My Sister Stole My Mate And I Let Her (Seraphina) novel Chapter 17

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Chapter 17: Chapter 17 THOUSANDS OF MILES

SERAPHINA’S POV

"So, baby, the thing is—"

"Is it about my vacation?"

I paused, blinking at Daniel. "What?"

He shrugged. "I’ve been on break from school for a week now, and Dad said I was going to go on a longer one with Grandma and Grandpa."

"Oh..."

The tension eased out of my body. I wasn’t sure how I felt about Kieran beating me to break the news to Daniel, but I was relieved that I didn’t have to do it myself when I didn’t even know where to start.

"And... you’re okay with that?"

Daniel’s shoulder lifted in that careless way only children could manage. "I was worried about missing school, but Dad said I’ll have a private tutor so I won’t be behind when I come back."

Kieran had thought of everything. I supposed my feelings were shifting towards gratitude.

Daniel raised our intertwined hands and pressed them to his chest. "Now that you’re back from your training..." His voice was suddenly small, his eyes wide and hopeful. "...will you come with me?"

My throat closed.

He rushed on before I could respond, words tumbling like waves: "Dad said it’s a really cool private island, and we can swim every day and learn to surf and barbecue on the beach and—"

"Oh, sweetheart."

I leaned forward and kissed his forehead, taking in a shaky breath. "You don’t need to list all those things to make me go with you."

"So..." His voice was shaky with anticipation. "You’ll come with?"

I closed my eyes tightly and willed the tears brimming not to fall. "No," I choked out. "I can’t."

I pulled back in time to see his face fall. "Why?"

My heart cracked at that one word, but I forced my voice steady, smoothing his wild curls. "I have to train harder, baby. To protect you."

He sniffed. "But I’m the one who’s supposed to protect you."

The dam broke. I gathered him close, squeezing my tears back before they soaked into his hair.

I made a smile as I held his face again. "I know, my love. But how amazing would it be if we could protect each other?"

He managed a small smile, and I took it as a victory. Then, he turned to his plate of fried rice and wrinkled his nose.

"Can we order pizza instead?"

***

The sun was just beginning to bleed gold over the horizon as I pulled up to the private terminal at Van Nuys Airport.

The area hummed with quiet efficiency, staff and crew buzzing around Kieran’s large private plane at the beginning of the private runway.

Daniel stepped out of the car, shouldering his Spider-Man backpack as he stared up at the huge plane.

"That’s a Gulfstream G650," he said excitedly, turning to me as I retrieved his suitcase from the trunk. "Dad says when I’m old enough, I could learn to fly it."

I smiled, smoothing his wild curls, my fingers lingering. "You’d make a dashing pilot."

Tires crunched on asphalt. The silver Escalade rolled up beside my battered sedan like a predator circling prey.

Kieran got down from the driver’s side and immediately walked over to open the passenger door.

I gritted my teeth as Celeste hopped out, tossing a perfect curl over her shoulder, half of her face shielded by oversized sunglasses. Leona and Christian alighted from the backseat, and a tightness spread in my chest.

A man in a pilot’s uniform walked across the tarmac to the car, and while Kieran only gave him a cursory nod, he engaged Leona and Christian in conversation, which left Kieran and Celeste free to head our way.

"How’s my boy doing?" Kieran crouched to receive Daniel’s flying hug, his voice warm with pride.

"Good," my son mumbled against his dad’s shoulder. When they pulled apart, his eyes darted between me and Kieran. "Are you sure neither of you can come with me?"

Kieran crouched down and whispered something in Daniel’s ear.

Daniel’s face set, and he nodded once. "Got it."

"That’s my boy," Kieran said softly, and I wondered what he had said to Daniel.

"Danny!"

Celeste’s saccharine voice set my teeth on edge as she swooped in, her manicured claws digging into my son’s shoulders. Her hospital threat echoed in my mind—I’ll take Daniel as my own—and it took every ounce of control not to shove her away and snarl at the catty bitch.

Her smile stretched too wide. "Aren’t you excited for your little adventure?"

Daniel recoiled, his small body pressing back against me. I encircled him protectively, my arms a living shield.

He glanced up at Kieran. "She’s not coming with us, is she?" he asked coldly.

A muscle ticked in Kieran’s jaw as Celeste’s ears reddened.

"No, sweetheart," I answered, pressing my lips to his soft hair. My glare at Celeste could have melted steel. "She definitely isn’t."

One more car drove in—Ethan’s Mercedes—stopped nearby, disgorging more family members I couldn’t bear to acknowledge.

Look at us, I thought bitterly, One big happy family.

The plane suddenly came alive, the engines humming in the stillness of the early morning.

"It’s time," Kieran said somberly.

Illogical panic gripped me.

Even though we packed his things together and spent all night watching his favorite shows and gorging on pizza and ice cream before finally falling asleep at 2 a.m., it felt like I hadn’t had enough time with my baby.

It seemed like Daniel felt the same because he turned to me, his beautiful dark eyes glassy with unshed tears. "Mom?" 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

I crouched down, wrapping my arms around his waist as he threw his arms around my neck. "Oh, my baby," I breathed, trying to choke back the tears building at the back of my throat.