“Ohhh,” Cassie said, clapping her hands. “I get it!”
“You’re doing great.” Mason flashed her a grin before standing up straighter. I couldn’t help but watch his muscles flex as he did, from his biceps in his t-shirt, and his calf muscles bunching and stretching. I bit my lip, eyeing him up. Mason caught my eye and smirked, quirking a brow at me.
I averted my eyes.
Mason continued to tell Cassie about all the mountain trails they could go on. He showed her a point at a vantage point where Honeycreek overlooked other towns, and how they’d see the beach if we walked that far.
“Can we, Mommy?” Cassie asked. “Go that far?”
“Sure, baby,” I told her. “Tell us if you get tired, though, okay?”
“If she does, I’ll shift and carry her on my back, if that’s all right with you.”
I immediately wanted to counter the offer by saying I could do that myself, but I still hadn’t shifted in so long, scared of what my wolf would want. I knew exactly what she wanted:him, her alpha.
“Okay,” I said quietly. The two of them turned around and continued walking on. My thoughts wandered, entertaining the thought of the three of us shifting, melting into the trees.Words kept messing things up between us; too many truths had been said that had caused destruction. If we got rid of them and reduced ourselves to our base instincts, if I could let myself do that, how would it feel? If the three of us were just a proper family, if I could have that dream I had thought of since I was younger…
It meant trusting Mason again, and I still couldn’t let down my walls with him. What if something else pushed him away? I had no other secrets, but I didn’t want to risk him walking away from me over anything at all. I swore to never, ever go through that again. There was no way I could let myself be vulnerable, only to get hurt all over again.
But the terror of that was now only matched by how it felt to not even think of giving us a chance. Giving Cassie a chance, at the very least, to bond with her dad.
“Can I go and pick some berries?” Cassie asked. “Maybe we can bake something with Aunt June when I see her!”
It made me smile how she had pretty much already decided we were staying in Honeycreek again. For how furious I had felt at leaving, Mason’s fight for me had largely reduced that. The exhaustion in my heart and bones just demanded I let myself be supported, finally.
“I’m sure June would love that,” Mason told her.
“She’s part of the family, too.”
“Too?” Mason asked.
“Well, yes,” Cassie said, stomping through a thick blanket of moss. “You, me, and Mommy. We’re all a family now. I hope.” Her wide eyes looked to me. “Right, Mommy?”
The question left me speechless momentarily. I could feel Mason trying to look anywhere but me, likely trying to avoid meaccusing him of using her as a guilt bait. But this was different. These were Cassie’s own thoughts, her own wants.
“How about this,” Mason spoke up. “How about, for now, just know that your mom and I
will always protect you, no matter what.”
“What about Mommy?” she asked, her voice soft and quiet. “Will you protect her, too?”
“I will.”
“And hold her when she cries like the other day?”
Mason’s throat bobbed. “I’ll always do my best.”
“And you’ll cook us breakfast every morning?”
At that, Mason sniggered. “I’ll do my best for that, too.”
“I really like your French toast. Mommy always burns mine.”
“I do not!” I protested, giggling. At the sound, Mason gazed at me. It was only a second, but the hope that flickered away in my chest grew stronger, and I leaned into it. It had been seven long, lonely years—I just wanted happiness and peace.
I wanted the family Cassie and I had both longed for.
“All right,” Mason said, clapping his hands. “I’m going to race you to a special place called Honeycreek, but before that, I want you to pick me the juiciest berries you can find, all right?”
