~~
Trinity
~~
After we left the clinic I had a request for Reece that I wasn't sure he would allow. I knew how things were right now and this request was not in line with that. I knew that I had to be with someone capable of protecting me at all times, a guard or Reece himself. But still, I had to ask him.
"Reece, could you do me a favor?" I gave him a sweet look as he turned toward me.
"What is it Little Bunny?" He asked me. I used to hate that nickname, but over the last several months I had grown used to him calling me by it. Just like Reece had gotten used to and possibly even grown to like his little nicknames, I had grown to like him calling me Little Bunny. I knew that it was his way of being affectionate with me. I had learned long ago that he called me that name not to annoy me but as a term of endearment. I couldn't always say the same for when I called him a dog name, that usually happened out of frustration but I did think it was cute (and very funny).
"I want to go home, not our home, but to Aunt Eve and Uncle Wesley. I want to spend time with them before the wedding."
"But I have a few meetings this afternoon. I would have to take you home first."
"Could you just drop me off if I swear not to leave their house until you or someone else comes to get me?" He gave me a stern look, clearly not pleased.
"You know that things aren't safe right now." His voice was filled with exasperation.
"I know Reece, but their house is in the upper part of the compound with lots of strong neighbors. And it's not like I will be out of the compound. I will not be alone and unattended, I will be surrounded by the pack." He looked contemplative at my words.
"You have valid points. Fine, I'll allow it, as long as you promise me you won't leave their house until I come back." I smiled at his words.
"Thank you, Reece." Joy filled my voice.
I looked out the car window as he drove back toward the compound, my phone pressed to my ear as I listened to the ringing on the other end. Aunt Eve answered relatively quickly.
"Hello Trinity, how are you sweet heart?" Aunt Eve always answered the phone like she hadn't seen me in so long. She had been at the house just last night and still answered the phone like that.
"I am fine, Aunt Eve. I was wondering if you were free today, I wanted to spend the day with you and Uncle Wesley."
"I would love to spend the day with you, and thankfully he hasn't left yet, I'll let him know your plans now." I could hear her calling out to him telling him what I wanted. He sounded happy as he told her that he would call into work and let them know. I felt bad making him call off, but his boss was pack and he would not be upset if told that the Luna wanted to spend the day with him.
"Alright, I will be there soon. Reece will be dropping me off and picking me up later. I had to promise not to leave the house without him." I laughed at his protectiveness, I found it sweet but still funny.
"That's fine, we can spend a nice day in."
Fifteen minutes later Reece pulled up in front of their house. He got out and walked around the car to open my door. Today he was driving the mustang to instead of one of the fancier or more plain cars. I guess this one could be counted as middle ground. Either way, he smoothly and elegantly opened the door and offered me his hand to help me out, he was a real gentleman sometimes.
"Thank you, Benji." I joked with him to break the seriousness of the moment.
"Be good." He told me as he leaned down and gave me a quick, chaste kiss, Aunt Eve had already opened the door and was watching us.
"What time should I expect you?"
"Between four and five. We can grab dinner after."
"Reece, if you'd like you can have dinner with us tonight." Aunt Eve called out.
"That would be nice, Eve, thank you." He smiled at her before turning back to me. "I will be back later." He gave me another quick kiss. "I love you." he said before walking back around the car. I walked to the porch with Aunt Eve then watched him drive away.
Once we were inside I gave them both hugs and smiled at the nostalgia of being back in the home I was raised in. I had spent a lot of time with Aunt Eve and Uncle Wesley since leaving, but I hadn't really been back home.
"So what brings you here today?" Uncle Wesley asked me in a happy tone. "I'm glad you're here, don't get me wrong, I'm just curious."
"I just wanted to spend some time home before I'm officially not Trinity Whitton anymore. Right now everyone in this room is a Whitton, but in two days I will be a Gray." I smiled at them.
"No matter what the last name says, you will always be a Whitton, you just get to be both." Aunt Eve smiled at me as she wrapped her arm around my shoulder and led me into the spacious kitchen I had practically grown up in. She had already prepped lots of ingredients on the counter so we could bake the rest of the morning away. "Just like I became a Whitton when I married Wesley, I am also still a Smythe." She was smiling easily just like always.
"Aunt Eve, have I told you that you're the best mom I could have asked for?" I felt happy, emotional tears sting in the back of my eyes.
"I think you might have told me that a time or two before. And just like I always say, I'm happy I could be there to step in for your mother. I really wish you could have known her but I'm sure she is proud of you as she watches over you from her eternal hunt." The eternal hunt was the wolf version of heaven, where the spirit of our human and the spirit of our wolf would merge and roam happily and freely for all eternity or until we were reincarnated.
"I wish I could have known her too, but you and Uncle Wesley kept her memory alive just so I could learn about her."
"You look like her too, you know that?" Uncle Wesley smiled. "Your hair, your face, even your short stature. She was shorter than the average female in the pack too." I had heard all this before but it was nice to hear.
"Uncle Wesley," I smiled tearfully at him, "I know you miss her. And I know that even if my mother had never died, you would have been the best man in my life. You gave me all the love you had for your sister plus some. You were the best dad I could ever have wanted or asked for." He hugged me again, even though I had just hugged him a few minutes ago.
"May I ask you guys something. This may sound strange, as I am not a child anymore and I am about to get married and start my own family."
"What?"
"What is it sweetheart." Uncle Wesley and Aunt Eve asked me curiously.
"Can I drop the aunt and uncle names, and call you Mom and Dad? I know you're not my biological parents, and I don't want to act like my mother never existed, but you are the only parents I have ever known and I feel sad that I never called you by the titles you should have had this whole time." I saw the shocked looks on their faces and immediately thought they were unhappy with the idea. That is until they both smiled with wide, happy grins and Aunt Eve began to cry.
"Oh, Trinity, I would be honored if you called me Mom." She hugged me tightly.
"I can't think of anything that would make me happier right now." Added Uncle Wesley, no, Dad.
I spent the rest of the morning making different desserts and sweets with Mom, and helping prepare a special dinner for Reece tonight. The three of us talked and reminisced about the past all day. We also speculated on the future and how we thought my baby and Nikki's baby would be toward each other. I had been needing this time with my family, my parents.
By the time the baking fest was done we had snowball cookies, peanut butter fudge cookies, blueberry scones, apple pie bombs, and salty sweet candy bark. We had way more than we needed and I planned on giving some to all my guards to help share the bounty. It had just been so long since I baked with Mom that I wanted to bake all our favorites. Goddess, Mom felt nice to think and say but was awkward still.
