Chapter 28: Jelena’s epilogue

Jelena:

Over the past couple of months, I’ve been teaching Traeger about everyday things. The best part was when Mikhail invited him to his house to play Xbox. The look on his face when he asked me what an Xbox is, was priceless. Typical of the male species, he loved it. I had to roll my eyes when he bought one of his own, along with all the gadgets he could find. He and Mikhail are now on the same Call of Duty team. I have to roll my eyes at that one.

Right now, we’re getting ready to meet my parents for Thanksgiving. I look at Traeger, who is gripping the steering tightly as we wind our way to my house and settle my hand on his hip. “Don’t worry, babe, my family will love you.”

I know he’s been worried about meeting my family. Considering he doesn’t have a family of his own, I can see why he’s nervous.

His clear eyes light up with untold emotion as he takes my hand in his and kisses it. “I guess I’m just worried that I won’t fit in. I mean, the closest to a family that I’ve ever been was with my pack from the Institute, and they’re just as lost as I am when it comes to normal, social interaction.”

I squeeze his hand as soon as we arrive. I live in a normal, middle-class neighborhood where nothing really happens. The houses are all cookie-cutter versions of each other, and the yards are neatly trimmed.

I observe as Traeger glances around in wonder before he turns to me and says. “Your house is nice.”

I shrug my shoulders as I appraise our white craftsmen style home with fresh eyes. I guess it does have a homey feel to it. There’s a porch swing on the front porch, a rose bed next to the stairs, and my brother’s skateboard lying on the floor next to his muddy shoes near the door. The house has a lot of windows, so there’s lots of natural lighting. My dad’s old, sky blue Volkswagen Beetle is parked in front of the attached garage next to my mom’s SUV.

“Come on,” I take his hand and lead him up the porch stairs. As we get closer, I can hear my mom calling my brother.

“Are you ready?” I ask Traeger with a reassuring smile.

Traeger swallows hard and nods his head.

I have to say, it’s funny to see him so nervous, considering he’s a big, bad alpha that took down a whole Institute of people vent on destroying the world.

Before I can reach the storm door’s handle, the door opens, and my brother, Jesse’s luminous smile, greets us. “Lena! I knew you were here!” He cries out happily as he pushes the door open and throws himself into my arms. I pull my brother close and the top of his head. He smells like baby powder and apples. “Hey, snot, did you miss me?”

Jesse nods his head enthusiastically. He reminds me of one of those bobblehead dolls. “I did miss you, Lena. You have to see my fort and my skateboard. My best friend Cory painted his, and I’m going to paint mine, and─.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold up, champ, I just got here. How about we back up, and you say hi to my boyfriend, Traeger?”

Jesse blinks rapidly before he homes in on Traeger’s form. His eyes widen as he takes in the giant man, who he somehow missed in his excitement. Traeger squats down and gives my brother a friendly smile. “Hi, Jesse.” He mutters kindly.

Jesse’s mouth gapes open. “Wow, you’re a giant.” He states honestly. “When I grow up, I want to be as tall as you. Do you play video games?”

I roll my eyes at my brother's ability to jump from one subject to another without batting a lash.

Traeger chuckles. “I do, actually. I like to play with my Xbox.”

As if he just said the magic word, Jesse takes Traeger’s hand and practically drags him into the house.

Traeger looks back at me but doesn’t argue as Jesse ushers him into the living room and calls out to my parents. “Mom, dad, Jelena’s here, and her boyfriend is a giant!”

My mom’s the first one to step into the living room, and like my brother, her eyes round with shock as soon as her gaze lands on Traeger. However, unlike my brother, she recovers quickly.

“Oh, honey, I’m so glad you’re home.” She wraps her arms around me and rocks me back and forth as she whispers. “And you brought a gorgeous man. Good for you, babe.”

My eyes meet Traeger’s amused ones from over my mom’s shoulder. Considering he’s an alpha werewolf with superhearing, he definitely heard what she said.

Once my mom releases me, she extends her hand to Traeger. “Hi, you must be Traeger. Jelena has told me so much about you.”

Traeger takes her hand and firmly shakes it. “It’s a pleasure to meet you too, Mrs. Lima. I was just telling Jelena that you have a lovely home.”

My mom blushes like a schoolgirl and waves at the house humbly. “Thank you, Traeger. Oh, and none of that Mrs. Lima stuff; call me Jessica.”

Her smile widens when she notices that Traeger moves closer to me and takes my hand. “Why don’t you two come with me to the kitchen? We can talk while we wait for your dad.”

I look around. “Where did dad go?”

Mom waves her hand dismissively. “He went to the neighbor's house to see if they have jumper cables; the Beetle crapped out this morning while he was working on the engine.”

I roll my eyes. “He’s still trying to restore that piece of junk?”

My mom shrugs her shoulder. “Oh, you know how he is. It was his dad’s car, so it holds some sentimental value. Too bad that the damn thing will never work.”

