Page 36

There’s a knock on the door, and it echoes through Nix’s family’s house. He can tell it’s Mrs. Stavros, discernible by the scent of Turkish Delight and the White Diamonds perfume she’d always worn, wafting on the warm breeze through the screen door and down the hall.

It’s a weird thing to remember about your neighbor. Still, it’s part of the sense memory from his earliest years, when his desire for physical touch extended to all the familiar adults in his life, as well as a few unfamiliar ones.

For a minute, Nix thinks he could ignore her. Just settle here in the morning sun, while wisps of his happy memories float like motes of dust through his mind.

But he would never be rude, and he knows they should head back to the safe house before anyone worries—before Grayson or Rowan or even Jamie can’t take one more minute of out-of-sight, never-out-of-mind.

It’s not that he wants to keep them out, but that he’s just not ready to have all of his loves and their anger-sadness-happiness-fear emoting all over his parents’ house.

He loves them—each of them—but he needs to dig his own emotions out of the box before he’s up to reassuring them as he’d like.

It’s why Gideon had been the perfect choice to accompany him back here.

Not because Gideon didn’t worry about Nix’s pain, because anyone who really knew him would know that’s not true, but because Gideon had the same pain from similar experiences. It meant Nix had someone with him who knew that reassurances or platitudes weren’t always what he needed.

Sometimes, he had to just sit with it. It’s what his therapist says: that sometimes, when there’s no making the hurt go away, you just have to experience it or see it through so you can get to the other side.

That’s what it meant for Nix to be here in the house when his mom was gone, when it’s quiet without her laughter, and the scent of her perfume has faded.

Gideon just made sure that while he might have to sit with it, he didn’t have to do it alone. They could be in the same boat, and Nix could still ride his waves alone.

Or whatever. It made sense to him.

He must hesitate too long after the knock because his old (new?) neighbor opens the screen door and calls out tentatively.

“Nix? It’s Elena Stavros, may I come in?”

“Mrs. Stavros. Sure, come on in.” He rolls to his feet, hauling Gideon up after him. He’s just pulling down his T-shirt over his girls when her head pops around the corner.

Ha, that sounds like an old boob joke.

“Good morning!” She arrives in the empty living room, spotting him and Gideon.

“Morning. I’m Nix’s neighbor, Elena.” She offers her hand so Gideon can take it in a gentle shake.

“Mrs. S, this is my Gideon. Gideon, this is Mrs. Stavros.”

“Ah, yes, the maker of dinner. I remember. Nice to meet you. I’m sorry to intrude, but I heard from the home security company this morning that a code other than mine had been used to enter, and they wanted to check in. I told them you would be making more visits, yes?”

Would he?

Would he return now, knowing this place was waiting for him?

He wants to say no and yes, both at once.

No, because it’s painful—being here when his family isn’t and never will be—is almost unbearable.

But yes, too, because this is the closest he’s been to them in a decade.

And though it hurts, it’s also a balm. It’s freeing in its own way—a place to remember them, something real, something his.

Gideon throws a shielding arm around his shoulder, and Nix takes strength from his silent show of support.

“I think so, yes. If it works out with everyone and after my…” His babies. His eyes pop wide when he thinks about how he’s going to explain that.

Does she know about omegas?

How his babies were created?

He’s not ashamed of that, or at least his wolf reminds him they should be proud.

Two babies at once. Two!

Even so, Nix isn’t sure he’s up to a conversation about that with dear Mrs. Stavros.

Her eyes widen, too, but then her face creases with a smile, a small blush on her cheeks.

“Oh, yes. Well. Did you know that when you were small and I was pregnant with my daughter Celeste, you would sneak through the fence and sit with your cheek on my belly until your father or mother would come to find you? I asked you once what you were doing, especially near the end of my pregnancy, and you told me, I’m just waiting, Mrs. S. Y ou were— are such a lovely boy.”

She glances at Gideon before steadily meeting Nix’s gaze, but she is careful not to look at his obviously round belly. Even though Nix’s wolf might like to announce his joy to the world, alphas usually don’t like unknown Weres thinking about their offspring.

“I understand that the idea of this is new to most of the world, Nix. But in my village on Crete, back when I was a girl, I knew a boy who was well-loved by his pack and had two fathers. I am happy for you and your pack.”

“Really? You don’t think it’s weird?”

His words are a surprise to him because he certainly didn’t think it was weird, and he hardly knew Mrs. S well enough to be bothered by her opinion.

