The family room was filled with trunks, boxes, and assorted items, ready to be moved to Cryss’s ship for the long trek back to Nefyria. The reminder they were leaving within a couple of days wasn’t a welcome one.
He found Cryss, Alex, and the kids around the dinner table, smiling at one another. He leaned on the narrow archway leading into the dining room, his gut twisting at the vision of a happy little family in front of him.
“Hey, Q!” Alex said with a bright smile. “Grab a plate and have dinner with us.”
Qylar met his gaze, and Alex’s smile immediately faded.
“What’s wrong?”Alex asked, rising to his feet.
Qylar couldn’t speak. The words wouldn’t come out. He turned his back against the archway and slid to the floor as his knees went out from under him. Both Cryss and Alex rushed over, concern in their expressions.
“What’s happened?” Cryss demanded, fear shining in his eyes.
“He’s gone,” Qylar whispered, forcing the words out of his mouth. “I’ve ruined everything.”
Cryss and Alex exchanged a look before turning back to him.
Qylar banged the back of his head against the archway, staring up at the ceiling and trying to hold it together. When both of the children slid onto his lap and snuggled against him, clearly sensing his distress, he bit back tears and hugged them close, pressing kisses to their foreheads.
“Why don’t I get the kids ready for bed while you and Qylar talk,” Alex said to Cryss after a minute passed.
Cryss nodded.
“Come on, little ones. Bathtime!”
Neither child seemed willing to leave Qylar’s side and clutched at his shirt when Alex tried to coax them.
“It’s okay,” Qylar said shakily. “Go with Papa. I’ll be okay.”
Their little frowns broke his heart. He hated that he’d upset them, so he’d lied to make things better. Hewasn’tokay. Far from it.
Once they were gone, Cryss sat down across from him on the other side of the archway. He said nothing, just held space for Qylar’s grief.
After several seconds, Qylar lifted his gaze to Cryss. “I’ve met a man. One like Alex. He’s part Nefyrian.”
Cryss’s gaze widened. “Doesheknow what he is?”
Qylar nodded.
“This seems like good news,” Cryss said.
“I suppose.”
“Did he freak out when he learned youandhe were aliens?”
“No… I don’t think that part bothered him so much. He can shift and has been able to for years, so he had some inkling there was something different about him.”
“Fullyshift?”
Qylar nodded. “He’s tiny in comparison to us, but it appears a full shift.”
“Alex is going to besojealous,” Cryss whispered, bumping his foot against Qylar’s.
Qylar didn’t respond. He was trying to put his fears and emotions into words—and failing.
After they sat in silence a few more seconds, Cryss bumped his foot again. “Talk to me. What’s upset you?”
“I took him up in the ship. Showed him Earth. Kind of like you did with Alex when he first learned he was Nefyrian. He’d said he’d never really traveled so I wanted to give him the whole world.”
