Chapter 113 - He Stole My Heart, I Stole His Child
I have to quickly tell Max what Rieka told me, because he soon goes into protector mode and I am nervous he will truly insult his moon goddess while trying to defend me from whatever he thinks she did or said to me.
Thank heavens that she seems to find his behavior amusing. She isn’t offended in the least that my protective, burly mate had thoughts of harming her for offending me. She just sat back in her chair and grinned lovingly, like she found the behavior endearing.
When I tell him about Rian, and about the message my brother left for me, Max falls to his knees and starts tearing up with me.
“That’s great, honey. That’s so, so great.” He wraps his arms around my waist as I hold his face and start to kiss him deeply, overcome with my own happiness.
It’s like Rieka said. I couldn’t imagine a more perfect life than spending the rest of it with this man while raising Rian together with him. He really would be an amazing father figure. Axel is a fine man and a great alpha. Taegan, bless his unfiltered mouth and kind heart, is being raised with so much love and devotion by the men in his life, not to mention his kind-hearted mom. I want the same for my Rian too. I want Rian to experience the devotion and freedom that comes with living in a pack and not the pressure and formality of being a fairy royal.
“Do you….would you consider maybe…..would it be okay if I really did get Rian back? Could he live with us at your home?”
“Our home, Thyra. That already makes it his home too.”
A sob escapes me as I start kissing all over his face, making him hum deeply with his own happiness.
“Wait. Who’s Rian?” Taegan asks, standing in the circle of Rieka’s arms as they watch us lost in our own little bubble of tear-filled happiness.
I smiled shyly. “My son. Rian is my son.”
“Oh,” he wrinkles his little nose while thinking. “Why didn’t you bring him with you?”
“It’s a long story, squirt. We’ll tell you later,” Max grumbles, nuzzling his head against my chest.
Taegan purses his lips like he is unhappy with the vague response, but Rieka’s sudden soft laughter distracts him,and he turns to smile at her instead.
“Taegan, sweetie. Are you excited about getting a new uncle?”
Taegan’s smile faltered. “That depends. Brother Casey and Beta Rick are my pretend ‘uncles’ and they make me mad a lot.”
Rieka chuckles, “Well, Rian is 7, so just a little older than you.”
7. My son is still very young. I thought he might be a bit older, but I’m glad I didn’t miss many years with him.
“Oh,” Taegan turns his head as he thinks, “I don’t know how he could be an uncle if he’s my age, but I guess that’s okay. I’m still the alpha, right?”
Rieka grins, “You will always be the alpha, Taegan. No one can take that title from you.”
“I mean, of Blue Cliff Pack. I will still be the next Alpha of my pack, right? Mommy said I was going to be a great Alpha of my pack and I don’t want to disappoint her.”
This boy with his mom. Max laughs gruffly, “You are still the next Alpha, boy. The only thing that will change is you will have another friend to help you torment your little cousins and help you with your sisters.”
Oh, I like the sound of that. It sounds so normal and mundane. Something I always craved as a child. By Taegan’s expression, I can tell he likes the sound of that too.
“Could he help me shave Brother Casey’s eyebrows off his annoying face in his sleep?”
“Why in the heavens would you want to do that?” I asked.
Taegan shrugs, a mischievous smirk on his face. “I decided the fun bags thing was his fault. He needs to be punished if I’m punished.”
“Taegan,” Max growls at him.
“Okay, okay. Geez. I’ll just shave one off.”
“Shit, Taegan. If you so much as touch a pair of fucking trimmers or put them close to anyone's face, I’ll be shaving you bald for the next year,” Max pulled away from me to growl at his grandson.
“Okay. Gosh, grandpa. You really are grumpy today.” Taegan rolls his eyes, then turns to Rieka. “See what I have to deal with. He just had his head on Grandma Thyra's fun bags and he's still crabby.” Max growls, and I think Taegan is about to push his luck with his grandpa, no matter how funny I think he is.
“Oh, what a hard life you must lead,” she chuckles.
“I’m okay with an uncle the same age as me, Miss Rieka, as long as he doesn’t steal my position. I can’t make mommy sad.”
“Oh, he will not be stealing your position in Blue Cliff Pack. Don’t worry. He will have his own destiny. Fate is a funny thing sometimes.”
I catch a mischievous sparkle in her eye as she says that. Something tells me that though Rian won’t be a threat to Taegan’s position, which I never expected him to be because of Rian not being a wolf, Rian may be taking something else from Taegan because of fate. It’s almost like she is trying to get Taegan fully on board before it happens to lessen the blow later. If she hadn’t mentioned Taegan being upset later about her continued meddling, I probably would have missed the silent message she was sending to him now.
She turns to me and winks, and I now know for sure that Rian and Taegan will have an interesting relationship and fate and Rieka’s meddling will play a big part in it.
“Let us have our breakfast!” she sings out, clapping her hands to signal the dogmen to start bringing out the food. “Taegan and I have a lot of work to do, and I’m sure you two can find ways to celebrate the good news.”
“Fuck, yeah we can,” Max grins wickedly, making my face heat with embarrassment.
