Matt shuffled out of the bedroom the next morning, into the bathroom, glad Steve had relented and let him stay at his place instead of the bunkhouse. It wasn't until he came out and headed for the kitchen, in search of coffee that he noticed the pair asleep on the sofa. He stopped and blinked. Technically, only Steve was on the sofa, JV was curled on top of him, snoring softly. 

Matt stood, staring at the couple. Steve looked more relaxed than he'd seen him in years. Matt had been aware for some time that since Steve had gotten out of the Marines, he'd been on edge, as though he was always waiting for an attack. Haunted was the only way he could describe it. Now, the troubled look was gone, he looked like the guy he’d gone to school with.

Matt watched the two of them sleep for several moments. Noting the way Steve held her, protecting her even in his sleep. He took a deep breath and let it out in a silent rush before continuing past the sofa into the kitchen. Opening cabinets until he found the canister of coffee, he filled the percolator and put it on the stove. On his way back through the living room he saw that Steve was awake. The man on the couch met his look and placed a single finger against his lips, letting Matt know his sister was still sleeping, as if the quiet noise still coming from her wasn’t enough.

Matt nodded, looked at the pair for another long moment then started for his room. After just a few steps he stopped, turned on his heal and went quietly out the front door. On the porch, he quickly shed his clothes, dropping them on a porch chair, and shifted. Once in his cougar form, he bounded off the porch and into the nearby trees. 

* * *

Later, after returning from his run to find the small house empty, Matt showered and dressed before going back to the kitchen for some of the coffee he'd made earlier. He poured a cup and focused his attention out the window over the sink, sipping the steaming liquid and thinking.

He'd come here to take his sister home. To protect her from a man he believed was too hard for her tender heart. He'd been sure it was the right thing, but after what he'd seen this morning he was having second thoughts. 

He'd been sure they were too different. Growing up, Steve had been kind of wild, but so had Matt. They'd partied and run around together throughout high school. The Steve he'd known then would have been a better match for his sister than the dark, angry version that had returned after his time with the military. Matt didn't know what had happened to his friend while he'd been gone, only that he’d spent time overseas. He’d returned a different person than the happy, teasing young man who’d left.

Come to think of it, JV wasn’t the person she’d been then either. It had been years since he'd lived in the same house with her. She'd barely been a teenager the last time he'd spent more than a few days with her, usually when home visiting. She'd been a vivacious, outgoing kid. Somewhere along the line, something had happened to change that. Matt didn't know exactly when, only that it had been sometime while she was in college. Since then, she’d been reserved and far more careful than before. The JV he'd known would never have carried a pistol, much less have been able to point it at anyone. 

Matt drained the last swallow from his cup and refilled it. He needed to spend more time with his sister and this was the perfect opportunity. The night before, the clan leaders had invited him to stay for the weekend with them; it was a good excuse not to have to go home to his empty apartment. It was a little late now to spend the holiday with their folks. Besides, they would only ask if he was seeing anyone and he wasn't ready to face that. It had been two years since he'd lost Connie and while they hadn’t been mated, he’d loved her. He still couldn't think about another woman. He frowned. Perhaps that was what had happened to Steve, maybe he'd lost a woman, maybe even a potential mate. 

Matt shook himself from his dark thoughts. He took his cup with him as he went up to the main house to see what everyone was up to.