Page 49 of Rejected Broken Mate

After a moment, it was silent, and I peeled my eyes open. But instead of my little boy, there was a small brown wolf standing in front of me.

My mouth dropped, and I stared. Its tail wagged like he was saying something. His brown eyes were the same eyes of my son and they sparkled like they did when he was excited.

Miles smiled. "He's cheering."

"He is?" I said, looking at Miles.

He nodded, and I could see the happiness in his eyes. "Yeah, he's explaining how cool it is. And he thinks it's even cooler that I can hear him."

Of course, because he was a shifter.

"He wants to go outside…" Miles looked at me nervously. "And you should let him."

I took a deep breath in.

"Do you mind…if I go with him?" he asked, and I could see that's what he wanted to ask me earlier. He waited, and I could see the desperation in his eyes.

I nodded. If anyone should take him, it was Miles.

Miles lit up, and Michael moved, already rushing towards the door. Miles opened it, and Michael went running forward.

"Michael, wait up!" I yelled, looking at Miles. "You watch him," I said.

Miles nodded. "I will."

Miles turned and shifted into his wolf form. I was blown away and shocked to see it for the first time. Miles was the same shade of brown as Michael with the same brown eyes. It was pretty clear they were family and it twisted me up.

But as quickly as he was there, he ran after Michael, and they were going into the woods behind the house.

I rounded the house and sat on the backyard bench, waiting. I looked up, taking in the full moon and the gentle breeze of the night.

I wonder if things would be different if I'd told him. Instead of suffering through this alone, maybe Michael would have a parent who knew what they were doing.

I took a deep breath, knowing that when they got back, I needed to tell Michael the truth. He needed to know, and Miles deserved to have a chance.

Chapter 18 - Miles

I grabbed a bundle of grapes and handed them to Patty. Patty made a face. "You have a little extra pip in your step today. What's gotten into you?"

I did. After taking Miles for his first run, I was over the moon and couldn't seem to come down. The kid was fast and hysterical. He was surprised by everything he saw and thought it was awesome that we could talk even if we were wolves.

It tugged a little that I couldn't say anything. I so badly wanted to tell him who I was. But I wasn't going to drop that bomb and ruin whatever civil land Laura and I were on.

When I arrived last night, I could see Laura's look of devastation. She looked completely destroyed as she stood over Michael, crying. As angry as I had been, I wanted to put that aside and be there for both of them.

"I'm just in a good mood," I said.

"Does it maybe have something to do with the fact you're a dad?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at me.

I scowled. Of course, word got around. I shouldn't have been surprised. "You know, sometimes I hate this town."

She snorted. "Sorry. You should have known that would have gotten around."

"I wish not as quickly as it had," I grumbled. We were a close-knit community, and everyone knew everyone's secrets. But as crappy as I might have disliked it, it was nice. It meant people were caring.

"I just don't understand how this all happened," Patty said, shrugging. "The kid is like six. Wasn't she new in town?"

"College," I said. "We met in college."

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