Taking the Leap

Chapter 17

Writer's Note - Readership has unexpectedly gone up. Thank you all for reading this little story and for the reads and votes. I didn't expect a lot of reads so seeing y'all reading is really nice.
Anyone who's read D&M knows I like to do demographic updates after 1k reads. Next chapter I'll give you guys an idea of who's reading and from where.

~Achilles~

I turned over on the bed watching Xander sleep. His mouth was open with his fangs extended as he breathed heavily. I couldn't help but notice how beautiful Xander was. My beautiful and sometimes fragile mate, Xander.

I threaded my fingers through his hair and he sighed happily, turning into my touch. Fresh, hot tears welled in my eyes and I breathed harshly, pushing them away. Coming out would be ugly, and hard, but I wanted this beautiful, fragile, thing with Xander to work, so it would be worth it.

#

"Do you think it was best to meet your family for lunch before the pack meeting?" Xander was driving, and his voice was soft as we made our way to a place Xander and I had eaten at for one of our date nights. One of Xander's friends owned the breakfast shop and had extended their opening by one hour and told us we'd have the back portion of the restaurant to ourselves.

Xander had explained we needed a spot to have a delicate conversation and one of his vampire friends had generously offered. It was date night from a few weeks when I'd met Laurel, a small, Indian vampire with a big, loud voice.  Her breakfast store also sold a lot of general American breakfast dishes with Indian flavours.

By the time we got there, and were escorted to our table I was feeling faint. Xander was in the seat beside me, pouring me a tall glass of water water. "Just imagine when it's over. We can laugh all about it." Xander was smiling. But, I couldn't smile. He touched my cheek, rubbing a warm thumb down along the side. "I'll be here with you, every step of the way. Okay?"

I nodded. "Okay."

Xander's friend Laurel came up to our table then. She was dressed in a snug button down yellow shirt and a fitted black slacks. She had menus and a notepad out. "Hello Alexandre, and Achilles, yes? Your guests are here, the host has just let them in. I know today may be difficult so I'll be your waitress. You can trust me to be confidential."

"Thanks Laurel." Xander smiled at her just as my family started walking in. My mother lead the way with Jim by her side and Anders and Harrison behind them. Anders sat at one head of the table and Jim sat at the other. My mother gave me a kiss on both cheeks, absolutely gushing.

"Oh, Lee! It seems like it's been ages, and were you having lunch with your friend here? This is a lovely little spot." She lowered her voice, "It's all very exotic, hopefully things aren't too spicy."

"Mom," I groaned, "You can't just assume everything will be spicy."

She laughed, making her one dimple appear. "Oh, I know, dear, I just hope they refill water quickly here. In case things are spicy."

Harrison had his nose in his phone as per usual but he gave the obligatory nod whenever someone addressed him. He was the youngest among us and although closer in age to me, he always seemed off in his own little world.

After we'd all greeted each other, we started reviewing our menus. Jim browsed through his menu but kept shooting glances at Xander. "You don't have anywhere to be, son?"