Between Shadow & Ruin (Fangs & Fae Saga Book 2)

six.

The next morning, Val, Zane, and Chris walked downstairs as I had Odie at the table eating his breakfast. Chris came behind me as I watched Odie and put his arms around my waist, kissing the back of my head. He smelled like he laid in the same bed as Val and Zane all night. I turned to face him.

"We almost lost you last night..." he said, just soft enough for only me to hear.

"Yeah... I really thought I was going to die... But Odie –" He nodded his head and kissed me. I didn't want to think about what could've happened to me if Odie hadn't done what he did. I turned around, Val and Zane were eating with Odie. I sat down at the table with a cup of coffee and watched them eat.

"Momma! Park now!?" Odie said, eating his last bite of food.

"Park?" Val asked.

"I told him I would take him... Well, I told his projection I would take him."

"Guess you'd better take him to the park," Zane said with a smile. I pulled out his chair as he ran upstairs to change.

"Liz, even though he did it subconsciously, he performed a lot of magic last night. Can you make sure he gets at least a few minutes to reconnect?" Val asked me when he was out of earshot. I nodded my head and gave her a kiss. She stood up and pulled me into the downstairs bathroom and wrapped her arms around me, kissing me hard. "Feed, please." She pulled her hair away from her neck. I hesitantly sunk my fangs into her. The Ripper side of me had quieted, but I was still worried about vomiting. She moaned lightly as I grunted into the feed. She pulled my body closer to hers, grabbing my back. I pulled away from her slowly.

"Val..." I looked up, she was crying.

"I'm sorry. I was really scared, and I feel awful that I couldn't help you..."

"Hey. Because of you, we have a son who helped me." I pricked my thumb and passed the blood over the bite mark, and then licked my thumb. Val looked like she was craving more of my touch and I was craving hers.

"Momma? Are you ready?" I heard Odie call out. I cleared my throat.

"Just a second, Odie!" I called out. I looked at Val and gave her a quick kiss. "We can finish this later?" I winked as she nodded. I opened the door to the bathroom and Odie had a small backpack with his toys. I put him in the backseat and drove to the park.

*****

He ran towards the grass, and I had to run to keep up with him. He dumped his bag on the ground by a group of kids and started to play with them. I sat down on a bench close by and watched him. A guy with a beard and long hair sat down next to me. He had a familiar scent.

"Which one's yours?" he asked. The voice sounded familiar.

"The ginger with two different colored eyes."

"Ginger? You're far from red hair..."

"Oh, my wife is red headed."

"Ah..."

"Yours?"

"My wife is a blonde." I laughed at his terrible joke.

"I meant which kid is yours."

"Oh," he chuckled. "Uh, mine is the little blonde girl with the purple shirt who seems to be taking a liking to your son." I'd seen her playing with Odie before, but I never noticed who her parent was.

I finally looked at him and it took me a second to recognize him. Jackson. He hadn't changed much. I saw a ring on his finger and as he pulled out his phone I caught a glimpse of his screen saver – him, his daughter, his wife, and a golden retriever. I smiled as I realized the compulsion stuck, even though it broke my heart to do it all those years ago.