Page 44 of Let It Snow (Eden’s Omegaverse #7)

A month and a half ago.

I stop in the driveway of the Nolans’ estate, my stomach twisting with nerves as I grip the steering wheel and stare at the bright glow of the house’s windows.

Hard to believe, but this is the very first time I’ve ever come here, even though I’ve been involved with one of them for nearly twelve years.

I asked him if there was someone else, and he replied, "Not yet," whatever the hell that meant.

After that, nothing. No more texts. And those two weeks that followed were brutal. I tried to keep living as I always had, tried to be a good dad and a good husband. With five kids, that meant I was busy ninety percent of the time.

What surprised me was that Tim didn’t take the news well either.

I got the sense he had gotten used to me being with Snow.

Our marriage had been open for years, but he preferred me having one steady lover to switching partners every so often.

Snow’s personality suited him, too. Discreet, quiet, never intrusive.

That was exactly the kind of man Tim could accept as my lover.

So this news hit him too. Every so often, in conversation, he’d circle back to the question of whether I was planning to find someone new. But I didn’t have an answer for him, at least for now. My thoughts were still chained to Snow.

So.

Here I am now.

Sitting outside his house…

I catch sight of a figure moving past one of the windows, and a moment later the front door opens. Someone steps out onto the porch. I guess it’s Snow’s dad, Lake Nolan.

My heart leaps into my throat. Every step he takes toward my car feels like a ripple of nervous shivers running down my spine.

I can’t just sit here with the window closed. That would be rude. So I lower it and swallow hard, my mouth dry as sand.

Lake’s first look is kind and open, like maybe he thinks I’m just lost and about to ask for directions.

But then his gaze lingers on my face, and I can almost see the gears turning in his head.

I wonder if he’s seen me in campaign photos with my husband, or if Snow has told him about me or even shown him my picture himself.

After twelve years, there must have been a moment like that. At some point his parents had to notice their son disappearing for hours at a time and ask the obvious question. I know Snow’s close to his dad. They don’t talk much, true, but they understand each other.

"Theo Kellan?"

Right. He’s figured it out. I clear my throat, though it does nothing for the tightness there, and I nod.

Silence. Oh, it’s long. Too long.

It’s hard to read his face. But, frankly, just looking at him is fascinating. I haven’t known many people bonded to their True Mate, but he’s living proof of how powerful that magic is. The man is sixty-two, looking half of it.

It’s a little embarrassing. I’m forty-two, and while I’ve taken good care of myself and don’t exactly look my age, standing next to him… well, to anyone on the outside we look like peers. For some reason, that makes this whole situation even more awkward. For fuck’s sake, I had sex with his son!

I blurt out, "I know showing up here is awkward, but I really need to talk to Snow."

He still doesn’t say anything, just tilts his head slightly and studies me. I cough again, trying to get a more normal tone into my voice.

"We broke up two weeks ago, but I—"

"You broke up? I thought you were never together. You have a husband."

Interesting. Words that could sound like an accusation from someone else come out of his mouth more like a simple statement of fact. He’s not judging me, just asking where things stand.

This time I stop myself from clearing my throat again, because that would just look ridiculous.

So my voice comes out a little rough. "Yeah, I know how it looks. But my husband and I have an open marriage, so I wasn’t hurting anyone."

"I see. But if Snow ended things, what are you doing here?" His brows lift slightly. Again, no judgment, no hostility. Just calm neutrality.

"I just want to talk to him for a few minutes. It won’t take long."

Another silence, even more prolonged. Lake Nolan looks at me like he’s trying to see straight through me.

Finally he says, "I’ll ask him if he wants to talk to you." He turns to go, but I reach out fast and grab his forearm.

"Please don’t. He… he said…" I lose track of my words. "I just need to explain a few things to him. And just say goodbye. After twelve years, I didn’t even get that much. I just want to look him in the eyes and thank him for the good things between us."

My voice speeds up nervously. Of course, part of what we shared was incredible sex, but Lake Nolan doesn’t need to know that. Not that he doesn’t already suspect what the focal point of our relationship was, but still.

He looks down at my hand gripping his arm. The silence stretches before he finally nods slowly.

