Reid just laughs and opens the door, taking my hand in his. “No, you don’t.”
We start out to the living room hand in hand. “You’d think I’d get a little more sympathy after what I’ve been through the last few days,” I say, knowing my brother can hear me.
“If you’re well enough to be making out with Reid, you’re well enough to come to the family meeting,” Zane all but growls at me.
“Oh please,” I tell him, dropping onto the couch. “As if you wouldn’t be doing the same thing if Evie were here.” I catch the look on his face, and realization dawns. “That’s why you’re cranky; Evie’s not here.”
He crosses his arms over his chest, looking less than pleased. “If you two are finished, do you think we could talk?”
I look over at my dad. “Sure.”
“Where’s mom?” I ask.
“Right here,” my mom says, coming into the living room.
I let my senses out and surmise that we’re alone. “Where’s everybody else?”
“Slate and Tessa left this morning for a trip,” my father says.
“Evie’s at the coffee shop,” my brother says in a less than pleasant voice.
“And Quint decided to go for a run,” my father finishes. I figure he probably did that to give us privacy.
“Why are you and mom here?” I ask, looking between the two of them. They’re standing on opposite sides of the living room, and something about it doesn’t sit well with me.
“We thought we’d have a little more privacy here,” my father says after a moment. “Everybody’s been worried about you and your mom,” he adds a moment later, and I get what he’s saying. Pack members must keep showing up at the house to check on my mom and me.
I think about the subject matter, and I feel myself tense up. I glance at my mom, but she’s not looking at me. Her head is down, and I have a feeling she hasn’t told my dad or brother anything yet. I’m suddenly not looking forward to this conversation. Reid must feel my discomfort because he takes my hand in his and squeezes gently. I’m grateful for his strong presence; he keeps me stabilized. “Mom said she wanted to talk, and she wanted all of us present,” my dad says after a moment of uncomfortable silence.
Reid stiffens next to me. “I don’t have to be here for this.”
“No, please stay,” I say at the same time my dad motions for him to stay.
“Evie would be here if she weren’t working,” my father adds, and I feel Reid relax next to me. My dad looks over at my mom, and I can feel his frustration. I can tell he’s at a loss, and he’s not used to that. He and my mom have never been at odds with each other, not that I can remember anyway. I look over at my mom whose head is still down. I decide in that moment that it’s going to fall to me. I watch my mom carefully as I begin to speak. “You guys already know it was the coffee. It knocked both of us out. Somewhere along the way, they gave us each a silver bracelet, which broke off our connection to the pack. I think the coffee started the process of disconnecting us, and the bracelet finished the job. When we got there, Bane came to talk to us.”
“Bane?” my father interrupts.
I meet his gaze head-on. “The guy heading this all up, their master.” His eyes harden, and he nods. I don’t really know how to do this next part, so I continue slowly. “He asked mom if she ever told the truth, and he was pretty adamant about it.” I glance over at my mom, not sure how to continue.
“I already know about their past,” my father says, his voice tight with anger.
“Yes,” I hedge carefully, still looking at my mom. “But there’s more.” It’s so quiet in the room, and I feel like everyone can hear my heart beating harder than it should be. Reid runs his thumb over the back of my hand, likely trying to calm me. “He said,” I pause. “He said,” I try again.
“I slept with him and got pregnant.”
My mom’s words are like a bombshell. There’s silence for a moment, and then Zane explodes. “What? Seriously? That’s not possible.”
But I’m not watching my brother; my eyes are focused on my dad, who hasn’t moved a muscle. His eyes are locked on my mom. I watch him carefully, but he doesn’t look shocked. No, he looks...resigned. I glance over at my mom, who has tears dripping down her cheeks. “I’m so sorry,” she whispers, her eyes on my father. “I was so young...and stupid. I—” she pauses and tries to catch her breath.
“Are you kidding me?” Zane asks, anger in his voice. He stares at my mom. “What happened to the baby?” he demands.
My mom’s entire body seems to fold in on itself. “I gave her up for adoption, but—” she swallows and braces for what’s coming next. I squeeze Reid’s hand harder, needing an anchor in this storm. He releases my hand and puts his arm around me, anchoring me to his side. “Bane adopted her.” She doesn’t look up as she says the words, and I can see she has the weight of the world on her shoulders.
“He what?” my brother’s voice whips around the room. “We have a sister out there somewhere?”
His anger grates on my nerves. “Zane, calm down.”
His angry eyes settle on me. “Calm down? Are you kidding me right now?”
