Zinn put a hand on the teen’s wrist and quirked an eyebrow. “Did you? Or did you just yell at him and call him a dum-dum?”
Ked’s face flushed. “I told him he was being selfish and acting like he didn’t care about anyone but himself.”
“That’s what it sounds like when we let our hurt feelings do the talking,” Zinn said sagely. “If you tell Jordie you miss him, and that you hope he can make time for you even though he has a boyfriend now, he might hear it a little better. A lot of times when it feels like people are being selfish or uncaring, they’re really just clueless.”
“I guess.”
“I know you’re upset. But maybe when you’re less angry, you can have an actual conversation with him.”
“Is that what you did with your brother?”
Zinn hummed sadly. “No. That brother and I were never close. Not the way you and Jordie are. You two are very lucky to have each other. That’s why I know you can work it out.”
“You’re going to be okay, pal,” Calder said to his son. “But there’s only so much I can do here to intervene. You boys are almost grown, and it sounds like this conversation needs to happen between the two of you. I bet Zinn’s right. I doubt Jordie even knows you’re feeling this way.”
“Besides,” Zinn smirked, “someday it’ll be you with the new boyfriend leaving everyone in the dust and forgetting about anything except being inluuuuurve.” He made heart hands against his chest.
“Haha,” Ked said, cracking a smile and looking so much like Denni it made Calder’s breath catch. “I’ll think about it. I guess I haven’t told Jordie, like with actual words that aren’t yelling.”
“That, my friend, is a life skill,” Zinn said.
Indeed, Calder thought. And such ironic advice coming from the most closed-off person he’d ever met.
“Papa, I’m going to the house. Thanks for listening, Zinn.”
“Anytime.”
After Ked left, Calder told Zinn he’d be out to check the cakes momentarily but needed to make a phone call first.
He called Ked’s soccer coach to apologize for him needing to stay late. As it turned out, the coach wasn’t annoyed in the least. Apparently, he’d still been putting away equipment when Ked got picked up.
Calder rolled his eyes at the information. He needed to talk to his younger son about exaggeration. Life was tough enough without creating problems that weren’t there.
But the excuse of the phone call had the positive effect of giving him a minute to tamp down his reaction to watching Zinn with his son.
His pull toward the omega was there as always, but seeing him interact with Ked?Stars!It turned Calder’s wanting into more of an ache. An ache deep in his bones. He breathed in the air, still perfumed by Zinn’s sugar maple scent, and pressed the flat of his palm down on his cock.
He needs you, his inner alpha insisted.You need to protect him, fix whatever’s making him sad.
No, Calder’s rational mind retorted.These aren’t the old days. Omegas have agency. And that’s a good thing.
In the kitchen, he saw that Zinn had created two of the most beautiful confections he’d ever seen.
One cake was light blue, with intricate buttercream leaves and knotwork designs in various shades of green over its three layers. The sugar crystal sculpted betas on top were dressed in matching tuxedos and looked exactly like the couple who’d ordered it.
Without question, that cake was gorgeous, but the other was a true work of art. Its asymmetrical layers in raspberry-colored fondant were both whimsical and eye-catching. Even more interesting, figurines of an alpha sliding off the cake being rescued by his omega topped the four layers.
“It’s so intricate,” Calder said approvingly.
“And progressive,” Zinn replied. “It’ll certainly start a conversation.”
“You think?”
“Mm-hmm. The couple works at the university. They requested a cake that would send a message to their guests that they intended to be equal partners. No alpha dominance like their parents’ marriages had. When I suggested this concept, they were all for it.”
“I love that,” Calder said.
Zinn studied him. “Me too.”
