“I believe you,” I said, and realized I meant it.
Chapter 13
Nym
I woke up, for the second time in my life, in a luxurious bed. Alone. Only this time it was by choice.
Dain had escorted me back to my room after our walk in the garden. He gave me a chaste kiss on the cheek and a promise that he would see me today. After talking last night, I learned more about him. He lived in the manor, though he had a home in the city, not far from Cael’s home in the city. I had no idea where that was, though I supposed I’d learn.
Not long after waking up, I received a message from Dain that my father was expecting me in his office, along with a good morning and a picture of the freshly fallen snow outside. To say that I was nervous was an understatement, both to meet with my dad and see Dain later. We made plans to have lunch together.
I verified twice that Preston wasn’t supposed to go with me. They didn’t say he wasn’t welcome, but I figured it was time for me to face my dad alone.
I was escorted there by a man I didn’t recognize, but Dain assured me that everyone in the house could be trusted. He smiled when I opened the door and introduced himself as Jayson. I thought Dain had mentioned him.
He knocked on the large oak door that led to Cael’s office.
“Come in,” Cael called.
Jayson opened the door and gestured for me to go inside.
I wasn’t sure what I expected. Maybe more guards like yesterday? Or some sort of pompous display from Cael to show off his power and wealth.
Instead, it was just Cael there on the couch wearing a pair of khakis and a simple beige knit sweater that had a snag on one sleeve. Someone had taken the time to repair it rather than throw it out.
“Come in, come in. I’m not going to bite.” Cael wore a pair of reading glasses that he removed and tossed onto the end table next to the couch. Based on the scuff marks on the wood, it was something he did often.
I sat down on the wingback chair facing him. “Good morning,” I said. I sat on the edge of my chair, my palms sweaty.
“Hello. I assume your room is to your liking?”
I nodded.
“Good. if you need anything else, feel free to let—”
“Louisa know. Yes, I’ve heard that.”
Cael smiled. Thank goodness. I wasn’t sure what I was thinking interrupting a man like this. He likely disciplined people for smaller infractions.
“I’ve taken the time to review your proposal for the bakery. It’s great work. Really.”
“Thank you,” I said. I wrung my hands in my lap and looked around the room. Anywhere but at Cael directly. My dad. The man I shared half my DNA with.
He studied me for a moment, like he was weighing his options. Whatever test this was, I must have passed because he spoke.
“You know, for as many rumors as there are out there about how many children I have, you are technically only my fourth.”
“What?” The last I’d heard the count was up to twenty. Everyone talked about how Cael sired children faster than he spun up businesses.
“I have my two sons from my first wife. Goddess rest her soul. We weren’t in love, we most certainly weren’t mates, but she was a wonderful woman. A good mom. Those boys are good too, in their own way. They have a lot to learn about the world. Perhaps I coddled them too much.” He scrubbed a hand down his face. “After my wife died, I had a brief affair with an omega. Unfortunately, we lost the baby shortly after his birth. It was a tragedy that I never truly recovered from.”
“I’m sorry,” I said.
“I may have decided to sow my wild oats by sleeping with every omega and woman that offered. And there were a lot. After a few years of that, or perhaps it was decades, supposed children came out of the woodwork. None of them were mine, though.”
I narrowed my eyes. If he was about to tell me that I wasn’t his and I could fuck off, he had another thing coming. My mother wasn’t one of those gold diggers, and I was about the tell him just that when he held up a hand.
“Until you, Nym.” He smiled. “I wish I could say I remember your mom and we had some sort of connection, but that is justnot the case. The only reason I can pinpoint a general timeline of when we met is because I counted back from your birthday.”
