Over the years I developed a routine when I returned to Fayoak. It used to be dinner with my parents my first night home. But then Red and I became lovers. The next visit home, I tried to keep to the routine and have dinner with my folks. I had been so distracted that they had asked if I was ill. All I could think about was Red and touching her. Tasting her. Those weren't the kind of thoughts I wanted to have in the presence of my mom and dad.

After that disastrous dinner, I made it a point to have dinner with her first. I usually tried to time it so I hit town just before dinner time, too. Knowing I would be with her in a few hours gave me the ability to focus during the day.

I smiled, satisfaction coursing through me. Dinner last night had been a resounding success, in every way. The only stain on the evening was the moment I had to drop her off. I could count on one hand the number of times we’d spent the entire night together, and they’d all been extraordinary. I wished we could do it more often.

But Red lived with her grandmother and liked to be in her own bed in the morning. My gut said there was something more to it, but I didn’t push. There’d been times over the years when I’d catch her looking at me, a lost expression on her face. It was a punch to the stomach. At first, I tried to ask her about it. She’d smile and kiss me, make a joke, or somehow distract me, and it was only later that I would realize she hadn’t answered. I finally got the message and stopped asking. But I had a feeling it was tied to her desire to sleep alone in her bed

It was amazing to wake up with her in the morning. Cook breakfast together. Argue about whose turn it was to do the dishes. But I had to admit to myself it also made leaving torture. It made me crave things I couldn’t have with Red. Once I found my mate, it would be another woman I’d share those experiences with. My panther paced restlessly inside me at the thought.

I pulled into the driveway of my house. I hated that it sat vacant, but that was the way it would be until my mate stopped eluding me. Charlie, who was excellent at looking after things while I was gone, thought I was a little loopy.

"If you’re not gonna live here, why don’t you rent the place out?" Charlie had asked me a few years ago.

"Don’t want to deal with the damage a renter can cause," I said with a shrug.

"Well, I won’t argue if you wanna pay me to look after 'er," he’d answered, with a hint of skepticism. "Just seems strange to have the house sitting all empty. But it’s your money."

I’d been happy Charlie had accepted my answer. I couldn’t remember if I’d told him I had rental properties in other cities. Based on his reaction, probably not. The house was my little secret and I planned to keep it that way until I settled down with my mate. She would be the first person who I deeply cared about that would see it.

I turned my attention to my tasks for the day and got to work. I finished planting the additional snapdragons in the flower bed and thought about how much Red would like them when my phone buzzed. I pulled it out of my pocket and wondered if the object of my thoughts was calling. Normally we spoke at night, but it wouldn’t be the first time I’d been thinking about her and she called.

Disappointment had me frown when I saw my it wasn’t Red, but my sister’s name on the display. Then my heart picked up. Why was she calling me? Was everything okay?

"Meghan, you okay?" I said as I answered.

"Yeah. Oh, yeah. No problems. I’m sorry. I didn’t even think you might worry when I called."

"What’s up?"

"Well," she drew out the word and her voice took on a sly tone I knew well. My sister thought she had something over on me. I suppressed a sigh.

"What? Spit it out," I said, resigned to my fate.

"I didn’t get an invite to dinner last night. You know, your first night in town?" She paused long enough to let that sink in, then clicked her tongue. "The night you eat with the family? Mom and Dad always call me and invite me to dinner when the prodigal son comes home. Since I didn’t get a call, I figured you must have had something more important to do. You know, more important than spending time with your family."

I froze. Shit.

"Um . . ." I was at a loss. I couldn’t exactly tell her where I’d been. I mentally cursed myself. For years I made it a point to arrive just before dinner, saving myself from having this problem. But no, I couldn’t make myself wait yesterday. I had to hop in the truck and head to Fayoak early. And to add to my idiocy, I stopped at The Peach, and then my sister’s. What had I been thinking? I hadn’t been thinking with my brain, that was for sure.

"Cat got your tongue?" She sounded smug. She had me and knew it. "So, what are you going to say to Mom and Dad when you see them tonight at the barbecue?"

"I—" My thoughts went in circles. I hadn’t even thought about that. I’d been so focused on Red it didn’t occur to me that my sister would know I missed dinner with my folks. And then I was all tied up over the thought of Red and Alex at the barbecue, so I was doubly distracted. Dinner with my parents didn’t even cross my mind. I had never slipped up like this before and Meghan ate it up.

