Trinity
Renee wiped the counter down, smiling as she swayed her ass to ABBA as they told the story of Fernando. The warmth pressing against the windows and outer walls of the building brought a languid fluidity to her muscles. She envied Sam, the fat feline sprawled in his high perch, furry belly flopped to the side. It would have been an excellent day to simply lie in the sun and nap the hours away.
Wisps of light from the high casement windows played through the air, swirling down over her little juice and coffee bar, catching the crystals and other such stuff her stepmother had hung up all over the place. Dust motes danced to the hum of energy in the shop. More despite Susan than because of her.
The shop was a metaphysical bookstore and magick shop. Owned by a woman who did not believe in magic. The irony of that wasn't lost on Renee, but since she did believe in magic, the shop seemed to be fine with the current state of affairs. Each day she entered the shop she felt embraced by it, which made those not so welcome feelings from her stepmother slightly easier to bear.
Renee had chosen the space in a sunny archway inside The Willow Broom when she'd signed the lease. At first she'd decided to set up shop there because it would keep her in her father's life somehow. She'd at least have a regular opportunity to see him. Their relationship hadn't been strained, but it wasn't close either and she craved that.
But from the moment she'd walked in, the space had called to her. That alcove fed her energy each day. It kept her warm in the winter and cool in the summer. The light through the stained glass created colorful dances across the walls and over the floors and shelves. The shop was located on a busy street near the T stop so there'd been a steady stream of customers all day. No one bothered her about what to serve and when. She kept her own hours, loved the space and her customers. Best of all, the bar enabled her to pay her half of the mortgage rent and it kept her in shoes so what did she have to frown over?
She didn't even need to glance toward a clock to know it was time to leave for the day. Time to head home to Galen. She smiled as she pictured him changing out of his suit and into jeans and a threadbare T-shirt. Mmmm. All that gorgeous, lean, hard muscle laying flat against his body. He moved like the predator he was, quiet and purposeful, big brown/black eyes never failing to take in everything around him. But wrapped in a most charming and stylish package. Sexy and totally focused on her. To be cherished and adored by a man like Galen was one of life's greatest gifts. She had no idea how she'd lucked out, but she planned to keep him forever.
"I'm out of here," she called out after she'd put away her cleaning supplies. The pale green scarf Galen had given Renee for her birthday was soft and cool against her neck as she wrapped it a few times before pulling her cardigan on. The air outside wasn't cold yet, but it had a bite and the sun would be going down soon.
She neared the front door and slowed, pausing to look around slowly. It wasn't time to leave yet. Just...wait. The decks of tarot cards on the nearby display beckoned and she fondled them. So pretty and colorful. The shop smelled of rosemary and sage, of amber and magic. Briefly she wished Susan could see just how special the shop was, but at that point, Renee knew it was a lost cause. Ah well, she could enjoy it just as easily.
Her phone rang and she smiled, relaxing as she picked up. "Hello there, handsome. I'm getting ready to leave now."
The sound of his voice was like caramel, thick and sweet. "Evening to you, babe. Just calling to check in. I brought some dinner home from the deli."
"Yum. I'm good, just leaving now. I'll be home in about ten minutes. I love you."
"See you in ten. I love you too."
She was still smiling as she got outside while she fumbled to tuck her phone back into her bag. She hadn't even noticed where she'd been going until she ran straight into someone a few steps up the street.
Her aunt laughed, rushing forward with open arms. Galen sprang into action, ready to knock the woman away if she proved to be a threat. It was sweet really, but unnecessary. This woman was part of her. Even if she hadn't shared any resemblance with Renee's mother, she'd have known they were connected. She didn't know how or why, but she knew it just the same.
"I can't believe we finally found you. I'm Rosemary, your mom's older sister." She took the hand of the woman standing behind her, pulling her forward. "This is your older sister, Kendra."
Renee didn't know what to do. She couldn't stop staring. Tears burned her throat, anger churned in her gut, confusion ruling everywhere else.
"Look at you. It's been decades since I've seen you, and even then it was when you were a baby and a toddler. And yet, I've known you all your life." Kendra hugged Renee, who gave over to tears. She wanted it to be true so much she didn't trust her feelings. The chaos of the last week had knocked her off balance in a way she hadn't experienced in a very long time.
In the background, Galen's phone rang, "Imperial March" from Star Wars. His brother's ringtone.
"Please, come and sit down. Would you like some coffee? A smoothie? I got some blueberries at the farmer's market a few days ago." She moved from foot to foot.
"Please, it's okay. We're here to see you. We've wanted to so long. You look better, I'm glad you got some rest," Rosemary said, patting her arm and leading her toward the seating area.