"All right. Even though I shouldn’t, ’cause I’m his dad. But only if you promise me this: if Snow tells you to leave and never come back, you will never return here and never try to contact him again. Agreed?"

"Yes. I just need this one conversation. After that, I won’t come back. I promise."

Lake steps back, and I roll up the window, open the door, and step out of the car.

Turns out I’m a little shorter than him. At five-six, he’s got two inches on me. His frame is lean, and his long platinum hair is tied back in a braid. Pretty gorgeous guy.

Walking beside him feels strange. I’m not surprised when we don’t go through the front door. Instead, he leads me around the house.

There’s a big patio, a pool, and beyond that, some distance away, the lake glistens.

Remarkable place to live, no doubt. But we keep walking.

We pass a small cluster of citrus trees, and beyond them is a white gravel path that leads to a door set into the side of the building.

I’m almost sure this was an addition, not part of the original structure.

A few steps descend into the ground toward it.

Lake goes down and knocks. Of course, I knew Snow lived in the basement of his parents’ house, but I always pictured it differently.

Long, narrow windows sit just above ground level, probably the only natural light down there, but every one of them is covered with blinds.

The door opens slowly, and there he is. Snow.

My heart skips a beat; he’s such a looker.

His eyes move between his dad and me. Lake gives him a small, harmless smile.

"Look who showed up, son. Maybe you’d like to have a word with him?"

Snow stays silent, just looking at me. I’ve never been good at reading his face. The only expressions I ever understood were the ones he made in pleasure, when I was riding his dick.

Lake doesn’t wait for his son’s answer. He heads back up the steps and crosses the lawn toward the patio. As he passes me, he throws a quick look my way and mutters a casual ‘bye’. There’s maybe the faintest hint of amusement on his face.

I’m left standing on the bottom step, staring at Snow.

"Hi," I say, my voice trembling. "I know I shouldn’t have come. I realize that. But I just wanted a short conversation."

I expect him to slam the door in my face, but instead he steps back. That’s his way of saying yes.

I know how this will go, mostly me talking. Snow doesn’t say much, if anything.

I step inside slowly. It’s a big space, kind of like a living room. I see three closed doors leading to other rooms. It looks like Snow has a full apartment down here, a way to keep himself separate from the family upstairs. He moves to the couch and sits down, his calm face turning toward me.

I join him, sitting close to him. What shocks me most is that I can’t smell him.

Snow never used Allure suppressants. Why has he started now? And I loved his scent so much, the fresh air over the heather moors, the crisp morning breeze.

He and I are High Mates, a compatibility people say is nearly perfect, just one step below True Mates. Our chemistry was always easy.

"You’re on suppressants," I whisper.

But he doesn’t answer; well, Snow rarely responds to things that are obvious. If I’ve already noticed it, there’s no reason for him to confirm it. That’s always been his approach.

"Well, I got your texts, but after twelve years, a breakup by text feels a little… I don’t know. Something’s missing. It makes it seem like all those years meant nothing to you. You didn’t even give me the chance to say—"

I stop. He watches me closely, that eternal calm of his now driving me crazy, even though I always valued it before.

I’ve always been nervous, a little shy, and his cool, grounding energy balanced me.

Maybe that was the secret behind why we are High Mates, why being with him always felt so right.

And I don’t want to lose that, but I know that once he’s made a decision, there’s nothing I can do to change it.

"I know what we had was never really possible, but there’s something I’ve wanted to tell you. Something I’ve carried all these years but never let myself say, because I didn’t want to hurt you, and I didn’t want to hurt myself." My voice drops to a whisper, emotion swelling in my chest.

Snow’s gaze flicks to my torso, like he can actually see it, the wound in me, and he probably can. His gift is unique. He sees things others miss: energy, invisible emotions, colors, and sounds from reality that an ordinary mortal could never comprehend.

I turn toward him and instinctively reach out. My fingers land on his solid, muscular shoulder.

"I love you."

The words shake in my throat, and my fingers drift across his body. Dear Fate, I’ve missed the warmth of his skin, his touch.

Snow doesn’t pull away, but he doesn’t respond either. Something has changed. What used to be easy between us, smooth and effortless, feels broken now. Our touch had always flowed into hours of lovemaking, and it was divine. Because sex with Snow was never just sex. It was magic.