needed to call Karter.
“I told Aeron where I was and what was happening, and he said to keep walking toward his building, so I did. I wanted to stay on the phone with him, but one of the alphas got ahead of me, and he took my mobile away.”
“Son of a fucker,” Kell blurted out. It took everything in him to stay still and let Emory keep talking, when all he wanted to do was hug his son and go beat the shit out of three unknown alphas for harassing Emory at all.
“They backed me against a parked car.” Emory’s green eyes gleamed but he didn’t cry, or Kell might have very well thrown a lamp across the room. This was his child. “They said rude, vile things about me walking alone at night, asking for it, things they’d do to me in private. I just kept praying for Aeron to come. One of them grabbed my crotch and squeezed, and I felt so sick. And then Aeron was there, and he knocked the alpha who touched me right to the sidewalk.”
As much as Kell wanted to cheer for Aeron’s timely rescue, he raged for Emory being assaulted like that. His sensitive, beautiful little boy—who really wasn’t so little anymore, but Emory was still Kell’s child. Kell would fight any enemy to keep him safe, and he hadn’t been able to protect Emory that night. But someone else had. “Thank goddess for Aeron.”
“Yeah. He chased the alphas off and got my phone back. He took me to Khory’s place and helped me calm down. Aeron was my hero that night, and they both urged me to tell you and Papa about it. But I thought I was okay.”
Kell thought back to last spring. Emory’s mood had subtly shifted about a year ago. He’d become quieter, even more introverted and had preferred to stay home rather than go out with his friends. All because three raging alphaholes had accosted him on a quiet street simply because they could. Kell had tried his entire life to protect his three boys, and he’d failed. He had no idea how to process that.
“Have you talked to anyone about this before now?” Kell asked. “Other than Khory and Aeron?”
“I told one of the counselors at Light House last winter.”
“Okay, good.” He loved knowing Emory trusted the people at Light House enough to go to them about this, but damn it, why couldn’t Emory have come to Kell? Kell more than understood how physical assaults destroyed the way you viewed the world. “I’m proud of you for that, Em. Truly. And I am so sorry that happened to you.”
“Thanks. I didn’t not tell you or Papa because I don’t trust you or love you. I do. So much.” Of course, Emory was now trying to comfort Kell; it was simply who the young omega was. “At first, I was ashamed for being dumb enough to walk alone at night, even in a safe neighborhood.”
Kell nearly growled. “Alphas never feel dumb or scared to walk down a quiet street at night, and I have fought my entire adult life so betas and omegas can have that same sense of safety. We still have so much work to do.”
Emory scooted around so he could once again hug Kell from the side. “What happened isn’t your fault. It’s the fault of whoever raised those arrogant alphaholes to believe they could grope strangers on the street and terrify them. It’s their own faults for believing they could do whatever they wanted without consequences. And I’m not quite ready to tell Papa yet, but watching you reliving some of the worst moments of your life to write your memoir…I had to tell you.”
“Thank you for trusting me.” Kell kissed his temple. “I love you so much. You are so brave, Em. You feel things more strongly than anyone I’ve ever met, and I am in awe of your inner strength. One day you’ll meet the alpha bondmate who can match your heart and who will deserve your love.”
“I hope so.”
“Believe so, because I believe it.” He tugged Emory onto his lap and held him like he used to when Emory was a toddler. “Does Caden know?”
“No. He’ll just feel guilty, and he didn’t do anything wrong. I was the one who left alone.”
“You should be able to leave a party alone and not be accosted on the street.” Kell let out a long, deep breath to expunge some of his lingering