Chapter 126 FLANA
Alden was awake.
I should have felt nothing but joy, and I did. I did.
His eyelashes fluttered like bird wings before they opened, and his little fingers twitched around mine like he was afraid I might disappear. But with the joy came something else–an ache. Because some of the first words out of his mouth were, “Did Derek save us?”
He remembered the rogue. The blood. The fear. But more than anything, he remembered Derek.
That’s why, after I’d sat with him through breakfast and tucked him back in to rest, I found myself pacing in the kitchen, staring at my phone.
Derek deserved to know. More than that–Aiden deserved to see him.
It didn’t matter what history existed between Derek and me, or how messy our dynamic had gotten. Aiden had bonded with him before he even knew what that bond meant.
I pressed call before I could overthink it.
The phone rang twice.
“Hello?” Cassandra’s voice was an unexpected slap. Light, chipper, like she belonged.
“Cassandra?” I frowned. “Is Derek there?”
“He’s in the shower,” she replied smoothly. “This is Elena?”
Thesitated. “Yes. Can you please tell him… Aiden woke up this morning. If he wants to see him, he can come.
There was a beat too long before she responded. “Of course. I’ll be sure to give him the message.”
I hung up without saying goodbye.
I told myself he’d call back within the hour. When he didn’t I told myself he’d stop by by nightfall.
By the next morning, when I hadn’t heard a single word, I was less patient.
This time, when I called, he picked up on the second ring.
“Elena?” His voice was rough with sleep, but alert. “Is everything okay?”
I bristled. “I called yesterday. Aiden’s awake. He’s been asking for you.”
Silence on the other end, then a low, angry curse.
I sighed. “Are you coming or not?”
“I’ll be there in an hour.”
True to his word, Derek arrived exactly fifty–three minutes later. I heard the roar of the engine from the driveway and knew before I even saw him–that he hadn’t come empty–handed.
The door swung open with a gust of warm air. Derek stepped inside with a giant white teddy bear in one arm, bouquet of metallic blue balloons tied to the other, and a bag slung over his shoulder so full it looked like it might
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burst.
Behind him, one of his enforcers wheeled in a brand–new dirt bike.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I whispered under my breath.
Aiden’s eyes lit up like fireworks. “Mom! Look!”
Derek dropped to one knee beside the bed, setting the gifts down one by one with the reverence of a showman. Hey, bud,” he said, voice gentler now. “I heard you were awake. Thought I’d bring a few things to celebrate.”
Aiden gasped as he spotted the dirt bike. “Is that for me?”
Derek grinned. “It’s yours when you’re feeling better.”
My son’s joy was genuine, infectious–but already I saw the flicker behind his eyes. That tiny edge of disappointment creeping in as he remembered the IV in his arm and the machines he was still hooked to.
“But I can’t ride it yet,” he mumbled. “I can’t even get out of bed.”
His voice cracked on the last word, and I felt my heart seize.
I reached for his hand. “Sweetheart, you will soon. But it’s okay to rest for now.”
“I don’t want to rest,” he muttered. “I want to ride.”
Before Derek could respond, I motioned to him. “A word. Now.”
He blinked, surprised, then followed me out into the hallway, leaving the dirt bike and the balloons behind.
The second the door clicked shut, I turned on him.
“What the hell was that?”
“What?” he asked, genuinely baffled. “He’s a kid. I thought he’d like the stuff.”
“That’s not the point.” My voice was low, sharp. “You think you can just walk in with gifts and toys and buy your way into his heart?”
Derek flinched
“He’s not a prize you win. He’s a child. A sick, hurting child who just wants someone to hold his hand when the pain comes back. Someone who tells him he’s brave even when he’s scared out of his mind. That’s what parenting is.”
“I didn’t-”
“You should have been here yesterday,” I snapped, the words rushing out before I could stop them. “You should have been here when I called to tell you he was awake.”
His expression shifted from defensive to resigned. “I didn’t get a call.”
“I left a message with Cassandra.”
His eyes darkened. “She didn’t tell me.”
“No kidding”
We stood in silence for a moment. A fluorescent light above us buzzed faintly, the world around us humming with
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tension.