"That’s what I thought." She sighed dramatically. "Well, have no fear; little sis to the rescue."

"What’ll it cost me?"

"Well," she said, dragging the word out gleefully. "Not much, really."

"Yeah, I’ve heard that before. Just a token, really, a trifle," I said dryly. "Who's said that to me before? Oh, I know. You."

She laughed. "It's nothing that bad. I need an escort to the barbecue tonight."

"Why? What’s wrong with your car?" I knew there was something else. My sister was independent, I couldn’t figure out why she wouldn’t drive herself.

"Nothing. Car’s fine." She sighed. "Okay, so yesterday’s scare has Joseph in a knot. He’s worried about the whole false contraction thing. We were going to go together when he got off work, but he found out a few minutes ago about a late conference call he has to be in on."

"I don’t get why you need me to drive you, or why you won’t wait for him."

"For some reason, my mate worries about me driving at night. As if I’ll have more contractions then or something. It’s no problem on my part to ease his mind and not go out at night . . . but, I don’t want to miss the barbecue. I pass out at, like, eight o’clock. If I wait for him, we might not even make the barbecue."

"So you catch a ride with me and he makes it early enough to enjoy the barbecue, or picks you up on the way home?"

"Bingo!"

"And if your witching hour hits, I can always give you a ride home."

"You are the best big brother ever!"

"Meghan, you know I would give you a lift without all this fuss. Why the blackmail?"

"Because it’s fun, idiot." She laughed. "You should try a little blackmail more often."

"I hope your kids are just like you," I said in a sour tone.

She laughed again, then said, "So, want to hear my brilliant solution to your dilemma?"

I blinked. She knew how to solve my desire to be with Red? "Uh, sure."

"Okay, so we tell Mom and Dad you arrived today and came to check on me first. I told you about the barbecue. So we decided to surprise them."

"Great," I said, glad she couldn’t see me over the phone. Why had I thought about Red? My problem was how to keep my parents happy. That was all I worried about. Meghan didn't know a thing about Red and me.

We arranged a time for me to pick her up and hung up. I watered the newly-planted flowers and set the automatic watering on the drip system to that area to water daily. I’d have to remember to tell Charlie to change it in about a week.

I took care of a few more minor repairs and cleaned up my tools. I went back to the cabin and took a quick shower, then was on my way to pick up my sister. I didn’t want to miss anything at the barbecue. Even if it sounded like it was going to be bigger than I thought.

As I pulled into her driveway, I saw a car parked on the street in front of her house. Who could that be?

I walked up to the door and took a deep breath. I recognized the scent of the visitor, and it was fresh. I gave a quick double knock and opened the door.

"In the kitchen," Meghan’s voice floated to me.

I walked in and stopped short at the door. I knew Sophie was there from the scent at the door, but I didn’t expect to see her looking so casual. Her hair was down around her face and she wore a T-shirt and jeans.

"Hello again," Sophie said with a polite smile.

"Hello," I said, my gaze meeting Meghan’s. I lifted one eyebrow in question.

Meghan grinned. "Sophie hasn’t been to one of our barbecues before, so I invited her to come with us."

I wondered if my sister was trying to set me up. I narrowed my eyes in warning at her, and her grin took a cheeky turn. She had something planned, but what? I didn't try to answer that for myself. I’d learned years ago that trying to figure out what was going on in my sister’s head only gave me a headache, so I didn’t even bother.

I turned to Sophie with a smile. "The more, the merrier."

She nodded at me and her smile grew wider. I couldn't help but notice again how beautiful she was, but it was like looking at a photo of a movie star or model. My body didn’t respond to her smile as it did to Red’s. It was the same as when I looked at my sister.

As I thought about Red’s smile, I knew I was excited to see her at the barbecue, even if Alexander would be there. Even if all I could do was watch her. No one could know we were together—other folks wouldn't understand our relationship. I worried they’d think I strung her along all these years as I hunted for a mate, then pity Red when I finally found her. I couldn’t stomach the thought of that. The only way to avoid it was to hide being together. But we were old family friends and she was my sister’s best friend. That meant I could talk to her and be near her all night at the barbecue.

"Ready to go?" I said, suddenly eager to leave.