got cool with the power inside me, it wasn’t so hard to ignore the assholes. You’ve got a destiny. Has believing that centered you?”
He nodded slowly. “Yeah.”
“Finding out one of the women who helped you get to that place betrayed you is going to shake your cool. It’s inevitable. Questioning everyone around you isn’t a dumb thing to do. I want you to ask questions. But you also have to learn to trust your gut. Are you worried Summer was in on it?”
He shook his head. “No. I’m sure about her. She let me inside her head. I saw her. She’s wracked with guilt, but there’s no deception in Summer.”
Oh, I wasn’t sure about that. People with a whole lot of guilt often deceived themselves. I knew all about that, too. “As for being angry, you’re young and you have power you don’t know how to handle yet. Of course you’re angry. I can help you channel that anger. And you know what? You’re going to be pissed at me a lot. And that’s okay, too. I can handle it. I don’t need you to be easy to get along with. I need you to be good. I need you to be the powerful wizard you can be.”
He’d sat up and his shoulders had straightened. “You really think I can do it? You think I can save the Earth plane?”
I was counting on it. “I’ll do everything in my power to make you ready for this fight. And when the time comes, I’ll back you up. I won’t let you go into this alone, Dean. If you come back with me, you’ll be part of my family, and we won’t ever let you down.”
Here I was, promising this young man that I would take care of him when I wasn’t sure what we were going into. Did I have the right to do that?
There was a sheen of tears that glistened in his eyes, and he took a shaky breath and sat back again. He was solemn as he looked to me. “Will you let me in? I know I said I wouldn’t, and I don’t need it to know you’re telling me the truth.”
I realized why Dean wanted a glimpse inside my head. I reached for his hand. “Of course.”
He needed to feel cared for, and for Dean my thoughts would be a warm blanket, a hug he could hold on to.
I felt him brush my mind, so much gentler than he’d been before. His eyes closed as if he wanted to concentrate on what he was feeling, and mine watered when I saw a tear slip from his eyes.
When they opened, he stood up. “Thank you. I needed that.”
I nodded. “I think I did, too.”
“I’m going to check the wards,” he said. “Sometimes the tech can use a magical boost.” He started to walk away but stopped and turned. “And Kelsey, your sons are lucky. They have a mom who will fight for them, who will fight beside them. My mom is amazing, but she’s not a warrior. Her sacrifice was being strong enough to let me go. But you’re never going to be safe and that’s okay because your sons have to live in the world, and you make that possible for them. For us. You told me to follow my instincts. Follow yours. You’re already a good mom.”
Now the tears flowed freely. “I thought you couldn’t read minds.”
“I can’t exactly, but sometimes an emotion is so loud and clear I can’t help but understand it. I think you’re an amazing female, Kelsey, and I will be proud to learn from you. One day your kids will, too.”
He walked off and his step was lighter than before.
I let my head fall back and stared at the darkening sky and opened my heart, willing Gray and Trent and Fen to feel my love the way Dean had. Wherever they were, I was still with them in this way, still thinking of them, loving them.
“What the fuck?” Feminine cursing had me nearly jumping out of my skin as Charlotte Taggart woke up and found herself in an entirely different place than she’d last been in. The redhead was on her feet, sunglasses knocked off and eyes wild. “Where is he? I’ll kill him if he hurt my puppies…” She stopped and looked around. “Huh.”
I thought I would help a sister out. “You’re in a faery forest and your husband and a dude named Adam are patrolling. We’re on our