A Trip To Love - 3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Jon’s Point of View

The steaming water allowed my worries to vanish for a while. The nice thing about being here was the idea I would get to recharge my batteries and get a home cooked meal. The aroma of bacon, eggs, and pancakes invaded the bathroom and soon had my stomach growling its hunger. I rushed through the shower and got dressed. As I took the stairs three at a time the food only smelled better and I could hear the sounds of my family in the kitchen.

My mother was in the refrigerator getting something else out for breakfast as I hurried over to an empty seat at the table.

“Morning.” I grabbed my plate as I looked at the mountain of food my mother had cooked. The delicious smell of bacon and maple syrup had me ready to devour everything in front of me.

“Good morning, Jon. Welcome home.” Kyle smiled as he stabbed a piece of sausage off the plate mom had in the middle of the table. “I’m glad to see you. How long are you staying?”

“I’m happy to see you too, bro. I wish I could spend some time with you, but I have to head out again tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow?” Mom froze where she was, a frown on her face. She straightened her back and stared at me from across the table. “You can’t leave so soon. You only just got home. Why would you go so quickly?”

“Ma, you knew that I was only going to be here for a short time.”

Mom slid the last of the blueberry pancakes on the platter in the center of the table, shaking her head the whole time. “You simply can’t go yet Jon. I mean, you barely got home as it was.” Mom set the platter down and then smiled sweetly at me. “Besides, sweetheart, I made plans for us tomorrow. I know you wouldn’t want me to change them.”

“What kind of plans, ma?” I sighed, suspecting exactly what she might have planned for me, again. “Please, tell me you haven’t arranged another introduction to yet another available female, because I have lost track of how many times I’ve told you I’m gay and don’t find them attractive.”

“As your mother it is my duty to see you settled down and if that means introducing you to eligible women, that is what I will do.” Mom crossed her arms and stared at me. Her face was red and she had a scowl on her face that I remember from every time I had ever gotten into trouble.

There was silence around the table as my brothers looked from me to my mother. I guess everyone was afraid to speak, fearing I would just stand up and march out the house.

“Now, Jennie,” my father’s calm voice broke through the silence, drawing all our attention to him. He shook his head before he spoke again. “Just leave the boy alone. How many times does he have to tell you that he is looking for his true mate? We were lucky dear, I found you almost immediately. Jon is just having a bit of trouble, and you know he is gay so stop already."

“Thomas, you know that with a male mate he will never have cubs.”

“Jennie, my love, there have been so many wonderful advances in medicine.” Dad stood up and walked over to Mom, pulling her gently into a hug. “If the time comes that he wants to have a cub, well they can find a surrogate to carry it for them."

Dad kissed Mom and then shot me a wink.

“Thanks Dad.” I sighed, but I knew I had to try one more time to get my mother to understand. “Mom, you have to agree to let me do this my way. I will never be with a woman, it just doesn’t work for me. I want you to understand this, okay. If you insist that I meet these women you keep finding to mate with, I will leave this house and not come back until I have finally found my mate. It could take me a week or ten years, but I will not set foot under this roof again if you push me one more time. Do you really want that to happen?”

My father shook his head sadly and walked back to his seat leaving my mother standing there. She stared at me like she had never seen me before in her life. I wasn’t sure what she was going to do. She took a moment and smoothed down the dress she was wearing then walked over and gently set her arms on my shoulders.

“Jon, you know that is not what I want, I just want you to be completely happy and I just don’t see that happening with a male mate.”

“Mom, I will not be completely happy unless I’m with my true mate, no matter how many cubs that I have.”

Mom hugged me and then pushed me back toward the table to eat. My brothers gave me little high signs to let me know they had my back and then began to pile the food on their plates. It took a few minutes but finally things got back to normal with everyone asking questions as we tried to catch up with one another, now that we were all together. We all helped Mom clean off the table and then my brothers pulled me off to the side.

“Come for a run with us,” Alex begged. “You haven’t done that in forever.”

