Raul was doing laundry when he heard the front door open and close.
"Dad, where you at?" Carlito loudly called out.
"Laundry room," Raul replied just as loud.
"All right, Dad," Carlito snapped as he walked into the laundry room, "that was mean of you this morning. You can't just drop a bomb about your wolf dying and leave. So, now you will explain everything you have obviously been hiding from me."
After turning the dryer on, Raul turned to find Carlito and Dianne watching him. With a heavy sigh, Raul suggested, "Let's go and sit down."
Carlito turned and followed Dianne and Raul was right behind them.
Once they were all seated in the living room, Raul began by saying, "It's true, my wolf had given up. You know as well as I do, Carlito, the moment your mama died, he was ready to die too. He only stayed because you needed him, and now that you're of age, we could finally let go. He felt it was now time to join your mama in the afterlife."
"You would leave me?" Carlito asked, a sad expression on his face.
"It is the way of the wolf Carlito, and you know that. Besides, you have your mate now. It's not like you would be alone. Yes, you would miss me, but you would have her to fill the emptiness," Raul said. Watching hurt cross his son's face he continued, "If she were gone tomorrow, would you not wish to follow her, even knowing you would be leaving me behind?"
Carlito turned to gaze lovingly at Dianne. "I would only be half a person if she were gone."
"Exactly, and that's after only two days. I had your mama for twenty-two years. She was my everything for so long," Raul said. He leaned forward then, elbows on his knees, and covered his face with his hands.
"But something changed, didn't it, Mr. Desoto?" Dianne asked him softly.
Raul raised his eyes to look at her, placing his chin in his hand. "You are a smart girl Dianne, and yes, something did. Yesterday, I went to a café for lunch, not because I was hungry since I never am anymore, but just wanting out of my office. I had just been seated and was waiting to order when..." he stopped looking at his son. He swallowed hard because he feared how Carlito would take what came next.
Carlito sighed. "I know you loved Mama and will always have a place in your heart for her. I don't want to be selfish and keep you from being happy. Yes, it's hard for me to think about you seeing someone, but you gave up a lot to raise me all alone. I really do want you to be happy Dad, even if it is hard to think about you with someone else."
Raul sat back and smiled at his son. "I'm glad to hear it because she's already asked to meet you."
Dianne squealed. "So, you did meet someone?"
"I did," Raul agreed. "She walked by me, and she smelled so good, like peppermint. My wolf told me to follow her, and I did. I ended up taking her to lunch yesterday, and today."
"Isn't that moving a bit fast, Dad?" Carlito asked, the storm clouds appearing on his face again.
Dianne jabbed him in the side with her elbow and he turned her way.
"What? It is! Two dates in two days. Sure, I want him happy but..." Carlito exclaimed, clenching his hands into fists.
"Your dad's been alone for five years Carlito, let him be happy. It's not like he brought her home and danced the horizontal tango with her," Dianne said as she smacked his leg lightly.
Raul laughed at the disgusted look on Carlito's face.
"The horizontal tango? Seriously, Dianne. He's my dad, I don't want to think about him... him... ugh!" Carlito shouted as he closed his eyes and turned his face to the ceiling.
Dianne laughed, Carlito brought his gaze back to her, and she shrugged. "The point is your dad is happy. Don't you see it, Carlito? Last night he came dragging in looking half dead. Today, his eyes sparkle, and the dark rings under his eyes are gone. This woman is good for him, she's brought him, and his wolf, if I'm not mistaken, back to life."
Raul watched Carlito as his eyes turned to him. They were narrowed and took in every detail of Raul's face.
"Yeah, your right. He looks better than he has in months," Carlito agreed, his body relaxing.
Dianne nodded and turned to look at Raul. "Now, tell us about this woman."
Raul sat back, relaxing in his chair. "Her name is Topaz, she has brown hair and brown eyes," Raul said. Thinking for a moment he added, "She's curvy."
"Curvy?" Dianne questioned.
"Yes, curvy. Lola was tall and slim, almost boyishly so, but not Topaz. They are complete opposites in the way they're built, even though they both had the dark hair and eyes," Raul explained.
"So, how old is she, Dad?" Carlito asked.
