone.” He cupped her hands, moving them off his face. “You know how I am at parties, they are not my thing.”

“Yeah, that’s true. But I’m kind of disappointed.”

“Why?”

“I thought my little speech helped.”

He looked over to Grayson and watched the boy mingled and smiled with his guests. Not once since they walked through the door had the kid looked at him. He wasn’t sure if he was disappointed or relieved.

“You need to stop trying to marry me off, woman.”

“Whatever,” she said rolling her eyes. “How much longer before you find an excuse to hightail it out of here?”

“Another thirty minutes or so, there’s something I have to do for LaMarkus.”

“Good, then I can get a couple of dances out of you before you run off.”

Before he could object, Erica pulled him out on the dance floor for most of the night.