Page 74 of Mark & Don't Tell

Thankfully, the elevator is empty. By the time I reach the Good Vibes floor, I’ve put myself back together.

Linc appears at my cubicle right as I log into my computer. “Hey, I’m really sorry about lunch. My son popped in, and I wasn’t expecting him.”

I turn and brace myself, preparing to break the news, but the crinkles in his forehead give me pause. While Linc’s hair is still in his signature man bun, it’s not nice and neat. It looks like he ran his palm over the top of his head a dozen times. His shoulders are slumped, like in the time between our interaction in his office and now, the weight of the world began crushing him.

“Are you okay?”

His frown deepens. “I’m actually not sure,” he says, shaking his head. “Can we try lunch on a different day? Ryan’s visit has me out of sorts, and I’m afraid I won’t be the best company right now.”

Dropping the news on him now almost seems cruel. So, I simply nod. “Of course.”

“Oh,” he says, eyes landing on something behind me. “I had something put together for you. Think of it as a welcome package.”

I glance back and spot a cute crimson bag with black tissue paper sticking out of it. “A present?” I ask, facing him again.

“I was going to show you how to use them, but...” He trails off and shakes his head again. “Sorry, I’m not sure what’s going on with me.”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

He smiles, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. “I don’t want to scare you off.”

If only he knew, he might not be so worried about that. The pain clinging to him tells me now isn’t the time. Besides, it’s probably better to let the pack know when they’re all together.

“Trust me, I understand family drama more than anyone,” I tell him. “But I get it. We can talk whenever you’re ready.” Or maybe, by then, you won’t want to talk to me ever again.

“Thanks, Daria.” He steps into my cubicle suddenly, invading my space and reaching down to stroke his thumb over my cheek and lips, marking me with his scent.

My heart does a happy little flip, too happy to realize that things are complicated as fuck.

“I couldn’t resist,” he says with a wink, stepping back as quickly as he stepped in. “Thanks for understanding, and I’m really sorry again. I promise I’ll make it up to you.”

“It’s okay,” I reassure him, smiling as he starts to back away. “Go do bossy things.”

“Bossy things? I’ll be sure to put that on my resume,” he says with a cheeky grin.

I watch him leave, breathing in the way his scent mingles with mine. My stomach flutters. All my instincts ignore logic. They don’t care about my ex-pack.

Sighing, I turn back to my work and try to ignore the urge to run into his office and comfort him. He wanted space. It would be extra fucked up to go soothe him when I have this secret.

So, I throw myself into my work and hope that everything will work out.

Twenty-Seven

LINC

Guilt eats away at me. I promised Daria I’d make up for missing lunch with her, but Tuesday was too busy, and today hasn’t been any better.

Kai doesn’t get back until tomorrow, which means I’ll be covering all his meetings as well. Normally, that’s not a problem.

It’s breaking my promise to Daria that has me wishing I could cancel board and finance meetings. It’s knowing she’s so close and yet so far away that has me wishing I hadn’t agreed to have lunch with Ryan today.

It’s a strange feeling to be a parent and feel so conflicted about seeing your child. I was surprised when he showed up on Monday. He hasn’t answered my calls for a while now, and the last time we did talk, it was clear I was an annoyance more than anything.

Our conversation on Monday was...nice. Ryan said he missed having a dad to talk to. I’m cautiously optimistic that lunch today will start to repair our relationship. Kai and Vic were both supportive—they always are—but even though they didn’t say it out loud, I could sense their concern.

Ryan has the tendency to be cruel. He almost treats me the way Felicia treated Vic. I guess he picked up some things from growing up with her, or maybe he’s simply treating people the only way he knows how.

But it wasn’t only his mom raising him; he had us. Kai and Vic loved him as much as I did, and while we weren’t perfect, we tried our best to show him what love should be like. We helped with homework, went to games, spent time with him, got to know his interests. Played video games for hours on end.

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