“I suppose that’s true. I suppose we fight for everything.” I sighed and took a drink from the thermos Albert had packed for me. The water tasted faintly of citrus. At the penthouse there was always a pitcher of infused water around. We ate in silence for a moment before I decided to push him a little. “How long have Fen and Evan been together?”
I thought it would be easier for him to talk about his siblings.
He swallowed what appeared to be half a sandwich, and I realized my boy wasn’t as self-aware as he thought he was. He could eat, too. “Forever, it feels like. They kind of clung together because they were younger than me and Lee. Sasha was easier on them training-wise in the beginning. Eddie and Albert took care of them while Lee and I trained, so they formed an attachment at a young age. At some point it went from friendship and comfort to something more. I don’t know. You might not be able to understand.”
I felt my eyes widen. “Excuse me?”
His lips curled up, and I realized he was fucking with me. It made me feel better.
I sighed and reached into my pack to get the cookies Albert had packed. “You know very well your dad and I had a similar story.”
He shrugged. “Yes. I’ve heard it from Grandad many times over the years. I think hearing those stories did nothing but reassure Evan she was following in your footsteps. I know she was hard on you, but that was mostly about Papa. And you seemed very standoffish in the beginning.”
“I was in shock. You were eleven a few days ago.”
He nodded. “I know. We’ve had years to think about this moment, and like so many things it wasn’t what we expected. Though you seem to be settling in. I’ll be happy to tell Evan that her mother is already meddling, and she should expect many long and annoying conversations.”
I wanted to argue with that, but I did have several conversations planned for my baby girl. I didn’t think they would be annoying. I thought they would be charming and informative, but then I bet my dad had thought that, too, and he’d been wrong. So wrong. “Well, that’s a mom’s job. I feel like I have a lot of conversations to make up for.”
“You would be surprised. Sasha’s pretty good at talking to us about things that should be hard. He was good with Evan. He had a daughter he had to leave behind when he turned. I think he viewed us as a way to make up for that, or maybe a second chance to be a father figure. And Eddie read a lot of parenting books. There were many times I wished he’d read less. Trent mostly just tried to survive us all.” His expression had softened as though fond memories were playing through his head.
Memories I had no part in. His formative years had come and gone, and I’d been a distant memory. “I’m sorry I missed it. Did it help at all to have your grandfather?”
“Like all things in this life I find myself leading, Grandad’s reappearance was confusing. I’m glad it didn’t happen until I was almost seventeen or I think my sexuality would be even more fucked up.”
Now we were getting somewhere. “You like Shy?”
He’d eaten half of his second sandwich but seemed to lose his appetite. He wrapped it back up. “She’s a beautiful woman. She’s smart and kind, and she’s been through a lot.”
“And she carries your grandfather’s soul around.”
Rhys huffed, a frustrated sound. “He chooses the worst times to come out, Mom. Like the absolute worst. I almost managed to forget he was there once. Shy and I had been talking late into the night, and it was almost dawn. I lost my head and moved in to kiss her and Grandad shows up and tells me she’s not ready. Couldn’t she have told me that herself? Did she have to send my grandpa after me?”
I bit back a laugh because though he was joking, it was easy to see it hadn’t been funny for him. “Was it the first time you tried to kiss a girl?”
He snorted as though I’d said something silly. “No. I’ve had some minor experiences. We visited some interesting planes. I’ve made out with a few women in bars, but I couldn’t let it go far. Sasha made sure there were condoms around, but I didn’t know if they would work on me. And I didn’t know how to ask. I can’t believe I told you that.”
“I’m very easy to talk to. You know you used to tell me everything. As for the condoms, they work or you would have many more siblings.”
“I shudder at the thought. I can’t handle the ones I do have. That’s good to know though. Condoms, however, don’t stop my magic from going crazy. One of the pubs we were in, one of the ones I made out in, it got covered in ivy. We had to hack our way out. The owner was not happy.”