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I myself was allergic to walnuts and pecans. Why the hell hadn’t I thought about this? Ashton was my son, after all, so it made sense that he might have some kind of food sensitivity or allergy like me.

The whole thing made me feel like an idiot, but I needed to put it behind me. At least I found out before I dumped a pile of shellfish onto Ashton’s steak and ruined the whole meal.

“It’s fine,” Avery said. “I should have mentioned it. It slipped my mind. Not your fault.”

“Again. Sorry,” I said. “So, uh, did you want to watch the ball game?”

“Maybe—” Ashton started, but Avery cut him off.

“We can watch basketball anytime. We came here so Ash can get to know you, Cole.”

“That’s true,” I said with what felt like a lame smile. I was still embarrassed about the shrimp.

Avery and Ashton stood around the bar, watching me mix up a dressing for the salad, reading the recipe from my phone as I did. I’d never done it before, but it seemed to be coming together properly under their gaze.

Glancing up, I caught Ashton’s eye and decided to break the ice. “You know, I can’t get over how much you look like me. It’s almost eerie. Like I’m staring at myself when I was fourteen.”

Ashton grinned, but I could tell he was a little uncomfortable with attention being called to it, and I kicked myself again. Was anything going to go right? They’d only been here five minutes. Thankfully, Avery swooped in to save the moment.

“It does sort of look like he stole your face, Cole,” she said with a smile. “Do you have any pictures? That way, he can see for himself?”

Wiping my hands on a dish towel, I said, “Yeah, actually. Let me show you.”

Striding across the room, I took a picture frame off the bookshelf near the door and handed it over to Ashton. It was a photo of me and Trent when we were right around Ashton’s age. Ashton’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Oh, wow,” he said with a chuckle. “I thought you guys were exaggerating.”

“Nope. You got my face.” I glanced at Avery. “Can’t deny you’re mine.”

She gave me a pensive smile, but I’d take it.

“You might end up taller than me, though,” I said, taking in the boy’s height.

“Maybe,” he said, but he looked pleased about it.

The kid sort of reminded me of my half-brother Dallas.

Even thinking about him hurt a little. He’d been the biggest point of contention between Mom and Dad.

The child born of an affair, the kid who’d helped break Mom’s heart simply by being born.

None of that was his fault, though. He hadn’t asked to be born into that, and Farrah and I had tried to be cordial to him, but getting to know him hadn’t been easy.

Once Dad disowned me, Dallas cut off all contact with me and Farrah. He’d idolized Dad, and once he saw where his father’s thoughts lay, he went the same way. I’d tried to reach out to him a couple times over the years, but he rejected me as strongly as Dad had.

“So, when did you start puberty?” I asked Ashton. “That’s a pretty important thing you’re going through, right? We need to talk about that.”

“It started, like, eight or nine months ago,” Ashton said. He glanced sideways at Avery. “There have been times when I was kind of a dick—I mean, a butthead. Sorry, Mom,” he added quickly.

“You haven’t been a butthead for the last week or so,” Avery said. “You’ve been a perfect little angel. A sullen and moody teenage angel, but an angel regardless. Foul language notwithstanding.”

Ashton rolled his eyes. “Thanks.”

The oven timer buzzed. I grabbed a pot holder and asked, “Any anger outbursts? Violence? Sometimes shifters can be aggressive when they get closer to their first shift.”

Pulling the pan of potatoes out, I noticed Avery exchange a look with Ashton.

“Uh-oh,” I said. “Something bad?”

Avery sighed and rested her elbows on the counter. “Ashton may or may not have attacked my ex a few days ago. Probably broke his nose.”

I glanced at Ashton. “Did the asshole deserve it?”

Ashton’s mouth twisted, and I could tell he was fighting to hide a smile. “Yeah. He did.”

“Sounds like no harm, no foul, then,” I said.

“Oh, there was definitely some harm,” Avery said, but reached over and patted Ashton’s arm. “But no foul.”

I wondered what the real story was there, and if it had something to do with the bruise on Avery’s face and Ashton’s black eye.

Just what kind of asshole had Avery dated?

My wolf gave a low, angry growl at the thought of another man laying hands on my mate and my child.

