The Shadow Wolf - G. Bailey Page 0,23

cutting up the vegetables and peeling the potatoes. Liam comes through the door not much later, searching the room for Ana no doubt.

“Ana is napping,” I tell him when he spots me and places his keys on the side.

Pulling his boots off, he looks up at me. “How is she today?”

“Tired I think,” I say. “But happy. We should talk to her about staying on the island for good when this is all over.”

“You like it here too then?” Liam questions as he places his boots by the door and comes over to the fridge. He gets the chicken out, and I hand him a sharp knife as he places them on the chopping board.

“Yeah. It’s got the forest, the sea, the city where the laws are good and firm. Crime is low and not tolerated, and they clearly protect their own. Really it is just an upgraded version of the homes we have always been in,” I reply.

“The community feel to this place would be good for our baby and Ana. I don’t feel like she is in danger here,” he replies as he cuts the chicken into strips. With so many of us eating here tonight, we need quite a bit. “And I think it’s good for her to see her mum and dad. I was talking with my mum, and she said she would have left me under the same circumstances. Maybe their choice is something we can understand when we are parents.”

“I think I understand it now. There isn’t anything, including leaving, that I wouldn’t do for Ana and the baby,” I tell him. “I’m glad Alex has his head sorted now. I couldn’t stand seeing her in any pain.”

“He will be a good dad,” Liam concludes with a small smile. I grin at my friend, a man who is a brother to me in every way except blood, and I don’t have to say it out loud. Liam will be a good dad, and I will make sure I am too.

Chapter 13

Anastasia

Cakes and birthday parties.

“Like this?” I ask, mixing the flour into the batter in an eight shape like Dorothy has shown me. She smiles and nods before going back to frosting the cupcakes we made earlier today. Once the cake is in the oven, everything is ready for Liam’s birthday party tonight. He is out at work with my dad, who has him overseeing the new buildings being made on the far left side of the city. He really seems to enjoy the work from how he talks so much about the buildings, and I don’t really understand a word he goes on about, but it’s cute. I smooth down my yellow pixie dress that falls to my knees, and Dorothy surprises me by placing her hand on my stomach for just a second.

“I’m excited to meet this little one. A grandchild is an honour, and thank you for giving it to me,” she softly tells me, placing her hand on my shoulder. “And for making my son so extremely happy and giving them all a home. I used to joke that they were like the Lost Boys from Peter Pan and then they went off, finding a woman who looks just like Tinker Bell, didn’t they?”

I chuckle. “I never thought they were looking. I was more dropped on them.”

“No, they were looking, dear,” she tells me. “They just didn’t know it.”

“Do you think Liam will like everything?” I ask after placing the last layer of cake into the oven. We had made two, but one didn’t come out well, and Dorothy suggested we just make one more and use the other one to make cake pops covered in melted chocolate. This woman is so smart.

I look around our living room, which Dorothy, Skye and Phoebe helped me decorate with banners and balloons. A big pile of presents is on the coffee table in the corner, including a small handmade box from me. I covered it with the shiny stones Silver gives him, and miraculously he hasn’t noticed. I made sure to show Silver, and she dropped three shells in front of me one day last week. They were just the right size for me to finish the box off. I hope he likes it.

It’s an hour until Alex and Mason come home, and I shoot into the showers to clean up before Liam gets here. My parents, Skye, Phoebe, Estelle, Raine and her boyfriends and the twins turn up not long after, along