Chapter 3
"You won mom over easily," Spencer told Dave and Michelle.
"It's obvious that your mother loves you," Michelle told her fiancé seriously, "and she only wants what's best for you."
"Really, all we did was act normally. What we're really like. So long as we don't mention anything like mates and immortality she has no reason to be suspicious," Dave said. "I spoke the truth when I told her about Letty and that she had been dead for a very long time. Your mother recognized that I wasn't lying and anyway, why would I? It's obvious I'm still grieving for her death many centuries ago, even if I didn't say that."
"It was obvious that the death of dad's mate still affects him even today," Michelle said quietly.
"Mom is a smart woman," Lynnette said. "So, I'm sure that she picked up the signs that Dave was still grieving, even after decades and decades. Still, you're right it went very well, but then, all mom wanted was for us to get married to someone we loved and to have children."
"Along with careers that will make us happy," Spencer said, even as he kissed Michelle on the cheek. He had been so much happier lately with Michelle at his side and while immortality was a strange concept to him he had finally accepted it. He wasn't one to usually believe in the supernatural and that's exactly what immortality was. Spencer had since learned that there were other forces in the universe other than those that were obvious.
The supernatural was hidden from the rest of the world and for very good reason. Spencer well knew what happened to such groups and that there would be a lot of deaths and murders before all was said and done. People like his father would hate anything that reeked of the supernatural just on principal and just because it wasn't considered normal. His father had hated his children after all and for no reason really, when he should have loved them, because they were of his blood. A father who couldn't love his own children would definitely hate something that he would consider abominations, even though the supernatural had been around for a very long time, even if it was hidden from most everyone. Unfortunately, there were a lot of people that shared his father's views so Spencer could understand why anything supernatural was hidden from most people.
"And you've certainly been happier, since you left that dead end job," Michelle told Spencer. "They didn't appreciate you there and I know you were bored."
"Yes, well, you and Dave made me see the light. Your right about everything you said," Spencer said.
"Of course they are," Lynnette told her brother. "You were in no way reaching your potential at your previous job."
"Hopefully, you'll like the job I have in mind for you," Dave told Spencer seriously. "You'll certainly be paid better."
"I'm sure I will," Spencer said with a smile being very sincere.
"As to your music career Lynnette I'll make some calls to people I know," Dave said.
"I'm in no hurry," Lynnette told Dave. "We can worry about that after we get married. It's not like I'm in desperate need of money not only with you in my life, but I have plenty I made from my previous contracts, as I'm not one to spend outrageously like some women who have money are. Mom taught all of us how to save up money for a rainy day, as you never know what curveballs life will bring."
"OK then," Dave agreed smiling, as he put an arm around her shoulders. "We'll wait until after we're married then, definitely after the honeymoon.
"I'm looking forward to it," Lynnette said smiling, as she kissed Dave's cheek affectionately.
"So are we," Michelle put in and Spencer nodded enthusiastically.
"I certainly am looking forward to us going on a honeymoon after we get married."
"Wow! You sure have changed, brother," Lynnette teased him.
"That's mostly thanks to you and also Roxie," Spencer said gratefully. "You stopped me from denying my feelings for Michelle and all because of a father who didn't care what kind of damage he was doing to his children."
"Yeah, thanks, Lynnette," Michelle added. "If not for you, I would've had a much harder time getting Spencer to realize that he loved me. He was all set to deny himself happiness, just because of your bastard of a father."
"It was my pleasure I promise you and if I hadn't come to visit my brother, I never would've met Dave, as I told mom at dinner the other night," Lynnette said.
"Which would've been a fate worse than death," Dave put in pulling Lynnette closer.
"I absolutely agree with that," Lynnette said, even as she cuddled into Dave side.
Spencer and Michelle smiled at the happy couple. Spencer admitted that it was nice to see his sister so happy. The night terrors had completely vanished now that she had met Dave and she looked healthy and radiantly happy.