“Sure, let’s go.” I followed the three of them out the door and out into the woods behind the house. This was something that I had really missed while I was traveling, being able to run with my family.

Once we were well within the forest, we all stripped down, putting our clothes in a hollowed out tree. In a moment three large bears and a smaller one stood where the brothers had been.

Kyle and I are large reddish brown bears. Alex is a large dark brown bear. Tyler is the oddball of us boys, he is a medium sized jet black bear.

Of the boys I’m the oldest, followed by Kyle and Alex who are fraternal twins, and then there is Tyler. He is the baby of the family at sixteen years old, while the twins are both eighteen years old.

So far none of us have found our mates, although my brothers aren’t really trying right now. I just always felt like there was a part of me that was missing, which is why I have been looking so hard for my true mate, he is my other half.

We ran in our bear forms for a little over three hours till we got to a favorite spot of ours deep in the woods. The smell of pine and the roar of the rapids had me feeling happy to be home. The four of us took to the water and fished, which is a sight to see. Alex proved to be the fastest of us, and soon we had six large bass. After a meal of fresh fish we began to slowly amble our way home, feeling full and happy. We followed the stream and weren’t too far from home when Tyler jumped on top of Kyle, which started a wrestling match that Kyle easily won.

I can just imagine what someone would have thought if they had come by and seen four large bears playing in the stream. It seems that no matter how old we were, when we are together we are like a bunch of cubs. I could hear the birds singing in the trees. It was a beautiful day but, dang that water was cold.

We reached the spot where we had placed our clothes and switched back to human form. We were laughing and joking as we made our way back to the house. Due to the path we had chosen to come home on we could see our driveway clearly. I spotted a blue car.

“Hey, guys, do any of you recognize that car?”

“Nope. I don’t” Alex shrugged.

I turned to look at Kyle and Tyler who also just shook their heads. As we got a bit closer I could smell the scent of a female shifter. I had a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach, but didn’t want to let my brother’s know. “Race you to the house,” I called as I made a mad dash toward the back of the house.

We came into the house through the kitchen door laughing and shoving like brothers tend to do.

“Jon, can you come in here please?” Mom’s voice called from the living room.

“I’m with the guys, Mom.” I tried to be calm as I entered the living room. “Did you need something?”

“Did you have fun?” Mom got up from the couch and called down the hall before I could say anything, “Boys, why don’t you go over to the ice cream store? I left money on the counter. Bring back some for your father as well. You know his favorite.”

There was the sound of feet and the door slamming closed as my brothers headed off to get some ice cream.

My mother stood there smiling, “Jon, I want you to meet Jackie Johnson, she just moved here from Texas about a month ago. She’s a new teacher at the junior high school in town.”

I gritted my teeth, sent Mom a glare before turning and looking at the woman sitting on the couch next to my mom.

“Hello, Jackie, it’s nice to meet you. How do you like Spokane so far?” I asked.

Jackie’s face lit up and she leaned forward allowing me a clear view of her big breasts. “Hi Jon, it’s a pleasure to meet you as well.” She shook my hand and held on a bit longer than necessary. “I’ve been enjoying myself so far. Everyone has been so nice and helpful.”

I tried to smile and feign interest.

“I ran into your mother shortly after I moved here and she told me about her handsome son. You know that she has been telling me how you have been traveling all over the country in search of your mate, but haven’t found anyone yet.” She lowered her head and looked at me through her lashes, dropping a voice to a whisper. “I bet you have seen some beautiful scenery as you have gone throughout the country.

I looked at Jackie and said, “I have seen some breathtaking countryside.” I looked at mom and said, “I’m sure that my mom has been singing my praises, hasn’t she?”

“I hope you have been taking pictures. I bet you could fill up a couple of scrapbooks if you have.” Jackie leaned back into the couch and looked at my mother. "You were right, he is very handsome, Jennie."

I swallowed and tried not yell at my mother in front of company, but before I could say a word Jackie turned her charms back on me.

"As a matter of fact your mother has been talking about you, Jon. All of it has been very complementary. I feel as if I have known you for years. She has even shown me pictures of you as you grew up."

