Wren nods.
“Alright, but don’t blame me when you need a crane to lower you onto the toilet the next day because your legs don’t work.”
“See, you even have the same hobbies,” Mom says, rustling in the drawer next to the sofa.
“Here.” She hands a smooth, pale white stone with gray marbling to Wren. “It’s howlite. It helps calm explosive emotions. Good for when you’re dealing with people who are on edge or carrying rage that isn’t yours to hold. Might need it with my son around.”
I roll my eyes. “I was about to ask if you still had the shotgun behind the sofa and the means to protect yourself, but I might just take you out into the yard and shoot you myself.”
Ma scoffs. “Of course I do. And the revolver in the drawer next to the bed. Don’t be insulting me, River Lee Haines.”
“Oh, you got full-named,” Wren says with a mischievous grin on their face. “That means you’re in big trouble.”
I point to Wren. “You, shush. Mom, I was just checking.”
Mom takes a sip of her Irish Whiskey. “You know, I was looking at your birth chart when you left the other night.”
I put a palm over my face. “Oh, Lord. Do you have to be so…you…in front of Wren?”
“Don’t you start. You were born under a new moon, River. That means something. You’ve always had this path, one that is special and different. You’ve never been just one thing. You’re meant to straddle worlds.”
Wren raises an eyebrow. “That actually explains a lot.”
I snort. “I’m not that deep.”
Ma grins. “You are. You just don’t like people knowing it.”
Wren smiles at me. “I do now.”
And I look away, because if I stare at them for much longer, I’ll say something to Wren about how I’m feeling that I won’t be able to take back. I don’t know where it’s coming from, the urge to entwine our lives so…permanently. Intelligent me knows it’s reckless to allow such new emotions to be so…big. But the me standing here, watching my mom and Wren grin at each other, can’t contain them.
When it’s time to leave, we hug Mom on the porch. She presses a crystal into my hand. “This one’s for you. Don’t ask me what it’s for, because you won’t like the answer.”
The pale pink color gives me a hint it’s for love, and while my usual urge is to take them to pacify Mom and then throw them in a drawer in my apartment, I stuff this one in the pocket of my jacket.
“Night, Mom. I love you.”
She places a hand to my cheek when I bend to kiss her. “Look after both of you.”
“Always.”
Once we’re back in the truck, being followed by a truck that surprisingly contains Jackal and Shade and not two prospects, we ride back to the ranch. Jackal told me they saw the spot the Silverado hit the snowbank. But it was gone by the time they got there.
“Your mom is amazing,” Wren says.
“I’m glad you think so. Lots of people just think she’s a little eccentric.”
“I want to do something. To help her. To help you. And for your sister.”
“Like what?”
“I can upgrade all their security systems. Remote monitoring. Motion sensors. It’s the least I can do. And if I’m doing it for the club, I should do it for them too.”
“Yeah? That would be great. I keep meaning to. I’ll pay for it all.”
“No.” Wren shifts in their seat so they face me. “You’re already protecting me. Let me protect them while you do it.”
I grip the wheel and try to swallow past the emotions clogging my throat. “I won’t argue. Thank you.”
