"Dad's gone," my cousin's voice was barely above a whisper. "You must come home for the Evaluations," she uttered and the phone line went dead.
*****
After Keri's Uncle - the Alpha of the Silver Bullets pack - loses his battle with cancer, the young...
Congratulations to @Neon11amas for winning the April Giveaway!
Anyway, I promised you more Callum, so here he is.
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"If you'd told me you were coming, I would've tidied up." I put the empty beer bottles next to the trash bin before taking the coffee pot off the stove. "Three sugars, no cream, right?"
"Yes, Uncle Cal." Stacey put her enormous handbag next to my couch and sat down. "And the whole point was to surprise you. It wouldn't have been a surprised, if I'd called ahead, would've it?"
I brought two mugs of the brown liquid along with cream and sugar to the table before sitting down next to my niece.
"I could've been out," I said as I poured some cream in my mug.
Stacey snorted.
"Mom said you weren't working today and you don't go out much." She dropped the sugar in her mug and stirred. "It's not like you'd go on a date or anything," she went on, avoiding my eyes as she took a sip. "Right?"
I sighed.
"I'm still coming to the wedding alone, Stacey."
She put her mug back on the table and turned to me.
"I'm not saying that you should get married because most people your age are, but do you really want to be alone all your life?" She put her hand on my knee. "You are hours away from us; what if something happens to you?"
I patted her hand.
"I'm a policeman; the possibility of something happening to me is high whether or not I'm with someone."
"Well, that makes me feel so much better!" She snorted and reached for her mug. With a little smile, I did the same, taking a gulp and wondering as I always did how people drank the stuff with sugar in it. Coffee was not some sweet treat; it was supposed to be bitter and invigorating, the taste just slightly softened with cream.
"So, no need to reserve an extra spot for the restaurant?" She asked, as she wiped the corners of her mouth with the tip of her index finger.
"Huh." It was my turn to snort. "As if you are not going to do that anyway."
"Well, I keep hoping you'd bring someone."
"I thought you wanted to keep the event small?" I took another gulp.
Oh, coffee was good! Especially in the morning.
"It will be. Just my family, Todd's family, and some close friends. Oh, and the priest."
"The priest is coming to the restaurant after the wedding?"
"Yeah, he's a friend of Todd's family." Stacey turned around, picked her bag and placed it in her lap. "And here..." she went on, rummaging through the thing, "is your invitation."