“If you will excuse me Jackie, it was nice to meet you, but I need to get cleaned up.” I smiled as politely as I could and turned to my mother. “Mom, I have some stuff to finish before I go.”

Jackie stopped me in my tracks when she surprised me with a question. “Jon, would you like to go out with me this evening?”

I could barely contain my anger as I looked at my mother who sat there with a huge smile on her face. I took a deep breath and turned to face Jackie. “Look, you seem like a really nice girl, and I don’t want hurt you. I don’t know if my mother told you, but I’m gay. There is just no way this would ever work out. I hope you understand.”

I shot my mother a look who suddenly seemed upset.

“Jon, your mother already told me that you believe you are gay. We talked about that at length.”

I turned to face Jackie, completely surprised.

“The thing is, especially after having met and talked to you in person, neither of us really believe you are. I think with some time spent together getting to know one another might just offer you what you have been searching for.”

I stood there torn between disgust and disbelief. How could anyone simply dismiss my feelings so completely and seem happy about it. I turned and walked away before I said or did something that I would be ashamed of.

I stomped up the stairs, allowing my anger and disbelief to be heard as headed towards my bedroom. I was alone with my thoughts and none of them were very happy. It was as I closed the bedroom door that I finally caught the smell of sweat. I was in need of a shower, rather badly.

“Good, I hope she could smell the funk. With my luck it might have turned her on.”

I glanced back at the door for a moment then proceed to strip, heading into the bathroom. I adjust the water in the shower till it was so hot I could barely stand it and then climbed in. As the scalding water warmed my skin, it matched my mood. I couldn’t believe my mother dismissed all we had talked about at breakfast. Then that woman thought she could talk me out of finding my mate and being gay, like that was something you could turn on and off. I lost track of how long I was in the shower because by the time I decided to get out the water had run cold. The shower had not only given me time to get clean, it had also allowed me to make up my mind about what I wanted to do. I climbed out of the shower, dried off and stormed back to the bedroom to find some clean clothes.

It took a bit of searching, but I was soon redressed. I raced around like maniac stuffing all my dirty laundry into a laundry bag I had brought home with me.

‘I hadn’t realized how long I had been in the shower, but a few moments later Tyler came into my bedroom with a worried look on his face.

“Hi, Tyler.”

He took a look at the bag in my hand and shook his head. “Your leaving already, aren’t you?”

I could see the tears in his eyes and it broke my heart.

“Yeah, little man, I am. I warned mom not to do this anymore. But she won’t listen to me. I can’t do this with her anymore, Tyler. I’m sorry, but I have to go.”

“Are you still going to call weekly? I miss not having you around,” he said as tears started to roll down his face and his voice wavered a little bit as well.

“I’ll do you one better, I will still call weekly but I will also talk to you and the twins on Skype whenever I can. Will that work for you?”

“Yeah, I’m good with that.” Tyler gave me a sad little smile. “I just wish you weren’t leaving so soon.”

I pulled him into a hug. “Call me whenever you feel the need to talk to me, ok?”

“Thanks bro, you better go say bye to the twins before you leave.”

I patted him shoulder, before I turned to the twins’ room. I knew I would have to pack the car up before I left, but I need to do this first. I knocked on their door and waited for one of them to answer it.

Kyle opened the door and shook his head sadly as he looked at me. “Let me guess, she did it again, huh?”

“Yep, she wanted me to meet the new teacher in town. This woman Jackie, had the nerve to say that neither she nor mom believe that I’m actually gay.”

“Is Mom crazy?” Alex threw his hands up and shook his head. “How could Mom do this to you? I mean you are her first born. Did she think you would lie about something like this? I mean come on, dammit.”

“I honestly don’t know what she’s thinking anymore. I have warned her numerous times. I just feel that if I don’t follow through this time then it will continue to happen. I do love her but this is getting ridiculous.”

