Sorry it took a while to upload. I've been pretty busy lately and on top of that I got sick. Plus a round of writers block and you get a chapter that's probably really bad. I hate to say it but there's only a few more chapters left. Maybe about six or seven. I still haven't decided who the sequel is going to be about.I have this idea for it, though it's a spin off and a lot of you want Sutton and Evan in it. Don't worry, if I decide to do it, I'll make sure Evan and Sutton are in it too.
And I had a request for another picture of Evan sooo>>>>>>>>>>
Thank you to everyone that commented/voted/fanned. Literally, you guys are fabulous :)
(Sorry for any spelling/grammar mistakes)
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Chapter 32
Evan’s POV:
We sat scattered around the living room, all quiet, absorbed in our thoughts. Sutton stood at the window, staring out vacantly. I could feel the emotions coursing through her body. Confusion, Sadness, Shock, Anger. I could understand why she would feel these things. It’s not every day you find out you have a little sister that was kept hidden from you. Sensing that she needed my comfort, I stepped up and wrapped her in a hug. She didn’t respond at first, still immersed in her thoughts, but eventually leaned into me.
“Well what are we supposed to do with her?” Taylor broke the silence, hissing out the last word.
“Can’t we just send her on her way or something?” Jason asked, earning him a slap from Elise.
“She is Sutton’s sister, so whether you like it or not, she’s going to be around.” Elise said.
“Presuming that Sutton wants her around.” My dad responded, glancing at Sutton.
“Sutton, I know she’s your sister and all but something just doesn’t sit right with me about her.” Taylor walked over to where we were standing as she spoke.
“Then what would you like me to do with her? Kick her out into the street? Imagine if our roles were reversed, what would you do?” Sutton exclaimed harshly. Taylor didn’t respond and looked down. Sutton sighed and stepped out of my embrace, wrapping Taylor into her own. “I’m sorry Tay, I’m just really confused right now. I know you may not like her, but can you at least try to get along with her. For me?”
Leaning into Sutton, Taylor didn’t respond. It was pretty easy for me to see why Taylor didn’t like Claire. Jealousy is a strong, driving force. Sutton and Taylor have a close relationship, and even though she doesn’t like it, Taylor accepts the fact that she has to share Sutton with Jason. Add another sibling into the mix, and Taylor and Jason were bound to never like this third person. It’s not hard to tell Taylor has sharing issues, meaning Claire better not expect open friendliness from Taylor and Jason.
“Why don’t we all go to bed and pick this up tomorrow?” I suggested. Everyone nodded and filed out of the room. I took Sutton’s hand and swung it as we walked up the stairs.
“How are you really? It’s a lot to take in.” I asked her as we walked into our bedroom. She threw herself onto the bed and stared up at the ceiling.
“I’m shocked of course, and I’m confused about what to do. I’m sad because it’s obvious Claire got the short end of the stick, growing up with no one while I grew up with parents and siblings. I’m angry because I feel like I should have known. A part of me should have known that somewhere in the world I had someone who needed me. I’m all of these things and I’m tired.” She finished.
I felt for my mate, I really did. I climbed onto the bed and sidled up her side, wrapping an arm around her stomach. I lay on my side, as she snuggled into me, breathing deeply. We fell asleep like that, arms enveloped around each other in a comforting way.
Sutton’s POV:
I padded softly down the hall the next morning, making sure not to wake anyone. I had slipped out of Evan’s warm embrace and left him to sleep. I reached the end of the hallway and paused outside the door of the last room. Taking a deep breath, I knock lightly and opened the door. Claire looked up at me from where she sat on the bed, the t.v on quietly in front of me. I smiled and stood in the doorway.
“Hi.” I breathed. She smiled slightly and got weird, awed look in her eyes.
“Hello.” She said politely, gesturing for me to come in.
“Sleep well?” I inquired, settling myself at the bottom of her bed.
“Perfectly.” We sat in an awkward silence for a minute.
“Have you shifted yet?” I asked randomly, knowing she already knew about werewolves because she called me and Evan mates.
“No.” She shrugged sadly. It wasn’t uncommon though for a werewolf to not shift until they were sixteen. She’s still got a few more years to go.
“Then how’d you find out about werewolves?”
“A foster mom I had a few years back. She’d lost her mate and didn’t want to have kids with anyone else so she decided to foster other kids. She said young werewolves always had a way of finding her. She knew immediately what I was and explained the basics. I was nine and thought she was crazy but then I realized I was faster and stronger than most kids. I had better hearing and I could see better. It made sense after a while.” We lapsed into another awkward silence.
“Claire, I’m just going to be honest with you. Yes, I have a family. Yes, I have a pack. Yes, I have a mate. But, if you want, I’d like to include you in all of these things. Well, not my mate of course, but you get the picture. I’m not sure where we go from here, so we’ll take it day by day.”
Something flashed in her eyes before she answered. Guilt? Remorse? I couldn’t pinpoint why she would feel either of those things. She wouldn’t be imposing or anything, we have more than enough room and funds to have her join us. Sure, my family isn’t exactly welcoming but they’ll warm up eventually. As quickly as her eyes flashed with guilt, it was replaced with a noticeable, shining happiness.
“I’d love to.” She said quietly, looking down.
“Good.” I beamed at her.
“Can I ask you a question?” I nodded. “Well two actually. What was it like to grow up with a family? Did you ever wonder about your biological family? Did you ever try to find your parents?” I noticed the harsh edge around her words.
