Page 28 of Triplets for the Dark Elf

I know Almu never found me out here, and it doesn’t seem he came after Miothro, either – a fact I’ve been ignoring for all its implications. But he knows where I was once, and I fear that he may be near there again.

My muscles are knotted with tension by the time we reach the little garden area open to the public. The temple is for anyone, dark elf or human, and I thought it was the best neural ground.

Miothro is already there, a blanket layed out with a picnic basket. My tight lips press into a thin grin as I see him, and I notice the moment the triplets spot him. I didn’t tell them why we were coming today, and after I told them to be wary of dark elves, they stop, their eyes darting between Miothro and myself.

Miothro shifts, rubbing at his jaw, and I can see by the way his shoulders are pushed back and his hands are restless that he’s nervous. I almost hate how well I can read him. That makes this so much harder.

It would almost be easier if I didn’t know him, if he had barely acknowledged me when I worked in the shop. Then maybe I wouldn’t dream of his scent and crave the taste of his lips. Why couldn’t he have been a boss that didn’t notice I existed.

Well, I guess then I wouldn’t have the triplets.

I suck in a deep breath and force myself to focus. I squat down, giving them a smile. “It’s okay. He’s a nice elf. Why don’t we go meet him?”

Indie is the first to nod, my curious boy. Maeve bounces on her toes right after, but Hazel’s scrutinizing gaze lingers on me the longest. I take her hand and squeeze it. “Come on.”

With the three still clinging to me, I close the gap between us. As we approach, Miothro’s eyes bounce between the three kids, and I can tell he doesn't know what to say. Finally, I break the tension.

“Say hello to the nice elf. He is…” It hits me then that I didn’t think this through. Am I ready to explain that he is their dad? What will I say when they want to know where he’s been or why he’s not staying with us? What danger will it put us in? “A friend,” I finally decide to go with.

Miothro cocks his head but doesn’t contradict me. Even as I see the hurt flicker across his eyes. I’m grateful he doesn't ask, even though I hate to keep hurting him.

He squats down offering a warm smile. “Hello.”

Maeve steps away from me, looking between me and Miothro. I nod and she takes another step closer to him. He watches her like he’s never seen anything so beautiful, and it makes my heart squeeze painfully.

“This is Maeve,” I whisper as he takes in her pewter skin. She has my strawberry blonde hair and blue eyes but her features are sharp like his.

“Hi, Maeve.” Miothro sticks a hand out. “I’m Miothro.”

She cocks her head. “Mi… Mi…” Her face screws up as she tries the word, but eventually she decides it’s too hard. “Mimi!” She flings herself forward and hugs him instead of taking his hand.

I burst out laughing at how flustered he looks. “Mimi?” he mouths. I shrug in response.

Indie, ever inquisitive, decides his sister has had enough of her own time with their father. “Meet Mimi!” he announces, charging toward Miothro and knocking him back.

Now we are both laughing as he tries to right himself while Maeve talks to him and Indie starts tugging his hair free of its neat bun. He’s pointing at Miothro’s hair and then at Hazel’s, trying to express they are the same.

And then he gasps. He nearly pokes Miothro’s eye out as he realizes they have the same colored eyes.

I squat down as I try to fight the massive grin on my face. “Hazel, do you want to meet Mi…” I throw a look at him and snicker. “Mimi?”

She looks at him with a serious expression and then back at me. “Later.”

He finally manages to distract the kids with food and stands next to me. “Maeve,” he whispers, gesturing to the talkative little girl. “And…Hazel?” he nods toward the raven haired girl that looks identical to me. He must have overheard me talking to her.

I nod. “And Indie,” I tell him, our eyes both landing on our son. Fair skinned with his father’s eyes. I can’t say how many times that hurt when he was first born.

“Beautiful names.”

I grin as I look at him. “You picked Indie’s.” Miothro raises an eyebrow, and I clarify. “After you met the twins, you told me they had such strong names, but you were partial to something more expressive. I asked you, ‘Like what?’ You told me, ‘Like Indie.’”

He swallows hard, looking between me and his son. “I can’t believe you remembered that.”

Internally, I can’t help but think,there’s a lot of things you wouldn’t be able to believe.

Before I answer, though, Maeve decides she’s done. She jumps up, shouting for Mimi and Miothro obliges. She takes him to the flowers, pulling them up and offering them to him. Indie quickly follows, handing Miothro rocks until he has to stop and help the kids arrange them in the corner of the park before he drops them all.

Hazel sits with me as I watch them, fighting tears the whole time. He’s such a good dad, just as I expected, and that kills me. How can I keep them from him?