Page 40 of Little Red and Her Creatures of Chaos
“Tell me what’s going on, Radley.”
I sit back, and she hands me a tissue. I mop my face up and try to think of where I should even begin. Did she know? My heart tells me no, but my brain is yelling at me not to trust anyone. “Dad isn’t my dad. Did you know?”
“Of course not!”
“Some guy came into the diner and called me an omega. I messaged Mason, and they showed up, only to confirm what the guy was saying was true.” I feel my chin start trembling again and have to fight against the tears. “They knew, and they didn’t tell me.”
“Would that be something you could have told them?”
“Are you taking their side?!” I jump from the couch and round on her.
“Radley,” Grandma says slowly. “I’m not taking anyone’s side. If the situation were reversed, could you tell one of them something like that?”
“But they…” I start pacing, trying to get my thoughts together. “I’ve been with them the past couple of days, and things…happened. They could have told me.”
“Your mother should have told you,” Grandma says angrily. “You can’t put something like that on those boys. Have you called her?”
“And say what? Hey, Mom. I know you had sex with a wolf, and they must have been really strong because you made me. Oh, and does Dad know?”
“You need to ask her, Radley. You deserve answers.”
“I don’t know if I can.” I sink back down on the edge of the couch, but my body feels weird. Like I have an itch that I can’t scratch, and I’m burning up. “I feel something.” I rub my chest, indicating where I feel it. “It’s like something is trying to get out.”
“I need to tell you something.” Grandma scoots closer and grabs my hands. “Mason was here. He left right before you pulled up.”
“What?”
“He’s afraid that your wolf is going to manifest now. They can help you.”
“I don’t want to be anywhere near them.”
“Look, I’m still not taking sides, but I think they deserve the chance to explain. And if your wolf is really going to make an appearance, you need them near you. They’re your mates, Radley.”
“Not if I reject the bond.”
“You don’t need to make that type of decision right now. For what it’s worth, I truly believe those boys love you. They can help with the shift. I can’t.”
“I can fight it.”
“This isn’t something you can ignore. Call your mom, and then call Mason.” The tone of her voice leaves no room forargument, so I pull my phone from my pocket. I stare at it for the longest time before I finally pull up Mom’s number and dial.
“Radley, do you have any idea what time it is?” No hello, no nothing. I could be in trouble, and she’s worried about it being too late.
“I do, but we need to talk.”
“It can wait for the morning.”
“No,” I say sternly. “We’re going to talk now.”
“You don’t talk to your mother that way. Call back when you can talk to me with respect.”
“I know Dad isn’t my dad,” I blurt out before she can hang up. “I know the truth.”
The line is silent, and I check to make sure she didn’t hang up. Grandma gives me a smile of encouragement. “What are you talking about?”
“Please don’t do this. I know, and I need you to tell me the truth.”
“It was a long time ago, Radley. There’s no use in bringing up the past.”
