Page 102

“Yes, I’ll do that for her,” he says.

“Thank you.”

I cross my arms, watching Lace grab Savy’s keys, and wait until they leave. The owl stares at me as he grips Lace’s shoulder. Before he helped Mara and Lace when they were in danger, I didn’t believe it was their dad’s soul inside him. As I used my fire to melt the ice, I felt his power as he helped me.

I'll never doubt again.

The door shuts, and I turn to Aria and Gwen.

“Savy loves you. She will forgive you because that is the kind of person she is,” I say gruffly. “I’m not. I don’t trust easily, and when someone I care about is hurting, I don’t take it well. I couldn’t protect my mom, the one woman who was my world.” I look at Aria, and then Gwen. “I’ll protect Savy. We're a team. I can understand your need to have answers.” I stare at her sister. “But don’t ever keep me away from Savy. She could have been seriously hurt. You didn’t know that he wouldn’t kill her or you. Trusting him was your mistake. Yes, there was truth in his words, but you didn’t know that. It will take a while for me to trust you, so I suggest you work on that.” I look at Gwen. “I respect you, and your need to protect your family. Savy has said nothing but good things about you. Let her come to terms with all she's learned. Don't rush her. It’s going to be hard to accept that all of this could have been avoided if they knew the truth.” I drop my arms and roll my shoulders. “I’ll go with whatever she decides when she does, and treat you as family. But I'll make sure she isn’t deceived again.”

“We'll wait until she’s ready to talk,” Gwen says, standing.

“I’m sorry,” Aria whispers, joining Gwen. “I love her. I made a mistake, and I’ll make it up to her.” She walks toward me. “And you.”

I nod sharply.

“I’ll be in town. I don’t want to leave until everything’s settled.” Gwen moves toward the door.

“I’ll pass along the message.” I walk behind them and shut the door after they leave.

Pressing my palm against the wood, I bow my head. What a fucking day. I pride myself on keeping calm. I guess meeting the one meant for you will shake those emotions.

I feel the air move behind me, and I know Margarete is here.

“Don’t be mad,” she says quickly. “I was shocked when I popped into the store and saw the warlock in the throes of your nightmare. Rome knew the only way to calm me down was to give me the address.”

“I’m not mad,” I say softly, and stand straight. I glance toward the bedroom.

“She’s sleeping,” she says, and I focus on her. I stare at her, and she tilts her head. “It’s been a hell of a day, huh?”

I exhale. “Yeah.”

“My son,” she whispers, and takes a step forward.

She opens her arms, and I slowly move toward her. I swallow hard and hug her like I did when I was young. Everything releases as she rubs my back, and I press my cheek against her hair. Margarete always showed her love easily. She treated me the same as she did Rome, and I never felt like an outsider.

“Why did you do it?” I whisper.

“What?”

“Take me in. What made you stop that day? You could have kept walking. I wasn’t your responsibility, or blood.”

She eases back, gripping my arms, and glares.

“Because I knew you were my son.” She tightens her fingers. “All these years, I didn’t know you still had doubts.”

“Sometimes, I can’t help it.”

“Well, let's put it to rest.” She smiles gently. “I could have ignored you. I had a wonderful life with my family. Rome was a handful, yet if I’m honest, I encouraged his behavior. My husband was supportive and the love of my life. I was happy and fulfilled.” She brushes my hair back. “I saw this little dark angel, and I knew. You were supposed to complete our family. There was pain in your eyes, and I wanted to heal it. Something pushed me. If I'd turned away, I would regret it for the rest of my life.”

“I gave you a hard time,” I say gruffly.

“Shit, that’s what made you a perfect fit for the family,” she smirks, pushing on my arms. “You’ve always been reserved. There’s nothing wrong with that. Rome is outgoing. He’ll try anything once. That boy almost gave me a heart attack many times. You balance each other. I knew you would pull him out of trouble. Every move you made took thought process and careful planning. I knew you still held pain inside you over the death of your mom, understandable, but I hoped you would come to me if it was too much.”

“I think I'll always feel some guilt.” I rub my jaw and step back. “But—”

“Savy helped you,” she says.