Ken
This isn’t exactly the kind of distraction I had in mind when I prayed to keep all this shit secret.
Ken sat at the gate with the baby asleep on his shoulder on a burp cloth. There was still at least an hour before they were scheduled to board their flight. Nami sat directly across from him with baby Tahlia also asleep on her shoulder. Next to her sat Tamsin, with little Maisie asleep in her carrier. Malyah and Joaquin were taking a later flight today.
Lucky for them.
Dewi and Beck had walked away from the gate area to go talk to Peyton on the phone. The past twelve hours had passed in a blur of planning and packing and coordinating things, and Ken wasn’t exactly awake. Their flight to Denver, where they would change planes to Spokane, was a pre-dawn flight, and Ken hadn’t grabbed any sleep.
At all.
At least arriving at the airport as early as they had meant they sailed right through check-in and the TSA security checkpoint. Still, he couldn’t help thinking he’d missed something. Hell, he’d even grabbed his passport and made sure Dewi had hers, not that he’d probably need it. But sometimes, when renting a vehicle, it helped to have it as a second ID to make the process go faster.
He also floated the idea of visiting Canada while they were up there, since they’d be so close to the border. He’d never been, and it would delay their return to Florida without having to come up with a half-assed excuse. Dewi knew he’d talked about exploring the region. He wouldn’t even have to fudge the truth.
If he forgot to pack anything, he figured they could buy it upon arrival in Spokane, if it wasn’t something they could pick up in the small town just outside the pack compound.
Despite his change in financial circumstances, he was still acclimating to the fact that money was no longer an issue. The Targhee Pack wasn’t obscenely space-explorer hobbyist billionaire rich, but he no longer had to weigh every purchase based on how many days it was until payday versus how desperately he needed something.
Like food.
That had been quite the adjustment.
Maybe even more so than the whole “shifters are real” thing.
“I wish Trevor and Elizabeth could be there for this,” Tamsin softly said.
“We’ll have them on a video call,” Ken assured her. “I know it’s not the same, but it’s for everyone’s safety. We don’t know if your father has someone tracking their movements.”
“I know.” She sadly smiled. “Do you think Aisling will manage the children all right without us?”
Nami’s eyes, which had been nearly closed, snapped open. She met Ken’s gaze. They’d read Nami into the situation regarding Aisling, but she was the only other one, besides Beck, who now knew.
Ken softly cleared his throat. “Badger and Duncan will make sure everything is smoothed over. Trevor wouldn’t have recommended her if he didn’t think highly of her, right?”
“That’s true,” Tamsin said. “I barely got to meet her yesterday before she raced out again. Didn’t even shake hands with her. What’s she like?”
Nami’s gaze grew even wider, more insistent, and Ken knew she was silently willing him to shut down the conversation. They hadn’t Primed Nami to keep the secret, and he could tell she was ready to burst.
“She’s nice,” Ken said. “I haven’t spent a lot of time with her, but Peyton likes her and trusts her, and I trust him. She has a bunch of siblings and tons of niblings, so she’s had more than adequate experience wrangling kids. I’m certain she’ll be fine. Plus, she’ll have Carl, Brianna, Hamish, and others to help.”
“It’s a shame Hamish isn’t going,” Tamsin said. “I do so wish he were…” She didn’t finish the thought, but Ken was pretty sure he knew her thoughts.
“He’s blood family, and you want to spend time with him,” Ken said, and Tamsin nodded. “I think he’s flying out in a few days,” Ken added. “He’ll use this interruption to return to St. Louis and handle a few things to arrange to be gone for a while. At least, that’s the plan I heard. So even if he doesn’t join us out there, he’ll return to Florida soon.”
Tamsin brightened. “That’s splendid! Do you think he’ll move to Florida?”
Ken gently shrugged so as not to disturb Lyssa. “I think that will depend on what happens when we break the news to Imani.”
“I can tell you what’s gonna happen,” Nami mumbled. “She’s gonna lose her flippin’ mind. Literally.”
“And that’s why everything’s been postponed,” Ken said. “Badger and Duncan will Prime Bebe so she doesn’t shift while we’re gone. Even if something happens, they’ve got Stig and Elliot. They can step in and hit pause until Duncan or Badger return. And with Gillian’s giving birth, Peyton will be able to schedule time to come to Florida to help us break the news.”
Tamsin sadly smiled. “Is it horrible of me to say that part of me wishes I never have to go back to England? But I do so miss Trevor and Elizabeth. They’ve been a better mother and father to me than my own parents. And I want them to have a relationship with the baby, obviously. Eventually, I’d like to attend university, and they want to pay for it and help me care for her while I do. We’ll live with them. But I will miss all of you terribly. Quite frankly, I love Florida and Idaho.”
Nami squeezed her eyes shut. Ken imagined there were many thoughts she currently struggled to choke back.
“We still have a ways before any of that’s in play,” Ken finally said. “As long as your father’s around…” He didn’t know where to go from there, but fortunately, he didn’t have to.
