Hedgehog for Hawke by Fel Fern

 

 

1

River

“When are you going to pick Michael up?” I asked my brother. “You said you wanted to see him this weekend.”

I tried to sound patient as possible. Reece didn’t answer any of my calls this morning, and that ticked me off. I knew he was busy honeymooning with his latest boyfriend, Daryl or was it Mark?

Shifters supposedly only had one fated mate, but my brother thought he was the exception. Reece changed men more often than he jumped jobs. According to him, his latest boy-toy Alpha was really the one.

“Can you take care of my baby boy a little while longer, River?” Reece asked. “Pretty please, with a cherry on top? Tell him I’ll swing by next weekend.”

I hated it when he begged. Reece always knew I was a pushover. We might be twins, but we were nothing alike. Reece didn’t give a damn about anything. I was the responsible one. Reece didn’t mind his life being chaotic. I needed everything to be in order.

Michael wasn’t my kid, but most folks I’ve come across always assumed he was. It was easy to make that mistake, given we looked alike. I practically raised him. I only offered to babysit him once and I ended up taking care of him full-time.

When I decided to move to a new town for my new job, Reece didn’t seem all that concerned. He said I should just take Michael with me. Told me it would be good for Michael to get away from the city.

“Reece, are you aware that I just moved from the city and to a new town, with your kid in tow?” I reminded my brother.

“Sure. You mentioned something of that sort,” he answered.

“That doesn’t bother you?”

“Why should it? You always take good care of Michael.”

My brother’s confidence in me stunned me. This was a tactic he always used on you, I reminded myself. Reece would compliment me, soften me up, and when the opportunity struck, he’d finally tell me what he truly wanted .

“Reece, you haven’t even asked me for our new address,” I said in an exasperated voice. “Look, I’m texting you the address now.”

I couldn’t imagine Reece making the long drive from the city all the way to Westford Hills to see Michael. I decided I wouldn’t tell Michael until I was completely certain that Reece was on his way to see us.

Reece had disappointed his son far too many times to count. Watching Michael’s little heart get broken every time Reece forgot they had a date—gutted me.

“Sure. Thanks. Listen, River. I’ve got to run. Daryl can be so demanding sometimes, and we have tons of plans for today,” Reece said. “We’re going horseback riding, then have a nice little seafood dinner by the beach.”

Horseback riding? Beach? Where did they go? I wanted to strangle Reece. I counted silently to ten in my head to cool down. Of course Reece wanted to talk about himself. His son always came second. Reece tattled on about how he was happy with Daryl.

“He said we should extend our honeymoon. Can you believe how sweet he is? Daryl’s really the perfect Alpha for me,” Reece said with a sigh.

Had Reece quickly forgotten his promise about seeing Michael next weekend? Never mind that, we had other more important issues to discuss.

“Reece, we have to talk about Michael,” I blurted. “About him starting school. I’ve done my research on the local schools in the area. I’m going to email you—”

“There’s no need. You know what’s good for him. You always do,” Reece interrupted. “I trust you, bro.”

My brother was unbelievable. I was starting a new job in three days, and I hadn’t even unpacked any of my boxes. Somehow, I still found the time to research the schools in the area.

All Reece had to do was take a quick look at the schools I narrowed down for our kid. I mean, for Michael. I snuck a peek at my 3-year-old nephew. Michael was nowhere to be found. I gulped.

Keeping my cellphone pressed to my ear, I looked around my new apartment. This was ridiculous. There couldn’t be that many hiding places. I loved my nephew like he was my own, but even after three years of raising him, I still believed I wasn’t cut out to be a dad.

Uncle, I reminded himself. Reece was Michael’s real dad. Reece came and go as he pleased, but he could also take Michael whenever he wanted. I always reminded myself I couldn’t get too attached, but it was too late for that.

“Actually, let’s talk another time. I have to take care of something,” I quickly told my brother.

I was worried about Michael. The front door was locked, but he could slip out the opened window. We’re on the seventh floor, I told myself. Michael was also a good kid. He wouldn’t leave the apartment without telling me first.

“Great. Bye, River.” He ended the call first.

Reece was happy to get off the hook. I tucked my phone in the front pocket of my jeans. I’d deal with my brother later. I had a kid to find. I started with the obvious places.

Michael probably shifted to his animal form, a hedgehog like Reece and I. I peered under the sofa, checked the shelves and cabinets. When I didn’t find him right away, I started to sweat and panic.

“Michael, come out. Now’s not the time to play hide-and-seek,” I exclaimed.

I started overturning the furniture. Oh God. This couldn’t be happening. Micheal already had an irresponsible father. I didn’t want to be the neglectful uncle who couldn’t even mind his nephew for a few minutes. A squealing noise made me turn.

