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And if he did talk with his daughter, what excuse could she use next time to push him away?
Maybe she wouldn’t want to do that. However, she barely paid attention to that thought as she listened to Bronx and Violet’s conversation.
* * *
Bronx hadn’t expectedViolet to come home so soon after receiving his text message. But he was done being a coward, and he greeted her once she came in with a kiss to her cheek. As soon as she asked what he wanted, he gestured toward the sofa. “I want to talk about your mother.”
His daughter’s pupils flashed as she gasped. “Really?”
He nodded. “You’re more than old enough to hear it all. Although I warn you, it’s not all rosy and perfect, Vi. Do you really want to hear it? The truth might alter your picture of me.”
She frowned. “What are you talking about?”
“First, are you sure you want the truth, no matter what?”
She searched his gaze. “You’re scaring me a little, Dad.” She crossed her arms over her chest, her pupils flashing, then she finally bobbed her head. “But yes, no matter what, I want to hear it.”
He gestured toward the sofa, and once they both sat down, he jostled his good leg.
His dragon spoke up.Just tell her. There’s no sense in delaying it now.
Taking a deep breath, he said, “I already mentioned how I found your mother—hiding and beaten in one of the boat sheds along a nearby lake. And how making her laugh became one of my greatest joys.”
Violet smiled. “Yes.”
His leg thumped a bit harder against the floor. “Well, we weren’t true mates. However, I loved your mother, wanted to mate her, and wooed her into saying yes. We were happy. Edith even soon found her purpose—helping with volunteer activities and especially at the school.”
He remembered her coming home and sharing with him about what she’d done that day, her eyes bright. It didn’t matter if it was assisting a young student with an art project or visiting one of the elderly and dropping off groceries; Edith merely loved being useful.
He’d always hated how a female with such a good heart had suffered such a shitty life.
Violet touched his arm. “I know that much, Dad. I saw pictures from some of the archives at the school.”
He nodded and patted his daughter’s hand. “Well, I should back up a little before explaining what came next. Before I mated your mother, I bluntly told her that it was dangerous for a human female to carry and birth a dragon-shifter’s child. While there are treatments now that give human females higher chances of survival—more than ninety-three percent—it was different back then. She’d been through so much, and I couldn’t bear the thought of losing her. To protect her life, we agreed not to have any children.”
Initially, Edith had almost seemed relieved. Not because she wanted to avoid sex—they’d had plenty of that—but she’d had a tough childhood and teenage life, and she’d never really been given the chance to merely be herself.
And Bronx had wanted Edith as his mate more than he wanted a child.
Violet asked quietly, “What happened, Dad?”
He blew out a breath. “Over time, working with the children made her want to be a mum. She wanted to give a child a better life than hers, wanted a little one that was part her and part me to love. It was one of the few things we argued about. I loved her so much and didn’t want to risk it, riskher. But…” His voice trailed off, and his fingers gripped the trouser material on one leg. His daughter was about to learn how weak he’d been.
“Dad, but what?”
Glancing over, he saw Violet merely looking at him with curiosity. His dragon said,She already knows how the story ends, so stop dragging your feet.
Even if she does, this is bloody difficult, dragon.
Still, Violet should know everything.
He found his voice again. “Your mother was so desperate to have a baby, despite knowing the risks, that she even threatened to tell the DDA we hadn’t been trying. And back then, matings between humans and dragon-shifters were usually only granted to help repopulate a dragon clan. If the DDA found out, I had no bloody idea what would’ve happened. And so I gave in. Instead of doing what was hard by staying strong to protect her life and safeguard her future, I let her tears sway me.” He swallowed. “And even from the start of her pregnancy, she had a tough time. Your mother was quite ill for most of it. She could barely get out of bed, and yet she still went on every day about how much she couldn’t wait to meet you.”
The memories threatened to break free, but he kept them at bay to focus on Violet. He would get through all of this if it killed him. “Even when the doctors said she’d die if she didn’t terminate the pregnancy, she refused to listen. I couldn’t convince her, I-I…”
He closed his eyes, remembering how he’d pleaded and begged Edith to think of their future.
She’d even put his hand on her belly, saying maybe their child would kick for him. Instead of enjoying the moment, he’d resented it. To him, her growing belly had signaled a ticking clock to her death.
