I raise an eyebrow at her. “Really, Ma?”
“Hello, son,” Jacob says, but I don’t greet him back. I walk over to the sofa and sink down onto it, burying my face in my hands.
“Ahhh, this fucking mate bond,” I groan. “She wanted to torture me. Well, it’s working. It’s working well.”
My mother walks over, placing her hands on her hips as she looks down at me. “What happened?”
I look up at her, exhaustion pulling at every muscle in my body. “Ma, I’m here for help, not judgment.”
She glares at me. “Baby, I’m not trying to judge you. I’m just trying to figure out what’s going on so I know how to help you.”
I drop my gaze, staring at the floor between my feet. Jacob approaches, standing beside her, placing a hand on her shoulder. Her hands fall from her hips.
I lift my face, looking at both of them. The words stick in my throat, humiliation burning through me. But I’ve run out of options.
“I shielded myself,” I finally say, the words falling flat.
“Shielded yourself from what?” My mother’s brow furrows. “What could—“ She stops, looking at Jacob, pieces clicking together in her head. Her face curls up, the anger rising on it in slow motion.
Here it comes.The judgment.
“Are you stupid, boy?” she snaps. “Why would you shield yourself from your mate?”
I stand up from the sofa, getting defensive. “You shielded yourself from Jacob!” I point at her, anger rising to match hers.
“Boy, that was because I had to! I thought I was going to die.” She steps closer, her eyes flashing. “Are you in some kind of danger I don’t know about? What would make you do something so stupid?”
I groan, throwing my hands up in exasperation. “I thought it would make her happy! She said she didn’t want a baby on the community lands.”
Jacob clears his throat. “Levi has mentioned to me twice that he’s waiting for you to approve the floor plans. You haven’t responded in six months.”
“Six months?” My mother’s voice rises in disbelief, her hands going back to her hips.
“Ma, please—“ I start, but she cuts me off.
“Don’t ‘Ma, please’ me, Aaron. Six months?”
“I got caught up,” I admit, but even as the words leave my mouth, I realize how weak they sound. I cringe, lowering my head in shame. “There’s something else.”
Jacob coughs, a grin at the corners of his mouth. My mother looks between us. “What’s going on?”
I lift my head, clearing my throat nervously. “There’s some... odd side effect from my spell.”
Jacob snorts, his eyes crinkling. “I’ll leave you two to discuss it. I’ll go find Levi.”
My mother looks at him with a glare, and I quickly chime in. “Hell no, you are not leaving me alone with my mother. She’s too judgmental right now.”
“And you have half a damn brain,” she snaps, “the other half of it sits...” She stops, realization dawning on her face. She looks to Jacob with an ‘O’ face, and a look passes between them.
Jacob snorts again, shaking his head.
“What?” I look between them. “What am I missing here? Is this normal?”
My mother turns to me, her anger softening into exasperation. “Every spell you cast for personal gain has a price. You interfered with the mate bond by doing that.”
“But how?” I ask. “There’s birth control in Wintermoon now, and?—“
“But it doesn’t always work,” she cuts me off. “Almost never works, for the most part. You don’t stop making babies until Mother Fate decides.” She sighs, shaking her head. “And that’s different. You’re mixing science with magic. You took away Mara’s natural order. Did you not think you wouldn’t have to pay for that?”
