Page 28 of Wolves’ Midlife Reunion (Shifter Nation: Enchanted Over Forty #3)

“I want you to close your eyes and try to clear your mind,” Tina instructed gently as she lit the last candle.

Sage’s lessons were taking place in the guest bedroom at Dex’s house.

The space was calm and peaceful, and they could close the door.

It also meant that the lessons would be a little easier on Sage’s schedule and give her more time for being a child instead of just being schlepped around from one event to the next.

Tina felt that last part was crucial. Sage could find a passion and work hard toward it, but she also needed time to simply be a kid.

The bonus was that Sage could set up her very own altar right there in the spare room.

She kneeled in front of the old wooden chest right now.

It was covered with a soft scarf, a special present from Maeve.

A framed photo of Marie sat in the very center, and Tina had given Sage free rein to arrange flowers, crystals, kid-friendly candles, and anything else that pleased her around it.

“How do you clear your mind?” Sage asked, opening one eye.

“It’s a challenge,” Tina admitted. “Our thoughts can be very busy. You have to try not to think about anything at all for a short time. When you think you’ve done the very best that you can, say the words we went over.”

“Okay.” Sage sounded a little uncertain, but she closed her eyes again and took a deep breath.

There was a long, meditative silence. Tina also closed her eyes and absorbed the peace there between the two of them. As much as she loved running The Crystal Cauldron, it was coming there two days a week to teach Sage that truly made her happy.

“Mommy,” Sage said softly, “I want you to look out for me and guide me. I also want to see you again, if I can.”

Tina opened her eyes to watch as Sage did the same. The little girl picked up the small, round mirror on her altar and held it before her eyes. It flashed and shimmered.

Sage smiled. She tipped her head slightly to the side, and she nodded as though she were listening. Her face changed slightly, and then she smiled again, setting the mirror down.

“Well?” Tina asked.

“I saw her!” Sage nearly shouted. “I wasn’t sure I would since it isn’t Samhain anymore, but she was still there!” She wrapped her arms around Tina.

Her heart and spirit were in pure bliss. Tina had known all the way down in the center of her gut that Marie had reached out to Sage on Samhain not as a simple hello, but as one of her spirit guides. Who better to be a contact from the other side? “I’m so happy for you, sweetheart.”

Sage turned her head and rested her cheek on Tina’s shoulder. “She told me that she loves me. She said that she knows I miss her, but that I don’t need to because she’s right here with me all the time.”

“That’s so wonderful.” Tina ran her hand down Sage’s long, curly hair. “And she’s absolutely right. You can reach out to her any time you need, and she’ll always be there.”

“Do you know what else she said?” Sage asked.

“No. Would you like to tell me?” Though it was Tina’s job to teach as much as she could to Sage, some things were very private. Sage’s conversations with her spirit guides—whether with Marie or anyone else—weren’t her business.

Sage pulled back so she could look Tina in the face. “She wanted me to tell you something.”

Tina swallowed and tried not to let the shock register on her face. It was unusual for a spirit guide to deliver a message intended for someone else. “What’s that, honey?”

“She said to say thank you.” Sage shrugged. “I don’t know for what. That’s all she said.”

“That’s all right.” Now Tina had to fight back the tears that burned the backs of her eyes. “I understand. It looks like it’s about time for us to wrap up for today. Do you remember how to close down your altar?”

“Yep!” Sage bounced off her lap and began methodically turning off her LED candles, thanking any spirits who came to aid her.

Tina used that moment to compose herself.

Dex had asked her to teach Sage, and she’d been more than happy to resume the role.

They’d been working together for several weeks now, and every day, Sage’s powers and intuition seemed to grow.

Dex seemed appreciative, always politely thanking her.

Sage greeted her at the door every day with a smile, always asking her questions or showing her what she’d been practicing. Tina knew she was valued.

But to know that even Marie approved of her and what she was doing for Sage meant so much. To hear those two simple words, spoken through Sage, moved her deeply. A mother’s love was strong and powerful, and so was her acceptance.

The doorbell rang as Sage and Tina emerged from the spare room. “It’s Aunt Debbie!” Sage announced, running to answer it. “We’re going to a party!”

“You certainly do love those,” Tina murmured.

