Luna. Chapter 113

(Lyra's POV)

I woke up slowly, reaching across the bed for warmth that wasn't there.

Kael was gone.

The sheets were still rumpled from where he'd slept, still carried his scent. But the man himself had vanished sometime before dawn.

I sat up, running my fingers through my tangled hair. My body ached in all the right ways. Last night had been everything I'd dreamed it would be and more.

But now I was alone again.

I padded to the window and looked out at the garden. Asher was already up, playing with his toy trucks in the sandbox. Elena was sitting nearby, reading a book and keeping one eye on him.

Everything looked normal. Peaceful.

So why did I feel like something was missing?

A soft knock interrupted my thoughts. "Come in," I called.

Elena entered carrying a breakfast tray. Fresh strawberries, perfectly poached eggs, toast cut into heart shapes. Coffee that smelled like heaven.

"From Mr. Kael," she said with a knowing smile. "He left very specific instructions about your breakfast before he departed this morning."

I stared at the heart-shaped toast. "He made this?"

"He made all of it. Spent an hour in the kitchen getting everything exactly right. Said you needed proper nutrition after..." She trailed off, blushing.

"After what?" I asked innocently.

"After your tired," Elena finished diplomatically.

The coffee in my mouth was exactly what I wanted.

He'd remembered exactly how I liked it after four years

"Did he say where he was going?"

"Some business emergency. But he left this for you."

Elena handed me an envelope with my name written in Kael's precise handwriting.

Inside was a single sheet of paper:

*Lyra, I didn't want to wake you. You looked too peaceful. I have some things to handle, but I'll be back tonight. Thank you for last night. For everything. We need to talk about our future. All three of us.

K*

P.S. I love you. I should have said it more last night.

I read it three times before setting it down.

He loved me. He was coming back. We were going to talk about our future.

But first, I had something I needed to handle myself.

"Elena, where's Asher now?"

"Still in the garden. Magnus took him to check on the new kittens in the barn earlier, but they're back now."

I got dressed quickly, choosing a simple sundress that didn't require too much thought. My mind was already focused on the conversation I needed to have.

It was time to tell Asher the truth about his father.

I'd been putting it off for months, telling myself he was too young to understand. But last night had changed everything. Kael was back in our lives, and he wasn't leaving again.

Asher deserved to know.

I found him building an elaborate road system in the sandbox, complete with bridges made from twigs and tunnels carved into the sand.

"That's impressive architecture," I said, sitting down beside him.

"It's for the emergency trucks," he explained seriously. "They need multiple routes in case one road gets blocked."

Smart kid. Always thinking ahead.

"Asher, can we talk about something important?"

He looked up from his construction project. "Are you sad, Mama? You have your serious face."

I wasn't sure how to begin. "Do you remember the man who's been visiting us? Kael?"

"The snow man! He's nice. He knows about trucks and he doesn't talk to me like I'm a baby."

"What do you think about him?"

Asher considered this carefully. "I like him. He makes you smile different."

"Different how?"

"Happy-scared. Like when you're excited about something but worried at the same time."

Out of the mouths of babes.

"Asher, I need to tell you something about Kael. Something important."

My son abandoned his trucks and gave me his full attention. "Okay, Mama."

"Kael is your father. Your real father."

I waited for surprise, confusion, questions. Instead, Asher just nodded.

"I know."

"You... know?"

"I figured it out. We have the same eyes. And Magnus isn't my daddy even though he acts like it sometimes."

I stared at my four-year-old son. "How long have you known?"

"A while. Since he started visiting. I can feel it when he's near, even if I can't see him."

"You can feel it?"

"In here." Asher touched his chest. "Like warmth. Like belonging."

I was blown away. My son had inherited more than just Kael's blue eyes. He'd inherited the supernatural awareness that came with being born to two powerful werewolves.

"Are you okay with that? Knowing Kael is your father?"

Asher went back to his trucks, but I could tell he was thinking hard.

"Will he stay this time?"

