Caleb never believed in love. Not for himself anyway. It seemed an impossibility that just wasn't meant for him. When Rhys came into his life though, everything changed. He'd fallen in love. Against all odds he'd fallen in love. The short time that he'd spent with Rhys were the happiest moments of his life. Their love healed him, gave him hope, and produced a child that he would love for the rest of his life. The tragedy of his love was that it ended too soon. Rhys was taken from him and once again he'd felt that cold, empty, longing of despair creep into his soul that he'd felt for the entirety of his young life.
He hadn't been ready to let Rhys go and he had clung onto his memory like a man, lost at sea, clinging onto the last bit of hope at being rescued. Now though, he knew that it was time to let go. He didn't want to. Hell, it was probably the hardest thing that he'd ever had to do before but for his own sanity, he had to let go. Living a half life wasn't helping anyone and Caleb knew that he wasn't ever going to be the father that Rhylan needed if he continued to live in grief. Rhys was gone. Nothing would ever change that. Finally, it was time to accept it and move on.
It seemed like a betrayal of his love but with Rhys permission, maybe Caleb would find it a bit less painful. Even if it had only been a dream. But, who was to say that dreams didn't hold some truth and that those whom we have lost couldn't visit us in our dreams? Caleb believed this to be the case. It was Rhys one last act in assuring that Caleb was alright. His promise to him that he would always be there, watching over him, protecting him, and loving him from afar. Caleb took some small comfort in that. The memories he had of Rhys would sustain him and the love they shared would never be forgotten because Caleb was reminded of it each and every time he looked into his son's eyes.
The sun was already beginning to set when Caleb awake from his nap. The shadows reaching across the living room floor were proof enough of that. He couldn't believe that he'd slept so long, or that Rhylan hadn't woken up screaming. Maybe the pup's restless nights were finally wearing him down. Caleb dragged himself off the couch, yawned and stretched, then walked to his bedroom to check on the pup. Rhylan was laying in his crib attempting, unsuccessfully, to get his entire foot into his mouth. He looked up when he saw Caleb standing over him and grinned the largest grin that Caleb had ever seen.
"Silly boy." Caleb smiled back. "Just what do you think you're doing?"
As if to answer, Rhylan held up his foot then giggled.
"Yes, I see that." Caleb laughed. "You have a foot. When you learn to shift, you'll have four of them."
Rhylan cooed as he grabbed at his other foot then began to rock, side to side, while Caleb watched. Caleb could have stood there all evening just watching his pup and admiring the miracle that lay before him but the babe needed a good changing and there was also dinner to get on the table.
"We'll play together later." Caleb promised as he scooped the pup out of the crib, cradling him in his arms. "Right now we need to get that stinky diaper off." He carried the baby to the changing table, laying him down gently then began to unzip his sleeper. With the outer layer of clothing off, the smell of soiled diaper became so much stronger that Caleb winced, turning his nose away. "Wow." He said, plugging his nose. "Times like this I envy humans and their limited sense of smell."
Rhylan giggled and kicked his legs as Caleb struggled to get the diaper off. "Calm down there kiddo." Caleb told him. "This ain't no rodeo."
Ten minutes later, Caleb walked into the kitchen with a now clean pup, in a clean, lime green, sleeper with a cartoon wolf on the front. He was happily sucking his fingers when Caleb sat him in a bouncer on the kitchen floor near the entrance. "You sit there and bat at your toys while I start dinner." He kissed the top of Rhylan's head which caused him to erupt in giddy squeals of glee.
Caleb shook his head and laughed. That long nap certainly did both of them a world of good.
By the time Quinton had made it home the house was filled with the heavenly scent of home cooked food. On the way back from the den, Quinton was already dreading the conversation he would be having with Caleb. Not that he was angry with him. Quite the opposite. Quinton was more angry with himself. Shelby had crossed a line and Quinton had left Caleb defenseless to her assault.
Well, maybe not defenseless. He was kind of impressed that the little omega had the gall to stand up to a beta the way he had. The problem was, he shouldn't have had to. It was Quinton's job to protect Caleb and he'd failed miserably at it. He'd intended to come home, tail tucked securely between his legs, and apologize to his young mate but once he'd entered the house and allowed the sweet aromas of the food to engulf him, he suddenly forgot all about the incident earlier in the day.
Caleb was busy at the stove stirring something in a large skillet. Quinton walked up behind him and looked over his shoulder to the source of the appetizing aroma and nearly gasped. Caleb was making smoked sausage with onions, cabbage, and seasoned potatoes. It was Quinton's favorite dish, something his mother used to make when he was younger. Annie had tried to duplicate the recipe many times before but had never gotten it quite right. Her version was good. There was no doubt about that but it lacked a special something that only Quinton's mother had been able to replicate.
"You've been talking to Annie, I see."