Sage opened the door. Savannah and Colton came running in, with their mother trailing in shortly after.

Debbie beamed at Tina. “Hey! We didn’t get here too early and interrupt your lesson, did we?”

“No, not at all. We just finished up,” Tina told her.

She’d never gotten to know Debbie all that well while they’d been in school together.

Lately, however, Debbie had been coming around a bit when Tina was still at the house and taking a little time to chat.

Tina was finding that she really enjoyed her company.

Debbie watched as the kids ran down the hall to Sage’s room. “Listen, I just want to tell you how wonderful all of this is.”

“What do you mean?”

“What you’re doing for Sage,” Debbie clarified, lowering her voice a bit.

“It’s the lessons, sure, but it’s so much more than that.

Sage has always been a pretty bright and happy kid, and she seemed to deal with Marie’s death pretty well.

Almost too well, really. But now I see a real difference in her, and I think it’s thanks to you. ”

“That’s very kind of you. I do my best, but I could never take the place of her mother.”

“No,” Debbie said hesitantly, “but I think you’ve earned a pretty darn special place in her life.” She winked.

Dex walked in from the kitchen. “What are you two conspiring about?”

“Not a thing.” Debbie straightened up and called down the hall. “Kids! We’d better go, or we’ll be late for the party!”

Sage, Savannah, and Colton came barreling back out into the living room.

Sage hugged Tina and then her father before following her cousins out the door.

Debbie followed the whirlwind, pausing to give them a finger wave before she left.

“A whole night of kids eating cake at a trampoline park. Wish me luck that no one pukes!”

When the door closed, Tina went to get her purse off the side table where she’d left it. “Sounds like you get a nice, peaceful evening at home. Unless you have to work, that is.”

“Later I do, but do you have time to stay for a bit? I’d like to talk to you about something.”

Her stomach trembled, but she forced it to calm down. “Sure. I’ve got a minute.”

“Have a seat. I’ll pour us each a glass of wine.” Dex disappeared into the kitchen before she could protest.

Tina sat on the couch, still trying to settle her nerves.

Dex returned a moment later with two glasses of wine and handed her one. He sat down next to her. “I want to thank you.”

It was a night for that, apparently. Tina sipped her drink—Moscato, her new favorite.

“You don’t have to thank me. I’m really happy to do this.

Sage means a lot to me, and I enjoy seeing her abilities blossom.

” At this point in her life, Tina would probably never have children of her own.

Her experiences with Sage, however, satisfied something very deep within her.

“It’s that,” Dex said, staring down into his glass, “but it’s a lot more.”

“What do you mean?” Tina took another sip. She wasn’t as nervous now, but her wolf was churning inside her, being so close to him. If she just turned a little further to her right, their knees would touch.

“You fought for her,” he said, a catch in his voice. “You put your life on the line that night that Chris showed up at the covenstead. You also fought with me on her behalf, for her right to continue her education. That says a lot about you.”

Tina shook her head dismissively. “It’s what anyone would’ve done.”

“No, it isn’t. I think you know that. I know that.” He put down his glass. “Tina, it’s hard being a single parent for many reasons. I worried about bringing a woman into Sage’s life, but I’ve realized that I only really needed to worry about bringing in the right one.”

Her throat was tight, and her wolf was standing at attention.

Dex took her free hand. “The right one is you, and it always has been. I love you, Tina. I know I haven’t done a very good job of showing it, not at any point, but I’d like to change that. I’m hoping you might forgive me for being an anxious fool.”

She eyed him carefully. He was so handsome, but it wasn’t just his dazzling eyes or the lines of his features that pierced her. It was the fierceness with which he loved. He’d made some mistakes, yes, but it was only because he cared so much. “You want to try again?”

“I really do.” His fingers tightened around hers. “I’ve proven to myself that I can live without you, but I don’t want to.”

It was hard to look at him and find the boy she’d come to know as a teenager.

He was different now. Experience had hardened him, but not his heart.

She loved him. She’d always loved him, and that love had grown and changed over the years, just as they had.

“I don’t want to live without you either, Dex.

Not without you or Sage. It’s been hard to come here every week, spend time with the two of you, and pretend that it’s nothing more. ”

Dex picked his glass back up and held it in front of him. “To a new future.”