Chapter 82

(**Rayne**)
*Five days later*

How does one say goodbye to someone who only just came back from the dead? After those years of believing her father was dead, finding out he was alive, only to have him walk away after leaving a letter in her desk. That was how her father chose to tell her he was leaving California. Not in person or over the phone, but a letter that he left on her desk the previous morning.

Edmund did it that way because he knew it would give him hours to drive away before anyone knew he was gone. All the employees of Shadow’s Retreat had gone home, leaving Edmund to close the bar. During those hours, Rayne was sleeping comfortably with Parker curled up behind her with his hand resting on her stomach. While she was dreaming of what life will be like with a baby, her father was driving away, leaving her behind to deal with the fallout.

It has been an hour since she found the letter, yet Rayne still can’t believe what she read. Parker left her alone, closing their office door behind him to give her privacy. All he told her was what he found on the interior security cameras. At seven a.m. Edmund walked out of his office with the letter in his hand, then with his head hung low, he walked into their office. Ten minutes later, he was picked up by the exterior camera, locking to back door of the bar.

Edmund had refused to talk to her about anything other than day-to-day operations at Shadow’s Retreat. She had cornered him in his office the day after he rejected Arabella as his mate. He had gone red in the face with anger, then told Rayne that it was none of business. He demanded that she just leave him alone and to stop pestering him to accept the witch.

Arabella left for Redwood the same day he rejected her. When Rayne had called her, all she would say was that she would be back, but not anytime soon. After what Edmund said to Arabella, she doesn’t blame her friend for taking her time to decide if or when she will accept his rejection.

While they both deserve to be happy, it feels like the Moon Goddess made a mistake by pairing them together. Her mother will always be in his heart, but now he has been given a second chance to find happiness. However, if Rayne has leaned on thing in her life, it is that things have a way of working out as they were intended. Even if it isn’t the outcome anyone expects.

With a shaky hand, she unfolds the letter to read it again. Tears swimming in her eyes as she reads her father’s goodbye.

*Rayne,*

*The day I walked into your bar, hungry, cold, and looking for work to pay off my meal, was the beginning of my new life. When I had my past returned to me, it felt like my heart was breaking. The grief that lay dormant in my heart and mind all these years was broken wide open. For you and everyone else that lived through that night, the past has faded, but for me it is fresh.*

*My heart bleeds fresh blood each time I think of Mia. I see her face in my sleep, while I am awake, and in you every single day. In order to heal this wound, I need to leave you. It breaks my heart to leave you this way, but it is for the best. I will miss seeing you grow round with your first child, his or her birth, and all the things you will do during those first days as a new mother.*

*This separation will not be forever, so don’t cry. When I feel whole again, I will come to visit you. Until then, I will rebuild what is left of Jade Moon. A new territory, fresh starts, and with luck, new faces to join us once we are stable. Canada offers all of that for the survivors of Jade Moon and for myself.*

*Before I say goodbye, there are three things I must address.*

*Parker did what he felt was right for his family. I was angry with him because I needed to get you back, and it felt like he was making the wrong decisions at the time. I feel shame that I took my fear of losing you out on him. He called in everyone to help. They were all there for you because he made it happen. The way I treated him was disgraceful. Please tell him I am sorry.*

*The council decided your uncle’s fate two days ago. I am sorry that I didn’t tell you then. The council stripped him of his rank, but decided not to banish him or take his head. Your cousin Felix will now be Alpha of Crystal Dawn. That is a good outcome considering what happened.*

*Now, the last thing is Arabella. I will not now, or ever, apologize for rejecting her. I do not love her. Your mother is the only woman I love and will love until the day I die. The only thing I am sorry for is how I hurt her. She didn’t deserve to be treated that way. I pray to the Moon Goddess that Arabella will accept the way thing need to be, accept my rejection, then move on with her life. There is nothing for her with me.*

*I love you more than anything in this world, Rayne. Until we meet again, be safe.*

*Goodbye.*
*Love papa*

Rayne folded the letter, stuffed it back into the envelope, then put it in her desk drawer. The only good thing to come out of that letter was her Uncle Ryan’s fate. He will live to see another day while his son becomes the leader of Crystal dawn.

Now if everything else in her life would work itself out without someone being killed. They haven’t heard or seen any signs of Nathaniel. Without his magic, everything he wanted to do is pointless to worry about. However, as old as he is, there is no doubt he will have allies. So, the threat still looms in darkness of their lives.

Then there is Kincade and the group that is attacking Treadstone’s compound in France. There has been no word from them since yesterday. Cyra may be in a magically induced sleep, but her mate Tyson is very much still at risk. With the intel that Sebastion sent after he freed half of Treadstone’s collection, it will help Kindcade’s group get in.

With the schematics of the compound, the number of guards on the roster, and the location of the cells, they now have a better chance to get all the captives free. Monroe came through for Kincade four days ago by locating the EMP device they requested. If all goes well, Rayne hopes to hear from Kincade soon.

However, once they free all the captives, that will bring Treadstone’s attention to Redstone. To Sebastion, Irina, and their entire pack will now be in his sights. Rayne will do her best to give them a heads up that their time had run out when Kincade calls to confirm the compound had been destroyed.

Until that happens, all she can do is wait. Now that the flaw in Arabella’s spell has been revealed, she plans to refine, rework it, then perfect. Her goal is to do so soon then send bespelled jewelry to all those we have already rescued. Including everyone that works at Shadow’s retreat, Owen’s family, and both Parker and Rayne.

