Page 18

Imri

Heading home after the sweetest afternoon with my mate was more difficult than I anticipated. My chest ached only hours after leaving him. I’d wanted to leave him my number, but feared I’d be constantly watching it, waiting for him to call.

This entire situation with Sully was getting my emotions all mixed up. I was blaming all of this sentimentality I was feeling about finally meeting my fated mate and being unable to have him without a fight. This was a bunch of bullshit, a cosmic joke: I’d been given a prey animal shifter mate in a town that ostracized me for being a predator shifter.

Yet everything he’d shown me in the charter gave me hope that there was a way forward for us. A place we could carve out in Haenvale where I wouldn’t have to rip the kids from all they knew so I could have my mate in my life.

The things my moms had said about being proud of me kept coming to the front of my mind. As the youngest, there were times I was left to fend for myself, and I’d always thought I was okay with it. Hearing my moms tell me how proud they were of me for my choice to raise my kids was something I never thought I’d get. Granted, I wasn’t sure I’d ever have kids. They were something I wanted in the abstract, but knew I was a long way off actually having them. Until I inherited them, in a sense.

I didn’t think they’d be proud of me for the way I was dealing with this mate situation, though. They’d be angry at me for playing games with Sully. They’d call me a coward for hiding away, forgetting I had three lives on the line. If it was only me and Sully to think of, then I’d have accepted him straight away, town be damned. The kids needed time to get used to me and have the security that they wouldn’t be taken from me now that we’d bonded.

My kids were amazing. The way they’d accepted my family was awe-inspiring. Rowan had taken a little longer to warm up to his new grandmas. Sandy and Berry were much more accepting of the situation. They were open to having grandparents, having seen shows and read books where the characters had a wider family. Their brother, not so much. Rowan confessed once that he worried they would convince me to give him and his siblings up for an easier life. He had a lot of guilt over how they’d been living, often thinking he should have left them somewhere. I was grateful he hadn’t. We were all together now, and I wasn’t letting them go.

Rowan was a great young man with solid views of the world. Once he felt more comfortable with me, he felt able to tell me what he thought of Sully—he was a big fan—and how I was mishandling the situation. He didn’t like me putting my mate aside from him and his siblings, though he understood the need for a delay. Rowan told me to confess everything to Sully and trust he could handle it. My eldest was more idealistic than I was.

The rest of the day passed slowly while I tried to get more done around the house before our guests arrived. No matter what they said, Mama would want a more comfortable bed than the camper offered. They promised to call before hitting the road and not just appear. I just hoped the kids were okay with my moms in person. They could be overwhelming.

My first impressions of the house made it seem worse than it was. Really, it wasn’t in bad shape. The decor was tired, not to my style, but Uncle Malik had done his best with the place. I liked it. The house and the surrounding woods had a great vibe.

In my pocket, my phone buzzed with a message.

Mom

Just picked up the documents. Hitting the road early morning. Will be there around lunchtime. Mama found the cutest boots for Berry.

I owed my eldest son his own pie, even though I’d already given him the largest piece at dinner the night before. A bet was a bet, after all. I was supposed to put him on cooking duty, but my moms let me down by taking so long! Nah, really, I was happy he won so he could get the pie to himself. The way he ate, I felt like he had some growing to do. Soon he’d be taller than me. I wanted that for him, though. Wanted to show him love and safety by always having an abundance of food he liked to eat. I wished for him to never again go through the lean times like he must have when deliveries were only coming monthly .

When the day finally ended, I found myself restless. I was exhausted and needed to sleep, it just wasn’t in the cards for me. I laid in bed, the house silent around me, just thinking about the last few days, wondering what deity I’d pissed off.

At least one thing went smoothly. Having documents would make everything much easier. I’d find another witch to evaluate the kids, with my moms helping me. I didn’t want to rely on Ginger. As nice as she was, she wasn’t dependable. Once I knew where their power level was, I could decide if we were staying in Haenvale long term or not. I really didn’t want to take them away from the memories of their mother. I hoped we could stay.