Even the bags under her eyes were gone.
~~~Dave and Lynnette~~~
"Hey Spencer," came the voice of James, Michelle's brother.
"Hey, yourself James," Spencer said looking up from the book he had borrowed from Dave's library. "What can I do for you?"
It was a real book, of course not an electronic one and Spencer was just enjoying holding, a real leather bound book in his hands and flipping the pages.
"Well, for one thing you can call me Jim instead of James, as we're going to be family, since you're marrying my sister in a few weeks," James answered. "As for the other thing, I just thought we could get to know each other better. We hardly know anything about each other after all. "
"What do you want to know?" Spencer asked.
"Well, for one thing..." James began. He was immediately interrupted by Dave who came into the room.
"Dad," James greeted.
"Jim," Dave acknowledged. "Where's your brother?"
"I have no idea where Tristan is," James replied.
"If you're looking for Michelle or Lynnette though they and mom went shopping. Something to do with the wedding. Unfortunately, mom is leaving tomorrow, as she has to work on Monday," Spencer said.
"Yes I know where they are," Dave said smiling. "I can hardly wait until my wedding day and I never imagined I'd be able to say that. As for your mother, she's welcome at any time, as I knew this was just a short visit to meet me and Michelle."
"I never knew you met your mate centuries ago until recently," James told his father.
"I didn't tell anyone until I told Mellie after she had met Spencer," Dave said. "It was simply too painful Jim to talk about. My sleeping patterns have certainly returned to what they used to be since Lynnette and I met."
"Is that why you always stayed up until nearly dawn a lot of days?" James asked his father curiously. "Is that why you didn't sleep at night like most people?"
"That's why," Dave confirmed, "when I tried to sleep at night like I used to after Letty's murder I had dreams about the mate I had lost. About the fire that killed her. If I took naps in the daytime I did better. I didn't have dreams then and no, I don't know why."
"You know that my sister started dreaming to Jim once she hit 30. I didn't want to believe the dreams meant anything at first, but they had been going on for months before she told me about them. The same ones again and again. There were variations, but it was still basically the same dream. Dreams don't usually repeat over several months unless they mean something or at least that's what I'd read anyway. Now, I know there's some validity to the theory I'd read about. I remember how exhausted she looked as if she wasn't getting enough sleep. Now, the deep bags beneath her eyes and her exhausted posture have vanished ever since she met Dave."
"Just as my dreams have vanished," Dave said.
"That you met your mate again after all these centuries is really amazing dad," James said.
"I know it is," Dave agreed while a grinned, as he thought of Lynnette. "I'll be forever so grateful that the gods decided it was time for us to meet again and while I wish it had happened sooner I'm just grateful that she's here now. I'm not about to blaspheme against the gods as that would be foolhardy."
"I never thought I'd say this, but you're good for her," Spencer told Dave, as he had set his book aside as he been listening to the conversation. "I know I argued at first about the immortality thing, but that was only because I didn't understand. Now I'm very happy for you both."
"I'm certainly happy for you to be joining the family Spencer," Dave said warmly. "That I met your sister through you was the best day of my many centuries. And I knew you were only arguing because you love your sister and you also didn't believe in immortality or in the supernatural at all. Michelle and I can definitely understand that."
"I definitely understand where you're coming from," James added. "If dad hadn't adopted Tristan and me we wouldn't have believed in immortality either. That dad cared enough to adopt us that just shows he's a good person and while the immortality thing caught me by surprise, I wouldn't have it any other way."
"You and your brother have brought me great happiness Jim," Dave told his oldest son patting him on the back. "You certainly helped with the loneliness, but now I don't expect to be lonely again anytime soon, since me and my mate have been reunited but you understand my point."
"I do dad," James said, even though he had yet to meet his own mate.
The four of them chatted for a couple of hours until the ladies finally arrived home from whatever they had been doing for the wedding.
~~~Dave and Lynnette~~~