I narrowed my eyes and tried to focus on the sound. Michael made the noise again. Relieved, I tracked him to my laundry basket. Michael sat on a pile of blankets I intended to wash—if I ever finished unpacking. He wasn’t alone. Vincenzo, my pet cat, snuggled next to him. When I picked Michael up, Vin hissed at me.

“Cool your jets, kitty cat,” I said. Vin always acted like an overprotective mother hen with Michael.

I eyed my nephew. Michael might be in his animal form, but I could almost imagine him squirming under my gaze. All his quills stood up, telling me he was stressed. I set him down gently to show him I wasn’t mad.

Michael relaxed his quills, then wisely changed back to human form. I found his discarded clothes on the kitchen floor. Picking them up, I returned to Michael. Once he I’d gotten him dressed, I spoke, “You worried me, Mike.”

I knelt, so I could look him in the eyes. Michael bit on his lower lip. I ruffled his curly brown hair to tell him I wasn’t mad, just concerned. Michael seldom acted out or threw tantrums. He really was a well-behaved kid.

“Mike see daddy soon?” He asked me, aiming those big brown eyes at me.

I sucked in a breath. It broke my heart every time he asked me that. It was unfair Reece was such a neglectful dad. The only family member Michael could rely on was me. Reece and my parents died in a car accident right after we turned 18, so Mike had no grandparents to dote on him either.

“We’ll see him soon,” I said.

I hated lying to a kid, but I deemed it a necessary white lie. Michael was also a growing kid. He needed to start school soon, but I didn’t want to make any life-changing decisions without discussing them with Reece.

Too bad my brother seemed more concerned with his love life than his son. Sometimes, I wondered if Reece conveniently forgot he had Michael. If I were Michael’s real dad, I’d be so proud of him. Michael never once complained during the move. In fact, he’d even volunteered to be my little helper plenty of times.

“When?” Michael pressed.

“Soon. I have an idea. Why don’t we do something together?” At his age, Michael had a short attention span. I needed to keep him occupied.

“Game?” Michael asked.

“Yeah. I call it ‘Who can unpack the fastest?’.”

Some days, I didn’t even know what I was doing. Because of the move, I could mind Michael 24/7 but when I started a new job, I had to leave him at a childcare center or preschool. Would Michael learn to adjust? Make friends?

Moving to a new place wasn’t easy on a child. I knew that from personal experience. My parents were both in the Paranormal Military, so Reece and I moved a lot when we were kids.

I didn’t want Michael to experience the same feelings of isolation and never fitting in anywhere like I did. I’m going to make this job work, I reminded myself. I had to.

The pay wasn’t as good as my old job, but moving to the country lowered my and Michael’s cost of living tremendously. A month’s rent for my current apartment was only a fourth of the price I used to pay for my old place in the city. The groceries here were a lot cheaper, too.

I was the new personal assistant to Hunter Thornton. Hunter was the co-CEO of Claws Inc., a shifter security firm. Hunter might be an Alpha but he wasn’t pushy or demanding. I only went for two interviews, but Hunter seemed decent, respectful. He was also happily mated and had a kid of his own.

He was so different from the Alphaholes I knew. My former boss, Brent, had been a nightmare to work for. Sleeping with him had also been the biggest mistake of my life. I wasted five years of my life being his assistant. One day, I woke up and finally realised I didn’t want to be stuck in the same office with Brent.

“That chapter of my life is over. You and me, buddy? We’re going to have a new start,” I told Michael.

Of course the kid didn’t understand. Michael just wanted to start our game. He eagerly sat in the middle of the living room. I warily eyed my unpacked boxes. We had a ton to go through. I set down one of the smaller boxes, which contained Michael’s books, in front of him.

“If we finish early today, let’s treat ourselves to some cheeseburgers and sundaes at the diner we passed by yesterday,” I told him.

“Burgers! Ice cream?” He asked, sounding excited.

It took very little to make a kid like Michael happy. My heart ached every time I looked at him and thought about what Reece was missing out on. I was the one who videotaped Michael’s first steps. Recorded his first words. I took him to the doctor when he had a fever.

Who was I kidding? I loved him so much. I didn’t know if I had the strength to return him to Reece if my brother woke up one day and decided he wanted to try being Michael’s dad. Michael was all I had, too. Reece was always in the wind, and he only cared about himself. After my disastrous affair with Brent, I wasn’t looking for romance either.

Fated mates were a fairy tale reserved for children. All I wanted to do right now was focus on what was good for Michael. For me. I didn’t need a partner to help me make decisions. I was going to be the best PA Hunter Thornton ever had. I’d also find the right school for Michael.

“Uncle River?” He asked. “Ice cream?”

I remembered his question. I might be a softie when it came to Michael, but I also knew when to put my foot down. Just for tonight, I could spoil him. We both could use some ice cream.

“Sure, you could have all the ice cream you want, kiddo. It’s a special occasion after all.”