The sun setson the horizon when I hear a knock at the front door.
“Ooh, is that Maggie, bringing dinner again?” Anna eagerly questions.
“Yes,” I respond.
My mother has been coming by every evening since Anna and I returned, unable to stay away for long. I suspect the mercenary attack scared her more than she wants to admit.
“Keric.” Mom pushes past me into the cabin, arms full of covered dishes. “I brought dinner. Don’t argue.”
“I wasn’t going to argue.”
“Good.” She sets the food on the kitchen counter and immediately turns to find Anna, who’s risen from the couch. “Anna, sweetheart. How are you feeling? Did you sleep last night? You look tired. Are you eating enough?”
Anna catches my eye over my mother’s shoulder, amused. “I’m fine, Maggie. Really. Keric is taking good care of me. But you know I’m thrilled you’re brining dinner.”
“Of course he is. He’s my son.” Mom smooths a hand over Anna’s hair, a gesture that’s becoming familiar. My mother has always shown love through touch and food. Anna is getting plenty of both. “But a mother worries. When I heard about what happened, when they called us to say there’d been an attack—” Her voice wobbles.
My father appears behind me, having moved at a more reasonable pace from the vehicle to the cabin. Cadoc places a steady hand on my shoulder. “She’s been like this all week,” he says in a low voice. “Can’t blame her.”
I can’t. Those hours when we were in the cave, when no one knew where we were, I’ve heard about the panic that swept through the commune. My parents thought they might have lost the daughter-in-law they’d already claimed in their hearts, as well as their only child.
“Mom.” I move to her side. “We’re here. That’s what matters.”
“I know, I know.” She wipes at her eyes. “I’m being silly.”
“You’re being a mother,” Anna says gently. “That’s not silly at all.”
Mom pulls her into a tight hug, and Anna goes willingly. Over the past weeks, I’ve watched my female open up to my mother in ways I didn’t expect. They talk for hours sometimes, aboutbooks, celebrity gossip and the strange path that led Anna here. My mother loves her already. I think Anna loves her back.
Dad and I exchange a look. He nods slightly, and I know he’s thinking about what comes next.
There’s another knock at the door. Anna looks up from my mother’s embrace, confused. I don’t move to answer, just watch the door open with a small smile.
“Who...?” Anna starts.
Whelan opens the door without waiting and Drew right behind him. She’s carrying a bottle of wine and grinning. “We heard there was a gathering,” Drew announces, sweeping into the cabin. “Hope you don’t mind us crashing.”
Anna’s eyes dart to me. “Did you...?”
I shrug, keeping my expression innocent.
More knocking. Miranda and Rogan step inside, and I watch Anna’s eyes go wide. The commune leader doesn’t make casual house calls. His presence here means something.
“Rogan.” Anna straightens, suddenly uncertain. “Miranda. I didn’t know you were coming.”
“We were invited,” Miranda says warmly, pulling Anna into a hug. “Congratulations, by the way.”
“Congratulations? For what?”
Miranda just smiles and steps back to stand beside her mate.
The small cabin is getting crowded now, which is why I invited only a small group for this moment. Everyone else can wait for the actual ceremony.
My mother has gone suspiciously quiet, clutching my father’s arm, her eyes bright with something that isn’t quite tears. Not yet.
Anna looks around at the assembled group, then back at me. “Keric. What’s going on?”
I push off from the wall where I’ve been standing and cross to her. Take her hands in mine. She looks up at me, confused andhopeful and a little scared, and I want to remember this moment forever.
