sang, and it was fucking beautiful. Austin’s voice was amazing, and our harmonies were superb, if I said so
myself. Austin went from looking unimpressed and borderline terrified to grinning widely. When we finished the
song, the crowd gave us the biggest round of applause of the entire tour. We bowed, and I blew my fans plenty of
kisses as we walked off the stage together.
The moment we were hidden from view, I flung my arms around Austin’s neck and kissed him hard. He lifted my
feet off the floor as he deepened the kiss before setting me back down again.
“You should have warned me.”
“Sorry?”
He kissed my nose. “No, you’re not.”
“You’re right. I’m not. Did you have fun?”
He grinned. “Yes. It was amazing to perform in front of an audience again.”
I held my breath, waiting.
“But it only confirmed what I’d already come to realise these past few months.”
“And what’s that?”
“That I don’t want this life anymore. I can move on now.”
“As the head of Freedom Records?”
Austin laughed. “Yes.”
I kissed him again. “I figured you needed to perform again to be absolutely sure, but I didn’t think I’d even get you
here if I told you my plan.”
“No, you probably wouldn’t have done.” He rubbed my shoulders. “You’re amazing, Charlie.”
“Right back at you.” I took a deep breath. “I need to take a shower, and then I guess I’ll find out if my family
showed up or not.”
“I’m sure they're here.”
“I’m glad one of us is confident because I’m not.”
I showered and got changed into fresh clothes and then sat in the changing room, waiting for the meet-and-greet
session to start. A few minutes later, Pete started showing in the small number of fans with backstage passes,
including the omega who I’d sung happy birthday to. Then, once they were all in the room, my family was shown
in. Well, Dad was there, and Deacon and his mate, Sean, and their two kids. I caught Dad’s eye, but he simply
smiled and shook his head. Father hadn’t come.
I fixed a smile on my face and chatted with my fans. I felt like I was doing them a disservice because I was
basically just going through the motions, pretending to be cheerful, when really I wanted to curl up and cry. Not
that they seemed to notice. They were too awestruck to be in my presence to notice I was in pain. I signed
autographs, had my photo taken with them, gave them all T-shirts, and then said goodbye. Pete showed them
out, leaving me alone with Austin and my family.
“That was a great concert,” Deacon said, striding over.
I stood, and he instantly drew me into a hug.
“It’s been too long,” he whispered into my ear.
“I know. I’m sorry.”
“This is Sean, and these are our boys—Chase and Jonas.”
“Are you really our uncle?” the older of the two boys said. I recognised him as Chase from the family photos Dad
sent to me every year. He was an alpha, and his younger brother was an omega.
“Yeah, I really am.”
Both boys threw themselves at me and hugged me, bringing tears to my eyes. Apparently, it didn’t matter to
them that I hadn’t been part of their lives until this moment.
“Will you come to our school and tell everyone?” Chase asked. “No one believes us.”
I laughed. “I think I can figure something out.” I crouched so I was more at their height. “Do you think your school
friends would like to hear some songs?”
They both nodded enthusiastically. Like their parents, they both had pale platinum-blond hair and dark brown
eyes.
“It’s good to finally meet you,” Sean said. “I’m a bit of a fan.”
“Just a bit,” Deacon said, holding his fingers close together and then widening the gap between them.
“Sometimes I think he only became my mate because you’re my brother.”
Sean swatted him over the arm. “That’s not true.”
“Uh-huh.”
I stood as Dad came over.
He embraced me. “I’m sorry your father didn’t come. Give him time. He’ll come around.”
I sniffed and nodded. There wasn’t anything to say on the matter. I wasn’t convinced Father would ever stop
hating me, let alone forgive me, but there was nothing I could do except give him time and space. At least Dad
was here and Deacon and the nephews I’d never met.
“Austin,” Dad said, hugging him too.
I almost broke down on the spot. Somehow seeing Dad embrace Austin meant the world to me. It was a symbol
that Dad had accepted him as my mate.
“I’m glad you were able
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