Page 37 of The Alpha's Second Chance Mate

“Are you offering to take your old maid of a mother on a date, mister?”

“Oh my gosh.” He rolled his eyes. “No. Besides, you’ve got the money, so technically you would be taking me on a date.”

“Fair enough. It was great back when I was younger, so fingers crossed it’s still good.” I stood and grabbed my purse. “You’re good if I go?”

He took a massive bite of his Pop-Tart. “Yeah. I’m not some little kid. I’ll be fine.”

Ashton picked up his phone and started as he stuffed more of the Pop-Tart in his mouth. He didn’t see my smile slowly vanishing. He was right. Hewasn’ta little boy anymore. He was growing into a man. Yet, I could still remember his tiny legs wobbling as he toddled toward me for his first steps, the tears in his eyes when he’d pulled out his first tooth, then the excitement in those same eyes when I told him about the tooth fairy. Those years from baby to toddler to preschooler always felt like centuries. A constant uphill battle toward Ashton’s self-dependence, with small victories I always looked forward to—sleeping through the night, eating solid food, walking, potty-training. In some ways, it had seemed like it would never end, yet here I was, staring at this huge, beautiful kid who wouldn’t need me much longer. I yearned for one more day when he was small enough to cradle in my arms and sleep against me.

Tears stung my eyes, and I turned around in case Ashton saw.

“Have fun,” I managed as I opened the mudroom door.

“Okay,” he said. “Bring back leftovers if you have any.”

“Sure thing.” I stepped into the mudroom and pulled the door closed behind me, then leaned against it, letting myself wallow in nostalgia for a moment before getting into my car.

You couldn’t look back in time—it was pointless. The only thing it was good for was reliving old memories. The future was what was most important, and Ashton’s future was even more important than mine.

At Hattie’s, Stormy had reserved us a two-top by one of the windows overlooking Harbor Lake. The place wasexactlyas I remembered it. As soon as I stepped in, the smell of breakfast assaulted my senses. Honestly, the walls and ceiling probably had a thin layer of bacon grease after the thousands of pounds of food that had been cooked here over the years.

Stormy waved me over as I stepped through the entryway. Joining her, I noticed Shiloh was nowhere to be seen.

“Your mom watching the baby?” I asked as I sat.

Stormy smiled and raised a glass. “Indeed. We get to have a little grown-up lady time. Want a mimosa?”

I chuckled and nodded. “Sure.”

After flagging down the waiter and putting in my drink order, I perused the menu. It was almost exactly the same as it had been back in high school, though I did notice a small section of low-carb and keto-friendly items in the bottom corner, as well as a few vegan options that had never been there before. It appeared the outside worldwasable to penetrate Harbor Mills after all.

“Well?” Stormy said, peering at me over her mimosa.

“Well, what?”

“How’s it going with Ashton and Cole?”

“Oh.” I put the menu down and leaned back in the chair. “I think it’s actually going really well, honestly.”

“So, Cole is really taking to the whole Dad thing?”

I smiled a little. “I don’t think we’d go so far as calling him a dad yet, but since he’s been mentoring Ash, there’s been a day and night change. Ashton has always been a happy-go-lucky kid, you know? But things have been different since he hit puberty. He’s sullen and quiet a lot of the time. Sometimes there’d be flashes of his old self, but for the most part, I could see how lost he was.”

Stormy set her glass down. “I know it’s been rough, but he’s a really good kid. Maybe he needed a change of scenery.”

“That’s it, too. I think coming back to Harbor Mills was the best thing I could have done for him. Even without Cole, being near his pack—hisactualpack—has calmed him. I’m sure getting to meet some of the kids has helped. Cole took him to the park the other day, and he played ball with some of the other pack kids.”

The server came to take our food order, and although I tried to talk myself into a vegetarian egg-white omelet, I decided to go for broke and ordered a plate of biscuits and gravy with a side of bacon and scrambled eggs.

“So, back to Mr. Tall, Dark, and Runs Away?” Stormy said when the server left.

I chuckled. It was funny and not funny at the same time. “Cole’s been great,” I said. “I already said that.”

“I’m not talking about how he’s doing with Ashton,” Stormy said. “I mean, how has it been interacting with him again?”

“Oh.” That was a more interesting question. “I’m thankful he’s taking such good care of Ashton, so that’s helped us have a cordial relationship. It’s like he really cares about doing the right thing, which is a nice change based on the past.” I thought for a moment. “He’s polite and respectful and always asks for my opinion on things. We’ve had a few short conversations while Ashton was getting ready. Cole’s really nice, same as back in the day, but that’s all it’s been. A few words here and there, nothing more.”

“Uh-huh,” Stormy said, eyeing me speculatively.

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