When We Were Mates (Demetra and Emris) novel Chapter 255

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Chapter 255

he’s only saying what he thinks will make me feel better, because he’s smart enough far too smart for a kid b

age.

“Yes.” He bobs his head. “But you’re my mommy too.”

My little boy pouts with those big brown eyes.

“You love me like Daddy does. You don’t scream at me. You let me sleep in your bed, and you kiss me like Daddy does. You… you protect me and Amira too. You’re my mommy.”

Before Milo is done talking, I am bawling my eyes out.

“And you are my son.” I hold his face, hearing myself cry. Milo puts his little hands up to wipe my tears away himself. He frowns, unhappy at the sight of me crying, so I force a laugh through it, just so he doesn’t becom sad.

I clear my throat so I can speak.

“Go get freshened up, okay? Meet Dad and me for lunch.”

He runs past me and I remain on my knees for a minutes before returning to see what’s going on between Emris and Reagan.

“Yeah, you’re not gonna be here when Milo freshens up.” I hear Emris before I’ve even gotten there, and I can tell it’s coming from a place of jealousy…seeing Milo so excited, terrified underneath it all that he’s somehow going to lose his son to a man who never deserved that kind of joy from him in the first place.

“Emris?” I call his name the moment I get back into their midst. Derisha takes a breath of relief when she sees that I’m finally speaking up. The only reason I didn’t say anything was because I had nothing to say. I’m not gonna put any cents towards a guy who looked down on Amira, and plotted disgustingly alongside Elena to weaponize Milo against Emris.

“Can I talk to you? Really, really quick.” I ask.

Emris walks off, and I follow him until we get to the quiet sitting area.

“You said you needed Regan’s help….that he was the best at-”

“That was before Janet dropped the puzzle in my lap.”

“Okay, but you – we

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still need help. Slade’s putting Lion pride gammas at your disposal, but what about the overseas tracking? You said you needed a solid tracer so your Alpha allies could apprehend those Sahara criminals wherever they’ve scattered to. Reign’s good at that. You know he is.”

“Wait.” Emris looks at me. “Demi, where are you going with this?”

I take a deep breath. How do I explain it?

How do I even explain it? How do I make Emris understand that I think he should let this go, without sounding insensitive to everything Reign put us through? It’s just… I keep thinking about Milo. Out of nowhere, the woman he knew as his mother just vanished, and even now he doesn’t know Reign is actually his

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father, but if Emris makes this decision alone, if he cuts Reign out completely without a plan, Milo’s going to grow up resenting him the day he finally learns the truth.

And I don’t want that. I don’t want us building the exact same cycle of hatred we just watched play out with Lake and Reign, over and over, generation after generation, never actually ending.

Emris has that look on his face when he reads my thoughts somehow through the mind link like a wizard. Now he crosses the room and I blink.

“You want me to forgive that scum of the earth!?”

“No, not forgive.” I lick my lips under his scrutiny. “Just… release Elena and don’t…try to get back at Regan. Just let them go… or be… away from us. That can be their punishment you know? Rebuilding their own lives from scratch, away from the pack.”

“Yeah, it’s the hormones talking.” Emris turns, about to walk away from me like this conversation is over.

“Emris, the conversation is not over—”

“It is now!”

“They are Milo’s parents.” I say, and immediately regret the bluntness of it. “I mean… I didn’t mean to put it like that, I just meant-”

“No, I heard you, Demetra.” He nods, clearly stung by it and taking deep offense to that.

But the only reason I’m saying the wrong thing is because everything is getting on his nerves. And the way he stares at me, it’s like he’s waiting for me to make a mistake after another mistake.

“I mean, one day he’s gonna grow up, and gossip is gonna be moving about in the pack of how his biological parents are in prison or have disappeared locked somewhere up by you-”

“And what’s wrong with that? Given what they actually did!?”

“I know. I know what they did but I’m asking you to be merciful, for Milo’s sake.” I step closer.

“Elena just disappeared on him. She was his mother, and I really thought it was gonna be hard to take care of him because of that heartbreak. But Milo is the sweetest boy, Emris. You’ve seen him yourself. He treats me like I’m his biological mother. He accepted Amira as his only sister in the world. He loved me before I even became his mom.”

I put my hands on Emris’ chest.

“If Milo can accept me and Amira…then I can accept that Elena is freed from jail. I can accept that Regan is given is freedom. Because Milo’s heart is so pure…we…..we…why don’t we take a lesson from our own son today?” I press my hands flat against Emris’s chest, and I can feel how hard he’s breathing under my palms, how much this is costing him just to stand here and listen.

“My love, I know you’re hurt.” I hold his gaze. “One day, Milo is going to realize everything Reagan and Elena did. He’s going to know you were furious. But he’s also going to see that despite everything, his father let the people who wronged him walk free instead of burying that anger into the family forever. If we don’t do this

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they’re going to need each

between siblings if we don’t close it now, while we still can.”

Emris releases his fists, and I watch his vulnerable teary face.

“Our real enemies have already been defeated. We have our family to focus on now. We have a little one on the way. So let this one go, Emris. Please. Just let it go.” I cradle his face in both hands and wait there, holding his gaze, letting everything I’ve said settle over him, until finally I hear him exhale.

And nod.

“You’ll….actually……do it?”

“..Whatever.”

He mutters it, but it’s the kind of whatever that means yes.

“Thank you.” I kiss his lips and smile. That was supposed to be a small little kiss, but Emris grabs my waist and kisses me deeply until my body is bent down and he’s still kissing me while holding me in the air.

When we finally break apart, our lips still hover a breath apart, and I can feel him breathing hard against my lips.

“I want you.” He says, just like he said earlier this morning and last night.

“Finish up the pack work. I’ll be waiting for you-”

“No. Now.”

“Emris.” I exhale faster, holding his chest and looking around. “We’re in the sitting room. Someone could see

us.”

I’m still telling him the danger of claiming me here when I see his hand working, planting my leg against his waist and pinning me against the nearest wall where he ultimately… sinks into me. We cry out as his rod probes into me with utter weight and hardness. I feel him penetrate, and he picks up my other leg so that I’m pinned and open to be fu*ked filthy by him.

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