Page 54 of Rejected and Pregnant By the Alpha
“Good. Well, I’m off. Be careful out there, and please don’t tell Saben about you being his dad until Hannah is ready to tell him. She is finally starting to accept you again, and I would hate for her happiness to be ruined because you rushed things before she was ready.” With that, Aileen zips over to Saben, pressing a kiss to the top of my son’s head and whispering something to him.
Saben listens intently, smiling at her before Aileen zips away, and I’m left alone with my son.
“I know a good place we can go,” Saben says, drawing my attention to him.
“Well then, lead the way,” I say, walking up beside him.
Saben nods, taking my hand in his and leading me away from the training facility. We head north, and as I ask him about school and his favorite activities, I keep my senses alert for any hidden danger. It takes about fifteen minutes for us to reach the place Saben mentioned, and as we break through the tree line, we come to a little clearing with a small pond glittering in the sunlight.
“Mama brings me here to talk,” Saben says, letting go of my hand and toddling toward a fallen log. “The last time we came here was before I turned five. I asked her about my dad, and she told me that he lived far away and that when I was older, she would tell me about him,” he continues, the log now between us.
I watch as his green eyes, so much like mine, turn to look at me, hurt and sadness seeping into them. My throat goes dry, and for a moment, I wonder what to say to him, but I remind myself that Hannah wants to tell Saben that I am his father when the time is right.
“I am not stupid. I know everyone keeps things from me because I am five, but I know you are my dad.” His words are cold, colder than I expected from a five-year-old. I watch as Saben glares at me and takes a deep breath.
“Saben, I…” I begin, but my son holds out his little chubby hands.
“I have been nice to you because it is what an alpha is supposed to do with visiting alphas. Mama taught me that. But I don’t like you,” he continues, his little voice carrying over the small clearing. “You hurt Mama. I know because she cried a lot to Auntie Aileen and Auntie Claira about the rejection pain. I know what rejection means, too. It means you don’t want Mama as your mate,” he adds.
Goddess, Saben is smart. Hannah said as much, but I didn’t know he was genius-level smart.
“I don’t need a dad like you who hurts Mama and abandons us. I will have a new dad one day, so finish your visit and leave.” Withthat, Saben takes off, and I am left dumbfounded for a moment before I take off after him.
He is fast, as fast as Hannah was at his age, and I can keep up, but I also sense he needs his time, so I hang back a few feet, close enough that I can intervene if something happens.
Fabian,I call out to my friend, sadness and desperation creeping into my voice.Saben already knows I am his dad, and he… he doesn’t want me,I continue once I feel his presence.
Fabian lets out a curse, telling me to keep an eye on Saben while he goes to find Aidan, and the link goes silent. After a moment, I sense Fabian in my mind again, and I sigh with relief.
Where are you right now?Fabian asks, and I frown.
Heading south from this pond Saben took me to talk,I answer. Silence follows before Fabian sighs.
Aidan says he is on his way and will grab Saben. Just keep an eye on him until then,he says this, and I thank him.
True to his words, after five more minutes of Saben running away from me, Aidan appears, scooping my son into his arms. I want to snap at the man when Saben lets out a terrified scream, but I stop myself as soon as Saben realizes it is Aidan holding him and not me.
“Hey, kiddo, your mama just returned home,” Aidan says as soon as Saben settles.
“She is!” I hear my son exclaim, his face lighting up. My heart clenches, and I wonder if he will ever look like that when someone mentions me.
“She is, and she asked about you and King Julian,” Aidan adds, and Saben’s face instantly falls.
Silently, I creep out of the trees and stand beside Aidan, lightly ruffling Saben’s hair. “You and I are still okay, right, Saben?” I say happily, trying to hide the hurt in my voice.
Saben looks at me before nodding, and I smile, happy to know that at least he isn’t shying away from my touch.
Aidan looks at the two of us, a silent understanding in his eyes as he leads us back to the pack house. I will need to find some time alone with Hannah to talk about Saben, either before the meeting about taking down the Hunters Association in Ottawa or after the meeting.
54
Hannah
Pulling up in front of the pack house, I turn off my car and climb out, with Claira following suit beside me. Work had been a long day, even in the short five hours I was away, and I am happy to be home. Hell, I can already smell Jiya’s cooking wafting from the open doors.
“Hannah!” someone shouts my name, and I turn to find Fabian walking toward me, a frown on his face.
“We need to talk before Julian and Saben get here,” my friend says as soon as he reaches my side. Sensing the urgency in his voice, I tell Claira to head inside while I pull Fabian to the side, away from prying eyes and ears.
