“Dad, I need you to calm down,” she murmured, standing in his path.
“Calm down!” His face reddened. “How can I calm down when you’re throwing your life away?” His hands flew in the air dramatically, and Eva wished her mother was here. She’d always been the one to sort out conflicts, and the knowledge hurt. It should have been her mom she was asking if toddlers needed milk, not her father. But life didn’t always go as planned, and Eva was trying to adapt and roll with it.
“How am I throwing my life away?” she asked as calmly as possible.
“A kid. Are you serious, Eva? John has turned your head, and he’ll keep doing that until all you are is a mom who does nothing but look after kids. Is that what you want?!”
People were staring, and Eva hated it. “I think you need to lower your voice and think about what you are saying. There’s nothing wrong with being a mom, Dad. That little boy in there has no one and he chose us. What was I supposed to do, turn my back on him?”
“Give him to someone else,” he rasped.
“Dad,” she breathed. “Who are you right now?”
“I’m a father who is not allowing this. Not John, not the boy. We are leaving, Evaline. Right now.” He grasped her arm.
“You can’t be serious.” Shaking her head, she tried and failed to understand why her father was losing his mind. Sure, the whole “John and Mathew” thing was a bit sudden, and she was a little freaked out, but not enough to warrant a full-blown meltdown. Eva wasn’t throwing her life away. She was trying to navigate the minefields put in her way with the least casualties possible.
“Deadly.” He tugged, and Eva stubbled forward as he began to march her away. “Dad, stop this. You’re being silly. This is our home now. What are you going to do with Zac?”
“He’ll stay here, and you’ll be going back to college where you belong.”
College, this is about freaking college! “Dad, let me go.” She pulled herself free, rubbing at the mark he’d left on her arm.
A growl echoed across the clearing, and Eva’s stomach flipped. John steamed toward them, looking as angry as her father. Wonderful. There was no way she was going to defuse the situation now.
“Touch her again and I don’t care who you are, I’ll put you on your ass,” John gritted between clenched teeth, looking deadly, even with a tray of food balanced in one hand.
Eva caught Bass out the corner of her eye, shook her head, eyes widening for him to stop. The last thing this situation needed was another alpha male.
“Me? It’s you who should be keeping your hands off her.” Her father vibrated with emotion, his fists tight balls. “She was going to be someone. Not your bit on the side.”
The wolf filled John’s eyes. Jumping between them both, Eva pressed her hand to John’s chest. Her heart pounding so fast it was making her dizzy.
“Dad, stop! Stop it! John and I have done nothing wrong, and you are acting crazy. I’ve told you I’m going to finish my degree and get into vet school. And I’ve told you over and over that I’m not ready yet. Mom’s dead, Dad. She’s dead. And before I can go back to college, I need to learn how to live with that.”
Swiping at the tears springing free from her eyes, Eva watched her father seem to shrivel and crumple in on himself. “I know she’s dead, Eva,” he said numbly. “And that’s why I’m the only one left to tell you the hard truths.”
Leaning back into John, she drew strength from his touch and pulled in a shaky breath. “Hard truths?” She shook her head. “Here’s a hard truth for you, Dad. For weeks after Mom died, you stayed locked in your room, and I was the one who made sure Zac was okay, that you all ate and had clean clothes to wear. I know what hard is, Dad. I’ve lived and breathed hard, and I can tell you right now, that little boy in there, and John… loving them is the easiest thing I’ve ever done.”
Turning away from her father, Eva exhaled and reached for John. Hand in hand, with her head held up high, she walked away. She was done with being questioned and made to feel like she was a child. That had ended the day her mother left this world.
“How are you going to become a vet with a toddler, Eva?” her father called to her retreating figure.
“I don’t know, Dad,” she shouted, not looking back. “I guess I’ll figure it out, like I’ve done everything else.”
“Are you okay?” John whispered as they neared the cabin.
A sob escaped her. “No.”
She’d never had her father turn on her like that. Never seen such disappointment in his eyes, and the worst thing was, she had no idea how she was going to prove him wrong.
“I need to become a vet, John,” she whispered as he opened their front door.
John turned her toward him and cleared the tears from her face. He gazed at her with an affection that tugged at her heart. “You will, Eva. And so much more.”
Her brother had Mathew in his arms when they walked in, pain written all over his expression. “I’m sorry, Eva. He’ll come around, I’m sure.”
“Will he?” Her words trembled as she struggled to swallow her hurt.
“Of course he will. He’s our dad. He’s just stressed about the house and me, and he’s not over Mom…. It’s all just come to a head, and you happened to be in the way when it did.” Zackary put Mathew on his feet. “I’m going to leave you guys to it. And for the record, sis, I’m happy for you.”
