Page 70 of The Worst Mate Ever

A burst of laughter escaped my lips as I playfully shook my head. “It’s not that, Man. I just accepted a long time ago that whatever The Fates decide is going to happen will happen. I can only focus on the here and now. Let future me deal with the future. Because he’ll be more pissed that I missed a second of time with these kids today than he will be with me, preventing something from happening in the future.”

Xander frowned and took a sip of his own drink before nodding his head. “I get what you’re saying. Life happens too fast.”

“Yes it does,” I said.

We let the kids play for another hour before forcing them all into the house for a nap. The girls argued they were too old for naps, though they fell asleep almost immediately when their heads hit their pillows.

As they napped, Xander and I picked up their toys and books they left strewn across the alpha’s family room, then sat together to watch some TV before both our mates finished their work for the day.

Madie walked into the room first, her jacket casually thrown over the chair beside me, before leaning in for a kiss.

“Long day?” I asked her as she sank onto my lap and rested her head against my shoulder.

“I had to pitch in with the Alpha program today. That little boy from the Moon Witch Coven is very energetic, and his alpha aura is strong. He nearly had me dropping to my knees before him.”

“I know that, kid,” Xander said with a growl. “He likes to pick on Sasha anytime he sees her. Makes me want to kick the little shit all the way back to Montana.”

Madie’s scowl deepened, but I fought back a smile, trying my best to keep a straight face.

“Remind you of anyone?” I asked her, a playful grin spreading across my face.

Xander jerked his head towards us as he caught my words. “No way in hell is that kid Sasha’s mate. Don’t even insinuate that. You better not tell me you had some vision from The Fates about it, either. I swear to Hades himself; I will punch you square in your face.”

I laughed as Madie smirked in my lap. “Relax, Xander. I have no idea who any of our kids will be mated to. For all I know, Aurora could be the kid’s mate. I’ve seen him pick on her just as much as Sasha. Although I hope that neither of our girls has to be mated to someone who they see as a bully.” Looking up at Madie, I planted a tender kiss on her shoulder, savoring the warmth of her skin. “I’ve seen how hard it is to trust when put in a situation like that.”

Madie smiled back at me and leaned down to kiss my lips. “Hard, but nothing worth having is ever easy.”

“Barf,” Xander said with a laugh. “Where is Liberty? I want to make you two as sick of me as I’m feeling about you two now.”

We both laughed as he stood up and went off to find my sister in her office. We watched him disappear around the corner and listened to his fading steps before turning back to face one another.

“What time is your meeting?” Madie asked.

I looked at my phone to judge the time and shrugged. “In a couple of minutes. The kids are still taking their naps, so I’ll just have to meet you at home after.”

“How long have they been down?” Madie asked as she looked towards the nursery where the kids all slept.

“Just over an hour. They had been playing outside most of the day. Really wore themselves out. If you don’t want Ash to have a meltdown, I recommend letting him sleep at least another thirty minutes.”

Madie laughed. “Okay. I will see you at dinner then.”

I stood up with her still in my arms, a squeal of surprise escaping from her lips. “I’ll count every minute.” I promised.

With her arms wrapped tightly around my neck, her smile lit up the room. “You always say that.”

“I always mean it.”

Gently, I sat her down on her feet, my fingers still tracing over her face as I stared into her beautiful blue eyes.

I had never told her about my visit to The Fate’s realm. I never told her why I stopped my research on the prophecy. She never asked either. It almost seemed that she worried that if she asked, I would fall back into the books and tomes once again.

I thought about telling her not to worry. To tell her what The Fates had shown me and the regret I felt for missing out on so much with her pregnancy the first few months of our daughter’s life. In the end, I chose to keep it to myself.

Maybe that was an influence of The Fates. Maybe they did not want anyone to know that they had brought a mortal to their realm and allowed him to look upon the web of lives which they weaved so carefully. Maybe I just wanted my mate to believe that I came to the realization that time spent with her, and the kids, was more important than chasing some shadow figure aimlessly all on my own.

Whatever the reason, in the end it didn’t matter. All that mattered was that I was here. I was present in my family’s lives, just as I had promised Aurora I would be five years ago.

“I love you, Tinkerbell,” I said softly, my lips lingering on Madie’s before I had to depart.

She smiled and twisted a finger in my hair, her eyes watching the crimson strands fall from her fingertips. “I love you too, Peter Pan.”

I laughed at the nickname, her own amusement at finally understanding the reason behind my nickname for her. After all, I had been the boy who refused to grow up until the day I realized my mate was a feisty she-wolf who filled me with nothing but happy thoughts.

THE END