A knowing smirk curls at his lips. He knows he’s managed to fluster me. Again.
He props his elbow on the table, resting his chin in his palm, then gestures towards my abandoned breakfast. “Don’t stop on my account. I’m enjoying the view.”
I know my face is beet red because I can feel the burn on my cheeks.
He raises a brow, and before I can lunge across the counter and choke the life out of my mate, Anxo walks in with August.
“You were saying something, mate?”
A low growl is my only answer.
“Grandpa! Hazy!” August runs to Dean and into his lap without hesitation, snatching his fork and helping himself to Dean’s breakfast.
Anxo opens his mouth to say something, but Dean shakes his head, smiling fondly at the little guy.
“What brings you guys here so early?”
Anxo stuffs his hands in his pockets. “I was wondering if you could drop August off at school today.”
Dean is already shaking his head before he finishes. “Hell no. I’m not going to the human realm. Don’t ruin my day.”
Anxo laughs. “It’ll take less than fifteen minutes.”
“Even that’s too much,” Dean shudders like a drama queen.
Neveah and Anxo decided to send August to a werewolf academy in the human realm so he could connect with other werewolves and learn what it takes to build a pack.
After Nevaeh escaped the coven with him, we found out that August is Alpha Trevino’s son, one of the six royal Alphas, and how Visha and her coven destroyed his pack. Even though Anxo and Nevaeh have adopted him, he’ll always be an alpha. A part of him will always long for a pack, and that’s something none of us can give him.
One day, August will want to build his own pack and honor his biological parents’ legacy. He’s lucky Anxo and Nevaeh understand the need to build his foundation today so he’ll be agood Alpha tomorrow, even when all they want is to keep him close within the safety of their kingdom.
“I can drop him off.” I try to sound casual, but the excitement slips through.
Anxo gives me a look. “Absolutely not. Last time, you took him to Disney instead of school.”
“And it was very educational, right, August?”
“Uh-huh.” He gives me a thumbs up, his mouth stuffed with Dean’s food.
Everyone calls me the Ice Queen, and I wear it proudly, but when August looks at me with those big blue eyes, it thaws the ice around my heart.
Anxo turns to Dean. “Please? I have court today, and Nevaeh is meeting the King of the Griari Empire. She’s learning to fight dragons.”
“Why?” I pull a face that makes August burst into giggles.
“She’s bored and wants a new hobby. With Dean handling Death and Harvey running War, I don’t have enough workload left to keep her entertained.”
I know Dean is about to suggest she take over his duties as Grim Reaper so he never has to go to the human realm again, but Anxo shakes his head like he can read Dean’s mind.
“Don’t even think about it. She deserves this break. We all know she loves having nothing to do for once.”
He’s right. Nevaeh spent half her life in survival mode. If she wants to wander the realms doing absolutely nothing, she’s earned it.
Dean finally agrees, still acting like going to the human realm is a death sentence. I don’t know why he hates it so much. I spent a lot of years stumbling through their world, and it wasn’t all bad.
Anxo kisses August’s head and turns to leave. “Have a great day, guys.”
Dean leans in and whispers, “How about we ditch school and you can come reap souls with me?”
