“Nina, is your mom coming tonight?” Alethia asked her.
That was the other thing. Her mom was there too.
Nina’s mother had gotten an apartment in town, and was looking for a job. She’d met most of the pack and told Nina that she thought they were “a nice group of young people, honey, I’m so happy you have friends.”
“Not tonight,” Nina told Alethia. “She told me she wanted me to have a fun night with my friends and no old people around.”
Nina’s mom was also scrupulous about giving Joel and Nina time alone together and not intruding on their lives, but she was also happy to spend time with Nina whenever she could. Nina could hardly believe that after so many years, she had her mom back.
Alethia was laughing. “She’s not old! And she’s wonderful, I love her. You know she’s been giving me advice about the store?”
Alethia was in the process of setting up a clothing store in town, something that sold good heavy-duty gear for the hikers, but also nice, cute, inexpensive clothes for the locals, which was something that pretty much didn’t exist around here. Nina hadn’t felt the lack—clothes shopping hadn’t ever been much of a priority for her, since she’d usually been focused more on survival—but she was excited to see what Alethia came up with.
Nina admired the other woman so much—Alethia had told her a little bit about where she’d come from, and how she’d felt hopeless and awful working as a waitress in her own small town, with no way to get out, until she’d met Grey. And now she was so happy, energetic and friendly and starting her own business. Nina aspired to be like her someday.
“I bet she can help you out,” Nina told her now. “She’s got a lot of experience with small businesses.”
“I could tell that just from the one conversation we had,” Alethia said emphatically. “Maybe we could partner up.”
Nina smiled.
Joel, meanwhile, was talking to Zach and Teri. Apparently their relationship had improved dramatically in just the week since Nina and Joel had gotten together, which Nina was grateful for. She was an only child, and having siblings-in-law was something she was exploring with joy.
They were also talking about moms, she realized. Teri’s, this time.
“She keeps calling,” Teri said. “And I want to answer, but I know that if I do, she’ll just be yelling at me the whole time.”
“Block her,” Alethia advised. “It’s the only way.”
Teri bit her lip. “What if there’s an emergency?”
“Lillian can call you,” Zach pointed out. “You don’t have to block her. She’s not as bad, right?”
Teri rubbed her eyes. “I feel bad for her. She’s like Mom’s personal slave. I was angry with her back when I was living with her, but now that I’m out...I just wish Lillian could walk away, too. But since her divorce, she doesn’t really have anywhere else to go, and she wouldn’t like to be alone.”
“Could she...come live with you?” Nina asked tentatively, glancing at Zach. “After Joel and I move out?”
Teri smiled at Nina. “I wish that were an option. But my whole family thinks shapeshifters are unnatural and dangerous. She’d never come to a shifter’s house.”
Nina hadn’t realized that. “Maybe your mom and my dad should hang out.”
“Maybe never,” Teri said in horrified tones, and Nina started to laugh.
Their relatives might have sucked, but the solidarity was...really nice. Especially since she suspected both she and Teri were better off without prejudiced, judgmental parents in their lives.
Her father’s rejection had hurt, but not as much as it might have. Really, he’d rejected her seven years ago; she’d felt the pain then, and by now it was secondary to the overwhelming joy of having her mom back.
Maybe someday he’d change his mind. But for now...she was mostly sad that he was so small-minded and angry, and she hoped he could learn to be different.
“I just wish my sister could be happy,” Teri was saying, sounding sad.
Zach put his arm around her. “I hope so, too.”
From the other side of the table, Jeff got baby Emily settled in his lap and leaned forward. “Hey, did anyone invite Cal?”
“Yes,” half the table chorused.
“He’s never going to come,” Alethia said. “You guys know that.”