Page 33 of Forbidden Daddy Mate

Her lips pursed as she gave me a look. “I’m sure you can guess why I haven’t spoken with her.”

I could. “Things shouldn’t change between you,” I said. “That’s one of the reasons I thought it was best if we…” I trailed off, startled by the anger in her gaze.

She sighed, running her fingers through her hair. “That’s a conversation for another time. Don’t get me distracted. We need to talk.”

I hesitated for a moment, wondering if I really wanted to hear what it was. Something told me I didn’t. But this was Freya. I couldn’t do that to her. I deserved to hear her out.

“What is it?” I asked.

“The vampires. You know who they are, don’t you?” she said. “You know what they’re really doing here and why they want the Silver Wolves.”

Fuck.

I should have expected she would figure it out. She was incredibly intelligent. It was one of the reasons I’d been attracted to her. But knowing wasn’t going to make her feel better, and it could be dangerous for her if more retribution came down.

“It’s really better if you don’t press about it,” I said.

“Fuck that,” she spat. “Tell me what’s really going on.”

I sighed, scratching my stubble. “Varin was the name of a vampire we came across years and years ago,” I said. “Nasty piece of work.”

“How nasty?”

“A massive asshole. He was bad news. His plan was to take down the entire council.”

“And you stopped him?”

I nodded. “We wiped out his entire clan. We don’t go after vampires like that as a habit. For the most part, vampires and shifters have a tentative alliance. But for him, we made an exception.” I snorted. “That ended up straining the relationship with the vampires nearly to the point of war. But we managed to justify it and barely escape an inevitable bloodbath.”

Freya nodded, eyes not leaving my face as I spoke. I prided myself on being able to read people, but whatever was going on behind those dark eyes of hers, I couldn’t tell.

“So he came back?” she asked. “That’s who Varin is? A psycho who you thought you’d killed years ago?”

I shook my head. “He’s dead. I decapitated him myself.”

“Then who the fuck is this guy?” she said. I could see the fire burning in her eyes, that steel I’d seen more and more frequently lately.

“I don’t know,” I said.

“Stop trying to keep things from me,” she said. “I know you’re not telling me the whole truth. I can see it in your eyes.”

I gritted my teeth. I was used to keeping things close to the chest. It was a useful skill to have in special ops. But the way she was glowering at me…she deserved the truth.

“I’m fairly certain it’s his son,” I said.

Her brow wrinkled in confusion. “But you just said you wiped out his entire clan.”

“I thought I had,” I said. “It appears as though I missed some.”

“You could have told me all this ages ago,” she said, folding her arms. “But instead, you kept it from me.”

“I was trying to protect you,” I said. “And I still technically don’t have confirmation he’s the son. It’s just a guess, and one I didn’t have until the fight in the woods. And by that point, it didn’t matter. They were dead. There was no reason to tell you about any of that.”

“Or, on the other hand, there was no need for you to keep it from me, either,” she pointed out. “I don’t like it when I’m kept in the dark about things.”

“I’ve learned over the years that keeping things close to the chest and only telling people the bare minimum of what they need to know is the best chance of survival.”

“How long did you know?” she asked, seeming to pivot.

---