Page 14 of Back to You
“Most things are.Why don’t we go to my office?Or would you rather go to the kitchen?Toby is still eating breakfast, so if you haven’t eaten, you can sit with him.”
That sounded nice, but Ronan wasn’t sure he could or should eat.He was pretty sure he would throw up everything if he tried.“Your office is fine.“
“Let’s go, then.”
Ronan followed the alpha down the hallway.He was clutching the cup Cam had given him, but he hadn’t drunk from it yet.His stomach churned in an unpleasant way, and coffee wouldn’t help with that.He didn’t want Cam to think he was rude, though, which was why he’d accepted the coffee.
Cam gestured for Ronan to sit.“Now tell me what’s on your mind.I can see it’s eating at you, and since you’re a pack member now, part of my job is helping you deal with whatever’s on your mind.If you have any problem, I’ll try to help, and if I can’t, I can find someone who will.I just need to know what’s going on.”
Ronan put the coffee down on the desk and sat in one of the two empty chairs.He stared at the floor, trying to gather his thoughts and wondering where he was supposed to start.There was no easy or nice way to say any of this.
“You know that I lost my mate a few years ago,” Ronan started.
“I remember,” Cam confirmed.
“The reason I thought he was dead was that his father told me.I never saw his body or found out exactly what happened, which I now realize was a sign that I’d been lied to, but considering what was happening to me at the time, I didn’t even think about that possibility.”
Ronan wasn’t making sense, but Cam didn’t point it out.He patiently waited for Ronan to get to the point.
Ronan sucked in a breath.“My mate’s name was—is—Vincent.Vincent Fulton.”
Cam’s eyes widened.Ronan waited, expecting the alpha to have something to say about that, but Cam just leaned back in his chair, so Ronan forged ahead.
“Vincent and I met several years ago.I knew right away that he was my mate, and when I told him, he was happy.We dated for a while, then moved in together.I always knew his relationship with his father was conflicted, which is why I only met Fulton a few times while Vincent and I were together.He hated his father and wanted nothing to do with him.
“Still, Fulton was his father, so when one day I came home and he was there, telling me that Vincent had died, I didn’t think he was lying.Vincent and I weren’t married, so I wasn’t surprised that no one had reached out to tell me.I was in pain, thinking I’d lost my mate, watching Fulton and the people he’d brought with him packing Vincent’s stuff and our life together.
“That’s when Fulton took the next step.He told his people to grab me.You should’ve seen how gleeful he was.He told me that I was never good enough for his son and that Vincent shouldn’t have lowered himself to being with an animal.”
“I’m sorry for your loss,” Cam murmured.
“But I didn’t lose Vincent.I don’t know what Fulton told him about me, but he’s alive.I never lost him.”
“You thought you did, and that’s enough.I can only imagine how much pain you were in, so I’m not surprised that it was easy for Fulton and his people to capture you.”
Ronan was glad that Cam understood.He didn’t know where that left him, but he’d find out soon enough.“I allowed my pain to take over for a long time.I never really tried to get free, even though I was auctioned off several times.I didn’t feel I had anything left to live for.I never found out exactly what happened to Vincent, and it wasn’t like Fulton would have told me if I asked.I never thought that Vincent could be alive.”
“But he is, and you can have him back.What do you want me to do?”
“I don’t know.We haven’t talked yet, but we’re going to have to, and I’d feel more comfortable if we could do so in pack territory.He was never like his father and always hated him, but I don’t know what happened exactly or how he changed over the years.”
“He did say that his father left him a lot of money,” Cam said.“But he also mentioned how much he hated his father and that he was glad that Preston had killed him.”
That conversation last night had been awkward.Preston hadn’t hesitated to admit he’d been the one to kill Fulton, and everyone had been tense, but Vincent had nodded at him and thanked him.He’d truly seemed happy to know that his father was gone.That fit with the kind of person Vincent had been before, but still.Ronan was a bit hesitant.
“You know I would have kept an eye on him anyway, right?”Cam asked.“No matter how insistent he is that he hated his father, I wouldn’t let him into my pack without watching him.I have no plans of letting him come back, but since he has to, I’ll talk to Bryson and Meyer.”
“I don’t think he’s dangerous, at least not physically.”
“That’s good.Just in case, I want a few people to know what’s going on.You don’t have to tell them the entire story if you’re not comfortable with that, though.I’ll explain as best as I can without giving up your secrets.”
“I don’t think I want this to be a secret.If Vincent is still the kind of man he was before, I want to be with him.I just don’t know how that’ll work.“
“You don’t have to know right away.Meet him.Talk to him.Once you have all the information in hand, you can make your decision.”
That was good advice, but Ronan was still scared—scared of the kind of man Vincent had become, of what he’d lost and what he might have back, scared of what he stood to lose again if he wasn’t careful.
* * * *