But he finds he is trying to mesh both sides of his life; his human past and his Were future have converged in the wave of self-doubt.

Mrs. Stavros remembers his mom, and somehow it’s all mixed up with her in his mind.

“Weird? Of course not. You will make an excellent father. Would have, even if you hadn’t come to it this way.

I knew it then because Celeste loved you—fussy little duck that she was.

She’s getting her degree in medicine now, and with omegas coming out of hiding all over the world, she’s quite excited to choose a specialty in Andrology. ”

“Our mate is an Andrology specialist,” Gideon offers, his pride in Finn obvious in his smile—and in the fact that he offered the information to a stranger in the first place.

“Oh? She is thinking about trying to study at Vanderbilt. There is a foremost authority there. Have you heard of him? I can’t recall his name, but she says he’s a genius.

She’s quite the fan. They’re already offering supplemental classes this year here at Florida State, but it’s not the same as learning from a groundbreaking researcher—or so I’m told. ”

Nix chuckles. “I’ve heard he’s handsome, too.”

“Oh? Have you heard of him? Perhaps Celeste should study in Nashville. Although, I hear he’s mated with a pack.” She sighs, as every matchmaking mother is wont to do when faced with a marriage-worthy candidate who has proven out of reach.

“He does have a pack. They’re very territorial. He has an omega mate who is quite fierce,” Gideon teases, and Nix elbows him in the side.

“He does? My goodness. Sotiris’s pateras were notoriously possessive.” She sighs again in remembrance and then pats Nix’s arm. “Ah! You have me off on a tangent.”

“I will happily leave you my contact information in Nashville, and you can pass it along to Celeste. We would be happy to make her feel at home.”

“Such a lovely boy. She will be thrilled to hear it when she gets to that point in her career. She was quite fond of you. Now, did you have any questions for me about the keys?”

Nix’s stomach pitched and rolled at the reminder of the things in storage, and he was smart enough to lock down the bonds at that moment, so as not to cause a four-alarm alpha stampede from two blocks over.

Gideon shivers when he does it, but he doesn’t comment on it—only offers a tense smile and plows ahead. “Thank you, Mrs. Stavros. Just the banking information, perhaps? The others are labeled. ”

“Of course! Guardian Security is a private facility in Tampa. I have the will and other papers in a file at home. Rose and David appointed me co-executor to administer the estate.” Mrs. Stavros smiled conversationally.

“Oh, yes. The law protects minor beneficiaries, you know? I don’t know what your grandmother intended to do with this house, but…well, your grandmother wasn’t happy that the care of the house fell to me, along with other assets, Nix. Still, it’s an honor to be entrusted with this legacy—”

Gideon’s burner phone interrupts her rambling discourse. With a resigned sigh, he hands it to Nix.

It’s an opportune interruption, as nausea at the mention of his parents’ names and the words beneficiaries and executor and will swells in his stomach.

“Excuse me, Mrs. Stavros. Nix is going to take this call, and I can accompany you to retrieve that file. Would that be alright? He’ll see you later in the week to catch up.”

“Yes, of course. Goodbye, my dear.”

Nix returns her wave with a smile and listens as the screen door bangs shut after them. It shakes loose another memory of summers with his sister Ivy, but he sweeps it away with his finger on the answer button.

“Hello?”

“Nix?” It’s Rowan, and he’s whispering so quietly that the phone is barely picking it up.

“Ro? Why are you whispering?”

He pulls the edge of the window blind aside, and he can just see Mrs. Stavros disappear into her home while Gideon stays by the fence. He looks up like he knows Nix is watching and waves.

“What? No. I’m not whispering. But if you could keep your voice down?”

Hmm. That’s suspicious.

“Are you hiding from Jamie? Did you steal a phone so you could call me?”

“Steal is a strong word.”

“Rowan.”

“Well. The babies are hungry, right? And then you went and turned the bond off for a minute, and I was okay—” He squeaks and stops for a second when a door slams nearby.

When it’s quiet, he starts up even quieter than before.

“Where was I? Oh yeah. I was— am okay, but Grayson is growly and glowy and now I have Finn’s phone with the app on it and—oof, ow! No! It’s my turrrrr—”

There’s a scuffle, and the phone hits something hard, followed by a smacking sound and a groan. Nix looks at the phone, wishing he could figure out what the hell was going on.

“Rowan?”