Donika pulled up in front of her family’s inn on the lake and parked in the driveway. She'd been so distracted by her near miss on the highway that she hadn't even checked her emails for confirmation that they knew she was coming.

But she had her answer the moment the front door swung open. Her mother Adele came trotting out of the house into the front driveway followed closely by Grandma Pearl, her sister Kamala and her sister’s husband Franklin. Her sister held their new baby Nina. The kids trotted out behind them. The entire family approached her car, smiling and talking loudly in greeting. Donika slipped out of the car, an uneasy grin on her face.

“Donika!” her mother Adele said, throwing her arms around her shoulders. “It's so good to have you home.”

Grandma Pearl embraced her, smelling of mint and denture cream. The children also gave her tentative hugs around the waist. One of them, the older girl, Tori, who must have already been eight or nine, remembered Donika from the last time she was home. The other two were much younger. They either didn't remember her, or she had never even met them. Donika honestly wasn’t sure.

Her sister Kamala had baby Nina in a sling and Donika could smell her head when her sister gave her a half hug and patted her back. Her grandmother took her hand and patted it, the soft thin skin of her hands feeling so familiar. It had a strange and comforting effect.

“Come on inside, dear,” Pearl said. “We just made a pot of tea.”

The family pulled her into the big, old inn that had been owned by the family for generations. Franklin began unpacking her car without a word and carried her things into the front hall. When she reached the front door, the smell of the old building hit her nose. She was greeted by the creaky old staircase, leading to the second floor. The smell of fresh baking and chamomile tea wafted from the kitchen.

They escorted her into the private quarters where the family lived. Kamala and Franklin lived in a small house out back, but her mom and grandmother lived in the private section of the inn.

The family sat around the massive round kitchen table and everyone started asking questions all at once.

“I just came home for a visit,” Donika said.

“Why didn't you come home for Christmas?” Adele asked.

“We were very busy at the office,” she said.

She didn't know if she should lie or tell the truth. But she was already knee-deep in lies, so she continued to tell them. She was a lawyer, after all, and lying came exceptionally easy for her.

“You look so thin, Donika,” Grandma Pearl said, patting her hand. “Don't they have food in New York City?”

“I've been working really hard. Sometimes I don't always eat right,” she admitted.

If they only knew how sick she was, they probably would have carted her off to the hospital right then and there. She took a deep breath and let it out, thinking about the near miss on the highway.

“How long are you staying?”

“I've taken an extended leave of absence from work. I need some R&R.”

“Oh, that's awfully nice,” Pearl said. “You can keep your job and take a break like that? Your law firm must be pretty accommodating.”

“Oh yes, it's a new policy they just instated,” she said, taking a sip of tea. “They want to keep their top lawyers fresh.” The flavor of fresh chamomile and honey lapped over her tongue, reminding her of home. “But enough about me. Tell me about what you have been up to. There must be some new small-town gossip going around.”

“The Great American Bake-off has chosen Fate Valley for its production. So, a whole bunch of people will be coming to town shortly for the show. The inn is booked solid.”

“Oh, that's nice,” Donika said. “Then you should have some extra money this year.”

“Yes, it’s a boon for us in the slow season. The only problem is, where are we going to put you?” Adele asked, tapping the pad of her finger to her lip. “Usually we would give you one of the inn rooms. They are the nicest. But they're all booked.”

“I can sleep anywhere,” Donika said.

“You can have the small guestroom in the residents’ quarters,” Adele said. “I usually use it for crafts, but I'm sure we can clean it out for you.”

“I don't want you to go to any trouble for me,” Donika said.

If worst came to worst, she could always get a hotel room. But it sounded like all the hotels in town would be booked up for the show.

“Of course we’re going to go to trouble for you, Donika,” Adele said. “We haven't seen you in years.”

“I appreciate you taking me in on such short notice. It was kind of a last-minute decision.”

Pearl looked at her skeptically. Kamala was distracted by the children's antics in the kitchen. Baby Nina began to cry, and Kamala excused herself out the back door to go take care of the kids. Franklin picked up the toddler and followed her out. Donika was left alone with Grandma Pearl and her mother Adele, sitting around the ancient kitchen table.

“We're having pork ribs for dinner,” Pearl said, pulling herself up from her chair.

She opened the broiler and the smell of ribs wafted through the air. Donika felt lightheaded from the scent. She’d been driving all day and hadn't eaten a thing.

“We'll put some meat back on your bones if it's the last thing we do,” Pearl said.

“You used to have such beautiful curves, Donika,” Adele said. “You really should take better care of yourself.”

