Filed to story: Reclaimed Book by Roxie Ray
“You know who it was?” I asked, though I already had my suspicions.
“Sean,” Striker said without hesitation. “We know it was him.”
“Fuck.” I rubbed my forehead. Two guys down and a theft? Sean was escalating. This was not the time for this to happen.
Harley came up the deck stairs with Dylan behind her. Hawk was still at the grill, finishing up the steaks, while Mia and Bella had retreated inside to get out of the sun. “Stephan? Is everything okay?”
Striker glanced between us. “I’ll wait out front,” he said and descended the stairs of the deck to walk back around the house.
It wasn’t okay. This kind of thing was exactly why Harley was hesitant to let me into Dylan’s life at all. I didn’t want to lie to her-but I didn’t want to tell her about this, either. Not yet. “I’m sorry,” I said. “I’ve got to handle some business. I know I said we’d have the whole afternoon, but…”
Harley frowned. Behind her, Dylan slumped, and his claws retracted of their own volition. My dragon whined. I was disappointing them both. But Striker respected my time. If he said it was serious, I knew it couldn’t wait.
“Stay here, have lunch,” I said. “Stay as long as you want. Mia and Hawk will be here for a while.”
“Yup,” Hawk said in confirmation. He caught my eye and gave me a small, serious nod. “And I just finished these steaks, so Ace will be the only one missing out.” He winked at Dylan.
Harley sighed. “No, that’s not?-“
“Please, Mom?” Dylan grabbed her hand and tugged at it. “I’m hungry! And I want to hang out in my room before we go back to Mama Liz’s.”
“Okay, we’ll stay for lunch,” Harley said. She nudged Dylan. “Say bye to your father, then go see if you can help with the dishes, okay?”
“Will you show me more soon?” Dylan asked me, those wide eyes boring into mine.
“Of course,” I said. “Don’t worry. I’ll teach you everything you need to know.”
Dylan threw his arms around my middle again, and this time, I was ready to return it. I hugged the boy close, and my dragon rumbled happily. This was where we were supposed to be. With our son. Our mate.
And yet I was walking away. Again. All because my twin brother had some kind of death wish.
Dylan let go. I smiled and nudged him toward the back door. “I’ll see you soon, kiddo.”
He nodded, disappointed but appeased, and rushed inside shouting for Bella.
Then, Harley and I were alone on the deck. Mia and Dylan’s laughter was barely audible through the windows, and the midday breeze rustled the trees at the edge of the deck.
“So, what is it now?” Harley asked. Her tone wasn’t accusatory, just… resigned. Somehow, that was worse than anger.
“It’s work,” I said. “I’ll be back soon.”
“Work.” She scoffed, her gaze cutting to the side. “I don’t want to know what kind of ‘work’, do I?”
“Probably not,” I admitted. I wasn’t going to tell her that Hawk was sticking around to make sure she and Dylan were safe. I didn’t think Sean would try anything crazy, but… I couldn’t be too careful with my son in the picture.
The breeze rustled between us. A lock of auburn hair fell across Harley’s forehead and into her eyes. I reached out and tucked it behind her ears. My fingertips skimmed across her warm skin, and those blue eyes that had lingered in my dreams for ten years met mine.
Her lips parted a fraction. The air seemed to crackle between us. My dragon longed for me to reach forward, kiss her, claim her.
Harley took a small step back. “Be safe today, okay? Your son is counting on you.”
“That’s my first priority.” I nodded, then left to meet Striker at the front of the house.
I didn’t know what the hell Sean was thinking, but I was determined to find out.
HARLEY
“Come on, Dylan,” I called from Stephan’s living room. “It’s time to go.”
There was only silence from upstairs. Hawk was on the floor of the living room playing with Bella, and Mia was on the couch with a book. It was mid-afternoon, and I wanted to be back at Mom’s before dinner. Sure, Stephan had said to stay as long as we wanted, but I didn’t want his family to think they had to deal with us for dinner, too.
But I knew Dylan was dragging his feet, hoping that Stephan would return.
“Dyl,” I called again. “I’m gonna count to three!”
The door to his room upstairs slammed open. “I wanna stay here!”
I winced, then mouthed an apology to Mia, who waved her hand, then nodded knowingly at Bella. All moms knew tantrums were a part of life.
“I know you do, but you’ve had plenty of time here today, okay? Now come downstairs.”
Dylan stomped down the stairs. “But it’s not fair! Why aren’t we allowed to stay here? Mama Liz’s house is too small, and my room there smells bad.”
“Dyl.”
“I hate it there! Why won’t you let me stay with Dad?”
“All right, that’s enough. Go wait in the car.”
Dylan shoved the front door open and stomped, surly as ever, off the porch and out to the white rental SUV, which was back in action after getting a new battery. It didn’t drive as nicely as the clan sedan, but honestly, I was glad to have something that was still mine, even if it was just a rental car. I sighed. “Sorry about that. He’s having a hard time with all of this.”
“Don’t be sorry,” Hawk said with an easy smile. “Text us if you need anything. But you know you can stay here, right?”
“Thanks. But not tonight.” I sighed and glanced toward the front door. I almost wished Stephan would show up now, but I know that’d only make it more difficult to get Dylan home.
We drove back to Mom’s in silence. Dylan stared out the window, anger radiating off him. I’d seen him throw tantrums before, but this was more intense than usual. Was it his shifter puberty? Or the shock of meeting his dad? Even if Stephan helped him get through his shift… Would it be easy for him to stay in Dylan’s life? Or would it just be like this, whiplash and confusion all the time?
My mother was nowhere to be found when we got back. “Go to your room, Dylan. You were rude to me and to our hosts. I want you to think about your tone, and we’ll talk about it before dinner.”
“Fine,” Dylan said. He went to his room and slammed the door.
I rolled my eyes. We’d be talking about that, too.
At least I’d had time to get to the grocery store. I put together a curry, using some of the rarely-used spices in Mom’s cabinets.
Dylan wouldn’t be in the mood to talk, but I could at least make one of his favorite meals.
The vegetables were simmering on the stove, the rice was nearly finished, and I was humming to myself as I set the table for two. Then, the front door opened, and I was greeted with a deep, heaving sigh.
“Hi, Mom.”
Mom was a little unsteady on her feet, and there was a flush on her cheeks. She’d clearly been out drinking, but at least she hadn’t brought anyone back with her this time.
“So, no guard dog here to scare off my company?” Mom asked.