Chapter 13: The Lone Alpha

Chapter Eleven. Mars.

Hell, I have pushed her too far, too quickly. But in my defence, how could I resist? She looked so stunning in her red bathing suit that clung to every perfect curve on her amazing, beautiful, sexy-as-sin body. It had been hard to keep my hands to myself, and not grab hold of her. Thank the lord above that my pup kept me occupied.

Our swim time was amazing. Max was so excited, and thoroughly enjoyed himself, which made my chest puff with pride. The sexual tension with his mother was off the charts, and I know she is fighting the chemistry, which comes from more than just our mate bond, but as I have mentioned before. I am a stubborn bastard, and I will not give up the fight. I will win her back!

“You had bloody better. Did you see how many men were checking her out in the pool!” Ares growls at me.

Yeah, I did notice that. She was oblivious to the looks and heated glances she got from the men in that swimming pool. It was driving Ares nuts, and to be honest, me as well. However, it was clear that we were here together, and that Max was my son, especially when he was shouting my favourite word in the world, ‘Daddy’ at me every two seconds.

I headed into my changing room and dried myself off, pulling on my work clothes. I am at a loss as to what to do next. As much as this hour has been perfect with Max, it is not enough. I want to spend every hour I can with him, but with Davina shutting down on me, I doubt she will agree to us prolonging this father-son date.

“Then use your Irish charm and convince her, asshole,” Ares shouts at me.

I rush out of the changing room as soon as my clothes are on, hoping that Davina and Max haven’t left, already. I doubt she could have, she had both herself and Max to get dry and dress.

I hear my pup’s voice chatting happily to his mammy, and my heart skips a beat, as relief floods my system that she has not left the building yet. Leaning against the lockers, I fold my arms, cross my ankles, lean back against the lockers and decide to wait for them.

I cannot decide whether to apologise for my comment, pretend it never happened, and move forward. I am toying back and forth with the best way to handle this delicate situation when the door to her changing room opens and Max runs out straight into my arms. Davina lets out an audible frustrated breath, and I am at a loss about how to handle this situation, without making the whole thing worse.

“Hey, thank you for letting me come. I have had a great time,” I tell her, still betwixt and between about whether I should apologise or not.

“Are you coming with us to get ice cream? Mammy has some in our caravan,” Max excitedly asks, and gives me huge puppy dog eyes, that I just know will work on his mother.

“Mars is busy, Max,” Davina states.

Now, I have mentioned that I am stubborn and probably, some would say, a petty bitch, and her just deciding for me, brings out that facet of my personality. I no longer struggle with 'if I should say sorry' or not, because I am determined to have an ice cream with my boy.

“Actually, I am finished until six tonight when I have my next nature trail,” I tell my now angry mate.

“So, I would love to have ice cream with you,” I grinned at my pup.

Davina huffs but concedes defeat when our little man whoops with joy. However, if looks could kill, I would be six feet under right now.

Seriously, I think I can see steam coming out of her ears.

“Great, you have now made her even more mad. Asshole!” Ares rages. My wolf is desperate for our mate. I know how he feels, but I cannot help the way I am made, and I will not allow anyone to speak for me. Not even her.

“But we get to spend more time with her, and Max is happy. So, get off your high horse and just enjoy the fact that we are going to her caravan, spending time with our pup, and we will not have the eyes of horny men checking her out, and winding us up!” I growl back at Ares.

“Can we go on the tractor train please mammy?” Max asks, as Davina nods her head, and we stand in the long queue, which will probably mean we will not get on the train, and given they run every hour, we will be here sometime.

“Max, I think it will be quicker if we walk,” Davina sighs, as we stand in uncomfortable silence, our pup chats to his wolf, and his mother is clearly, embarrassed about it, thinking that maybe there is something wrong with him. Or, worried about what people will think about it. She seems to have a distinct lack of confidence, and I have to hold my hands up for my part in that, and I make a vow that I will do everything I can to build her up, where life has torn her down.

“We need to tell her,” Ares sighed, and for the first time since my mate arrived back in our lives, I agree with him. But I need to gain her trust before I unload that information onto her.

Max gets bored with waiting for the train, and so we begin to walk back to the van. My heart swells twice its size as my pup pushes between me and his mother, grabbing each of our hands in his. To the outside world, we look like a real little family, and I cannot explain the utter joy that brings me.

Am I still scared shitless that something could happen to them, and how devastated I would be? God yes, but will I run from them now? Not a cat in hell's chance. But I know I have an uphill battle to convince Davina of that small fact. I will never let her go again. Plus, I can find a way to keep myself hidden, and my little family can live a ‘normal’ human life, out of the way of any pack.

