Page 82 of Healed
“Yeah. And then there’s the way your family says couples are mates, and referring to Brandt as the Alpha, and calling men and women males and females rather than men and women.”
“None of it is really wrong, it’s just different terms,” Daisy suggested.
“Could be. But I can’t help but think there’s more here than just different terms. The way Brandt said that he’d thought you already had the conversation with me… What conversation?”
Daisy looked a little defeated, but smiled at him anyway. “Why don’t you meet me at my house, and Carson can visit with my dad if he has a minute, and we’ll try to find a little time to talk about some of it.” She got in her car and drove away without waiting for him to confirm he’d be there or not.
“Are you ready, Dad?” Carson asked, looking up at him.
Charlie looked down at Carson. “Yeah. I guess I have to be,” he said. “Let’s go see if Bane’s at home. If he’s busy though, we might have to come back another day.”
“Okay,” Carson said, satisfied that he’d get to see Bane at all.
It took Daisy all of about three minutes to get home and park her jeep. She hurried up the steps and into the house, calling for her father before she’d even closed the door all the way.
“I’m sitting right here,” Bane said, from his spot on the sofa.
“Oh, sorry. I wasn’t paying attention.”
“You gotta do better than that, Daisy. You have to be paying attention at all times, baby. I’ve told you this.”
“I know, Daddy. Look, Charlie and Carson are going to be here in a little while. I was wondering if you could entertain Carson for a few minutes.”
“Sure. He’s my buddy. But why?”
“Brandt and Barron came over to meet him at Havoc’s today. I guess they assumed I’d already told him because I was bringing him around. They weren’t real careful with what they were saying, and apparently, I haven’t been either. Brandt wanted to know why I haven’t told him yet, and then told him that he and I need to have a little talk.”
“That’s all normal. Why are you so put out over it?” Bane asked.
“Because I like him! I really, really like him. And I started to believe that we could be something special, and now I have to tell him the truth about us. He’s going to walk away.”
“Why do you think he’ll walk away?”
“Because we’re not like him. Because he won’t want his son to be around us.”
“Then why tell him at all?” Bane asked.
“Because if he’s going to be around us, he needs to know.”
“True, but he might go tell everybody.”
“It’s like you always said, nobody would believe him anyway, and if they did, Tempest could just mist their memory of what we are away. But if he reacts negatively, I have to let him go. And I’m just now feeling like me again. It’s just not fair.”
Bane stood up and walked over to her. “Just be honest. Be who you are. He cares deeply for you.”
“You keep saying that. If he does, shouldn’t I be able to feel it?”
“Not necessarily. Bam couldn’t feel Everly because she was his true mate.”
They both turned at the knock on their front door.
“Trust yourself, and Charlie. He’s got more feeling for you than you’d ever guess.”
“Human me,” she whispered.
Bane scowled at her, but went to the door. He opened it and pretended he was surprised. “Carson! How are you, buddy? Hey, Charlie.”
Carson beamed at Bane, then his father. “Told you he’d be glad to see me.”
