Yet everything he’d shown me in the charter gave me hope that there was a way forward for us. A place we could carve out in Haenvale where I wouldn’t have to rip the kids from all they knew so I could have mymate in my life.
The things my moms had said about being proud of me kept coming to the front of my mind. As the youngest, there were times I was left to fend for myself, and I’d always thought I was okay with it. Hearing my moms tell me how proud they were of me for my choice to raise my kids was something I never thought I’d get. Granted, I wasn’t sure I’d ever have kids. They were something I wanted in the abstract, but knew I was a long way off actually having them. Until I inherited them, in a sense.
I didn’t think they’d be proud of me for the way I was dealing with this mate situation, though. They’d be angry at me for playing games with Sully. They’d call me a coward for hiding away, forgetting I had three lives on the line. If it was only me and Sully to think of, then I’d have accepted him straight away, town be damned. The kids needed time to get used to me and have the security that they wouldn’t be taken from me now that we’d bonded.
My kids were amazing. The way they’d accepted my family was awe-inspiring. Rowan had taken a little longer to warm up to his new grandmas. Sandy and Berry were much more accepting of the situation. They were open to having grandparents, having seen shows andread books where the characters had a wider family. Their brother, not so much. Rowan confessed once that he worried they would convince me to give him and his siblings up for an easier life. He had a lot of guilt over how they’d been living, often thinking he should have left them somewhere. I was grateful he hadn’t. We were all together now, and I wasn’t letting them go.
Rowan was a great young man with solid views of the world. Once he felt more comfortable with me, he felt able to tell me what he thought of Sully—he was a big fan—and how I was mishandling the situation. He didn’t like me putting my mate aside from him and his siblings, though he understood the need for a delay. Rowan told me to confess everything to Sully and trust he could handle it. My eldest was more idealistic than I was.
The rest of the day passed slowly while I tried to get more done around the house before our guests arrived. No matter what they said, Mama would want a more comfortable bed than the camper offered. They promised to call before hitting the road and not just appear. I just hoped the kids were okay with my moms in person. They could beoverwhelming.
My first impressions of the house made it seem worse than it was. Really, it wasn’t in bad shape. The decor was tired, not to my style, but Uncle Malik had done his best with the place. I liked it. The house and the surrounding woods had a great vibe.
In my pocket, my phone buzzed with a message.
Mom
Just picked up the documents. Hitting the road early morning. Will be there around lunchtime. Mama found the cutest boots for Berry.
I owed my eldest son his own pie, even though I’d already given him the largest piece at dinner the night before. A bet was a bet, after all. I was supposed to put him on cooking duty, but my moms let me down by taking so long! Nah, really, I was happy he won so he could get the pie to himself. The way he ate, I felt like he had some growing to do. Soon he’d be taller than me. I wanted that for him, though. Wanted to show him love and safety by always having an abundance of food he liked to eat. I wished for him to never again go through the lean times like he must have when deliveries were only coming monthly.
When the day finally ended, I found myself restless. I was exhausted and needed to sleep, it just wasn’t in the cards for me. I laid in bed, the house silent around me, just thinking about the last few days, wondering what deity I’d pissed off.
At least one thing went smoothly. Having documents would make everything much easier. I’d find another witch to evaluate the kids, with my moms helping me. I didn’t want to rely on Ginger. As nice as she was, she wasn’t dependable. Once I knew where their power level was, I could decide if we were staying in Haenvale long term or not. I really didn’t want to take them away from the memories of their mother. I hoped we could stay.
Part of me wanted to pack up the kids and return to New Boston, where everyone had to get along or suffer the consequences, instead of dealing with the worried stares of the prey shifters in Haenvale. Maybe it was my paranoia speaking, but my visit to Rosie’s hadn’t been all that bad.
Life in New Boston could be hard for the vulnerable. There had been areas of the city where things were rougher. Gangs of predators, usually wolves and bears, resorted to crime.Life wasn’t easy when you could turn into something dangerous. Many made assumptions about who you were. A label was stuck to you as soon as you presented, around age three. Even in more open places, there was distrust.
A place like Haenvale, where we all wore inhibitors, should have been friendlier. I’d already learned it wasn’t. Did I want my kids growing up around open prejudice?
A knock came from the door. Sandy and Berry were asleep, and had been for hours. Rowan had been reading in his room, letting me do the night time routine with the twins.
“Imri? Can I come in?” Rowan called from the other side of the door.
“Yeah.”
Rowan entered the room and took a seat at the end of the bed.
“C’mere.” I patted the space next to me as I sat up against the headboard.
“It’s okay…” He hesitated, torn. He clearly needed to get something off his chest.
I fixed him with a mock glare. “Come over here, Rowan.”
He finally moved to sit close to me. I wrapped an arm around him, letting him sit quietly with his thoughtsfor a moment.
“When Gaga and Noona come, will you tell Sully the truth about us?” he finally asked.
“Is it that important to you that he knows?” The more I thought about how I handled things with Sully, the more I regretted my decision. He could have been with me all this time. He had a lawyer as a best friend, though. Would she have put aside the law for him if he asked?
“Yes. It is. If we’re going to be family, then there shouldn’t be any lies between us.”
Rowan was right. When I asked Sully to accept me and the kids, I would do it with him knowing everything. I’d let him decide if we were worth the problems that were sure to come with a single dad to three witches in a town where anything dangerous was feared.
“Oh, when Berry and Sandy call you Dad in the morning, don’t make too big of a deal about it, okay? They’ve been worried about it. We talked it over and decided that’s what we’re going to call you now that you’ve adopted us, okay?”
I was speechless. “Alright,” I said, finding my voice.