We arrive back at her caravan, and Max runs inside, skidding on the hardwood floor, before flopping down on the couch, his little legs bouncing up and down in anticipation of his sweet treat.

“Max go wash your hands,” Davina tells my boy, and he jumps up, skidding to the bathroom on the hard floor once more, as she shakes her head at him. Then stifles a yawn. I can see she is tired, and I wonder if she has ever taken time for herself since our pup was born. I get the feeling she hasn’t. Well, that is something I can do to help her, give her a couple of hours off, where she can relax, and switch off.

“Look, I know you didn’t want me to come. But thank you for letting me anyway,” I say, feeling a little guilty that I had thrust myself onto her this afternoon, especially when she looks like she just needs some peace and quiet.

"Yeah, well, just stay in your lane. None of that ‘you are perfect’ bullshit, when we both know I am not, and you find me unlovable” she tells me, mimicking my voice and accent, her beautiful blue eyes giving me a pointed look.

I look at her and tilt my head to one side. I hate that she took my words that night to mean that she was anything less than perfect. I meant I was not good enough for her, that I could not afford to love her, because of the trauma of my past. I know she has her walls up, and I need to work harder than I have in my life, to knock them down.

“I will try. But it is hard to do when you are so damn beautiful,” I softly tell her.

She shakes her head as if not believing me, and then blushes as red as the sexy swimsuit, which was designed to give her modesty, but made it even more alluring. She jumps off the sofa, and heads to the freezer, pulling out the tub of ice cream, avoiding both me and the compliment.

“Okay, I will be on my best boy scout behaviour. Promise.” Not that I was ever a Boy Scout, but she doesn’t know that. I take a breath and change the conversation to what I hope is safer ground.

“I was wondering, would you let me take Max to work with me on the nature trail tonight? He told me how much he loves plants and animals, and I think he will love it. You obviously can come as well, or take a break, because I get the feeling you haven’t had one since he came into the world,” I said just as Max barreled out of the bathroom, and once again slid on the wood floor to the sofa area. I think it is his new favourite pastime, skidding on the wooden floors.

When Davina gives us each a bowl of the Neapolitan, Max shovels it down his neck.

“Max, please, remember to eat your food slowly, you could choke, and also, if you would stop skidding on the floor, you could hurt yourself, ” Davina sighed. Shaking her head. Clearly, she is worried sick about something ill befalling our pup.

“No, sorry, he can go with you, but I need to be with him,” she said, clearly worried about leaving her son with a relative stranger, even if I am his daddy.

I nodded my head, understanding her reluctance, but still, I wanted to do something nice for her. Something that will give her a little break, and allow her to relax slightly.

“Well, rather than you cook him tea, why don’t we head down to the restaurant, and all have tea together so that you don’t have to cook?” I asked, offering a smile.

“Erm, sorry, but that is not in the budget,” she shrugs, and although she still looks a little angry with me, I can tell that her comment is more that she has to be strict with her money, than wanting to stop me spending time with Max.

“Davina, you have provided for our son all these years. Which I will put right, immediately, and ensure you get maintenance from me every week. Now, please, let me pay for tea for you and Max,” I whispered to her. I don’t have a ton of money, but I do have more than enough to give her and my pup a good life, moving forward. Plus, there are the pack accounts, which I have not touched in ten years, just in case anybody from Blood Moon Pack is watching them. They think I am dead, and I want to keep it that way. But if push comes to shove, I will find a way to get funds for my mate and my pup. After all, they are kind of my pack now.

She bows her head, looks at the floor, and takes a huge breath, clearly arguing with herself. I don’t push any further. I know I have done enough of that for today, so just wait for her to make the decision, praying that she will agree.

“Not making tea would be nice,” she whispers.

I resist the urge to pump the air in victory, as I grin at Max as he shovels another spoonful of ice cream into his mouth, not taking any notice of the conversation between his parents.

“Hey, would you and Mammy like to come to work with me tonight? You can help me teach everyone about the plants around the park,” I asked my pup. His little face lit up.

“Can we Mammy?” he excitedly asks.

“Yes, we can, and we are going for a special tea with Mars as well,” Davina smiled down at him.

“Woo hoo. Did you hear that Thrax, we are going to have tea with both mammy AND daddy,” my boy shouts at the top of his voice, as Davina closes her eyes and sighs, whilst I cannot stop the smile forming on my face, even if I wanted to.