As the shrill ring filled the suddenly cramped cabin, Mason watched two of his employees greet each other at the front door. Louis and Missy. A strange pair, but effective at their jobs. That made up for a lot of their eccentricities. The work was what really mattered to all of them here, but those two would never have the future Kai could have in this field. He had the brains, the work ethic, and the social graces required to go places, even farther than Mason had, if he were honest with himself.
Glancing down at the ringing phone in his hand, a flash of pride for the son he had every intention of nurturing for the rest of his life gave him the strength to connect the call. Pressing the talk button, Mason held the phone to his ear. “Good morning, Leilani.”
The voice on the other end wasted no time. “Did you find him? Is he all right?”
Mason paused. He should tell Leilani about the situation with the girl, the cousin. He was pretty sure she didn’t know about it. Shaking his head, he only told her, “Yes. He’s fine. He was staying with his…cousin.” Mason smiled. That secret was not for him to share. Kai could explain it, if and when he chose to.
She exhaled loudly in his ear, the sound taking Mason back to similar soft noises that had echoed in his head. It never failed to amaze Mason how easily the woman could wrap herself around him, squeezing his heart to painful points at times. Her voice was strained with worry when it came out again. “Oh, thank God. I was so worried…”
Mason had to imagine Leilani hadn’t slept at all since he’d called her in the wee hours of her morning. Surprisingly, he felt guilty about needlessly stressing her. Regardless of their twisted past, Kai was her son too, and from what she’d confessed to him before, Kai was all she had in the world. The thought of not knowing where he was or how he was…now that Mason was able to understand what it meant to have a child in the world, he didn’t want to think about that level of torment. Sighing, he massaged the bridge of his nose. “I’m sorry to have worried you, Leilani. He really is okay. Just processing.” Processing in the arms of a beautiful woman, but still definitely processing.
A tired exhale met his ear. “He knows…I can’t believe he knows. I got so used to him thinking what I wanted him to think.”
Mason’s lips twitched into a wry smile. “Yes, you do prefer to control what people think, don’t you?” Knowing that sounded very bitter, he quickly added, “He’s an adult now, Leilani. He will find his way through this and come out a stronger man for it.”
Again that surprising swell of fatherly pride filled him, and Mason was sure, for the first time in all of this, that the truth coming out was for the betterment of all involved. Perhaps Nate was correct after all? Perhaps the truth did matter. Sometimes an infected wound had to be cut deep before the true healing could begin.
“Does he hate me?” Leilani whispered, her fearful voice sending a small spark of compassion through Mason.
He smiled and shook his head. “I don’t know, Leilani…but from what I’ve learned of the boy so far, he’s quite understanding. I won’t speak for him, but he seems to be the type of person who is capable of tremendous amounts of forgiveness.”
A long pause, then, “Maybe he gets that from his father?”
Mason closed his eyes as he clearly heard the true question being asked. Do you forgive me? Could he ever forgive her? Was there anything to forgive? She had stayed loyal to the man she’d taken vows with. Right or wrong, painful or not, she had decided to honor her promise to him. Could Mason truly blame her for that decision?
“Leilani…there is nothing between us that needs forgiveness. You did what you had to, to survive. I did what I had to do, to survive. We are, if anything, survivors.”
Leilani chuckled lightly. “Thank you, Mason, for being there for him. For finding him, for speaking with him, for being so…you. Thank you.”
The love and sympathy that washed over him with those words brought tears to Mason’s eyes. Right or wrong, he still loved her. Thousands of miles hadn’t severed the bond, and a couple of decades apart hadn’t diminished it. Some things, Mason decided, were just eternal. “You’re welcome, Leilani. Thank you for finally telling me…that he is mine.” His voice broke and a tear finally escaped him. He quickly brushed it aside, peeking back at the door to see if his fellow researchers were watching. They weren’t; he was alone in his moment of wistful grief.
Sniffling herself, Leilani sighed again. “I suppose I’ll need to talk to Kai…to explain myself. Did you tell him about us?”
Mason nodded before he answered. “Yes, I told him the entire story, beginning…to end.” As the word left his lips, Mason wondered if there was ever really going to be an end between them, especially now that they shared the genetic responsibility of Kai. His son.
“Good. He should know that, if anything, he was created out of love…real love.” She sniffled again, and Mason imagined the tired woman’s cheeks wet with tears. “I love you, Mason,” she quietly said.