Part of me wanted to pack up the kids and return to New Boston, where everyone had to get along or suffer the consequences, instead of dealing with the worried stares of the prey shifters in Haenvale. Maybe it was my paranoia speaking, but my visit to Rosie’s hadn’t been all that bad.

Life in New Boston could be hard for the vulnerable. There had been areas of the city where things were rougher. Gangs of predators, usually wolves and bears, resorted to crime. Life wasn’t easy when you could turn into something dangerous. Many made assumptions about who you were. A label was stuck to you as soon as you presented, around age three. Even in more open places, there was distrust.

A place like Haenvale, where we all wore inhibitors, should have been friendlier. I’d already learned it wasn’t. Did I want my kids growing up around open prejudice?

A knock came from the door. Sandy and Berry were asleep, and had been for hours. Rowan had been reading in his room, letting me do the night time routine with the twins.

“Imri? Can I come in?” Rowan called from the other side of the door.

“Yeah.”

Rowan entered the room and took a seat at the end of the bed.

“C’mere.” I patted the space next to me as I sat up against the headboard.

“It’s okay…” He hesitated, torn. He clearly needed to get something off his chest.

I fixed him with a mock glare. “Come over here, Rowan.”

He finally moved to sit close to me. I wrapped an arm around him, letting him sit quietly with his thoughts for a moment.

“When Gaga and Noona come, will you tell Sully the truth about us?” he finally asked.

“Is it that important to you that he knows?” The more I thought about how I handled things with Sully, the more I regretted my decision. He could have been with me all this time. He had a lawyer as a best friend, though. Would she have put aside the law for him if he asked?

“Yes. It is. If we’re going to be family, then there shouldn’t be any lies between us.”

Rowan was right. When I asked Sully to accept me and the kids, I would do it with him knowing everything. I’d let him decide if we were worth the problems that were sure to come with a single dad to three witches in a town where anything dangerous was feared.

“Oh, when Berry and Sandy call you Dad in the morning, don’t make too big of a deal about it, okay? They’ve been worried about it. We talked it over and decided that’s what we’re going to call you now that you’ve adopted us, okay?”

I was speechless. “Alright,” I said, finding my voice.

He stayed with me a moment more, then got up. When he got to the door he said, “Night, Dad,” and left, without witnessing the smile that took over my face.

Dad.

Just one word, but it was magical.

Mate.

Another equally amazing word. Haenvale may have its issues, yet there I’d become a dad and soon, if Sully was willing to forgive my stubbornness, then I’d have a mate, too.

When I finally fell asleep, it was to thoughts of Sully. He was beautiful. I had his image tattooed on my brain. As soon as I could comfortably leave my moms with the kids, I was tracking him down.

I was grateful for the minutes the proximity alarm bought us. It gave me time to pack away the remains of the kids’ lunch. My parents had gotten delayed, arriving mid-afternoon. They’d stopped and eaten after a flat tire delayed them a couple hours.

Half of me expected Sandy and Berry to hang back once my moms left their vehicle. Nope, they went straight over to their new grandparents to show them things they’d been working on. It felt like they’d always known each other. An immediate bond formed.

Again, Rowan hung back, practically clinging to me, until Mama came over to praise him about the work he’d done on the place. She wanted to know all the details of the systems and materials he used on the house. Sure enough, that broke the ice with Rowan and I was left alone for the first time in hours.

It took Mom a while to have a minute for me. When she broke free of the twins, setting them on her mate and their brother, she gave me a fierce hug.

“So proud of you, Imri! Those kids, this house. You’ve done so well!”

“Not sure you’re going to think the same when I tell you something.” I grimaced.

“Why don’t we go inside and make some tea? This feels like a tea conversation.”

“Feels like a whisky conversation, actually.”

An hour later, after Mom had calmed down, she saw why I’d done what I’d done, even if she didn’t agree with it.