“We understand bro. You got to do, what you got to do. Just stay in touch with us.” Kyle shifted from foot to foot barely looking at me or Alex. Kyle crossed his arms as he stared at me almost daring me not to stay in touch.

“I will, I told Tyler that I would still call weekly and Skype when I can. Also, feel free to call whenever, even if it’s just to say hi.”

“Will do. Just make sure you let Dad know why you’re leaving early, because he’s not going to like it.” Alex glanced nervously between me and Kyle.

“I will. I’ll call him once I am on the road. Can one of you help carry my stuff down?”

“Sure,” Kyle and Alex replied in unison.

All three of us laughed at that. We headed to my room to grab my bags, only to find that Tyler had already grabbed some of the bags. Kyle and Alex quickly grabbed what was left.

“Why don’t you go tell Mom you’re leaving? This way you can leave as soon as you talk to her,” suggested Kyle.

“Ok, thanks guys. I’ll call you when I get to the motel that I will be staying at tonight. I plan on going to the Laundromat to get my clothes washed this afternoon.”

“Alright bro, talk to you tonight. Stay safe,” replied Alex.

We went downstairs, the boys went outside and I went to look for Mom. I found her in the living room, picking up things from her visit with Jackie.

“There you are, Jon. You were incredibly rude to Jackie earlier. I’m very disappointed in you,” Mom’s voice held a note of dissatisfaction as she scooped up the remaining plate of cookies off the table.

I had to laugh at that comment.

“Mom, you acted like I was five and ignored me and my desires. I mean, come on now, how many times have I told you that my true mate is a male? That I’m gay? That no woman will ever be my mate? But have you listened to me at all? Not only are you trying to find women for me, but you are telling them I’m not even sure I am gay. You really don’t love me at all do you?”

Mom looked at me as if I had grown a second head.

“How dare you! I have nothing but your best interest at heart.”

“I told you before, if you couldn’t respect my decisions and how I live my life, well then, I just wouldn’t stay here for you to interfere. I’m leaving Mom,, and I won’t be back until I have found my mate.” I headed towards the door, a growl slipping out as I did. “And so you know, I won’t be calling you either.” I let the front door slam shut behind me as I stormed off to the SUV. I was in such a foul mood that I nearly didn’t realize my brothers were all standing there waiting for me.

“We’re going to miss you bro, don’t forget to call us,” said Tyler as they each gave me a hug.

“Bye, guys, I’ll call you tonight and each week as promised,” I replied before turning and getting into the SUV.

I climbed into the SUV and got ready to pull out. My brothers all stood in the driveway waving at me and I couldn’t help but wave back. As I began to pull out I spotted my mother standing at the living room window watching me pull out. I put the SUV into gear and pulled away without looking back.

I stopped in town and filled up with gas. When I got back in the SUV, I noticed that I had a missed call from Dad, so I called him back.

I got his voicemail, so I left him a message.

“Hey, Dad, I saw that I missed your call while I was filling up with gas, I’m sure Mom called you to say that I left early. When you get this give me a call back so we can talk. Love you, Dad.” I looked at the phone in my hand and noticed how my hand shook. To be honest, I don’t know if I was upset at how my mother had treated me or how I had treated her when I left. Neither of us were exactly acting like the grownups we were supposed to be.

I drove to the next town over, pulling over when I saw a Laundromat so that I could wash my clothes. I knew that if I had stayed in town, Mom would have gone looking for me and she would have tried to get me to come home. I just wasn’t looking for anymore drama today.

Dad called me back while I was waiting for my clothes to dry.

“Hey, Dad, I guess you got my message.” The smell of bleach and laundry powder filled the small Laundromat. There were people at every machine and children playing games waiting for their parents to finish up. This wasn’t the sort of conversation I wanted everyone in here to be a part of, so I headed outside so I could talk to my dad in peace.

“Hey, Jon, yeah I got your message and a hysterical call from your mother saying that she doesn’t know why you left early,” stated Dad with frustration in his voice at being caught in between his wife and his son.

