Page 27 of Wolves’ Midlife Reunion (Shifter Nation: Enchanted Over Forty #3)

“No, thank you.” His wolf said otherwise after having an evening like that.

Dex walked to the table and looked at Corbin, Arden, and Sage.

“I’m sorry that you kids had to see that, and I’m doubly sorry that you felt the need to join in.

That fight was my responsibility, and I never meant to bring it here.

You were very brave, but I don’t like the idea that you could’ve been seriously injured. ”

The boys didn’t seem too phased by it, but Erin nodded her approval. “It’s given us the opportunity to have some very long and thorough talks with them.”

“And Sage.” He would probably have some long and thorough talks with her, too, but this one wouldn’t wait.

He’d already wasted enough time. “There are times when we should use our magic, and there are times when we shouldn’t.

It’s not always easy to tell the difference.

I want to make sure you continue to get proper training so that you’ll never have to question yourself. ”

“With Tina?” Sage asked hopefully.

His eyes drifted to Tina, who was sitting next to Sage with a protective arm around the back of her chair. She gave him a solemn nod.

“Yes.” He never thought it would feel so good to tell her that. “With Tina. And with me, too.”

“Yay!” She had piles of various food on her plate, and she waved a chip in the air in celebration. “Can we stay for a little while longer, Daddy? Maeve said she had some chocolate cake for us.”

“Indeed, I do,” Maeve replied benevolently. “Such ferocious warriors deserve no less.”

“Mom,” Chelsea chastised.

“What?” Maeve was already heading to the fridge to fetch the cake.

Dex met Tina’s gaze again. “Could I talk to you? Alone?”

“Sure.” She got up from the table and walked with him through the kitchen door. She made a face as she took in the chaos of the living room, with its broken furniture and ruined walls. “Maybe not in here, though.”

Instead, they stepped out the front door and down the walkway, a short distance from the house.

Dex looked up at it. With its rows of windows, many of which had a welcoming glow, the covenstead wasn’t unlike his own packhouse. It was a place for respite, for growth, for comfort. He felt guilty all over again.

“Tina, I owe you an apology. Actually, I owe you a whole string of them,” he began. “I’ll probably think of a few more things to apologize for after I get home, too.”

She let out a soft laugh. “That’s just how the last couple of weeks have been, right?”

“Definitely.” There really was so much he wanted to fix between them. This part was the hardest and the one that dominated his mind the most. “I truly am sorry for the way I treated you in your store. I’m appalled that I spoke to you that way, and that I completely dismissed what you had to say.”

She watched him with tired eyes. “That’s all right.”

Dex wondered if the separation between them had dug down into her soul the same way that it had his.

“No. It’s not all right. I overreacted. I was so worried about Sage’s emotional state and the harm she might cause, but the truth is that I needed to look in the mirror.

I need to work on my emotional state when it comes to magic, and especially my history with magic.

Holding out on Sage’s education wasn’t helping her.

It was just something that made me feel better in the moment. ”

“I understand.”

“You do?” He felt his wolf reacting to her presence, just as it always had.

It told him to grab her and pull her close, to kiss her like he’d never kissed anyone before, to hold her tightly and never let go.

It told him he was the biggest fool in Salem if he thought he could ever make it without her.

But the cool distance of her eyes told him otherwise. He’d done some real damage, and his actions had caused distance between them.

“I do,” she affirmed. “It took me some time and a little help to see it, but you were just trying to put Sage first. You’re a good father, and you only want what’s best for her. I just wish you understood that’s what I want, too.”

“I know it now,” he admitted. “That’s exactly why I asked if you’d continue training her, despite her father being a complete ass every now and again. I probably should’ve asked you privately before I said anything in front of her, but—”

“But you figured I’d say yes anyway?” she concluded for him.

“I would. In fact, I was hoping to find some way to help her, in spite of you and me being at odds. I wonder if that makes me a bad person for wanting to butt in on a child’s life when I’m not their parent, but I can’t help it. Sage is a very special little girl.”

“Then we have at least one thing we agree on.” He hoped that someday it would be more, that at some point they could at least look at each other without such wariness. “So you really will continue training her?”

“Yes. Does Monday night work?”

“I’m sure it does.” He had no idea what was on his calendar for Monday, especially after all they’d just been through, but he would make it happen, no matter what.

“Great. Then I’ll be there.”