Page 44 of Rejected Broken Mate

"I need to speak with you."

Shit.

I set my coffee down and headed around the corner towards his office. He was already in his chair and waved a hand. "Shut the door."

I slowly shut the door and took a seat across from his desk. Ayden leaned back in his chair and frowned. "I'm pretty sure it's hard for any of us to ignore what was said the other day, so you care to explain to me?"

I clenched my jaw. "Which part do I need to elaborate on? That I'm a father or that I've missed everything in my kid's life?"

I could see his eyes soften, and he felt a little empathy for me. As harsh as Ayden could be, he was a good leader.

"I'm sorry, I don't want to know what that feels like."

"It feels like shit, Ayden!" I snapped, suddenly angry again. "And she didn't even come to work!"

He waved a hand. "She didn't come to work because she didn't sleep. Michael kept her up last night."

I crossed my arms, having a hard time believing that. "Really? Or is she just saying that to avoid me?"

He frowned. "She called Ashley last night in a panic, and it woke up Owen, which is why he isn't here yet. Wendy stopped by to check on her before starting her day. He's going through his shifting phase."

I suddenly felt like an asshole.

I rubbed my eyes. "You know I'm trying so fucking hard not to be angry. I really am, but Jesus… He's a shifter? Is there anything else I don't know?"

Ayden waved a hand. "What happened between you two?"

I rubbed my head again, shaking it. "I broke up with her before I moved back. And I didn't even know she was pregnant."

"Would it have made a difference if you knew? Would you have stayed with her?"

I wanted to say yes but paused because I didn't think I would have. I was so forward about being the best of the best, and I likely would have told her to abort it. I couldn't have anything holding me back.

My shoulders sank. "I want to say yes, but I don't know. I was a different person before." I leaned back in my chair and sank into the cushion. "What do I do?"

Ayden raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"You're my alpha…guide me."

Ayden snorted. "I'm not guiding your ass anywhere anymore. I've done a lot of that for years, so it's time for you to start making decisions for yourself."

"Do I take legal action?" I asked.

Ayden frowned. "You really think you need to go that far?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. I don't know what to do. What does anyone do in this situation?"

Ayden softly sighed. "I would first talk to her before you decide anything. Because, as you just stated, you likely wouldn't have stuck around, Miles. You feel like this because you are a good person, and you've changed. You get to be angry, but you don't get to stay angry. If you want change, you need to pull yourself together and decide what you want."

"I want to be part of his life," I state. I kept playing the other day over and over. The pull toward him, the way he smiled when he got the award. In just one day, I felt joy and pride. And I just kept picturing it all the time before I missed it.

"He's almost six….six …" I felt my heart twist up. "How can I just ignore all that time I've missed? I've missed six birthdays and all the days in between. I missed his first steps and his first words. I missed his first day of school and all those summer days."

Ayden leaned forward. "Because it's only six years….Miles…you want the rest. You want to see when he's ten, starts getting hobbies when he's thirteen and goes through puberty when he's eighteen and graduating. Or when he's twenty-five and getting married."

I felt my shoulders relax. I understood his point.

"Is that all you needed?"

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