Chapter 10 #2
“You don’t need to thank me for looking after Skye. I love her as much as I love you and your sister.” Mom’s voice softens, filling with the same adoration she uses when she reminds us how grateful she is to have us. “Now what does Skye have to do with you leaving the band?”
“We met at a show a few weeks ago. One on the charity tour. So, uh, it turns out she actually is my Fate-matched mate.”
“Caleb Xavier.” she screeches. Fuck, that hurt my ears. “You’ve known this for weeks and are just now telling me?.”
Leaning back, I stare up at the roof of my car. “I was freaking out. Still am. It’s been eight years since we split up. She has a pack now. Other mates. A career and a life she built without me. Hell, they don’t live on the East Coast; they’re just here to visit. It’s… a lot.”
“Life is a lot, honey. It throws wrenches at you when you’re hoping for dodgeballs.”
I snicker and roll my eyes. My mother is obsessed with pre-designation comedy movies and quotes them way too often.
“You get your stubbornness from your father. Fate knows that man will dig his feet in on the smallest of hills just because he can. So what if Skye has other mates? They share the same Fated connection with her as you do. Which means you were always meant to become part of their pack, whether it happened today, eight years ago, or eight years from now.”
Accepting that is harder than she makes it sound.
Yet, I find my thoughts drifting back to the gym earlier. Hanging out with Bellamy didn’t make me feel out of place. The way I felt with him—excluding whatever attraction I was picking up from Skye—was how I imagined it would be with my future pack. Easy. Fun. Competitive.
“Don’t let fear get in the way of something great. It’s not too late to let that sweet girl rock your world.”
She cackles when I groan and rush out a quick goodbye. There’s no way in hell I’m listening to my mother try to hype up my lack of a sex life. I shudder imagining the corny movie lines she’ll throw at me.
Unfiltered jokes aside, she’s right. It’s time to stop letting fear and regret keep me from rekindling my relationship with Skye.
I might be eight years late, but we have a lifetime to make up for it.
Hours spent sitting in an empty producer’s office listening to potential replacements to fill my spot in Orbital Somatic has my ass numb and my mood bordering on cranky. I don’t know how the label found this many candidates without bands of their own. We made it through fifteen auditions today.
Fifteen.
And Bea wants to do another round tomorrow.
“Remind me why I agreed to this?” I grumble as I stand and stretch, glad to be done for the day.
I need food, a nap, and to call my girl. Seeing her would be better, but are we at the point where I can just drive over there to cuddle her? She could have plans with her other mates, and my presence would interrupt them.
“Because you’re a workaholic who doesn’t know what to do with himself outside of music?” Lee suggests, winking when I glare at him.
“Come on, let’s go over your top picks from today.” Bea directs us out the door before we can devolve into an argument. Which is a good call on her part, because I’m grumpy enough to bicker with Lee.
Exiting the elevator onto the third floor, I’m surprised to see Quentin walking toward us with Shiloh. I suppose it makes sense for him to be here since he works for the label, but I thought they were on vacation.
He stops me as we walk by. “Caleb. Do you have a minute?”
Bea waves, giving me permission to stop and speak with him. “What’s up?”
“First, I wanted to check in. See how you’ve been handling being away from Skye. I know it can be difficult to manage, so please know you are always welcome at the estate.”
My brow furrows. How did he sense where my head was at? Is Skye feeling what I am and telling her Alphas about it? I doubt it. Since my longing isn’t overwhelming me, it shouldn’t be funneling through our connection.
“Thanks.”
“She misses you,” he admits, tucking one hand into the pocket of his pants and fidgeting with his watch with the other.
“I wanted to discuss the future. I know there are a lot of decisions to be made regarding you and our pack. It wouldn’t surprise me if you felt overwhelmed.
To ease some of your concerns, you should know we have decided to make our move to Starburgh permanent. ”
When I open my mouth to protest, feeling like shit for uprooting them from their lives, he stops me with a raised hand.
“We were considering this before we learned of your connection to Skye. We all agree that she needs firmer roots, something we have given her with both the move here and a long break from touring.”
Hearing that Skye feels untethered isn’t surprising. She and the guys have been touring on rotation for the past four years. That creates a lack of stability for an Omega. She needs a permanent nest. One that doesn’t move to a plane or a tour bus every few months.
“Okay. I guess that solves one problem, though I would have moved to Los Angeles.”
Quentin nods. “For the next two months, our schedule is sparse. Shattered Horizons plays its last charity show this weekend in Philadelphia, and then their band isn’t performing until after the new year.”
“So we have time to figure things out.”
“We do. Starting with you coming to stay with us this weekend. Skye would love to have you keep her company in the wings while the guys are on stage, and it will give you time to get to know the rest of us. To experience what it would be like to join our pack.”
He doesn’t give me an option to refuse. Not that I would. I’ll take any chance I can get to spend time with Skye and her mates.
“Thanks, Quentin. Let me know what time I should be there.”
“Any time you choose is fine. We have to leave early Saturday morning for the show.” He offers me a hand, shaking mine with a firm grip before he heads to the elevator, going back to our mate.
It still feels weird to call her mine when I’ve spent so many years pretending I ever stopped being hers.