At the bottom of the stairs, he halted sharply, his gaze catching on the last place he’d seen Julianna’s ghost. What would she say about Aiden dancing in Ronan’s arms? Would she feel betrayed? Hurt? Disappointed? He’d thought he’d follow her into the next life when their existence here was over.
But he was still here.
“I’m not leaving,” Ronan stubbornly called from the second floor. “If you want me to leave your domain, you have to say the words, Aiden. You have to say them to my face.”
Aiden clenched his jaw and continued to march to his office. A wise man would have gone back up the stairs and said them. He would have removed any hope that Ronan was still tightly gripping. It would have been the kind thing to do. But he didn’t. Couldn’t.
As he reached the door, he could have sworn he heard Ronan’s relieved “Thank you” drift through the silence.
Aiden couldn’t let him go. Not yet.
Chapter Six
Aiden sat with a book in his lap later that evening, but he was spending more time staring out the window than actually reading. Hours had passed since Ronan had left the house, and now Aiden couldn’t decide if maybe he’d overreacted to Ronan’s mention of Julianna. Common sense said that Ronan hadn’t meant anything by the playful comment. There hadn’t been an ounce of disdain or jealousy in his tone.
Why had he flown off like that?
His mind shied away from the answer to a more difficult thought. Maybe it would be better if Ronan left his domain and they went their separate ways. So much time had passed. How could they possibly just pick up where they left off? That didn’t make any sense at all.
“That must be a really horrible book,” Winter murmured, drawing a chuckle from Aiden. “You’ve been staring out the window for the last five minutes.”
“Maybe I was just wondering which son would bring trouble to my doorstep next,” Aiden said with a smile. Putting the book on the table at his elbow, he started to rise, but Winter was already waving him to stay seated. Closing the distance between them, Winter wrapped an arm around his shoulders and hugged him as tightly as he could from the awkward position.
Winter released him and dropped onto the couch next to Aiden’s chair. “My money is on Rafe. He’s been too quiet recently.”
“That might be because he’s got all his energy directed toward building a new nightclub after the destruction of Blush.” Winter only shrugged. Not that Aiden was fooled by Winter’s casual appearance. His youngest son didn’t do anything casually. He didn’t simply drop by for a visit to spend time with his family. There was no question that he loved his brothers, but Winter always had another reason for doing things like this. Something was on his son’s mind, but there would be no getting it out of him before he was ready.
Aiden had been quick to learn over the years that while all four Variks stuck very close together, they were all very different and had to be handled differently. Marcus was the only one he could hit head on, but everything had to be taken seriously. Rafe danced and avoided. With his second oldest child, he needed hugs, gentleness, and a firm hand accompanied by a smile. Tenderness always broke down his walls. Bel wasn’t a secret-keeper. He tended to spill almost immediately what was on his mind. Most of the time, he just needed someone to listen to him and he’d find his way to the truth.
But Winter…his youngest had required a lot of trial and error. He couldn’t be pushed, or he’d feel cornered and never speak. He’d met few who could be more stubborn than Winter—though Fox was giving his son a run for his money. He couldn’t be teased or even hugged into talking. No, the best course proved to be silence and patience. When he was ready, he would speak and not a moment sooner.
“How is the house?” Aiden asked. Not long after the destruction of Damon, Winter had bought a large piece of land adjacent to Bel’s home and built a house for him and Fox. Aiden had been more than a little surprised by the decision. From the moment Winter moved out on his own, he’d always lived within the city like Rafe. He wanted to be in the middle of things.
However, Zelda had mentioned that Fox would need to be close to nature to help recharge his magical batteries. Winter hadn’t hesitated to buy the land near Bel, which was outside the city and somewhat remote, but it was adjacent to some forest land that ran between their territory and the local werewolf pack. Building the home there kept him close to his brother, close to Bel’s mates, who were becoming good friends with Winter and Fox, and gave Fox the nature he needed. It was sweet to see Winter immediately putting the needs of his mate first.