Caleb turned and smiled up at him. "She might have mentioned something about a recipe or two that you were particularly fond of."
"She knows me well." Quinton grinned. "At least as far as my gut is concerned."
Both men laughed at that.
"I'm glad for her help though." Caleb admitted. "I love to cook, just wasn't sure what you liked."
"I'm not picky really, but I appreciate that you took the time to investigate my culinary tastes."
Caleb chuckled as he rolled his eyes playfully. "Go wash up." He told Quinton. "It's almost ready."
"Yes, dear." Quinton teased, prompting another chuckle from Caleb.
Quinton stepped out of the kitchen into the adjoining dining room where he passed Rhylan in his bouncer sitting on the thresh-hold between both rooms. Quinton stopped a moment to look down at the pup. Rhylan looked up at him with wide, excited, eyes and suddenly, he smiled a big, toothless grin. Quinton felt his heart melt some at the little wolf and he returned the smile.
Rhylan was every bit the image of his sire and Quinton couldn't help but feel a bit of comfort in that. He could see Rhys' spirit reflected out from behind the child's eyes. It was a reminder that Rhys' was still with them, in some form, and would never be forgotten.
***
Quinton was very pleasantly surprised when he dug into the hot meal sat before him. Where Annie had failed to recreate the delectable essence of his mother's dish, Caleb had seemed to master it the first time around.
"How?" He looked at the young omega in awe. "This...it's just like my mom used to make. The seasonings, everything, it's perfect."
A deep blush colored Caleb's face. "I found a recipe book in one of the boxes you had stacked on the kitchen table. I read through it-hope you don't mind-and found the recipe. That's when I remembered Annie saying that your mother made it for you when you were a pup. I figured it was your mother's recipe so I used it."
Quinton smiled at Caleb and again praised him on the meal. "I'm glad my mom's old books can be of use again. You're welcome to anything you find here, Caleb. This is your home now and...thank you for this. I've missed mom's home cooking. Sometimes, being reminded of the past is a good thing."
Caleb nodded. "When you have good memories of the past I suppose."
"You can make new memories here." Quinton told him, seeing the dark expression that had slowly fallen over the young man's face. "Good memories and, most importantly, Rhylan will grow up safe and loved. Hell, half the pack already loves him and I say half because the other half hasn't met him yet but I promise they are going to love him too."
Caleb raised an eyebrow as he sat his fork down, looking at Quinton gravely. "Even Shelby?"
"Shelby..." Quinton sighed. "Shelby has nothing against the pup..."
"Just me." Caleb said, curtly.
"She's angry. Once she's able to see past her anger she'll come around."
"She hates me."
"I think she's just trying to make sense of what happened. If you recall, when you first arrived, I blamed you too. I was wrong and so is she. She just needs time."
Caleb propped his elbow on the table then rested his head on his hand as he sighed. "And I'm supposed to be understanding and accommodating. I'm an omega. Passive and obedient, never quick to anger, and certainly never confrontational."
"Maybe in your old pack, but not here." Quinton flashed a sympathetic smile when Caleb looked at him, confused. "I don't expect you to bury your feelings, Caleb. You're as entitled to them as much as any other pack member, omega or otherwise."
"But, I'm not entitled to lash out the way I did. I know that I was in the wrong. I shouldn't have smacked her and I know that I must be a disappointment to you. I'm ready to accept whatever punishment you see fit to give me." He dropped his gaze, unable to meet Quinton's eyes but Quinton could see that Caleb wasn't afraid of him. Caleb didn't fear what Quinton would do to him. It was shame that kept his eyes focused on table and not on his Alpha.
"Caleb, look at me." Caleb did as he was told, lifting his gaze so that his eyes met Quinton's. Quinton turned to the side, moving closer to Caleb, then he reached out and touched his hand. The touch was warm and reassuring. Not intimate really, but maybe something slightly more than just friendship. There was genuine concern there and Caleb knew that Quinton's words were sincere. "Caleb, I'm not angry with you. Maybe the situation could have been handled better but that's not all on you. Shelby was way out of line. She baited you into a fight and, surprisingly, you took the bait."
Caleb cocked an eyebrow. "That surprises you?"
"Well, yeah." Quinton laughed some. "Like you said, you're an omega. In my experience, when an omega is confronted in that way they usually tuck tail and run, not come back with claws out."
"I guess I'm not a typical omega." Caleb slouched back into his seat, feeling more like a failure than ever.
"No, not typical. But that's not nessasarily a bad thing." Quinton squeezed his hand gently.
"It's not?" Caleb knit his brows together as he absently pushed the food around on his plate with his fork. "Most alpha's wouldn't feel that way." He said, almost in a whisper.
Quinton smirked. "Well, I'm not your typical alpha."
Caleb stopped what he was doing and looked at Quinton again. He smiled timidly at the alpha. "No, I suppose you're not. At least, not from my experience."