“Dad, she knows why I left early. The boys and I went for a run and when we came back Mom had Jackie Johnson there waiting to meet me. Jackie asked me out, I said no, and told her that I wasn’t interested.”

“Well that makes more sense now. After you boys left, you mother handed me a list of stuff she wanted from Walmart. You know as well I do, I hate driving to go there, and I mean it is an hour away. I took as long as I could but your mother nearly pushed me out the door. Jackie must have been on her way, and your mother didn’t want me there to stop her. You warned her that if she did set you up, you would leave. I have to say I admire you for sticking to your guns, Jon, but I wish you would have stayed a little longer.”

“That wasn’t even the worst part. I was absolutely shocked and disappointed when I found out that Mom had already ousted me to Jackie. This makes me wonder who else she has told. It’s not that I’m ashamed of being gay, but it’s no one’s business but mine and Mom had no right to tell anyone.”

“You’re right, she shouldn’t have done that, and not everyone needs to know it. Granted most will figure it out once you find your mate. Just remember that she does love you. Please be safe son, I love you.”

“I love you, too, Dad. I love Mom as well but she can be very irritating at times regarding this issue. I will call tonight once I’m settled to talk to the boys. Talk to ya later, Dad.”

“Bye, son, please be careful.”

I went back in to check on my laundry, when I saw that I still had some time to wait, pulling out my Twilight book in order to pass the time while I was waiting.

Tim’s Point of View

I got up and decided to get all of my laundry done so that I would have more time to spend with my dad and friends. Then I wanted to go online to check my email, and check to see if any of my favorite books on Wattpad have been updated.

Since I loved to read and didn’t want to lug around multiple books while I travelled, I used my e-reader that Dad had gotten me so that I could have most of my favorite books at my fingertips.

I gathered up all of my dirty clothes, separating them into dark colors, light colors, and whites. Once they were all separated I took the loads downstairs to get it started. I came out of the laundry room and heard the doorbell ring.

Dad was busy making breakfast so I called out, “I got it Dad.”

When I opened the door and saw Stephanie standing there I really wished that I had let Dad get the door. I did not want to deal with her today or ever for that matter. She has been trying to get me to go out with her for the last four years and would not take “No” for an answer.

“Hi Stephanie, what can I do for you?” I asked through gritted teeth.

“That’s no way to talk to a lady Tim,” she said with a shy smile on her face.

“You’re right Stephanie. Is there something I can help you with?”

“I just came to see if you wanted to go to a movie tonight,” she said as she lowered her head and looked at me through her lashes, just trying to seduce me.

“I’m sorry, I already have plans for tonight. Besides, I have told you before that I’m not interested in dating anyone who is not my mate. Also, I have told you numerous times that I’m gay, so you do absolutely nothing for me. Now if you’ll excuse me I need to do some household chores and laundry before I leave tomorrow.” I stepped back and closed the door in her face.

“Who was at the door, Tim?” Dad asked as he came out of the kitchen.

“It was Stephanie, she wanted me to go out with her this evening. I told her that I already had plans and that there was no point in her continually asking me out since I’m gay. Then I politely shut the door in her face.”

“Well, come eat some breakfast. I just made some scrambled eggs, bacon, hash browns, and toast since you got up a little later than normal this morning,” Dad said as he gave me a hug before turning and going back to the kitchen.

“Why don’t you call some of your friends and spend some time with them before you head out of here tomorrow. Take some time and reconnect with them. I know that you communicate via phone, text, and email while you are gone but spend some face time with them. I bet they would love that,” Dad suggested while we were eating.

“Ok, Dad I will call Jeremy after breakfast and see what he and the guys are doing today. Maybe we can go to a movie and out to eat for dinner,” I suggested after taking a bite of eggs.

“That sounds like a good plan. Why don’t you go ahead and give Jeremy a call and I will clean up the kitchen,” Dad said as he finished what was on his plate.

Being with my friends and family is what I miss most when I’m on the road. The one nice thing about being a wolf is no matter which pack you visit you are always treated as a member of the family. However, nothing beats being with those who have known you your whole life, the ones who love you and know everything about you. Family is something that is very important in the werewolf world.