Raul grunted, feeling his face warm. "Too young for me, she's only twenty-two."
"So, not only do you want to date, but you plan to rob the cradle too?" Carlito snorted.
Raul growled and watched as Dianne elbowed Carlito again, this time much harder.
"Ow! I'm sorry!" Carlito yelled. "I'm trying, I am. It's just so hard to think of Dad with someone else, even if it is just for companionship, and now I find out she isn't much older than me."
Carlito's words hit Raul hard and had him thinking of the words the Alpha had said. He growled low. How was he going to tell Carlito that Topaz was his second mate? He'd need to take this one step at a time.
Sadly, his son, who knew him all too well, narrowed his eyes. "What are you not telling me, Dad? Did I not say tell me everything?"
"I think you should get used to the idea of me dating first. Then you can meet her, and it won't be so awkward," Raul hedged.
"No, that isn't it, or at least not all of it. Spill it, Dad," Carlita growled.
"You aren't going to like it," Raul told him. He then told his son everything the Alpha had told him.
Raul was right, Carlito didn't like it. He growled, and snarled in his anger, his wolf showing in his eyes, before storming out the door.
"You better go with him, make sure he doesn't do anything stupid, Dianne. I'm going to my room, he can fend for himself for dinner," Raul said, as he stood up.
Dianne nodded and ran out after Carlito.
Raul sighed and feeling every bit of his thirty-eight years, plus a few, he headed for his room. Changing his mind halfway there, he turned back, he didn't want to stew over what had just happened laying in his bed.
So, instead, he headed for the front door. Grabbing his keys from the hall table, he left the house. He quickly drove to his favorite coffee shop. Upon entering, he was greeted by Etta. Talking with Etta always made him feel better.
"Well, hello, stranger," Etta said hugging him. "It's so good to see you. Want the usual?"
"I'd actually like a burger tonight, Etta, along with black coffee," Raul answered.
"Yuck! Coffee with a burger? How gross is that?" Etta asked as she wrinkled up her nose.
Raul chuckled and headed for a corner booth.
It wasn't long before Etta brought his food out to him. It was a slow evening, so she sat down. "You look better than the last time I saw you."
"I'd been sick, and it's taken a bit for me to bounce back," Raul said.
"Mm, somehow I think it was more than that, but whatever. Now, tell me, what put that frown on your face?" Etta asked.
"I've met someone, but my son isn't taking it well," he told her.
"Ah, well, I might help you there because it happened to me," Etta told him with a knowing look.
"Any advice would be appreciated, Etta," he told her before taking a big bite of his burger.
Etta sat back, crossing her hands on the table to play with her wedding rings. He continued to eat while she talked.
"I got married young, I was only sixteen, most girls did back then. Ralph was good to me, and even though he was young too, nineteen, he worked hard. We never wanted for anything because he also knew how to handle money. Anyway, I was twenty-six when my Ralph was killed in a freak accident on the railroad track and was left with two children to raise. My oldest was nine, the youngest five." Etta stopped and shook her head.
"What happened?" Raul asked.
"I took a job to keep them clothed and fed, barely and kept going. I was just days from turning thirty-five, my children now seventeen and thirteen, when I met Lucas. Oh, the man was a charmer back then, he still is," she said with a giggle. "He charmed me right off my tired feet. I think I fell in love with him on our second date."
"But your kids didn't like him?"
"Oh, they liked him simply fine, as long as dating was all we did. Lucas wanted to marry me though, and they didn't like that," Etta told him with a shake of her head.
"Why? Didn't they want you happy?"
"Sure, they did, but Lucas was fifteen years older than me, and they thought he was too old. He was a man who'd lost his wife, had no children, and was so lonely he was ready to give up on life. He told me I brought life back to him, made him feel young, special, loved. Oh, Raul, he made me feel that way too, and I liked the feeling," Etta admitted.
"So, what did you do," he almost whispered. He could hardly believe how close Lucas's story was to his own.
Etta let out a big sigh. "I told them I loved him, he loved me, and because of that, our age didn't matter. Then I told them it was wrong for them to try and destroy my happiness. Lucas had never been anything but good to them. He loved them, and they knew it, no matter how stubborn they were. So, they finally agreed, and Lucas and I were married. I'm now seventy, my love is eighty-five, and we still love each other dearly."
