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“Reading my letters now?”
“It’s a good thing we do; otherwise, we wouldn’t find out about your scandalous ways!” Isaiah exclaimed. “What is this? What have you been doing in Italy instead of focusing on the business and your deals? Who are these immoral people you have been associating with?”
“They are not immoral,” he said automatically. “Disrespectful, sure, but that’s probably because I didn’t draw a clear line between us when I should have—and I will do it as soon as I respond to these missives. Alishondra comes from a wealthy family who collects art and owns a huge mansion in Italy. Her father is a gentleman who invests wisely, and I suspect holds several businesses with the lifestyle he can afford.”
“That’s beside the point,” Isaiah countered.
“You are right; it’s beside the point, not when Alishondra isn’t the woman I’m in love with now.” Like a bomb, the declaration had silence ringing in the air, but he pushed on. “The woman I’m in love with is a strong, lovely one with a heart of gold and determination of steel. She has a son who is just as lovely and just as brave, and I have never been luckier to have met them.”
Eyes widened and a stunned sound came from Adela’s throat. Isaiah sputtered, angry enough to turn purple as he stepped forward and snarled.
“How dare you—”
“You will think the same if only you gave her a chance, father,” Edmund cut in. “If you gave other people a chance instead of judging what’s in their pockets and what powerful connection they can grant us.”
“Edmund, please don’t do this,” Adela pleaded, eyes volleying between him and his father.
“I’m not doing anything, mother,” he said, then bent over to kiss the woman on the cheek. Then he eyed his father, who was quaking with rage and swallowing before the temper came out, anyway.
“How dare you! You say you are not doing anything, but you are bringing disgrace to your family and ruining our plans! Are you going to let these foolish acts be your family’s downfall?”
“You already took care of our downfall, father,” he said casually, earning his mother’s gasp. “But rest assured that I will make things right as long as I’m here—on my terms. A relationship with someone shouldn’t be part of the equation no matter what.”
He bid them goodbye and walked out before his father could spew more unnecessary hate, not in the mood to get into another argument. Edmund kept going, bundling up on his way out of the house and braving the sunlight when all he wanted to do was to bask in darkness. He gritted his teeth and kept his complaints in, heading to the apartment in no time to find Charlie pacing the floor and Archie floating his toys up to the ceiling.
“Did Alexa not come home yet?” was the first question out of his mouth.
“She said she had to do overtime,” Charlie replied.
Edmund plucked a toy before it could land on a bowl of cereal, then hoisted Archie up and showered him with kisses. The boy giggled while Charlie watched on, frowning. But Edmund already deduced that the disapproval wasn’t meant for him.
“I hate when she does this,” he muttered.
“Does what?”
Charlie sighed. “Work her ass off and come home bone tired. She hasn’t done it in a while since she…since she worked on those painting projects with you.”
There was some hesitance, then a struggle with words. Edmund waited it out until Charlie whirled on him, clearly winning his inner struggle.
“Can’t you give her more projects and help her out? I heard what she earned on her first piece with you, and maybe if she can get more paintings out in public, she could reduce her awful working hours in the cake shop and the ice cream shop…”
“Okay.”
The easy agreement had Charlie blinking. “Okay?”
“Yes. Okay.”
The younger man’s eyes narrowed. “Is it that easy? What do you want in return?”
Edmund shrugged. “Nothing. Her love and affection are what I’m fighting for, but it has nothing to do with me offering a deal—but only if she wants to keep painting.”
“She wants to,” Charlie said firmly. Then, “You are weird.”
“How am I weird?”
“No vampire would agree to things easily and be so open about loving a single mother shifter.”
Edmund bit back a smile. “Then you just haven’t met the right vampires, young man, if you conclude that we won’t fight for a great love and what we value the most in life.”