I went upstairs to get my cellphone so that I could call Jeremy. Once I found his number in my contact list I hit the dial button and waited for him to answer.

“Hello,” Jeremy said when he answered the phone.

“Hey Jeremy. How are you bud?” I asked as I sat down in my desk chair.

“Tim! It’s great to hear from you. Are you coming home soon?” Jeremy asked excitedly.

“I actually go home last night. Doing some laundry right now. I wanted to see if you and the guys wanted to hang out tonight. Maybe go to a movie and get something to eat,” I suggested as I put my feet up on my desk.

“That sounds awesome. I’ll call the guys right away and let you know who’s able to come and get back to you,” he replied.

“Cool, thanks man. It’s good to be home and able to spend time with my friends and family,” I said sitting upright in my chair again.

“So have you met anyone interesting on your travels?” he asked.

“I’ve met some nice people but not that special one. It’s getting hard being on the road all the time but it will all be worth it when I meet him,” I said as I got up and started walking around my room.

“Ok, well I will give the guys a call and see what we can round up to do this evening,” Jeremy stated.

“Sounds like a plan. Thanks dude, I can’t wait to see you guys. I’ll talk to you later.”

“See ya this evening,” Jeremy said before hanging up the phone.

I set my phone on my desk and headed downstairs to check on my laundry. The first load was ready for the dryer so I switched the load over and put in the next load to be washed.

I walked into the living room and asked, “Hey Dad, want to go for a run?”

“That sounds like a wonderful idea. I’ve missed going on runs with you,” Dad said as he folded his paper and placed it on the side table next to his recliner.

We headed through the kitchen and out the back door, going towards the hollowed out log that we always placed our clothes before shifting into our wolves. After shifting we took off for the tree line at the edge of our property. I have to admit that I have missed going for runs with my dad, it’s always been a special and bonding time for us.

We ran through the woods and came to a clearing of wildflowers of varying shades of blues, purples, and pinks. Wildflowers are my favorite type of flower, with their varying shades and looks.

When we got to the center of the clearing Dad started to nip at my heels and we started to wrestle in our wolf forms.

“Son, you know you can’t beat me,” Dad said through mind link.

“I know Dad, but it’s so much fun to try,” I replied with a wolf huff.

“I know son, maybe in a few years you will be able to get me,” Dad said as he tackled me to the ground.

We played like that for what seemed like hours before we decided to head back to the house. We got to the hollowed out log, got our clothes, and got dressed after shifting back to our human forms.

“That was great Dad, I’ve missed going on runs with you,” I said as we walked into the house.

“I enjoyed myself too, Son. I’ve missed our runs also. The guys come by from time to time to go for a run with me but it’s not the same as going for a run with you,” stated Dad.

Once inside, I went to check on my laundry. I pulled my darks out of the dryer, placed my lights in the dryer, and put my whites in to wash. I quickly folded my clothes and took them upstairs to get them packed away.

“Tim, lunch is ready,” Dad called from the kitchen.

“Be down in a minute, Dad,” I answered back as I finished putting the clothes in my suitcase.

I went downstairs and saw that Dad had fixed sub sandwiches, with chips and some pickles. When I sat down at my plate I noticed that he had made my favorite, roast beef with provolone cheese and extra roast beef. He also had Clausen pickles (yummy!!) and Baked Potato Ruffles potato chips. He knew just what I liked and he always tried to make me happy when I was at home after traveling for a while.

After lunch I checked on my laundry and switched the clothes out and folding the light colored clothes that had been in the dryer before taking them up to my room. Once they were packed away, I got online to check my e-mail and play a few games on Facebook. I really like the game Criminal Case, a search and find game that has a list of things for you to find in order to get clues to solve a case.

I checked my phone and saw a couple of text messages from Jeremy.

be ready at six

meet at ur place

I read the texts and responded, cya then.