“It’s clear we’ve lived rather different lives and to answer your first question, I can’t imagine living your life because I can’t imagine living without my family. I got lucky with them. They are loud, and obnoxious, and they could care less what others think of them. But I wouldn’t have it any other way. I can’t imagine how my life would be without my family in it.” She looked down and fiddled with her hands. Reaching over, I placed my hand over hers and waited until she looked up. “No, I never did look for my biological family. I assumed, they gave me up so they didn’t want me. I already had a family that I was perfectly happy with, there was no need to search for parents that didn’t want me. I often wondered about them, but no, never did I search for them.”
“I guess I can see why you wouldn’t, you have such a perfect life. Me though, I had nothing. No one. All I had were thoughts about my real family. I wondered what my parents were like, if I had any siblings. I don’t remember my parents so I certainly didn’t remember if I had any other siblings. Then, there was this accident at my foster home and I was in the hospital. The police questioned me about the incident and then asked if I wanted them to contact my sister. I laughed and told them they were crazy, I didn’t have a sister. That was when I found out about you. I guess they ran some sort of tests to find out who I was and my DNA was similar to yours or something like that. Next thing you know, I’m out of the hospital and on the road looking for you.”
We both sat in silence again, though it wasn’t awkward. We were just thinking over the things that each other had said. My eyes wandered over the room and noticed her open backpack. All I could see was a black laptop peeking out but oddly enough, no clothes. I took in her clothes and realized they were hand me downs from my closet.
“Claire, where are all your clothes?”
“I didn’t have much.” She replied evasively. I guess her foster home was a sore spot.
“Hmm.” I replied, grinning and wiggling my eyes. She looked at me curiously. “I guess it’s a good thing you have a sister that loves to shop!”
“Shop?” She all at once look horrified.
“Yes my dear little sister, we are spending the day at the mall. Now come on, we have to go wake my handsome mate up and get you an outfit to wear for today.” I stood and waited for her to do the same.
“You don’t have to do this, really.”
“Really, I do.” I grinned and winked. After a minute she smiled and got up.
“Lead the way.” She replied nervously. I raised an eyebrow. “It’s just, your mate is kind of…scary. I don’t want him to get mad at me or anything.”
I laughed loudly.
“He’s just protective, that’s all. The only thing he’ll be mad about is being dragged to the mall.” I chuckled again at the thought of Evan being scary.
I flew down the hallway towards my bedroom with Claire close on my heels. I opened the door and took a running leap, jumping onto the bed. Evan was still sleeping and simply rolled over when I jumped on him. I sighed, he was a heavy sleeper, and shook him. He mumbled something and swatted my hand away.
“Excuse me.” I said, turning to face Claire. She looked confused and stood awkwardly in the doorway, looking around our room. I leaned down and lightly kissed Evan. I could tell when he woke up because he wrapped an arm around my waist and pulled me down, deepening the kiss. I pulled back and chuckled.
“We have a guest.” I motioned towards the door and he looked over, shrugging as he pulled me down once more. I gave him a moment with my lips before pulling away and standing up.
“Tease.” He muttered. I laughed and blew him kiss.
“Get up, we’re going to the mall today. It seems we’re in need of some new clothes.”
“When are you not in need of new clothes?” He asked sarcastically.
“It’s not for me, but now that you mention it…” I replied thoughtfully. I did need some new shirts, and you can’t get a shirt without the perfect skirt…
“Oh great, more clothes” Evan muttered, standing up. He looked over at Claire and rolled his eyes. “If there’s one thing you’ll learn about her, it’s that she loves her clothes. Probably more then me.”
“Don’t be jealous of the Gucci, darling.” I reprimanded.
“I’m already confined to a drawer.” He told Claire, putting his sad face on.
“Hey! I gave you a drawer and a shelf. Don’t complain.” I chastised. Claire laughed at our playful bickering.
“Did I hear shopping?” Lisa asked, stepping up behind Claire.
“You in?” I grinned. Her passion for shopping matched mine.
“Of course.” She clapped her hands happily and turned back to her room to get dressed. “Spencer! We’re going to the mall, get ready!” She hollered as she walked away.
“Thank goodness he’s coming! Another man!” Evan exclaimed, coming out of our adjoining bathroom in fresh clothes.
“Ok, come on Claire. Let’s get you dressed.” I ushered her towards our closet. She gasped as she stepped in.
“This is a closet? This is more like a small room! Wait, these are all of your clothes?” I nodded, laughing at her shock.
“I know.” Evan said, coming up behind me. “We’re all concerned she has a problem.”
“Shut up!” I said, turning to hit him. He dodged my arm but stepped forward, wrapping his arms around me. I turned back around, leaning against him, and found Claire looking at us. She got that guilty look in her eyes again. “Is there something wrong?”
“No, no. Not at all. It’s just, you guys look…good. You look really good together.” She murmured softly. I shared a confused glance with Evan but shrugged it off.
“Now back to your outfit…”
Claire’s POV:
It was clear they were in love. Obvious that if something happened to Evan, it would kill Sutton. He didn’t mention that. He didn’t say they were mates! All he said was that I had to find a way to gain Evan’s trust and then tell him everything that the pack was doing. Sort of like a backdoor feeding information to the hunters. I felt sick as I watched the way Evan loving watched Sutton as she picked out an outfit for me. Lockey obviously knew they were mates, so that had to mean he wasn’t just going after Evan. No, he had to be going after the both of them. Maybe even the whole pack.
I stiffened at the thought of the scary hunter going near my sister. She was too fragile, too full of life. I watched her as she flitted around the room like a ball of sunshine. I hadn’t even known her for a whole day but I already loved her. She was my sister and I’ll be damned if I let anything happen to her or her mate. I can’t do it, I can’t help that monster take down the only family I’ll probably ever have.