"I'll bring you all some juice and a carafe of coffee," Galen called out.
"He's not hard to look at. How long have you two been together?" Kendra asked.
"Four years. He's the only person in my life who has always been there when I needed him. So you must understand this isn't personal, I am beyond excited to know I have other family out in the world. A sister. Oh my God." She took a deep breath. "I need to know why now? Why are you here now?" She twisted her fingers together. "I'm sorry. I know it sounds rude, I guess it is rude. But my mother's been dead twenty years now. My father told me he tried to contact her family when she died but none of them cared to have contact. He certainly never told me I had a sister."
Galen put a tray on the table between the couches and poured her a glass of juice she'd made just yesterday. Yesterday when she thought she was overwhelmed. Before someone tried to steal her mind and before her aunt showed up out of the blue.
Rosemary frowned, bristling with anger. "I can't speak to what your father said or did, but I can tell you what it is from my perspective. Your mother came to me thirty years ago. She had a baby, she was scared, worried for its safety. She begged me to keep her and raise her. Kendra was a week old. I tried to get your mom to stay, to call the police, to hone her magic enough to protect herself, but she was convinced the best thing to do was run. So she did."
Renee crossed her arms across her stomach, nauseated. "Why?" She turned to Kendra. "Do we share the same father? Does he know?"
The dark blue pinstriped suit, a fitted European cut, and the custom-tailored, crisp white dress shirt looked great on his long, muscular frame. Taran didn't live on his detective salary alone.
"Act like we're having fun." Irritable as always, he still wore that stutter-inducing smile. It stopped short of his luminescent green eyes. "Why are you here, and who are those wolves?"
"None of your business..." she grinned gaily, "...and I don't know."
A few golden strands of hair drifted across his eyes. He wore it halfway to his shoulders; HPD grooming regulations exempted werewolves. She always itched to brush his hair aside. One day she'd do it, just to watch him react.
"I'm serious, Lark."
"You're hurting me, Taran."
He let go instantly but continued to stare at her, knowing she'd answer him.
She heaved a dramatic sigh. "I'm here with my friend Eloise, who's into some Euro werewolf whose name I don't remember, and he's with his bros, and they're all creepy and boring, and one of them keeps trying to pick me up, and after you replace the Cosmo you made me spill, I'm going home. This just is not my night."
"Are you driving?"
"No, I'm talking to you. Why? Do I look like I'm driving?"
He didn't laugh. He never laughed.
"El drove. I'll take a cab home. Where's my cosmo?"
His sharp cheekbones and strong chin, and the pale, thin scar scoring his left cheek from his ear almost to his mouth, gave him a look of menacing power. That disappearing smile, though, made him look like a fallen angel. A hulking, six-foot-six fallen angel who could change in five minutes in broad daylight -- the mark of a powerful alpha wolf.
"Don't tell anyone you know who I am," he ordered. "I'm working a case."
"What kind of case?"
No reply.
"Fine, whatever. I won't tell anyone I know you."
He nodded and turned to go.
"Um. Hello?"
He turned back. "What is it?"
"You owe me a drink."
He pulled a ten from his wallet and held it out, staring at her eyes as he did so. She snorted at the cheap shot power play, but it worked -- a human couldn't maintain eye contact with an alpha.
She looked at the bill in his hand. She didn't take it. Instead, fueled with courage from her first cosmo, she put her hand on his outstretched arm and leaned in, her head grazing his cheek. Their bodies almost touched. A werewolf's normal body temperature was one hundred five point three; for the millionth time in ten years, she fantasized about snuggling up to his warmth.
Her pulse hammered in her throat as she whispered, "Taran? If you want people to think your cousin is a hooker, you could at least pretend I'd get more than ten bucks. Otherwise, go buy me a drink, you lazy bastard."
He growled low in his throat. She peeked up at him. Taran meant "thunder" in Welsh. It fit him when he looked like this.
"Wait here," he snarled before stalking off to the bar. The crowd parted for him by instinct, like zebras at a watering hole when the lion drops by for a drink. He returned with her cosmo.
"Thank you, cuz," she cooed sweetly to his shoulder. New drink in hand, she steeled herself for another excruciating twenty minutes with Eloise and the Euro cheese. Would he watch her walk away? As if.
A bad boy is about to find out just how naughty a good girl can be.
"I suppose you knew what you were doing when you got Debra and Connie together."
"I like to think I know something about people and how they think. Debra and Connie needed each other, and Peter needed a wife who could be friends with his mother."
Jessica chuckled. "Remind me to never doubt you again."
Margaret grinned. "Oh, I'll be sure to do that."
The two women turned their attention back to their children and enjoyed the rest of the afternoon.