HIS ROYAL LOVE CHILD (Book Two of the LOVE CHILD series)

Chapter Twenty-One "Re-CONNECTING"

Picture above.

Together Liam and Nicholai spent the night keeping watch, keeping vigil over their unconscious son. It was during the long night that they were finally able to talk. Liam gave voice to the question that had been eating him alive since he found out about his son. Quietly he whispered out "Why didn't anyone contact me and tell me about Tristan?" his voice was barely above a whisper, yet Nicholai heard him perfectly.

Nicholai didn't answer right away, he just kept staring at Tristan's unconscious form lying in the hospital bed, his head heavily bandaged. Evidence of the life threatening surgery that he had undergone several hours earlier. Nicholai held the small, delicate hand of his son in his own and ever so gently stroked his thumb across the back of Tristan's hand. He took so long to answer that Liam began to fear that he never would.

"First of all after you put me in a coma and left, no one knew were to find you. It was as if you had dropped off the face of the earth." Nicholai finally answered, his voice just as low, just as soft as Liam's. Nicholai was doing everything that he could to keep the anger, bitterness and resentment that he felt towards Liam under control and out of his voice. If they were ever to reconcile, this was a conversation that they needed to have.

For Liam, he felt a stab of guilt at Nick's mention of him putting him into a coma. But he brought his years of training and hard work to bear and pushed his guilt away. There was no point in feeling guilt or regret. There was only acceptance of his past actions and moving forward. Liam knew what and where dwelling on the past could get him. He would end up right back where he started. Doing drugs, and hurting himself and the ones he loved.

"And after? After you woke up, after grand dad found me, after he was born, Why wasn't I told? " Liam needed answers.

Nicholai looked up and stared into the eyes of his mate for a long moment before replying, "Because I would have killed you if you had come home. Nothing and no one would have been able to stop me." Nicholai said emphatically. Liam could see it in the eyes of his mate that Nicholai meant every word. If Liam had come home five years ago, he would have been a dead man.

Liam held the hard, cold stare of his mate a moment longer, before saying, "And I would have deserved it. But now I'm not the same person that I was five years ago. I've worked hard to put my life back together and I've not only grown up, but I have changed a lot since then ."

"And you think that you deserve a fucking medal for that?!" Nicholai hissed out viciously. "You think you deserve a round of applause, a heroes welcome. After all the shit that you did to me, to your family, that you caused to happen to our son, I should welcome you back with open arms because you spent five years finding yourself?!" Nicholai's anger and resentment was taking over, but he couldn't help it, these were things that he needed to say.

"Well sorry to disappoint you, but it doesn't fucking work like that. You don't just wreck havoc on other peoples lives and disappear, only to then come back and say that you've changed. That you've grown up and seen the error of your ways. You don't just say that you're sorry and expect forgiveness and open arms. It doesn't fucking work that way!" Nicholai was pulling no punches as he lashed out at his mate.

Nicholai threw his hand out indicating a still unconscious Tristan, "Look! Look at your son! Look at what you have done to him. This is how he spends his entire life. In and out of a hospital room. Fighting for his life. Fighting through one complication after another, because of your actions. Because of what you did. Sorry doesn't fix this Liam. You being sorry doesn't make Tristan any better!"