The other witch flushed. “No problem. Enjoy Litha, Sonny.”
“You too.” Sonny frowned as he picked up Flufflepuff. Normally, he celebrated the summer solstice with Myrtle, his best friend Aaron, and now that he had mated, Leo. It felt odd not having everyone there.
Myrtle was at the coast, and Aaron, his mate, and their daughter had left town yesterday. His friend hadn’t explained where he was going. In fact, Aaron had been acting shifty for a few weeks now.
Sonny shook his thoughts away and waved to Tilisha before leaving the shop. The walk to the apartment complex wasn’t long, but it didn’t help Sonny’s fatigue.
Miles was already in the apartment. Sonny’s young apprentice was playing with his familiar, Cookie, in the living room.
He looked up, smile fading. “You don’t look so good.”
Sonny slipped his heels off and sat on the couch. “I’m just a little tired. Give me a minute and we’ll begin your lesson. We’re covering pre-spelling items today.”
Miles frowned. “I think we should have a break today.”
He pulled Sonny from the couch and led him to the kitchen. “Sit at the bar, and I’ll make your favorite treat.”
Sonny smiled and did as he was told. “What’s that?”
“Lately, you’ve been eating a lot of carrot cake.” Miles tapped his chin. “Sugar to attract what you want. In this case, I want you to feel better. Then oat flour for comfort, and carrots for… fertility.” He gave Sonny a suspicious look. “You’re pregnant, aren’t you?”
Sonny snickered. “I’ve been eating spelled carrot cake and spelled strawberries, lighting spelled green candles, and completing a morning fertility blessing every day for two months. I’m pregnant.”
Miles grinned and hugged him. “You and Leo will be good dads. Now, I’m adding chamomile for health and protection. That will go okay in a carrot cake, right?”
Sonny shrugged. “I don’t know. I’ve never added it before. Only one way to find out.”
Miles nodded and started gathering ingredients. “One special carrot cake coming up.”
Chapter 2
Leo whistled as he carried Ravenpaw into Rocci’s Garage. The coolness of the air conditioner made him sigh with pleasure. His coveralls were not meant for hot summer days.
Coleen looked up from her laptop and smiled before holding out her arms. “Hand over Ravenpaw. I need some company up front today.”
Leo scowled and set Ravenpaw on the front desk. “Maybe he wants to spend the day with me.”
Ravenpaw’s tail swished as he walked to Coleen. The blue and gold, Ravenclaw-themed bowtie looked particularly good against his thick black fur. He climbed into Coleen’s arms and turned to stare at Leo.
“Well,” Leo huffed, trying to hide his smile. “See who you like at lunch time. I’m the one with the cat treats.”
Coleen gave him a smug look. “I have some in my desk.”
Leo turned on his heel and stalked into the next room. His dad was just leaving the breakroom and almost bumped into him.
Jesse steadied Leo as he nearly tipped over. “Sorry about that, Leo.” He gave him an eager look. “Has Sonny finally told –”
“No,” Leo interrupted, sulking. “He still hasn’t said anything and Litha is on Sunday. Myrtle said that the scrying should be done on Litha for the best results, and Sonny hasn’t even mentioned it.”
Jesse rubbed his arm. “Sonny probably has a plan. We’ll just surprise him before he surprises you.”
Leo rubbed his nose. Shifters had a keen sense of smell, and Leo had noticed Sonny’s delicious scent had changed a couple weeks ago. His mate was pregnant. “Can I ask you something?”
Jesse gave him an understanding look and pulled him into the breakroom. “What’s wrong?”
“What if I’m not a good dad?” Leo swallowed hard. “I’m good with all the little Rocchi kids and Aaron and Gemma’s daughter, but what if I fuck up? This is my child. I’m scared, Dad.”
Jesse sat him in a chair at the break table, then sat beside him. “I’m going to be honest, Leo. You are going to fuck up.”
Leo glared at his dad. “This is the worse pep talk ever.”
Jesse chuckled. “Every parent fucks up at some point. Do you know how many times I dropped Burkhart? Frankly, I’m surprised he’s as smart as he is. Then there’s all the times we forgot to pick you and Thorwald up from daycare or school. After a while, you two started taking your afterschool snacks with you in the morning. Plus, do you remember when I told Coleen’s first boyfriend how often she had to shave her legs? She didn’t talk to me for a month.”
“Oh fuck.” Leo buried his face in his hands. “My child’s going to hate me.”
Jesse patted his back. “Do you hate me?”
Leo peeked through his fingers. “Not all the time.”
“Why not?”
“Because I know you love me, even if you and Mom do stupid stuff sometimes.”
Jesse smiled. “Exactly. As long as you love that kid unconditionally, the rest can be figured out.”
Leo leaned back in his seat and stared at the ceiling. “I already love the baby unconditionally. It’s part of me and Sonny, but it’s more than that.” He looked at his dad. “The baby’s our family.”
Jesse gave him a soft look. “That’s as it should be. Now, your grandma called and told me everything’s set up for the Litha celebration on Sunday.”
“Do you think Sonny will mind us inviting everyone?”
Jesse shrugged. “He hasn’t minded us being there before.”
“That doesn’t make me feel better.”
“Here.” Jesse picked up the lasagna carrier. “I’ll take care of that for you. Go and relax for a minute. It’s going to be busy today.”
“Don’t eat our lunch for breakfast,” Leo warned as he headed to his station. His dad was right though. It was going to be a busy day.
Leo lit the pink, black, and white candles Sonny had given him a while ago. Pink for harmony, white to dispel negativity, and black for protection. He had no idea if they worked or not, but he had promised Sonny that he would light them every morning.
That done, he started reviewing his appointments for the day. The morning would bring two oil changes, one new fuel tank, and one set of tires.
A moment later, his brother Burkhart came in. “Hey, Leo. Has Sonny—”
“No.” Leo threw a bottle of water at his eldest brother. “Why do you all ask that every morning?”
Burkhart easily caught the bottle and took a drink. “We all scent him, and we want to cuddle and pamper him. It’s what we do with pregnant people in our family. You know that.” He tilted his head. “Well, except for Aunt Tula. When she’s pregnant, she’ll cut your nuts off if you try to cuddle her.”
Leo shuddered. During her last pregnancy, Leo had made the mistake of trying to bring her a plate of food. “Don’t remind me.”
Thorwald yawned as he stumbled into the garage. “Hey, has Sonny said any—”