AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He stopped for a moment and tapped his chin as he studied the two balls. Then, he pinched off a large piece of each and smashed them together, kneading and squeezing until they were the color of mud.
Tatum leaned over his workspace, hiding his creation from me as he rolled and formed it. Finally, he sat back and allowed me to take a peek. “It’s you,” he announced, pointing to a dough bear he’d made.
I carefully lifted the animal and inspected it. He’d formed it in a sitting position, and had crafted two little ears and a round nose. He even poked two circles into the face for eyes. “Oh, Tatum, this is beautiful. It’s much better looking than I am.”
He giggled as he shook his head from side to side. “No way! You’re the best looking bear ever!” His cheeks burned red, but he still added, “And the most handsome Daddy.”
“And you are the most gorgeous boy.” I kissed his lips, feeling the heat radiating from his face.
Tatum thanked me before eyeing the animal again. “I don’t want to smash this one.”
“Why don’t we let it dry?” I suggested. “It will harden, and then we can display it on the dresser in the bedroom.”
He beamed and nodded enthusiastically. “That way you can see it every time you go to sleep.”
“And you can see it too,” I pointed out, but Tatum wrinkled up his nose.
“When I visit?”
I mentally kicked myself for not making my intentions clear already. First of all, there was no way in hell I’d let anyone live alone out in the woods. But especially not Tatum; he was my mate, and I needed him with me.
I placed the figure in front of him and asked, “Do you remember when I said shifters had gifts, like speed and strength, and immortal life lines?”
Tatum nodded. “Those are very good gifts.”
“They are, but they’re not the best gift shifters have.”
“What could be better than neverending life?”
“Someone to share it with,” I replied, and Tatum swallowed hard. “Every shifter has a mate, hand chosen by Fate herself. That person is the shifter’s other half, their true love, and their whole heart. Remember when I said I knew you were mine when I smelled you?” He nodded slowly. “I didn’t just know you were my boy; I knew you were my mate.”
I didn’t know his eyes could bulge so wide. “I’m…your…”
“Mate,” I finished for him when no other words left him. “We are made for each other, and destined to be together for all time. I will never desire another, and my love for you will only grow. Protecting you is my purpose and my honor. I need you by my side. I want to spend everyday with you, and I want you to share my home.”
I left him to his thoughts, until he finally filled the silence with, “I never thought I'd be anyone's perfect match. What if Fate got it wrong?”
“Fate is never wrong.” Tatum still looked a little insecure, which had my Daddy instincts going haywire. I combed my fingers through his hair to soothe him. “You know how I know?” When he shook his head, I told him, “Because of the way I feel when I'm with you; the way my heart beats a little faster when I look at you, and my hands ache to hold you. My soul knows you, Tatum. It knows it could only be you.”
His expression finally softened into a beautiful smile. “That's how I feel about you, too.” Even though he was human, his spirit still felt the pull to its mate. “But how will this work? You're centuries old and still look amazing. I'll get old and crusty and look like this.” He squished his face with his hands to make wrinkles appear. I tried my best not to laugh because I knew he was serious, but he was so damn adorable I could barely keep it together.
“Once we bond, your aging will slow down and eventually stop. Your body will become immune to natural illnesses, but you can still be injured.” Not that I'd ever let that happen. “And you will inherit my immortality, because I could never live a day without you.”
Tatum's hands left his face and sank into his hair. I felt guilty; I knew I needed to tell him everything, but he was having so much fun and freedom while he was playing, and now I'd taken that away. “I know it's a lot to take in, and I'm sorry to drop it all on you. When you mentioned visiting, I needed you to know this is your home, too.” Of course, the choice was his, and I'd never force him into anything. “I hope you'll want to stay.”
Tatum let go of his hair, and picked up the unmolded lump of purple dough. He mashed it between his palms until it was as flat as a pancake. I could practically see the weight lifting off of him as he played again.
“It is a lot to take in,” he agreed once his orange lump was flat too, “But it is an easy choice. I want to stay with you, Daddy.” With that, he picked up the orange pancake and passed it to me with a sweet smile. “Do you want to play with me?”
“That's an easy choice, too.”
We each formed our dough into shapes, although Tatum's were much better than mine. All I could master was a snake and a donut. I could easily craft full size homes and furniture with my hands, but I lacked Tatum's creative spark.
Once my boy had his fill of making shapes, I put each of the colors into a separate plastic baggie to keep them fresh, though I kept out a small piece of the orange mush. I did have one idea.
I smashed it into a pancake as Tatum did before, and then pressed my thumb into its surface, leaving behind the print. I took my boy's hand and pressed his thumb next to my indentions, so that the prints left behind a heart shape. “What do you think?”
“I love it! Can we let this one dry and put it in our bedroom too?”
