“Dain.”
I stopped in my tracks and turned to face my boss. I was not on schedule for the day. In fact, I had the afternoon off and planned to spend it with my mate, perhaps convincing him to move into my suite of rooms rather than us being separated as we had been for the past few weeks. I had it on good authority that his friend Preston hadn’t been spending a whole ton of time sleeping in the suite of rooms he was given either, and I knew that I spent a majority of my nights with Nym.
“Yes, sir,” I said, facing my boss.
“A word.” He gestured for me to follow him, as if I needed any indication of where we were going. He closed the door after I entered his office. He went around his desk and sat at his large wingback chair and gestured for me to sit as well. I did.
I was not used to this position. Anytime we had meetings where we discussed strategy or projects or whatever, it was done over a table in a conference room. His desk and this position, this office, was mostly reserved for intimidation, and I was definitely feeling it.
He stared at me, his eyes narrowing. Scales slithered up his arms and then disappeared again. Another intimidation tactic of his. It was much more menacing when I was in this seat. I shifted in my seat and cleared my throat.
“Your son and I met at the masked ball you insisted I go to.” I had a feeling Cael knew all of this, but it was important that I come clean as well. It was in my best interest to be as honest as possible, not only because I respected the man in front of me, but also because I knew the other sort of tactics he could use to get me to spill the truth. “Obviously, I had no idea who he was at the time. I only recognized him as my mate. We spent the night together. Most of it we spent talking and getting to know each other. The next morning, I was called back here regarding that problem with your brother.”
Cael nodded thoughtfully and gestured for me to go on.
“When I returned to gather Nym, he had left. I didn’t know at the time, but the guard I had placed on his room was working for Theo.”
Cael’s brow raised, so this was something he didn’t know. Guess I better make sure to finalize that report and send it to him.
“Soren indicated to me that Nym had tricked me, that we weren’t actually mates. I’d believed him. So I came back here, licked my wounds, and forgot about the whole thing. I tried to, anyway.”
“Yes, we had all assumed that something happened that you weren’t telling us. You were a bear to be around.”
I grimaced. “If I had known that Nym was carrying my child, that he was living in such a state, I most certainly would not have left him.”
“Do you intend to do right by my son?”
“Of course,” I said. “Nym means the world to me. The fact that he is your son doesn’t even play into the equation. I love him no matter his family or his status. He is the most important person in the world to me. I was gutted those months that we were apart.”
“Hmm.” Cael leaned back in his chair and steepled his fingers. “You know, I intend to provide for him. I’ve already set up a bank account for the two of you.”
My back straightened. “I have my own—”
Cael held up a hand. “Either I put the money directly into the account, or I give you a significant raise. Either way, you are accepting this money.”
I sighed. This wasn’t an argument I was going to win. “Please give it directly to Nym or our child, set up in some sort of trust. I have my own means by which to care for my mate.”
“I can respect that. Now, have the two of you thought about where you’ll be living?”
“I assumed we’d stay here, as long as it is acceptable.”
“Good. Now when are you going to hire more security?”
That was something I hadn’t yet thought about exactly. I knew I needed additional staff now that I had a family to think about, and as Cael’s son, Nym would need his own guards. “It is in the plans. Obviously, I’ll need time off when the baby arrives. Jayson is ready to take on more responsibility. We’ll have to hire additional team members.”
“And you’ll start working decent hours instead of the insanity that you’ve been running for the past several years. I won’t have my son ignored.”
“I would never,” I said, biting back a smile. My boss wasn’t in the best position to lecture me on a work-life balance. I had no reason not to work before I met Nym. Now that I had him, I had all the incentive to take time off and enjoy life. I had a child to think about, and I wasn’t going to miss a moment of their younglife. I would attend every appointment, every milestone, every event.
“Good. You’ll be happy to know that I’m actually going to scale back a lot of my operations. I’ve amassed enough wealth. It is time for the other two kids to take over some of the things. They can set up their own team of people. I quite like the idea of just being a grandpa. Maybe I’ll travel.” Cael’s lips stretched into one of his rare smiles, and his eyes twinkled like he might have some mischievous plans.
“Travel with a certain omega that might have come along with that son of yours?” I asked.
Cael winked. The action was so quick, I wasn’t sure if I’d imagined it. “I see you’re not as oblivious as most of the other people that work for me.”
“To be fair, I don’t think they are either, but they’re just more scared of you and would never bring it up. Besides, it is my business to know everything about you, including who you’re sleeping with.”
Dain stood, and I did as well. He held out a hand, and I shook it.
