“Don’t tempt me,” Ronin called out.
Ollie grabbed his toothbrush, but peeked his head out and saw Ronin was sitting on the bed, his phone in his hand.
“Who are you calling?” Oliver asked.
Ronin looked up at him. “I’m going to call Ryder and see if he can shed some light on what we talked about.”
Oliver nodded. “I love you, Ronin.”
“I love you, too, baby,” Ronin said.
Ronin began speaking to Ryder, and Oliver left him to it and went to the bathroom for his shower.
But he stopped to think about what Ronin had said, and he knew he was right. They didn’t have all the answers, and as much as he wished it wasn’t so, he needed them.
* * *
The closer itcame to telling his parents and Lucas goodbye, the harder it got to say the words. Still, Oliver was excited about what a life with Ronin was going to be like, and he knew the first step was this, leaving his parent’s home—this time the right way. At leastthistime he didn’t have to wonder if he would be seeing them again.
They finished up lunch, and Oliver looked across the table. “I’m happy now. You know that, right?” Oliver directed that at his mom.
Oliver’s mom nodded. “I can tell, baby. It’s obvious that you are happy where you are. I’m just so glad that Ronin was able to get you out of there, and I just know he will take such good care of you.”
“I will ma’am. I swear it.” Ronin squeezed his hand under the table.
“I know, son. You two seem very happy together.” Oliver’s mom smiled at them.
“We are.” Oliver beamed. He looked over at Ronin and found him grinning back at him. He knew that for the rest of his life he would never get tired of seeing that look in Ronin’s eyes, like he was amazed… amazed by Ollie’s existence. And then he felt it in their bond, this feeling of awe when Ro looked at him. Oliver never believed he’d feel something like that, let alone have it directed at him.
“Then we can go back home in peace,” his dad said. “And know that you willalwaysbe welcome home, son. You both will.”
“Thank you, Dad.” Oliver felt something in his heart ease. His family still loved him, even after Ronin had told them all about shifters and answered every question they’d asked. And they hadn’t run screaming! Ollie untwined his fingers from Ronin’s and reached across the table and squeezed both of his parents’ hands. When he let go, they went back to finishing up their meals.
“And Luc will come over for the summer next year.” Ollie’s eyes held his brother’s gaze, and he was rewarded with a thumbs up.
They lingered over dessert until they couldn’t stay any later if his parents wanted to get on the road today. His dad was the first to stand up from the table, and he insisted on paying the bill, calling it a “mating present”—even though he’d taken a shot at Ronin for marrying Ollie without his permission.
Oliver and Ronin walked them out of the restaurant and to their vehicle.
“Don’t be a stranger.” His mom hugged him tightly, and Oliver sank into the warmth of it and also felt tears wanting to escape. He let them. They weren’t sad tears… but he was still a little sad because he would miss his family.
“I won’t, Mom! I promise.” He parted from the hug, then hugged his father. “Goodbye, Dad.”
“It’s not goodbye, son. It’s just bye for now.” His dad wasn’t one to get choked up, so he didn’t shed a tear, but he held Oliver for a moment longer than he usually did.
His dad walked over to the driver’s side and got in the car, and then it was just him and Luc.
“I’m gonna miss you, Ollie.” His little brother kicked the ground and wouldn’t meet his eyes. “You just got back.”
“I know, Luc.” He squatted in front of his little brother even though he wasn’t much taller. “But I’ll see you soon, and we can FaceTime and text every day.”
“My phone doesn’t have FaceTime, remember?” Luc’s shoulders drooped.
“Ro, why don’t you show Luc what we got him.”
That had his brother’s attention, and he finally met Ollie’s eyes. “You got me a present?” His brother’s eyes were wide with excitement.
“We did, and it means you can call or text me anytime you want,” Ollie said.
