Page 96 of Shifted Desire

It takes everything in me to tamp down the panic her words invoke. “Oh, uh, she’s busy that day, but I’ll absolutely introduce you once we’ve made things official. After the wedding. I want to make sure everything goes okay with transforming with her first… Would hate to introduce you and then immediately scare her away.”

Shane nods. “Of course. Whenever you’re ready, we’ll be happy to meet her. If she’s special to you, then she’ll no doubt be special to us.”

I smile, swallowing against the guilt.

She’s already very special to them, and that’s the problem.

Please, gods, let them be even a fraction as understanding when Samantha and I come clean. I can’t bear the thought of losing any of them.

35

“If you brought me to a strip club, I’m going to kill you.”

Max grips my hand so hard it hurts as I lead him, blindfolded, inside the club, nodding at the leather-clad man at the door as we pass.

“We both know I’d win in a fight,” I tease back, guiding him to the reserved table right by the stage. Some of his friends have already arrived, and they greet us as we approach with a cheer.

“Can I please take this damn thing off now?” Max grumbles, though I know he’s secretly loving it.

It’s very difficult to surprise my brother. He’s a private investigator like our dad, an empath like our mom, and excels at sneaking around and finding out secrets. So the fact that he doesn’t know where I’ve brought him for his bachelor party is a feat to be proud of. Especially since some of the members of his monster support group are blabbermouths.

“Are all the clowns in place?” I stage-whisper, and Max huffs in frustration.

“Please tell me you didn’t get me clowns.”

“Clown strippers, to be more precise,” I say deadpan, and he rips his blindfold off with a scowl.

Max blinks, adjusting to the lighting of the club, his frustration melting away as he sees what’s projected onto the screen at the back of the stage. He smiles at me in disbelief. “No way! I was bummed that they were in town the same night as my bachelor party.”

I grin back at him, beyond pleased by his genuinely surprised reaction. “Yes, well, I decided that I’d cancel my deposit at the strippers and clowns place and get us tickets for this instead. That’s how much I love you.”

The truth is that I was going to bring him to a board game cafe, as he requested, but saw that his favorite nerdy podcast was doing a live show and knew it’d be perfect for him.

He pulls me into a bear hug, and I let out a dramatic oof. “Thanks Sam. This is amazing.”

“Anything for my annoying little brother.”

He grins as he lets go, and my chest squeezes at how happy he looks. I can sit through an hour of nerdy comedians that I know nothing about if it means he’s having a good time. Though Mona’s bachelorette party would’ve been more my speed, given that her bestie Grace hired D&D-themed strippers.

Max’s friends exchange hugs with him, all of them equally enthusiastic about celebrating my brother. It’s amazing to see how much his life has changed since he moved to Moonvale, and I can’t help the prickle of jealousy I feel at how he’s found such a supportive group of friends in a short time.

I wonder if Nathan would be willing to move out of the city so we could be closer to Moonvale. The drive is only about an hour if you don’t go during rush hour, but if he didn’t want to do that during the week maybe we could get a place in Moonvale to spend our weekends…

My stomach jolts as I realize that I’m planning a future with Nathan where we’re living together. Where we move to the fucking suburbs and have dinner parties and book clubs with our neighbors. And I don’t hate the idea at all.

If I hadn’t already known I was in love with him, that’d sure as hell clue me in.

We order a round of drinks and snacks for the table before the show starts. I sit next to Max, but he’s chatting with his friends about the podcast, so I pull out my phone and check my texts.

Nathan: Have fun tonight. I’ll be thinking of you.

When I see Nathan’s most recent message, sent this morning after I reluctantly left his place to go home and do final prep for the party, there’s a sharp pang of longing.

I wish he were here. Max would’ve been happy to invite him, but he couldn’t come. Not when tonight is the full moon.

The house lights dim, and I put my phone away, trying to push down the ridiculous part of me that misses Nathan even though we saw each other earlier. My thoughts keep straying to him, wondering if he’s doing alright, wishing I could be there to help him though I know he won’t let me. The show is funny enough, but it’s hard to laugh and not feel guilty when the man you love is off somewhere dealing with heavy shit while you’re out partying.

Once the show ends, and Max gets to have the meet and greet with the podcasters that I arranged for him and his friends, we head to the barcade next door for more drinks. Max is so happy that he doesn’t even complain when I reveal the cake shaped like boobs. At least I went with the tasteful option that includes a bra. He flushes a little, and his friends tease him, but it’s all in good fun.