Chapter Nine
Gatlin
He has a kid. Shaw has a beautiful little boy who is happy as heck to have a slice of cheese in one hand and a banana in the other.
“Who is this handsome guy?” I asked Shaw once his scent calmed a bit. There was no reason at all for him to be nervous around me. I would never hurt him or his child. Ever.
“My name is Sebastian. Nice to meet ya.”
Shaw smiled with pure pride as the little one put the cheese in the hand with the banana and reached out to offer me his free one like he was a polished gentleman instead of a kid wearing a cartoon character on his shirt, sitting in the shopping cart.
I shook his hand and for some reason, my wolf howled a bit. Weird. “My name is Gatlin. It’s nice to meet you, Sebastian. This is your dad?”
Sebastian nodded. “Daddy. Are you his fwend?”
“I am.” I wasn’t going to have a discussion about mating difficulties with a toddler…or maybe a preschooler?
“We are making spa…psgaaa…” The little one looked up at Shaw with the same green eyes, and they had some kind of silent conversation.
“Ssss….pa…ghet…ti.” Shaw drew out the word, and Sebastian hung on every syllable. This was something they were working on. Sebastian repeated the word almost perfectly and got a smile and some praise from his father.
Shaw. My Shaw. My omega. Was already a father. He had a family.
“I love spaghetti,” I answered and then regretted it immediately. I wasn’t trying to invite myself to their dinner or insert myself into their life. It all felt like I’d crossed a boundary. “I’m buying ice cream.”
“Daddy says no ice cream before dinner and only on Fwidays.” The R said as a W this time added to his adorableness.
Shaw shrugged his shoulders. “It’s our rule.”
“Daddys have to have rules. Otherwise, it’s just madness.”
Sebastian seemed to find that incredibly funny and kicked his legs in the basket.
Shaw’s son was the cutest, and I listened to them for a few more minutes, talking about stuffies and dinner and very normal things.
I didn’t know a lot about kids. I never had siblings.
But Sebastian seemed to be three or four at the most. So that meant either Shaw already had Sebastian when we hooked up, or he got pregnant shortly after me.
Maybe I was that forgettable that he moved on with Sebastian’s dad soon after.
Didn’t matter. I wasn’t giving up on him now.
“Sebastian, what’s your favorite place to go?” I asked.
“The zoo!” he exclaimed, holding the unpeeled banana up like a battle flag for the zoo-going.
I was about to take a big leap. Fate had picked on me before, but I hoped she would smile on me today. “How about a trip to the zoo? All of us?”
“The zoo!” Sebastian said again and started jabbering about penguins and giraffes and how hippos could smash a pumpkin with their teeth.
“You know,” Shaw said, touching my arm. “You’re not supposed to ask about trips and exciting things in front of the little monster. You’re supposed to wait to ask me in private so he doesn’t get excited and then the parent has to let him down.”
My short-lived happiness died in an instant. I’d already fucked up. Again. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to…shit.” I slapped my hand over my mouth. “Sorry again.”
“Gatlin said a naughty word.”
Shaw and I both cracked up. “I won’t say it again.”
Sebastian shrugged. “Okay. I forgive you.”
“I’ll think about it, Gatlin. The…Z-O-O.”
I looked to Sebastian, who was now talking about a game he played with his grandparents the day before. The zoo was long forgotten. “Thank you.”
“Go on before your ice cream melts.”
I’d forgotten the plan tonight was to drown my sorrows in sickly sweet frozen goodness with a caramel drizzle. “Yeah. Okay.”
I waved goodbye to both of them. Shaw said he would think about it. Now, the ice cream in my bag wasn’t a way to sugar-bomb my troubles; it was a celebration dessert.
I had a chance with my omega again. I had things to find out. More questions than answers, but there was a chance.
Once I got home, I dug into my ice cream while looking up the local zoo. I’d never been there myself but wanted to check it out before we went, if we went.
Sebastian and Shaw would have a good time. I would make sure of it.
Hours later, I took a shower and got into bed but couldn’t even close my eyes, I was so excited. For the potential. The potential to court my mate.
My phone buzzed on the nightstand and I turned over, thinking it was work calling me in.
Instead, it was Shaw. I sprang into a sitting position and almost dropped my phone in my hurry to read the text.
We would really like to go to the zoo with you. Thanks for inviting us. When?
I stood up and danced, right there on the side of my bed, in my underwear, not giving a shit who saw me through the window.
I had a date with my mate.
Next Saturday? I texted back.
Sounds good. Sebastian is going to love it.