I looked at the time and saw that I had some time to kill so I decided to get a shower and clean up so that I would be ready to go when they got here. While I was waiting for the water to warm up I took a glance in the mirror.

I saw a young man with a swimmer’s build. I had a six pack set of abs, well-toned arms, short dirty blond hair, and crystal clear blue eyes. I knew that most people find me handsome but I wondered if my mate would as well.

Once the water was warm I got in and got washed up. It doesn’t take me long and within minutes I am out of the shower. After getting dried off I got out a pair of boxer briefs, socks, pair of dark blue jeans, and a pale yellow polo shirt. I got dressed and slid my sneakers on.

I went down and checked on the last of my laundry, finding that it was done I emptied it out of the dryer and took the basket back up to my room. While I was folding my clothes I briefly wondered where Dad had gotten off to but didn’t really worry about it.

I was upstairs putting the last of my laundry in my bags when I heard a car pull into the driveway. I looked out the window and saw that it was my best friends Jeremy, Tony, Jason, and Justin. When all my friends had come inside, we greeted each other with a fist bump and a nod of the head.

“Hey guys, glad we could get together before I leave again tomorrow,” I stated.

“No luck finding your mate, huh? That’s a shame,” asked Jeremy. He was my best friend and I had been emailing him some of the funnier moments while I was on the road.

“Nope, not yet, I’m heading out to the West Coast tomorrow to look at the packs out there. Something in my gut is telling me that is where I need to go,” I replied.

“Man that sucks, I hope you find him soon,” said Jason. He was usually the comedian of the group except when we are talking about mates.

“Have you ever thought that maybe he’s not a wolf, that he may be human or another type of shifter?” asked Tony, the thoughtful one of our little group.

“No, I just always assumed that he would be a wolf.” I stopped and scratched my head thinking about what Tony had just suggested. I felt foolish for not having thought of it before now. “I’ll talk to the Alpha before I leave tomorrow to see if he knows of any other times when a wolf has been mated to another type of shifter and who I would need to talk to in order to enter their territories.”

“That would be a good idea, son,” stated my dad as he got up from his chair, squeezing my shoulder on his way to the kitchen.

Justin had his thinking face on before he said, “Him being another species makes sense since you haven’t found him yet. You’ve been focusing on the wolf packs of the east coast. He may even be right under your nose.” This really made me rethink my plans for going out west but something in my gut was telling me to go.

“Come on guys, let’s head to the theater before all the good seats are taken,” said Tony.

Watching Non-Stop with Liam Neilson was awesome. I have really wanted to see it since it was first advertised. His movies are usually all action packed like Taken. We all enjoyed it and had a blast just hanging out together again.

After the movie we went to Applebee’s for dinner and to just hang out some more before I had to get home to finish packing and getting ready to leave tomorrow. We placed our orders quickly when Jeremy’s phone rang. He looked at the caller id before answering it.

“Hey babe…Sally, I’m with Tim and the guys…Tim’s leaving tomorrow and we wanted to spend some time together before he leaves…We’re at Applebee’s having dinner, I should be there in about an hour and a half…No I don’t think I can get there that quick…I drove and they would be stranded if I left now…Alright, I’ll see you when I get there…Love you too…Bye.” He turned and looked at us before saying, “Guys she is really anxious for me to get to her house. It’s as if she thinks I’m messing around on her. Tim you did it right by not dating until you met your mate.”

“I tried to warn ya. Now when you do meet your mate, you’re gonna have to break her heart,” I replied with a shake of my head.

“I know that, I should break up with her but I don’t want to hurt her,” Jeremy said as he took a sip of his Coke.

“Dude, you’re gonna hurt her even worse if you wait until you meet your mate,” said Justin thoughtfully.

“I know, I know. I just don’t know how to do it,” he whined.

“Just tell her the truth that you want to go find your mate and that the relationship is not going anywhere because you want your mate,” Tony suggested.

We stopped talking as our waitress brought us our food and we dug in.

“I’ll tell her tonight when I see her. I may need to hide out somewhere for a little while because she is not going to be happy,” Jeremy stated.