Trager listens silently as my mom discusses my dad’s obsession with the old Beatle and laughs when my mom jokes about my dad loving the car more than her.

Everything seems to be going smoothly until my dad walks in. His clothes are rumpled, and there’s an oil stain on his cheek.

“Pumpkin!” He cries out before he lifts me into his arms and twirls me around.

Unlike my mother and brother, my dad does not give Traeger a warm welcome. Instead, he narrows his eyes and gives him a stiff nod. I have to resist rolling my eyes when he sets me down and pulls me into the shelter of his arms protectively. Thankfully, Traeger is not bothered by my dad’s cold reception.

“You must be, Traeger.” My dad mutters evenly.

Traeger gives him a warm smile. “Yes, sir. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.”

My mom tries to clear the room's tension by stopping next to my dad and wrapping her arms around his. In the process, my dad’s arms loosen their hold, allowing me to move away from his stifling embrace.

“Did you get the jumper cables, babe?”

My dad puffs out a regretful sigh. “I did, but it still won’t start. I might have to take the engine apart again.”

My mom groans with aggravation. “Not again. Ugh, that car is a piece of junk.”

My dad’s face falls. “Aw, come one, babe. You know I love that car. You’ll see when I fix it.”

Traeger takes my hand. “Would you mind if I took a look at it?”

My dad’s lips curl with suspicion. “Do you know anything about cars, boy?”

Traeger nods. “Of course, sir. Some of my pa…friends and I have been working on vintage cars for years.”

I nod my head in hopes that my dad will give Traeger a chance. “You should let him help you, dad. Traeger is very good at fixing things.”

At first, it looks like my dad will refuse, but after a moment, he puckers his lips and gestures for Traeger to follow him.

I can tell that dad’s doubtful of Traeger’s abilities, but I’ve seen Traeger do some amazing things with technology, so I’m not worried.

“Alright, follow me.” He says as he ushers Traeger into the garage while Jesse follows behind them.

I want to follow, but my mom grabs me by the elbow and leads me away. “While the guys are getting to know each other, we can go upstairs, so I can show you some of the activewear I designed for my Yoga studio, honey.”

“Maybe I should─” I wave at the door.

“Oh, no, you won’t.” My mom murmurs sternly. “If you want your dad to accept Traeger, you have to let Traeger deal with him on his own.”

Sighing with resignation, I follow my mom upstairs. She’s right. I need to let Traeger win my dad over.

“So, Traeger is very handsome, honey, and I can see that he really cares for you. Are you happy?” My mom asks as she withdraws several items from the hall closet and steps inside her yoga studio.

The studio is comfortable with several mats splayed on the floor, large windows facing the bay's serene vista. The walls are a light blue color, and there are candles everywhere.

My smile widens with pleasure. “I am happy, mom. Traeger is sweet, kind, and considerate. He makes me happy, and I make him happy.”

My mom gives me a warm hug. “Oh, I can tell.”

We both sit in the middle of the room and sort through the items she carried in.

There are sweatshirts in various colors and yoga pants. We sort through them for a couple of minutes. “I love the colors,” I tell my mom. “And the materials you chose are great.”

After an hour, we head back downstairs, and to my surprise, my dad, brother, and Traeger are sitting in the kitchen talking and laughing like old friends.

Mom and I give each other a confused look before we step into the kitchen.

“Hey, what are we laughing about, boys?” My mom asks.

My dad rises from his chair, smiling widely and pulls my mom into his arms. “Good news, babe. Traeger fixed the Beetle. We were just checking under the hood, and Traeger just started doing a couple of things to it until he fixed it.” He snaps his fingers excitedly. “The thing turned on in an instant.”

His eyes search out Traeger’s. “Traeger said that he can help me restore the seats and that rusty hood.”

Traeger stands next to me and wraps his arm around my shoulder. “Arsenal knows how to restore frames, and I can help with the missing parts that your dad.”

My dad claps his hands together excitedly. He reminds me of a kid on Christmas day.

For the rest of the week, Traeger and I enjoy the holidays with my family. Arsenal showed up days ago to help Traeger, and my dad works on the Beetle, and they’re almost done fixing it.

Traeger, Jesse, and my dad become fast friends, and even my mom gets in the swing of things when Traeger helps her set up her accounting system.

When it came time to leave, my family was sad to see us go but happy that I found someone who loves me as much as Traeger. I think Traeger enjoyed it more than I did. I guess because he never had a family. My friends Kaya and Sophie love Traeger too. They met him when I moved into my dorm. We were at chatting about our schedules when Traeger knocked on the door. I had not told them about him yet. So imagine their surprise when a super gorgeous guy in a black suit jacket, white shirt and ripped jeans knocks on the door asking for me. I thought Kaya was going to faint. All Sophie could do was stand there and gawk. They got used to his looks after that. They asked him if he had any brothers, to which he replied by saying no, but he has two friends who’d enjoy their company. I can’t wait to see Arsenal and Grey’s face when they meet Kaya and Sophie.

So far, everything has been wonderful.