"Your kids?"
Etta grinned. "My daughter had him walk her down the aisle when she married. My son named his only son Lucas after him. They love him dearly, and so do the grandbabies."
Raul looked down at his plate, wondering, would Carlito ever accept Topaz?
"Raul, listen to your heart," she said, and when he looked at her, she took his hand. "The heart knows what it wants, what it needs. Your son is a grown man, he doesn't need you as he did as a child, and you don't need his permission to love. His wants and needs no longer need to come first, yours do. If you want this woman, feel you could love her, don't let your son stand in the way of that, or you might lose something precious. Besides, if you love her, and he sees she's good to you, and for you, he'll love her too... eventually."
"You're right Etta, thanks."
"Welcome," she said as she patted his hand and stood up. "Pie?"
"No, I have a call to make before bed. I'll bring Topaz in to meet you soon, Etta."
"Did you say Topaz?" she asked, sounding shocked.
He glanced up from putting money on the table to kind her giving him a surprised look. "Do you know her?"
Etta smiled then. "I do, she's, my granddaughter. She's a good girl, a bit clumsy at times, but she has a good heart."
Raul huffed said, "She's unsure about me being so much older than her."
"Oh? How much older are you?"
"Sixteen years. I'm thirty-eight."
"If she comes to love you, it won't matter," she told him as she cocked her head and looked him over. "I'll be honest though; I wouldn't have put you past thirty. By the time I was thirty-eight, I had a grayer hair, and more wrinkles, than you do."
"Funny, Topaz said the same thing," he told her with a shrug. "I'm slow to age I suppose."
"Mm, well, treat her right. Do bring her by to see me, I don't see her much."
"Sure, Etta, I will soon."
#
Raul went straight to his room when he got home. Once there, he stripped down to his briefs and grabbed his phone. Flopping onto his bed, he quickly dialed and waited.
"Hello?" a low, and shaky female voice said from the other end.
Raul's smile slipped off his face at the sound of her voice. She sounded nervous or upset. "Topaz, it's Raul. Are you alright?"
"Sure, sure, I'm fine," Topaz answered quickly.
That's when he heard the yelling from her end. He couldn't make out what was being said, just that it was male and female having what sounded like an argument. He really didn't like the sound of it and asked, "Topaz, where are you?"
"Home."
"What's with all the yelling?" he asked when it became louder.
Topaz gave a nervous twitter. "Oh, you can hear—" she abruptly stopped speaking when there was a bang as if someone had hit a wall.
"Topaz?" Raul asked, really concerned about her now.
"I'm fine, Raul. I'm locked in my room. My roommate's boy toy is here. I think he's drunk or something."
Raul sat up on his bed and swung his feet to the floor. His wolf was pacing in his mind, almost giving him a headache. He wanted his mate, needed to know she was safe. "Topaz, let me come get you, you aren't safe there."
"I'm fine, they'll stop soon. They always do."
He heard another bang, this one louder, and jumped up. Going to his dresser, he found a pair of shorts, socks, and a tee shirt.
"I want you to tell me where you live, Topaz. Then I want you to pack a bag because I'm coming to get you," Raul said. "You can stay here tonight."
"Raul..." she semi whined.
"Don't argue with me, baby. I want you to be safe," he told her almost in a growl. There was no way he was going to leave her somewhere, where she might get hurt. He'd lost one mate to a man that was high on drugs. He wasn't going to lose his second one to a drunk man.
Raul heard her sigh, but she gave in and gave him her address. While she was talking, he pulled on his shorts, socks, and shoes. Once he hung up, he pulled on his tee-shirt. Grabbing his keys and billfold, he headed out.
Stepping out on the porch, he noticed Carlito's car was gone. It made him wonder, in passing, where he'd gone.
Five minutes later Raul was pulling up outside Topaz's home and walking to the door. He could hear the yelling and was surprised the neighbors hadn't called the cops.
Knocking on the door, he looked around as he waited. The yelling suddenly stopped, and a man opened the door. One whiff told Raul the man was a feline shifter.