Page 41 of Dragon's Midlife Secret Baby
“Doyou want to say bye to everyone before we leave?” Beck asked.
Corbin stood in the middle of the living room at the Alexander clanhouse. He looked around at the assembled adults, grinning, then ran straight over to Kendrick and launched himself into his lap. “Bye!”
Kendrick scooped him up in his arms and held him upside down. “You come back and see us again, Corbin! We’ll do something fun. Okay?”
“Okay!” Corbin squealed between giggles. His shirt kept riding up and exposing his belly, which only made him laugh harder. “Okay!”
“That’s a boy.” Kendrick swiftly turned him right side up and set him on the floor. “I’d tell you to be a good boy, but you already are.” He winked andtweaked Corbin’s nose before looking up at Beck. “Your parents would be so proud to see him, Beck. He gives me a lot of hope about the clan and our future.”
He got a high-five from Ewan and a hug from Lilith, along with a promise for all the chocolate cake he could eat.
As Beck and Corbin went into the front foyer, Griffin came in from the other room. Seeing that he was in the way, he quickly stepped to the side.
“We’re just taking off,” Beck explained. “I’ve got to get him back to Chelsea’s.”
His cousin gave him a brief nod and then hesitated. “Listen, Beck. I want to thank you for setting everything straight with Kendrick. Back on that island, when you told me you didn’t want to leave, I figured it didn’t matter. I’d have to anyway because Kendrick wouldn’t let me in. But then you talked to him. Things are a little tense, but they’re getting better.”
Beck clapped him gently on the arm. “I did talk to him, but I think you need to give Kendrick more credit. He’s much happier having you here than not.”
Corbin had been standing next to Beck, his head tilted back as he watched the grownups talk. Heswiveled his head to Griffin, grinned, and then wrapped his arms around his leg. “Bye!”
Shock rippled across Griffin’s face, and then it crumpled. “Bye, Corbin.”
“How’s that for forgiveness?” Beck asked. “Now I just have to see if I can get a little of it myself. I’ll see you later.”
Chelsea opened the door as he walked up a short time later. “How did he do?”
“Just fine. Kendrick is crazy about him, and I think the feeling is mutual. Lilith made him a cake, and he went nuts over that, too.”
“Cake?” Corbin asked hopefully.
“I think one piece is enough, buddy,” Beck told him as he stepped inside and put his son down. The covenstead was relatively empty. Some music could be heard through the kitchen door, but the living room was quiet. He was never going to get a better chance than this. “Chelsea, can I talk to you for a moment?”
“Sure.” She watched him expectantly.
So did Corbin, though. He stood between his parents, looking at them both with interest.
“Let’s take your little ears into the kitchen with Granny,” Chelsea suggestedto him.
“What she doing?” he asked as his mother led the way.
“I don’t know for sure, but I bet you can help.” She returned a few moments later, looking worried. “Is everything really okay with Corbin? Did he do any magic or anything?”
“No, no. He was just a regular kid,” Beck assured her. “He’s perfect.”
“He is,” she agreed, aiming her soft look at the kitchen door. “He hasn’t been acting any differently, but he went through something very traumatic. And then finding his dragon and his powers—which I still don’t fully understand—on top of that has to be a lot.”
“Yes, but I think he’s going to be fine. Everyone is interested in his well-being, both you and your coven and me and my clan. If there’s even the slightest notion that anything is off, I know we’ll all do everything we can to make it better.”
“Thank you. I appreciate that. Now, what did you want to talk about?”
“I wanted to apologize,” he said. Beck had felt that this was a now-or-never moment, but he realized that wasn’t true. He would tell her now, and if it wasn’t enough, he would tell her again and again. “I’m sorry for getting angry with you when Corbin was taken. I was scared, and I lashed out.”
“Of course you were,” she acknowledged. “We all were. It was terrifying.”
“That’s generous of you, but the blame still rests with me. I was scared for Corbin, but I was also scared for myself.” It’d taken Beck some time to figure out everything he felt inside, and now it felt good to let her know. She was watching him closely with those big brown eyes, and he could tell she was really listening. “I had absolutely nothing while I was under Sol’s control, not even the comforting thoughts of my friends and family. It was the coldest, loneliest time in my life. Once I had you and Corbin, the thought of any of that being taken away was just too much to bear.”
She frowned. “It was hard for me to comprehend that Sol had taken Corbin, but I can’t imagine how much harder it must’ve been on you.”
