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“Son, are you alright?”
Leo frowned. “Dad?”
“Yes, it’s me. I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have chased you off. Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m okay.”
Galanthia stepped up next to me. I knew from her scent, her warmth, and the expression of devotion on my son’s face. He reached for her, and she took his hand, creating a positive feedback loop between the three of us. An affectionate current circulated through us that was impossible to label.
Well, it didn’t need to be labeled, did it? Leo was smitten with Galanthia, like any child would be with their parent, and his happiness meant my happiness. I wouldn’t deny him that if it kept him healthy. Clearly, the two of them had a bond that I hadn’t realized was so important.
But now that I could see it, I couldn’t keep them away from each other. It wouldn’t be right. Despite how much I loathed her existence and struggled to accept my weird feelings for her, she was good for Leo. She was good for my mother.
Maybe one day she’d be good for me.
Chapter 16 - Galanthia
So many emotions mystified me in the presence of Leo and his father. Had I been a far more experienced caretaker with children, perhaps I could have prevented this frightful occurrence. Lurking over my head were the many things that had been traded betwixt the muscular man at my back and myself, a litany of arguments that summed to an unclear product.
There was no point in our bickering. We fought simply for the fight itself, participating in hurtful jabs for practice, I supposed. Drearier circumstances had formed from battle, yet I found them less harrowing than the position where I currently sat.
Leo spread my fingers and traced the lines in my palm. “Galanthia, why are you nervous?”
My eyebrows would have popped off my face had they had the skill to do so. “Pardon me?”
“You look nervous. Your eye is twitching.”
“Does my eye do that when I’m nervous?”
He nodded emphatically. “Dad does the same thing with his forehead.”
“You’re such an astute observer.”
“What doesastutemean?”
Smiles came naturally around Leo. “It means you’re smart.”
“I’m a smart observer.”
“Yes, that’s correct, dear boy.”
He beamed weakly. Though it hardly detracted from his inner brightness. Disheveled and beaten as he was, his color had not muted in the slightest. He looked so much like his father in his aura. It was amazing to witness the twin energy bouncing around the room.
Even with his father asleep in the chair behind me, they still shared many exchanges that denoted their relationship. Such care ran effectively deep.
“Galanthia,” Leo said sweetly, “you don’t have to watch me so closely.”
I chuckled lightly. “I’m here to protect you.”
“I’m not a baby, you know.”
“No, you’re not a baby at all. Neither is your grandmother.”
Disquieted features harbored shadows in the dim light. “Is Grandma upset?”
“Oh, no. Dear me, I’m terribly sorry, Leo. She just told me about some things in confidence.”
The Star Goddess would have presumed me Izdor with the way my mouth was blabbering away details. Yet the freedom I felt in speaking them put me at ease.
