Enforcing Boundaries

Chapter 26

Lachlan

I was eating a late lunch in the kitchen, looking around and trying to assimilate that this place was my home now. It was harder to believe when Magnus wasn't here with me, but he and Jason had gone to the pack house to help Anita snoop.

Still... it was a nice place. Safiya was going to absolutely love it, with its homey touches and with the big, open spaces. There were a lot of windows, so it was bright inside even though none of the lights were on. Natural light was so much more pleasant than artificial – it might be my favorite part of the house, after the balcony. Okay, and after Magnus' bathroom. That shower was incredible.

Mel had been in her bedroom since before I came down to make a sandwich, but she bounded down the stairs now, pausing for just a moment too long when she saw me.

Awkward.

This was her home and I wasn't sure Magnus had even warned her before I moved in. I set my sandwich down, suddenly much less hungry than I had been a minute ago, and studied her.

After a long moment of watching each other, Mel's eyes crinkled and she smiled softly. "I was actually hoping to catch you alone," she said, coming to sit across from me.

"Oh?"

"I just... I wanted to know how you felt about your mate's older sister living with you." Before I could respond, she hurriedly added, "I want the truth. No hard feelings no matter what."

Actually... I hadn't really thought about Mel living here. And if Mel was planning to stay, did that mean Jason would too? For that matter, how exactly was their relationship supposed to work? He would have to go back to his job after Magnus' case was closed, wouldn't he?

It was obvious I was trying Mel's patience. She crossed her arms over her chest and tapped her fingers against them as she watched me and waited. "It doesn't bother me," I said honestly. I knew how much Magnus loved her, and this really was too much house for two people. I had thought that all along.

"You're not telling me everything," she accused.

I held up my hands placatingly. "It's the truth, I swear. I was just wondering about how Jason fits into all this."

Mel sighed and sagged back against her chair. "Yeah, I wonder that too. We kind of jumped into the mating and now we're trying to figure out how we can both keep our jobs without barely seeing each other."

I grimaced sympathetically. That did sound hard. At least my job could be done from anywhere with an internet connection. Jason's would take him all over, and Mel's... well, I wasn't totally sure what she did for a living. "Any ideas so far?" I asked.

Mel shrugged and took the untouched half of my sandwich from my plate. She took a bite and grimaced. "Ugh, mustard."

"Serves you right," I said, glaring at the sandwich she tossed back onto my plate. I got up and made another sandwich, cutting it in half this time before putting mustard on one side of it. When I sat back down, I took my half and slid the plate to Mel, who smiled gratefully.

"So, do you have any ideas?" I prodded.

"Not really. I need to stay local for my job and Jason has to travel for his. We don't really have a choice here. Either we have a long-distance relationship or one of us finds another job." Mel took a massive bite, then sighed dramatically after she chewed and swallowed. "I'd rather give up my job than be separated from him so often."

"I can imagine," I said. No way would I do anything that kept me from Magnus for long.

"But... I don't want to leave my family behind. I've been hoping Jason will be the one to switch jobs. That sounds awful, but he doesn't have roots like I do. Besides, there aren't really any paralegal jobs I can have that will let me travel with him. I could find a job in Albuquerque and we would see each other more than if I lived here, but he would still be away a lot."