“No babies,” Taegan narrows his eyes at us, making me blush deeper, “A new uncle is all I can handle right now.”
“Boy, if you don’t stop talking like that, I’m going to-”
“Grandma Thyra!” Taegan interrupted him, “Quick! The finger magic!”
Oh, this boy. I love him so much already. I smirked at him, flicking my finger and letting the smallest spark of magic seep out and buzz through my brand on Max’s ass. He yelps, then growls. “What the fuck!?”
“Don’t threaten my grandson,” I stated, turning my nose up in the air, trying not to laugh at Taegan’s triumphant expression. Max looks between us, amused, and then chuckles, rubbing his butt's cheek and standing to take the chair beside mine while I scoot myself in.
“My grandson is turning my own mate against me,” he says, feigning offense.
“Don’t threaten her grandson,” Taegan tells him, repeating my words. “She has something better than spoons.”
“Yes, she does,” Max grins crookedly at me, winking at me and making my heart race with his sexy expression. “She has me.”
~~~~~~
Taegan POV
“Where are we going?” I asked Miss Rieka. After breakfast, she told me we had work to do and I had to say bye to Grandpa and Grandma Thyra.
Grandpa acts a lot differently now that he has Grandma Thyra. He’s still grumpy, but it’s a happy grumpy if that makes sense. I used to think Grandpa was the strongest person in the world, but I think Grandma Thyra can take him. She has magic. I like her magic. It feels strong. Grandpa won’t stand a chance against her magic.
“To the library,” Miss Rieka answers me, “I have to start prepping your mind for the changes your wolf will bring. Your wolf side will be a bit different from a normal werewolf.”
“What do you mean?” I asked. I don’t know if I want to be different. I want to be big and scary like dad’s wolf side.
“Well, my dear, your wolf will look a little different to start with. He will also be a separate entity from you.”
“Huh?” I tilted my head to the side, confused by what she meant.
She laughs at me, and even though I’m still confused, I smile, liking the sound of her laugh.
“You will find out soon, Taegan. It’s hard for me to explain, since you will be the first of your kind.”
“First?” I scrunched my face up, “so will there be more like me?”
“Of course. That’s how we are going to save your mom. Your sisters too.”
“Oh. I like the sound of that then. Will I be stronger than daddy and grandpa?”
“You will be stronger than your daddy and grandpa combined. You won’t ever have to use your spoons again,” she giggles at me.
Good. I’m tired of carrying my spoons around with them tucked into my socks. My legs are just long enough that the wooden spoons don’t touch my knees anymore, but it’s still not comfortable.
“Will mommy and my sisters be strong too? I can give them my spoons if they’re not.”
“They will be stronger than normal werewolves, yes.”
“Poor dad,” I sighed, “Mom is going to give him a headache if she is stronger than him.”
We got to the big library door and I ran ahead of Miss Rieka so I could open the door for her.
“Thank you,” she smiles like mommy does and rubs my head. “You are a charmer, aren’t you?”
I shrug, feeling proud of myself. “I always open the door for mommy and her friends. It makes them happy.”
“I know it does. You’re such a sweet little Alpha. You’re going to make your mate very happy one day.”
“I know,” I smiled smugly, “Rosie’s mom, Miss Carli, says that too.”
A sad smile appeared on her face, making my heart beat weirdly and my magic flare uncomfortably in my chest. She reaches down and rests her hand on the side of my face, making my magic calm down again.
“Taegan, sweetheart. Rosie isn’t going to be your mate.”
Panic fills me, and my magic starts to flare out again, making my skin feel itchy like it’s crawling.
“But….but….”
“Shh, Taegan,” Miss Rieka drops her knees and holds my face in her hands. My magic calms down again, but my heart still hurts. Rosie has to be my mate. She’s strong like me. Being around her makes my magic feel good. She made me feel like I do when I hold Cousin Courtney or Miss Quinn’s hand. I need Rosie. She is the only one who can do that who is my age.
“I know you’re disappointed, Taegan, but I have someone so much more suited to you already planned. Your connection with her will be instant. The moment she is born you will feel it instantly.”
“She’s not even born yet!?” I was already going to have to wait 2 years for Rosie. Now she’s telling me I'll have to wait even longer?!
“I’m sorry, Taegan. It’s hard for me to explain to you now, but one day you will see exactly why good things come to those who wait.”
“But I want Rosie,” I whimper.
“And I want you to be happy. With your powers, and with both you and Rosie being very dominant alphas, a pairing between the two of you will lead to ruin for both your packs. It would ruin you and her. You both need to be the protectors of your packs. I know why you want Rosie, and I promise you your fated mate will be so much better.”
My chest feels like someone is sitting on it, and my face is burning as I try not to cry. “You promise?”
“I promise, sweetie,” she says, running her fingers back through my hair. “You will still help Rosie a lot, though. I want you to always stay close with her because that’s how both of you will find your mates.”
“Okay,” I whispered, my bottom lip dipping down on my face. I don’t want to wait that long for my mate. I wanted to have my mate before I took over the pack to help my magic stay calm. I hope Miss Rieka is right and she is worth the wait, whoever she’s going to be.