I reached out and put a hand on his shoulder and suggested, “Come crash at my place. Dad won’t mind and he could use the company while I’m gone. We have the extra room, let me talk to Dad when I get home. Before you go talk to Sally, go home and pack some clothes so that you have it in your car. That way you don’t have to go home for a little while and give her time to cool off. After you talk to her, head over to our place if it goes badly for you.”

We settled up the check when we were done, leaving a nice tip for our waitress because she was considerate when she saw that we were having a conversation and only came over when we needed something.

All too soon I was back home and getting everything packed up so that I would be ready to go in the morning. When I got up to my room I noticed that Dad had placed something on my bed. I went over to see what it was and saw that it was an e-ticket and itinerary for a flight out tomorrow afternoon that was landing in Seattle, Washington tomorrow evening.

I went back downstairs and found my dad in the living room reading the newspaper.

“Thanks, Dad for the ticket. How am I supposed to get all of my suitcases on the plane though?” I asked as I bent down to give him a hug.

“Well, you see son, you will be staying with the Pacific Northwest Pack when you get there. Go ahead and pack two suitcases, as well as a carry on with your laptop in it. You can take those on the plane with you. If you need anything else, give me a call and I will overnight it to you. There will also be a rental car waiting for you to pick up when you land,” replied my dad.

“How will I get to the pack house?”

“The rental car has a GPS, I have the address of the pack house for you to enter into it. When you are ready to head back out this way let me know and we will see about getting you an inexpensive car for you to drive back here.”

“Wow, Dad! I don’t even know what to say other than thank you.”

“Thanks is all I need. My dad would have done the same for me if I’d had to go traveling to find my mate.”

“Dad, will you be ok if my mate is a different type of shifter?”

“Who am I to say that it is wrong or not allowed if your mate is a human or another form of shifter? If that is who is destined for you then I will be happy,” Dad replied as he grabbed my shoulder and giving it a squeeze.

“Thanks, Dad, I love you.”

“I love you too, son. Now go finish your packing,” he said with a ruffle of my hair.

“Dad, you may have a houseguest for a while. Jeremy is breaking up with Sally tonight and we aren’t expecting it to go very well. I told him that it should be ok for him to stay here for however long he needed to,” I said as I gave him a hug.

“That’s fine Son, you know I think of all those boys as additional sons. He is welcome to stay here as long as he needs. He still needs to go to his classes though,” Dad said with a smile.

As I stepped out of the hug I heard a car in the driveway, a car door slamming, followed by another slam. I went over and opened the door just before Jeremy knocked.

“Come on in, man. I’m guessing it didn’t go well?” I asked as we gave a fist pump.

Jeremy sighed, set his bags down, and said, “No it didn’t, she got hysterical and started throwing things at me. I had to get out of there. I already called my parents and let them know what was going on, giving them a head’s up that they may be getting some angry phone calls tonight and tomorrow. They were sad and relieved at the same time, they want me to find my mate.”

“Well, you know where the guest room is, make yourself at home and I will see you boys in the morning,” Dad said before heading to bed.

Before we headed upstairs, I grabbed a drink to take with me.

“Night Jer. Cya in the morning buddy,” I said as I headed to my room.

“Night Tim. Try not to stay up too late, big day tomorrow,” he said going into the room next to mine.

I set my alarm before I forgot to, then started sorting through my clothes and deciding what I would take with me. I decided that I needed to look at the weather for that part of the country before I could pack anything.

I knew that the Washington area supposedly got a lot of rain but that is all that I knew of the area. I also wanted to get a general idea of where the Everglade Pack was located so that I would be somewhat confident with knowing where I was going.

It didn’t seem like it took me long to pack but when I looked at my clock I saw that it was ten o’clock at night and my alarm was set for seven in the morning.

I decided to quickly check my e-mail and Facebook before packing up my laptop for the flight. There were no new e-mails but I posted a new status message for myself on Facebook.

“I am heading to Washington in the morning. Wish me luck!”

It was time for bed.