* * * * *
Dinner on the patio was luscious tender steak and mashed potatoes with butter and gravy. Jeffrey cleaned his plate and begged for seconds. Pete and Reynaldo, who were staying with them in one of the mansion’s guest wings, had thirds and fourths. Apparently werewolves loved meat.
“Do you want to say anything to Grant?” Celeste prodded.
Jeffrey glanced at Celeste.
“It wasokay,” he said.
She coughed into her hand. “Golden Rule.”
He looked at her, baffled.
She replied with a frown. “If you worked really hard to make something for somebody, would you want them to say it was just okay?”
He sighed and looked at Grant. “Dinner was very good,” he said. “I guess you didn’t lie aboutthat.”
“Thank you,” Grant said in a formal, polite tone.
It was pretty adorable to see this big, strong man – a werewolf, no less – being so polite and gentle with his little boy. Who would have imagined that storybook monsters who were perfectly capable of flipping a car – as Mandy had demonstrated earlier – could be so sweet? She felt something soften and melt inside her as she watched Grant interacting with Jeffrey, even getting the kid to crack a smile. She hadn’t heard what he’d said, but had a dark suspicion it had something to do with peeing on ladies from CPS. Those two were going to be a menace. She’d have to watch out for— But no. She wasn’t going to be staying. As soon as Jeffrey felt safe with Grant, knew he could trust him, she’d be hitting the road again. And it looked like Grant might win Jeffrey over faster than she’d expected. The thought made her feel unexpectedly hollow inside. She told herself firmly it was for the best. She couldn’t have Grant. Couldn’t let herself want him.
After dinner, Pete and Reynaldo went off to play pool in the game room, and Grant, Mandy and Celeste sat in the media room and watched a DVR of the Wild Kratts on a projection screen that took up an entire wall.
When the movie was over, Jeffrey stood up, and a silver butter knife fell out of his pocket. He went still and looked at Grant fearfully.
“I wasn’t stealing,” he said defensively.
“Of course you weren’t,” Grant said. “It’s yours. It’s not stealing if it’s yours.”
“How is it mine?” Jeffrey looked at him with suspicion.
“You are my son. You are part of my pack. Whatever is mine, is yours.”
Jeffrey just stared at him, unsure of what to say. He glanced fearfully at Celeste.
“He’s right,” Celeste assured him. “Maybe just ask next time, if you want something.”
Grant bent down, picked up the knife, and handed it to him. “You can sleep with it if you want. Your mother and I are going to bed soon, so you’re going to sleep in the room next to Mandy’s. There’s a door connecting your rooms.”
Jeffrey growled. “I’m sleeping withmy mother.”
Grant sighed. “Here’s the thing, little man. You know that nasty lady you peed on earlier? She’s spying on us. I have some very fancy binoculars; I looked out my bedroom window and I saw a house down the road from us. Half a mile away. She was looking out her window, watching us with a telescope.”
“Son of a…” Celeste stopped herself right before she swore.
“Bitch?” Jeffrey finished helpfully.
Grant cleared his throat. “Anyway. What that means is, your mother and I have to pretend to be a real married couple. That means she has to sleep in my bedroom. Remember what we talked about earlier? How we have to tell a little fib, because if the judge thinks we’re really married, they’re less likely to try to take you away?”
Jeffrey stiffened.
“Nobody is taking you away from me,” Grant told him. “Ever.”
“What about my mom?” Jeffrey prodded him.
“Nobody is taking you from her either.”
Celeste kept the smile pasted on her face. This was getting harder and harder. Would she be able to do the right thing after they won their court case? Would she be able to leave Jeffrey with people who actually knew how to care for a child?
