Page 18 of The Alpha Grizzly’s Mate (Omegas of the Shifter Mafia #8)

Colson

“Are you ready to go outside, Seth?” I asked.

Seth was just like the other kids in his love of the outdoors. We spent the majority of our days out there. It was an unexpected bonus of living in the den, and I was there for it.

He looked up with his big eyes that mirrored my grandfather’s, and I picked him up. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

I settled Seth into the baby wrap and grabbed my baby bag along with it.

Before I had children, I’d never been one for carrying lots of things, and now it seemed I was a master at carrying all the things. But I discovered very early on that if you didn’t have everything with you, you were going to need literally everything.

If I only brought a diaper and some wipes, there was going to be a blowout, and he’d need new clothes. If I only brought part of a package of wipes, there was going to be a mess that needed the entire thing. If I planned on being back before naptime, he would fall asleep, and I’d need his carrier. Fatherhood was a crash course in being prepared for anything.

I joined the others outside. The den was having an impromptu picnic—the day was gorgeous, and not much needed to be done around the den lands. It was perfect.

There were blankets spread on the ground, a few games on the picnic tables, and a makeshift play area for the kids, including a homemade version of croquet where each of the pegs had a different color, shape, and number. It was one of my brother-in-law’s ways of helping the kids learn their basics, and it was pretty freaking adorable.

Plus, what kid didn’t like hitting balls with hammers? None that I knew of.

“Hey, may I join you?”

Patty patted the blanket, and I sat beside her.

“It’s gonna cost you a tax, though.” She held out grabby hands.

“What do you think, Seth? Should we pay the tax, or should we be tax evaders?” I used the singsong silly voice he loved so much.

“If you want to endure an audit, go for it,” she teased right back as I got him out and handed him to her.

All my fears that she was going to hold me accountable for the death of her mate faded away. She and I got along beautifully, and the kids all considered a grandmother. Levi said he’d never seen her this happy and carefree, and I couldn’t help but wonder how many years she suffered—probably abuse, but also the uncertainty of knowing she had a mate that could get into trouble without even trying.

“I made extra sandwiches,” she said. “I didn’t know if you were going to have time.”

“I didn’t, but I believe Levi said he was going to work on that.” He was a great mate, always ready and willing to give a hand.

She giggled. “Okay, let me rephrase. I made you sandwiches to save you from his interesting combinations.”

I didn’t need to question what she meant by that. She wasn’t wrong, as I knew firsthand. The combinations were ones he loved—and maybe some people did as well—but I was pretty basic. My turkey sandwiches had tomato and mayonnaise. That was it. Anything beyond that was too fancy for my tastebuds.

Levi, however, put an entire salad on his. With dressing. And mustard. To me, that was just a no.

And the different things he put with peanut butter… Basically, if you could spread it on bread, he thought it went with peanut butter. He was wrong.

But I always thanked him and ate it with glee because he was willing to do the cooking, so I could take a nap with the baby or play with the kids. And for that, I was beyond appreciative.

I way lying on my back, letting the sun warm my face, when the phone buzzed in my hip pocket.

Most people here didn’t carry theirs at all, but it was a habit from living in the city.

“I’ll be right back.”

I got up, answering it as I went. It was probably my father. We still didn’t have a good relationship. We never would. But I was trying. I’d sent him baby pictures when Seth was born, and we’d slowly been building our relationship/

Levi and I both felt he deserved the right to know his grandchild, just as much as our son deserved to know his roots.

I wouldn’t let him become part of that world. But, visits? Zooms? Those I could handle.

“Hey, Father. What’s up?”

“What’s up? Is that any way to talk to me?” Unsure if he was joking, I erred on the side of not.

“No, sir. What can I do for you?” Sir felt odd, but it was the default I fell into when he was like this.

“I’m at the edge of your property. I thought maybe it would be a good time to see the baby.” Or maybe he wasn’t “like this” as much as he was nervous.

“Are there guns?” I didn’t know why I asked. There were always guns.

“Only the bodyguards, and I’ll make them stay in the car.” Even six months ago, I’d have sworn he’d never concede like that.

