Outliers

Twenty Eight

"The beginning of love is to let those we love be perfectly themselves, and not to twist them to fit our own image. Otherwise we love only the reflection of ourselves we find in them."

Thomas Merton

"I can't say any of us ever expected this," my mother laughed somewhat nervously as she eyed Thane at my side. It was clear his powerful presence wasn't going unnoticed, but considering we had been here for more than a few hours and were only just sitting down to eat, I was rather impressed. I had seen Thane's affect on low ranking wolves and it was intense. "But I'm thrilled nonetheless."

My father silently nodded his agreement at the head of the table, not really looking up from his plate as he continued to eat. Ever the talker as always.

He had barely greeted me when he arrived home, but I was relieved to see the happiness in his expression when he first laid eyes on me and the small smile that tugged at the corner of his mouth. While somewhat distant, and most certainly quiet, my father wasn't a cold man. I never felt unloved or had any reason to resent him. He showed me affection in his own reserved ways.

When he finally had returned home from patrolling, he didn't seem at all surprised to see the Alpha Male in his home. And he didn't hesitate to greet Thane in the appropriate manner when welcoming an Alpha, bowing his head in respect, and accepting Thane's hand to shake. My father hadn't needed to say much more; I knew he didn't disprove of Thane, and that he was happy to see me again, and that was that.

Thane hadn't found his silence odd - or rather hadn't addressed it - and didn't seem offended by it either. In fact I found it slightly alarming how similar the two males seemed to be, all too content to sit in silence amongst others. Both appeared surly and unapproachable on the outside, but I knew both to be incredibly loving males.

Even when my mother had to rush out towards the main house to cook today's pack meal, the only one that had seemed uncomfortable with the silence that fell between us was myself. Thane and my father seemed more than happy to sit in silence and wait for her return, despite my horrible attempts to strike up a conversation.

Margaret and Mitchell had also joined us, per our mother's request and much to my own irritation. They arrived about an hour before we sat down to eat and so far it surprisingly hadn't gone downhill. Having Mitchell with us seemed to keep the conversation between he and Thane going at the very least.

Thane was far quieter than he usually was in Colorado - as I had expected - but he wasn't rude. He'd been politely answering my mothers questions, offering small smiles and laughing quietly along with Mitchell's jokes.

"I'm surprised you were even able to recognise your mate Em," Margaret spoke up, now that the conversation had inevitably turned towards the subject of my mate. She was sipping on the red wine in her glass, staring innocently down at her plate as if it were nothing more than a passing comment. And perhaps it was. Only I didn't recognise it as such.

Wolves didn't often drink as alcohol didn't affect them like it did humans but being half human, Margaret and I found that we were able to feel 'a light buzz' - as our mother called it. Margaret was on her fourth glass now, and I knew the alcohol was probably giving her more confidence. Especially considering how quiet she had been initially, the presence of Thane's strong aura proving too much for her.

I felt Thane's hand find its way to my knee, and I welcomed the warmth.

"Well," I sighed, taking a larger gulp of my own glass of wine. Our mother was watching us both, her lips pressed together tightly as she shot us a familiar look that meant a reprimand was on its way if we didn't behave. "Truthfully, I didn't."