“Do you?”
“Do I what?” I asked more defensively than I intended.
“See the son you lost when you look at the boy?”
I ground my teeth but shook my head. “No.”
That was the truth. I was logical enough to recognize that Aiden wasn’t AJ. Nor was he a second chance at parenting the son that Savannah and I never had the opportunity to parent together. But I still felt protective over him.
When he cried in my lap over the fear of losing his mother, it gutted me. I kept him out of school, close to me, because I felt he’d needed it that day. I would’ve told Savannah as much if she hadn’t said what she said.
“Then you should tell her that,” Chael commented. “And you need to apologize.”
I blinked. “The fuck for?”
He frowned and cocked his head sideways. “If someone had promised to drop your child off at school and hours later you got a call from the school saying he wasn’t there, how would you feel?”
He answered for me. “You’d be pissed. On top of that, said person had left their cell phone off all day, and you arrived home to find them playing in the living room like nothing happened?”
Again, I squeezed the bottle in my hand. I was surprised it didn’t break from the hold I had around it.
I would’ve been livid if the roles were reversed.
“Exactly,” Chael said when I told him as much. “You’re lucky she didn’t beat the hell out of you.”
I would’ve deserved it if I were being honest.
Chael stood.
“That’s what brought you out here?” I asked. “You wanted to talk to me about my wife?”
He shook his head and looked over my shoulder. Something dark entered his eyes, which was saying a lot, considering how dark they already were.
“It’s good you’re only out here for a short time.” He dropped his gaze to mine.
I wasn’t nearly as adept at reading my cousin’s expressions as he was at mine. However, there was a gravity in his voice that I couldn’t miss.
“There’s a storm brewing, cousin. Between them and us.”
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” I demanded.
He shook his head. “The less you know, the better.”
“Chael.”
He held up his hand. “You know I won’t say more than I need to.” He tapped my shoulder. “Go home to your wife. Work it out. Be grateful you have your mate.”
“Here you fucking go,” I griped as I stood. “Savannah wasn’t my mate back then, and she….” I trailed off because the wordsand she isn’t nowgot stuck in my throat.
Chael’s frown deepened. “You full-bloods are ridiculous. Can’t even tell when your mate has arrived. “
“Full-bloods” was Chael’s term for those of us who were fully human. While I never said anything to many people, Chael was related to me by my mother’s side of the family. They were distant relatives of hers, and they were also shapeshifters.
“Whatever,” I mumbled.
He paused and placed a hand on my shoulder. Even though I was six-two, he still hovered above at six-foot-six. His hand on my shoulder tightened.
“I’m serious, cousin. Respect the gift you’ve been given.”