“I know, mom. That's why I'm here.”

She loved her mother and grandmother, but they could be awfully pushy and nosy. She didn't know how she was going to keep her secret for very long. She was the only one in her family who had left Fate Valley, but she had inherited her fighting spirit from the two of them. She knew that eventually, the truth would come out.

“Let me get the room ready for you,” Adele said, standing from the table. “Why don't you grab your things from the hall and follow me?”

Donika grabbed her box with her gun and her money and tucked it under her arm as she followed her mother into the craft room.

What she found on the other side of the door was nothing short of mind boggling. It would have been a nightmare for anyone with OCD or a compulsion for tidiness. Her mother was involved in just about every craft you could name.

An entire table was covered in cups of tiny, multicolored beads. Another table was stocked with squares of fabric. A sewing machine was tucked in the corner and racks and racks of folded fabric dominated the shelves. More craft supplies were pouring out of the closet. Painting, needlework, crochet, anything that you could buy from the craft supply store, she had it.

“Now where am I going to put this?” her mother said, looking down at a cat appliqué.

It seemed a random small item to be concerned about. This was going to take forever. Donika grumbled under her breath. There was a small couch in the corner covered in fabric and yarn. She suspected that would be her bed for the duration.

“Does this couch pull out?” Donika asked.

“Oh yes, the couch. Of course.”

Adele left the room and came back several moments later with a cardboard box. She began packing the fabric and yarn into the box so that Donika could actually see the color of the couch. Adele pulled off the cushions and withdrew the pullout bed.

The mattress folded out, looking thin, lumpy, and anything but comfortable. But at least it was free. Donika didn't have very much to live on until she could figure out what to do about Mr. Shyster. Her mother pulled some sheets out of an overstuffed closet and helped Donika make the bed. Then Adele grabbed a few pillows with handmade pillowcases on them and plopped them on to the pullout. She stood back, crossing her arms and looking at the bed.

“There you go,” Adele said brightly. “Now you'll be as snug as a bug.”

“Snug as a bug,” Donika muttered. That sounded accurate.

Donika was used to pillow top mattresses and five-hundred thread count Egyptian cotton sheets. But her mother's dusty pullout with some worn-out sheets from twenty years ago would have to suffice. The appliquéd cat pillow cases just topped it all off.

She let out a deep breath, reminding herself to be grateful. She was in no position to be picky about her accommodations.

“Dinner should be done in a few minutes. Why don't you make yourself at home and come join us in the kitchen?”

“Thanks mom,” she said, leaning in to give Adele a hug. “I'm really happy to be home.”

“Well, we're happy to have you, Donika,” her mom said.

Adele hurried off out of the room and Donika sat down on the lumpy, thin mattress with a deep sigh. She was so despondent and worried, she didn't know what to do. Looking around the room, she saw an old newspaper open on one of the tables under all the beadwork. There was a full-page advertisement for a dating website called Mate.com. It said it matched up shifters and humans.

She knew shifters had what were called fated mates, the only person they wanted in all the world. Donika had been too busy to find anyone to settle down with, even if she’d wanted to. She went on dates and had a few casual relationships. It was a pretty normal state of affairs for young working women in New York City.

But after nearly killing herself on the highway today, she was beginning to think differently about the whole mating thing. Maybe she really needed someone to love her and take care of her. She picked up her laptop, connected to the Wi-Fi, and tabbed over to Mate.com.

She gritted her teeth, wondering if this was a silly and stupid thing to do. But right now, she didn't feel like she had anything to lose. So, she filled out the ridiculous questionnaire and pressed enter. As soon as she was done, the site prompted her to fill out a profile and then her matches started to load. She pursed her lips as the loading icon spun on her computer. Just then, her mother swooped in through the door.

“Dinner's done.”

Donika set her laptop on the bed, feeling silly for joining the site anyway. Even if she did want a boyfriend, or as the shifters said, a mate, she was in no position to burden anyone with her baggage. Especially a nice, loyal shifter man who would love her unconditionally. She was in too much trouble for anyone to love. She couldn't expect someone to just swoop into her life and fix all her problems.

She stood from the foldout bed and left her laptop in the craft room, following Adele down the hall to the kitchen where Pearl had dinner ready on the table. Pork ribs, green beans, cornbread and all the comfort food and flavors of home. Her mouth watered at the delicious scent and her heart hurt at the thought of how long she'd been away.

She sat down at the table and put a napkin on her lap. She looked at her mom and grandma as they began to scoop food up onto her plate. It may have taken unthinkable tragedy to bring her home, but she knew it was exactly what she needed.