That is a lot to do, but thankfully Jazmine and Lynn will be with her in France to help. They will also have help from Hysin and her coven. Now that they are aware of the dangers the Collectors pose to all supernatural beings, Hysin’s coven has agreed to help any way they can. With the help of the largest coven of White Witches at their back, there is hope for them all.

Lifting her head up, Rayne watches as Parker comes back into the room. There is a white paper bag in one hand and a cup holder with two drinks in the other. The scents coming from the bag and the to-go cups; he went to the bakery down the street that stays open until midnight. It would probably be a good idea to form a partnership with them since so many of the patrons from Shadow’s Retreat shop there.

“Did you buy one of those a lemon custard topped doughnuts?”

“I believe they had three left, so I had Spencer buy all three. We bought everything they had left. We should…” he stopped talking when he realized she has already had that train of thought.

“It is a good idea, Parker.”

“One I fully agree with. Maybe we can both talk to the owners tomorrow before we come in to work.”

He walks over to her desk, sits the bag and drinks down, then goes to grab his chair. When he comes back, he laughs, seeing her digging into the bag of doughnuts. Carefully, he pulls her tea out of the cup holder, then hands it to her.

“Don’t laugh at me, Parker. I am pregnant, hungry, and sad. These doughnuts came just in time to feed my emotions.”

“I know. It was just cute the way you waited until I turned my back to dig in.”

“It would have looked like I was being greedy had I not waited.”

“Baby, you can be greedy for food all you want. You are eating for two, so eat up.”

“Will you still want me when I get all fat and round with this baby?”

Parker stopped pushing his chair, then just stared at her for a second. With swift strides, he closes the distance between them. He takes the lemon doughnut from her hand as it was halfway to her mouth, then sits it on the desk. Before she can react, he pulls her from her chair, lifts her up in his arms, then walks them to the sofa against the back wall of their office.

“Rayne, my love, I will love you no matter what. Skinny, fat, round, in any form. You are beautiful.” He sits down with her on his lap. “The changes your body is going through are to make room for our baby. I can’t wait to see your belly grow with our baby.”

In response to his lovely words, Rayne leans in, cups his face in her hands, then kisses him passionately. Desire flares instantly between them, causing her to move to straddle his lap. Parker fists his hands in the fabric on the back of her shirt, then quickly flips her onto her back.

Rayne’s eyes flick to the open office door before she pulls his mouth back to hers. This time, their kiss is slow and gentle. When Parker breaks the kiss, they are both breathless. Love for each other shining in their eyes.

“I love you, Parker. So much more than I ever thought I would ever love another person in my life.”

“You are my world, Rayne. We will be ok.”

They spend the next hour taking about her father said in his letter. She cried some more, but this time he held her while she let out all the emotions her father saying goodbye caused. Then he soothed her when the anger hit.

“He fucking ran away like a coward. I understand his pain, but running away doesn’t make it hurt any less, Parker.”

“I know. Try to see it from Edmund’s perspective. For you, losing your mother was years ago. For him, it feels like yesterday. That wound is still very fresh for him. Just give him some time to heal his way. He said that he would be back to visit when he does.”

“He is still a coward for what he did to Arabella.”

“That part I kind of understand too.”

Rayne lifts her head to stare at him. “How can you say that? He rejected her in a very hurtful way, then he ran. That is so not cool.”

“He isn’t ready, Rayne. For Edmund, his mate just died, even if it was so long ago in reality. He had no memories of her or you until recently. It was like a band-aide was ripped off his unhealed would and is bleeding profusely. Learning that Arabella is his second chance is just too soon for him.”

“How can you not be angry with him for treating her that way? I know what you are saying is true, but he could have told her in a better way. He could have been kinder to her.”

“I agree with you on that part. It was too harsh how he treated her.”

With a nod, Rayne gets up off the couch to finish eating her doughnuts. “Who on staff do you think would be a good bookkeeper? Unless you want to go back to doing that full time?”

Parker regards her question thoughtfully as he joins her at her desk after pushing his chair over. “Everyone we have now already has jobs that are demanding. Your father was perfect for the position. We could find someone new.”

“No, I want to look internally first. Someone who knows everything we do at Shadow’s Retreat. Everything we do. A stranger would be better to fill the empty position.”

“Ok, you have a point there.”

“So, I have a short list of candidates. Argyle, Lena, Shelby, and Tara. Tara may be new to our group since she and Spencer have become mates, but she knows everything about the bar.”

“If we offer the job to Argyle, we will need to find a new bouncer to work with Spencer.”

“I have a feeling you have someone in mind already since you mentioned Argyle first.”

Parker laughs. “You know me too well. Yes, I have someone in mind. This will also work out well for our alliance with Monroe.”

“One of his rogues?”

“Two actually. They come as a pair. A mated pair. We could use one on the front door with Spencer and the other on the back door by the deck.”

“Then I say we need to talk to Argyle.”

When they asked Argyle if he wanted to take over the bookkeeping position, he was open to the idea. The only complaint he had was the office itself. He asked if he could make one of the old storage rooms downstairs by the kitchen into an office. The reasoning was so he could be closer to the taproom if anything happened that Spencer and the new bouncers couldn’t handle.

That was a very valid point, so they agreed to it. Argyle is now the bookkeeper/manager of Shadow’s Retreat. Now it was time to call Monroe with the job offer for two of his rogues.

Other than being told goodbye in a letter, the rest of her day turned out pretty good.

*“There are no goodbyes for us. No matter where you are, you will always be in my heart.”* *Mahatma Ghandi*