Letting it out
1431 Words
MILLIE'S POV
Callie found me in the kitchen an hour after they'd returned from the park, staring at a cup of tea I'd forgotten to drink.
"So," she said, hopping up onto the counter. "You slept with him."
I nearly dropped the cup. "Callie!"
"What? It's obvious." She gestured vaguely at me. "You're glowing. Your hair's a mess. And you have that look."
"What look?"
"The 'I just had incredible s*x and my entire world shifted' look." She grinned. "I've seen it before. Usually in movies, but still."
My face burned. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Liar." She tilted her head, studying me. "How do you feel?"
I opened my mouth to give some flip answer, then stopped. This was Callie. I didn't have to pretend with her.
"Terrified," I admitted quietly. "And happy. And confused. All at once."
"That sounds about right." She reached over and squeezed my hand.
I took a breath. "I told him I'm staying. At least for now. Until I figure out my next move."
"Your next move?"
"The inheritance. The house. Leo's future." I wrapped my hands around the cold cup. "There's still so much to sort out. Legal battles with my stepmother, the agency, the media. I can't just... pretend none of that exists because I slept with Braham."
"But you want to stay," Callie said. It wasn't a question.
"I do." The admission felt both freeing and frightening. "But I don't know if that's because I want him or because I'm afraid of being alone again."
"Maybe it's both. Maybe that's okay."
I looked at her. "How is that okay?"
"Because you're allowed to want safety and love at the same time, Millie. They're not mutually exclusive." She hopped off the counter and moved closer. "You spent four years taking care of yourself and Leo. You're allowed to let someone help now."yeah
"What if I'm making a mistake?"
"What if you're not?" She smiled gently. "What if, for once in your life, something actually works out?"
I wanted to believe that. Wanted to believe that this…Braham, Leo, this strange new family we were building…could actually last.
"He told me he loves me," I whispered.
Callie's eyes widened. "And?"
"And I didn't say it back."
"Do you love him?"
Did I? I barely knew him. We'd spent one night together four years ago and a handful of days now. How could I possibly know if what I felt was love or just... relief?
"I don't know," I said honestly. "But I think I could. I think I'm already starting to."
"Then that's enough." Callie pulled me into a hug. "You don't have to have all the answers right now. Just take it one day at a time."
I hugged her back, grateful for her steadiness. For her belief in me even when I couldn't believe in myself.
"Thank you," I murmured.
"Always." She pulled back, then hesitated. "Can I ask you something?"
"Of course."
"Are you sure Leo's just three?" She said it carefully, like she'd been holding the question for a while. "I know you left here four years ago, but this boy isn't just bigger than his age. He's wiser, wittier, smarter than most adults I know. Is it because he's a werewolf?"
I'd been waiting for this question. Dreading it, really.
"Yeah... I guess. But he's not a complete wolf. I'm human, so..."
"He's a hybrid," Callie said the words I was too scared to confess.
"Yes." I nodded, relief flooding through me at finally saying it out loud to someone other than Braham. "His pregnancy wasn't like normal babies. His rapid growth started from the womb. He was born around five to six weeks earlier than the due date according to my calculations."
"That must have been scary."
"Terrifying," I admitted. "I was alone in Barcelona, didn't speak the language well enough to explain what was happening. The doctors kept saying everything looked fine, but I knew it wasn't normal. He was too strong, even in the womb. The kicks felt like..." I trailed off, remembering those nights. "Like he was trying to break free."
Callie's hand found mine again. "Millie..."
"And when he was born, he didn't cry like other babies. He just... looked at me. Really looked at me, like he already understood everything." The memory still gave me chills. "He started walking at eight months. Full sentences by eighteen months. By two, he was having conversations that sounded like they came from a six-year-old."
"That's incredible."
"It's scary," I corrected. "It was manageable in Spain. Easier to hide. I homeschooled him, kept him away from other kids his age most of the time so no one would notice how different he is. But here..."
"Here it's more obvious," Callie finished.
"Here it's impossible to hide." My voice cracked. "What if someone notices? What if the media catches on? What if they figure out what he is and decide he's some kind of... freak show? What if they take him away from me for testing or—"
"Stop." She grabbed my shoulders firmly. "Millie, breathe. You're spiraling."
I forced myself to take a breath. Then another. But the panic was still there, clawing at my chest.
"I'm scared, Callie. Not for me. For him. What kind of life is he going to have if people find out what he really is?"
"A complicated one," she admitted. "But he'll have you. And Braham. And me and Renan. He's not alone in this, Millie. Neither are you."
"I just wanted him to have a normal childhood. Friends. School. Birthday parties. All the things I never got to have properly because of my family."
"He can still have those things. They might just look a little different." She squeezed my hands. "And honestly? Normal is overrated. Look where normal got you before…engaged to Silas and miserable."
Despite everything, I laughed. A real, genuine laugh. "Fair point."
"Besides, Leo seems pretty happy to me. He's smart, curious, and loved. That's what matters, isn't it?"
"You really think so?"
"I know so." She pulled me into another hug, tighter this time. "There's nothing to worry about, okay? You got this. And we're here for you. Always."
"Thank you. Really."
"Now, Renan and I are going to head out," she said, pulling back. "Give you two some space. You've got a lot to talk about, and you don't need us hovering."
"You're not hovering."
"We kind of are." She smiled. "Besides, we have some things to figure out ourselves."
I raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"
"Leo's very observant," she said dryly. "Apparently we look at each other the same way you and Braham do."
Despite everything, I laughed. "He would notice that. He notices everything."
"He's terrifying in the best way." She said it fondly. "Take care of yourself, okay? And call me if you need anything. Day or night. Even if it's just to panic about Leo's abilities or Braham's intensity or whatever comes next."
"I will. I promise."
After she left, I stood in the kitchen for a long moment, letting her words sink in.
You're allowed to want safety and love at the same time.
Maybe I was.
Maybe that was exactly what I was doing.
I went looking for Braham and found him in his study, bent over paperwork that looked important and boring. He looked up when I entered, and the way his entire expression softened…like I was the only good thing in his day…made my chest tight.
"Hey," he said, immediately pushing back from the desk. "Everything okay?"
"Yeah." I moved closer. "Callie and Renan left. Said they needed to figure some things out."
"About time."
He reached for me, and I went to him without hesitation. He pulled me onto his lap, and I settled there like I'd done it a thousand times before.
"Leo put them through the wringer today." He smirked.
"He has a talent for that." I rested my head against his shoulder, breathing in his scent…pine and something darker, something that was just him. "Braham?"
"Hmm?"
"Thank you. For waiting. For not pushing. For... everything."
His arms tightened around me. "You don't have to thank me for loving you, Millie."
"I know. But I'm going to anyway."
We sat like that for a while, just holding each other. His heartbeat was steady under my ear, grounding me in a way nothing else could.
And for the first time in four years, I let myself believe that maybe…just maybe…this could work.
That maybe I could have this.
That maybe I deserved it.
- Writer