“And what are their orders exactly?” Staying in the car wasn’t enough. I knew full well that having a gun in a car didn’t stop it from being used on people outside the car.

“They only draw if people from outside the den come to threaten us. That is it. They know their life is on the line if they touch them at any other time.”

I believed my father. He was a dick, but he wasn’t going to ruin things with his grandson. When it came to the safety of Seth, he would do anything. He was already a better grandfather to him than he’d ever been a father to me.

“All right. We’ll be down in a little bit.”

“Maybe bring the cubs?” It had taken a while, but he finally understood that those cubs were my family. That didn’t mean they were his. Not after what he’d done. Some things were never to be forgiven.

“No. It’s way too soon for that.” And probably always would be.

I wasn’t sure if they’d ever seen him when they were captive, but I wasn’t going to take a chance on triggering any memories for them. We would unpack that when the time came.

“Hey, who are you talking to?” My mate stood there with a basket of sandwiches. How had I missed his approach?

“Oh, it was my dad. He’s here. He wants to see Seth for a few minutes.”

“He’s not allowed on the property.” On that, Levi would never falter, and I was glad for it. It gave me the strength to keep my father in his place and not cower or cave in a moment of weakness.

“I know that. You know that. He knows that. He’s at the edge, hoping we could bring Seth to him.”

“And you feel he’s safe?”

“Yeah. I think with his old age and nearly losing me in his life, he’s finally figuring out the value of family.”

“I trust you.” He kissed me, letting it linger, then rubbed his cheeks against both of mine as his hands ran up and down my back.

My overprotective alpha was marking me with his scent, making no room for doubt in my father’s mind that I was his.

And I liked it. No. That was a lie. I loved it.

We picked up Seth and asked Aunt Patty to watch the kids, which she was more than excited to do, and we walked to the corner of the pack lands where we knew my dad was waiting.

I was surprised to see that he was wearing jeans and a Proud Grandpa shirt. Nothing about his appearance represented the father I knew, which was good because there wasn’t much I liked about that version of him, either.

“Hi. How are you?” He made no move, standing perfectly still in his spot.

“We’re good. You look…grandfatherly.”

“So I’ve been told.” He beamed.

“I don’t know if he’s going to want to go to you, but if he doesn’t, don’t take it personally. It’s kind of the age.” Generally speaking, he loved everyone, but that everyone included all the people in our pack and our friends. My father fit into neither of those categories.

“It’s fine.” He smiled. “You might not believe it, but I remember those days.”

It would still break his heart to be rejected by our sweet boy, even if it was developmentally appropriate.

Seth went to him willingly, though, cooing away.

“He looks like your grandfather.”

“I know. I see it too.” I missed the man.

“Look at you, Seth, growing so big. One day, one day, you’re gonna get to decide if this is what you want or if my life is what you want. But, unlike with your father, I’m not gonna push.”

Maybe he had learned his lesson, or at least part of one.

He kissed the top of Seth’s head and handed him back.

“Thank you for that.”

“No. Thank you for helping me understand.” He put his hands in his pocket. This man was so unlike the self-assured one I’d always known.

“Maybe one time we could… go to the park together? They have baby swings.”

“Yeah. I think he’d like that.” Levi wrapped his arm around my waist.

We said our goodbyes after a few more pleasantries, and my father went on his way.

“That was nice.” I leaned in to my mate as we walked. “I always get so nervous when he’s around, but today was…better.”

“It was.”

And, unfortunately, it wasn’t as good as we thought. Because by the time we got back to the blanket, my phone buzzed again. This time, with a text. I hate to do this to you, but it’s going to be favor time.

I shut my phone off and put it face down.

“Are you okay, mate?”

Levi always saw me.

“Yeah, I’m okay. No, that’s a lie. I’m better than okay.” My father’s message was meant for another day. “I have you by my side, our beautiful baby, and five fabulous children who are already in the running-around stage. I couldn’t ask for life to be any better. I love you, alpha mine.”

“As I love you, Colson. As I love you.”