I cleared my throat to hide the snarl coming from my throat.

“It sounds like you’re getting really close to your first shift,” I said to Ashton. “The aggression and moodiness peak right before it happens.”

“Steaks are served.” Trent came back inside, holding a tray of cooked filets. “I did them all medium-rare because if you like them cooked more than that, you can get the hell out.”

A lump formed in my stomach, and my head snapped around. What if Avery and Ashton preferred their steaks well-done? Thankfully, Avery said, “Exactly how we like it.”

Trent plated the steaks and potatoes while I dished salad into bowls.

“Can we help with anything?” Avery asked.

“No way. You guys are my guests,” I said. “Go ahead and have a seat.”

Fifteen minutes later, we were all sitting around the table eating. The conversation flowed smoothly, and I was glad I’d asked Trent to be here. Out of all of us, he had the least baggage and told jokes or went off on tangents about some of our old high-school antics.

Ashton was very interested to hear about when Avery and I dated. A few times, she glanced over at me during one of Trent’s stories, an embarrassed smile playing on her lips.

“So, Ashton,” I said. “How’d you feel about meeting some of the people in the pack soon? Would you like that?”

“Maybe, yeah,” he said, wiping his mouth with a napkin. “I guess I should, right?”

“Since you’re getting close to your first shift, the timing couldn’t be better. I’m here, and I can really help you through it. I’ve been through what you’ve been through.”

I glanced at Avery, and before I could stop myself, I said, “What do you say, Avery? Can Ashton and I get together and do some wolfy shit?”

“Wolfy shit” was the word she’d always used when I went on pack runs, or had to do some alpha training with my father or handle other pack business with him.

I’d hoped to tease a grin out of her by using it.

But as soon as I said it, the faint smile on her lips vanished, a look of heartbreaking sadness replacing it.

My wolf whined. Fuck, I’d screwed up yet again.

I cleared my throat. “Avery, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have?—”

“It’s fine, Cole. If Ashton’s okay with it, I’m okay with it.”

The tone of her voice wasn’t jovial or relaxed. My words had hit a hurt that was still fresh and tender. Trent and Ashton went quiet then, and the rest of dinner went by more or less in silence.

Once we’d finished the meal, Avery got up, waving at Ashton to follow.

“Thanks for having us, Cole,” she said. “It was really great, but we need to get going.”

“Already?” I said, my wolf and I desperate to get them to stay a little longer. My wolf gave a little whine that echoed through my skull. “Well, when can Ashton and I get together?”

“You can text Mom,” Ashton said, chiming in for the first time in five minutes.

Avery looked irritated at that, but nodded. “Yeah. Text me what would be a good time, and we can set it up. Trent, It was really good to see you again,” she said, looking back at my best friend.

“Yup,” he said, raising a hand to wave goodbye. “Good to see you, too.”

With barely a backward glance, Avery headed out the front door. Ashton followed, but stopped before closing it behind him.

“Thanks for dinner, Cole. It was really good. Uh, I guess I’ll see you later?”

“Count on it, buddy. I can’t wait.”

He nodded and smiled before closing the door. Once they were gone, I dropped down into the chair next to Trent.

“Well, uh, that didn’t go terribly, did it?” Trent said.

I grunted. “I almost killed Ashton with shrimp, and I dragged up old wounds with my big mouth. How could it have gone any worse?”

“She could have cut off your dick with her steak knife,” Trent offered.

I glared at him. “You really know how to look on the bright side. Has anyone ever told you that?”

“Military secret. When you think it’s bad, always remember it could have been worse.”

At that moment, I realized we hadn’t fully finished dinner yet and cursed under my breath. “Shit. We didn’t have dessert. That fucking cheesecake is still sitting in the fridge. Damn.”

Trent got up and started piling dishes in the sink. “That can be a father-son bonding snack later on.”

My body felt drained and exhausted. All I could do was sit there and chastise myself for everything not having gone perfectly.

All through the night, Avery had been cordial, but not overly warm.

That broke my wolf’s heart. When we were dating, Avery had always looked at me like I hung the moon.

Would that look ever return? I didn’t know, but God, I wanted it to.

My wolf desperately missed our mate, and I was right there with him.