The question broke my heart. "I don't know, baby. I hope so."

"What if he changes his mind again?"

"Again?"

Asher looked up at me with eyes too old for his young face. "Magnus told me stories about my daddy. About how he loved you but had to go away to keep us safe."

Magnus had been protecting Asher from the truth, but also preparing him for it.

"What do you think about that?"

"I think grown-ups make things too complicated," Asher said matter-of-factly. "If you love someone, you should stay with them. Unless you're sick or in danger."

"And if you're trying to protect them?"

"Then you should ask them what they want instead of deciding for them."

I laughed despite myself. "You're very wise for someone who's not even five yet."

"Mama?"

"Yes?"

"If Kael is staying, does that mean we'll be a real family?"

The hope in his voice was almost unbearable. "What do you mean by a real family?"

"Like the families in my books. A mama and a daddy who live together and take care of their kids."

"Would you like that?"

"More than anything."

I pulled him into my lap, breathing in the scent of his hair. Baby shampoo and sunshine and innocence.

"I can't promise that will happen, Asher. Adults have complicated feelings sometimes."

"Do you love Kael?"

"Yes."

"Does he love you?"

"He says he does."

"Does he love me?"

That question hit me right in the gut. "I think so. But you should ask him yourself when he comes back."

"When will that be?"

"Tonight."

Asher scrambled out of my lap and started gathering up his trucks. "I need to get ready!"

"Ready for what?"

"To meet my daddy! Really meet him, now that we don't have to pretend we don't know."

The pure joy on his face made me want to cry and laugh at the same time.

"Asher, wait. We need to talk about some rules."

He paused in his truck-gathering. "What kind of rules?"

"First, Kael might need some time to adjust to being your father. He hasn't had practice at being a daddy."

"Magnus will help him learn. Magnus is good at daddy things."

"Second, even if Kael is your father, Magnus is still important to our family. He's been taking care of us for a long time."

"I know. I love Magnus too. Can people have extra daddies?"

"I... yes, I think people can have extra daddies."

"Good. Then everyone stays."

If only it were that simple.

We spent the rest of the morning together, playing in the garden and talking about what it meant to have a father who was also a werewolf. Asher took it all in stride, asking practical questions about shifting and pack dynamics with the curiosity of a child who'd grown up surrounded by supernatural beings.

Elena brought us lunch on the porch, and I noticed her smiling at our conversation.

"He's handling this well," she commented quietly while Asher was distracted by a butterfly.

"Better than I am, honestly."

"Children are resilient. And he's had good preparation, even if he didn't know it."

"What do you mean?"

"Magnus has been talking to him about his father for years. Not specifics, but concepts. About love and sacrifice and complicated choices."

I made a mental note to thank Magnus later. He'd been protecting Asher's emotional well-being even when he didn't know what the future would hold.

That afternoon, Asher insisted on cleaning his room and organizing his toys.

"I want everything to be perfect when Daddy comes home," he explained.

Home. He was already thinking of Kael as someone who belonged here.

I spent the afternoon trying to prepare myself for tonight's conversation. Kael had said we needed to talk about our future. What did that look like? What did I want it to look like?

I knew what my heart wanted. I wanted the family Asher was imagining. I wanted to wake up every morning next to the man I'd never stopped loving. I wanted to build something real and lasting and permanent.

But I was scared. Terrified, actually.

What if this was just another mistake? What if Kael decided he couldn't handle being a father? What if something else came up that made him think leaving was the right choice?

I couldn't survive losing him again. And more importantly, I couldn't let Asher survive losing him.

My phone buzzed with a text message.

How did the conversation go? - K

I smiled despite my worries. Even while handling his mysterious business, he was thinking about us.

Better than expected. He already knew. Smart kid.

Takes after his mother.

Takes after both his parents.

I love you, Lyra. We're going to make this work.

I hope so.

Not hope. Promise.

I wanted to believe him. I needed to believe him.

Because Asher was already calling him Daddy, and there was no going back from that.