Four scoops and three cones later, we happily stood in line for the movie. Despite the ice cream we’d consumed at the shop, we were laden with the prerequisite popcorn and slushes. Aden bounced on the tips of his toes in anticipation.
When I glanced down to smile at him, a reflection in the glass panel of the ticketing booth caught my attention. A man stood outlined in the door behind us, the pane of glass separating us. His complete motionless in the shifting foot traffic stood out. I turned fully to see him, not just his reflection. When I did, he looked up at the marquee above his head for a moment then moved on. Perhaps he’d just been looking at the movie listing.
Aden tugged me forward as our theatre’s doors opened.
The laughter in a theatre full of children melted some of my worry. It wasn’t until I was struggling with Aden’s buckle in the truck almost two hours later that I noticed the man, again. He leaned against the side of a beat up old car and had an elbow casually rested on the roof as he watched me.
When I looked directly at him, he winked at me. Something about him just hit me as off. Giving up on the buckle, I started the truck and pulled out, hands shaking. It didn’t help my driving.
He stayed leaning against the car, watching. I watched his shrinking form in the mirrors. He never moved.
I kept an eye on the mirrors as I drove. The man had intentionally brought himself to my notice. Why? I hadn’t recognized him and nothing about him said werewolf. So, I didn’t think I needed to worry about that possibility. He’d just been creepy. Still, I looked back every few minutes.
The mirror stayed clear all the way home. I was relieved to pull into the driveway and find Emmitt waiting for us on the porch step.
However, with my concern over the movie man, I’d forgotten about the company that had sent me running in the first place. An extra vehicle was in the truck’s usual spot. I parked next to the garage and helped the boys out. They immediately ran for the house, saying they wanted to tell Jim about the huge TV, not understanding the difference between a television and the movie theatre.
When I closed the passenger door and turned, Emmitt stood behind me, waiting. His eyes studied every inch of my face.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, worried.
Behind him, Nana and two adults stepped onto the porch. I tried to keep the distain from my face when I glanced at them. I wasn’t ready to play nice, yet.
“Mary and Gregory were planning on staying the night,” he said with little emotion. “Can I sleep on your couch?”
If I said no, would they go back to Canada? Maybe. But Emmitt on the couch didn’t sound like such a bad idea after some creepy guy had winked at me. I nodded.
He held out his hand. I clasped it loosely, and he led me to the group on the porch.
The woman had neat brown hair a shade lighter than my own. She watched our progress with expressive brown eyes. The man, who stood beside her, towered over her diminutive frame. I couldn’t decide if the woman was unusually short or if werewolves’ heights were as diverse as humans. So far, they’d all been tall, but other than Nana, they’d all been men. The man’s hazel eyes flicked to Emmitt’s hand holding mine and then up to my face. I felt judged with that glance.
As we walked up the steps, Emmitt introduced them. “Michelle, this is Mary and her husband Gregory.”
Husband, not Mate? Were they human?
“Nice to meet you,” I said flatly, using the same tone I had hundreds of times before for the standard greeting at Blake’s dinners.
“I doubt it,” Mary said with a grin, “but I don’t blame you. We’re the long distance version of noisy neighbors. Our sons, Paul and Henry, are inside with Jim. Your brothers are adorable.”
The adorable duo ran out the door just then, making a beeline for the swing set and calling for Jim as they went.
“Energetic,” she added with a laugh.
With ice cream, slushies, and popcorn in their systems, they probably needed real food to counteract their obvious sugar jag.
“I better go and make them some lunch,” I said to excuse myself.
Emmitt didn’t relinquish my hand.
“I’ll come with,” he said.
Jim walked out the door. Two boys close to my age trailed behind him. They grinned at me, said hi, and followed Jim to the swing set, standing back to watch him interact with my brothers. I hadn’t expected the sons to be so young. None of Blake’s associates had been my age. Still not sure what I dealt with, human vs. werewolf, I hesitated to leave my brothers outside.
Emmitt seemed to read my concern.
“Jim, can you send them up in a few minutes to eat?”
Jim waved acknowledgement, and I let Emmitt lead me inside.
Our company stayed downstairs when Jim came up several minutes later. He took a huge bite from Aden’s proffered sandwich, and I shook my head, guessing at the reason for his personal escort.
I tried to talk the boys into games upstairs, but they wouldn’t hear of it and tore back downstairs as soon as they finished. Food gone, Jim followed them. Emmitt helped with the cleanup.