We were just making dinner when the proximity alarm went off. My stomach dropped and twisted. Nervous butterflies took flight in my gut.

Please, I thought to myself. Please let it be him and nothing else. I don’t want another thing to get in our way.

Hearing him call my name was the sweetest sound I’d ever heard! I was glad he’d won the game. I wanted to know how, but there was time for that. Later, though, much, much, later.

Mom at least was warned about Sully, she clearly hadn’t had time to fill Mama in on it because she and the twins gasped in shock. Even Rowan made a noise of surprise. I guess my eldest hadn’t expected Sully to lay it all on the line like that.

I couldn’t keep my eyes off him. The way the early evening light hit off his sandy brown hair, picking out the strands of gold, was mesmerizing.

He was all mine if I could just take that chance. So when he asked if I wanted to take that chance, there was only one answer.

“With you? Of course, Sully. I’m yours if you want me.” I winked. “You won the game after all,” I couldn’t help adding in a teasing tone.

Sully laughed, a sound so full of joy everyone smiled.

“Um, hi, Imri, everyone, I’m Trisha, Sully’s BFF. If he’s okay here, I’ll just…”

“No need, Trisha,” Mom called, “come in, we’re making dinner. There’s plenty for everyone.”

“Oh! That’s so kind, but we’ve already eaten,” Trisha protested, backing away while throwing looks at her friend.

“Come inside and let these two talk,” Mom practically ordered.

Trisha, being the smart woman she was, took the hint and followed my moms and kids into the house, leaving me alone with Sully.

“Do you mean it?” His eyes were full of hope.

“I do. There’s some stuff I’ve got to tell you. Why don’t you come up here, take a seat, and I’ll get us a drink. D’you want a beer or anything?”

“Uh, no to the beer, but I’ll take a soda or just water if that’s okay?” He joined me on the porch. There was a comfortable swing which sat three people easily. It was somewhere I imagined spending a lot of nights with Sully, if he was okay with what came next.

“Sure. I’ll just go grab them. Back in a sec.” I took a deep breath, letting it out slowly once I was inside the house.

“Doing okay?” Mama clapped a hand on my shoulder, startling me as I rooted around in the fridge for drinks.

“Yeah. A little overwhelmed, but Sully needs to know it all.”

“You’ll make it work.”

I found Uncle Malik’s letter to me and took it outside with the drinks. Opening his, I handed it to him. He muttered his thanks nervously.

“It’ll be easier to explain things if you read this letter first. Is that okay?”

Sully took it, his fingers shaking with his nerves. “Um… alright.” He began to read, his eyes widening further with each paragraph. “Oh, no! Poor Malik.” His head snapped up, his eyes wide. “They came from the woods?”

“Yeah. It’s all they’ve known.”

He returned to reading. “They stayed behind? They weren’t with you?”

“I didn’t know about them until I came here.”

Tears ran down his face. I kneeled in front of him, taking his hands. “You just took them in without question,” he finally got out.

“They were meant to be mine. Ours, if you’re willing.” His smile was a trembling, beautiful thing. More tears fell from those pretty blue eyes .

“Why are you telling me this now?”

“Someone… Rowan… told me there should be no secrets between family. The main reason I fought what we have is because I needed to get paperwork for the kids. It sounds so mundane and pathetic when I say it out loud.”

“No, it doesn’t.”

“Yeah, it does. Here I was, a stranger to the town, a predator shifter, with three kids who clearly aren’t blood related. The last thing I needed was someone questioning us and me having no proof they were mine.”

“I wouldn’t have said anything.”

Kissing his fingers, one by one, I couldn’t help but be awed by Sully. “I know. You wouldn’t have needed to. The people of the town will. There’s plenty of scrutiny still to come, once we go public with this, if you still want me.”

“Of course I do.” He made a pained expression. “I’ve got a confession of my own first. You deserve to know before we do anything else.”

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong, exactly,” he hedged. His eyes lifted to look directly at me, his fingers tightening around mine. “I’m pregnant.”