Chapter 85 NOT JUST A MOTHER
GALLAHAN’S POV
I stiffened as disappointment with Calisto bubbled in my veins.
He wasn’t allowed to disrespect my mate and the very woman who carried him in the womb and birthed him to this world.
Son or not, I wouldn’t let such a remark slip. Not by me.
“Don’t be too hard on him,” Willa suddenly said, seemingly knowing what ran in my mind. “He’s just a little kid, Han.”
“All the more reason to instill respect in him, don’t you think?” I countered easily. “Nip it in the bud, Willa. Because I sure as hell wouldn’t have a son who couldn’t respect women, especially their own mother.”
“Han, he’s five,” she replied with a deep sigh. “He said it in the peak of his emotions.”
I frowned, feeling utterly concerned that she would shove her own feelings down as if they didn’t matter. “Doesn’t make it any less hurtful for you.”
“Yes,” she agreed slowly, as if she was talking to a five year old, and not a grown man. But it was hard to take offense when she was so near and looking so fucking beautiful that it was borderline illegal. It could send me early to my grave. “But look at it this way, Han. We’re adults, but we still end up saying things we shouldn’t once in a while, just because we get caught up in the heat of the moment and we often fail to properly grip our emotions. What more a kid, Han? So cut him some slack.”
“It’s just a talk, Willa. I’m not going to castigate him.”
“Is it really necessary? I’m pretty sure he regrets it already.”
“Has he apologized to you?”
There was a moment of silence that lapsed between us before Willa answered, “No. He… He couldn’t meet my gaze after that.”
“See? He needs to be talked to.”
“Well, it’s not like he has a lot of opportunities to do so,” she defended. “I’ve been letting him stay in the Alfiero Manor these past few days. Just to give him a bit of room to breathe away from me and Gillian. I figured he might need it to cool down and distract him from your absence. So I’m pretty sure he had some time to reflect on it. Cal is a smart kid.”
“Still,” I insisted. “I will have a talk with him.”
“Han…”
I gave her an impassive look. “I wouldn’t hurt him, Willa. I will just talk to him, I promise. Just because he’s a kid, it doesn’t mean he gets a free pass. Actions have consequences.”
“So where are my consequences?” Willa challenged, her voice taking on a somber lilt. “For all the things I’ve said to you?”
“Hey,” I murmured, shifting on the couch and scooting closer to her. “We've already paid for all the words we hurled at each other back in the maze. As for today’s case, though…”
I trailed off, shooting her a sultry gaze and a light smirk.
“Han,” she said warningly.
But I wasn’t the least bit fazed, so I continued, saying, “A kiss, on top of your accepted apology, would make it even.”
“Opportunistic,” she hissed with squinted eyes.
And in return, I shrugged, clearly nonplussed by the accusation. “Never said I wasn’t. So? Am I going to receive a kiss or…”
“Or,” she said, looking away and closing her sketchbook. “Or we could fetch Gillian and Calisto, so we could be good parents and help them mend the strain between them.”
“Maybe later,” I replied, taking away the items in her hands.
She lifted a brow, while I grinned at her. Then my gaze strayed down to her lips. Without much care and even a quick glance, I tossed her sketchbook and pencil in the general direction of the empty armchair.
Luckily, Willa didn’t seem to mind, if the fact that she kept her eyes on my face was any indicator. “How about now?”
“Later,” I shot back as I invaded her personal bubble. “Now is meant for assuring my mate that she is, in fact, a wonderful mother to our pups.”
“I don’t need assurance.”
“Oh, sure,” I agreed with an exaggerated nod of my head. “But I still want you to have some. Besides, I haven’t forgotten how you cried when I told you that you did well in raising them.”
Instantly, a scowl settled on her face. “I didn’t cry.”
It was my turn to raise a brow.
“Just got teary-eyed.”
“Same, same.”
Willa opened her mouth to argue, but without warning, I slipped an arm around her, easily hoisted her up and deposited her on my lap, making her sit sideways with her arm pressed close to my chest.
She failed to do anything but let out a yelp and shrieked, “Gallahan!”
I laughed loudly, my shoulders shaking and my head thrown back against the couch’s backrest.
“Come on,” I said, patting her thigh. “Straddle me, babe.”
Pink bloomed on her cheeks, and she sputtered, evidently unsure of how to react and what to say over the command and sudden endearment.
It drew out another bout of laughter from me, and I couldn’t help but coo teasingly, “Aren’t you adorable?”
She threw me a nasty glare and quickly made a move to get up. But I held her in place, my arms wrapped around her just right.
“Our kids are more important than my bruised feelings, Han.”
My chest clenched tightly, as unhappiness over her lack of regard for her own feelings swelled inside of me.
“I beg to disagree, sweetheart. Both are equally important, alright. You aren’t less than-”
Willa shook her head. There was a sweet smile hanging on the corner of her lips, while her bright gaze held so much unsaid emotions that I wished I could take apart piece by piece, layer by layer, so I could fully understand her and share every little bit of what she felt.
“We are parents, Han. We put them above all else.”
“You’re right,” I agreed, slightly tightening my hold around her waist. “But you aren’t just their mother, Willa. You are your own person, and you are also my mate. So you better accept the unchanging fact that I damn well intend to show you just how appreciated you are.”
It seemed like I said the right thing because Willa finally moved and adjusted herself on top of me, obediently straddling my lap just as I had asked her earlier.
But somehow, there was an odd uncertainty and timidity lacing her voice when she asked, “And how do you intend to do that?”
I wanted to chase it all away. To make her feel sure of her own skin. So I squeezed her hips and ran my hands soothingly on her sides.
Then I said, “With this.”
My eager lips met her unsuspecting ones in a quick chaste kiss.
“Let me worship you, Willa.”