Butterscotch Souls: The Morningstar Series: Book 4
Butterscotch Souls – Chapter 14

I was woken up the next morning by little fingers poking my face. My eyes snapped open and then quickly shut from the harsh light. After a moment I opened them again.

Once they adjusted to the light I saw my son standing next to me, staring down at me. I’m still on the couch with Epperly still laying on top of me, sprawled out and asleep.

“Good morning buddy.” I whispered to my son.

“Morning.” He whispered back.

I looked down at Epperly then back to our kid.

“Should I take Mommy to bed and make us breakfast?” I asked him.

Tate beamed at me and nodded his little head enthusiastically his blonde hair hanging in his eyes. I smiled back and then wrapped my arms around my mate. Carefully I stood up with her in my arms.

Epperly mumbled a bit but otherwise stayed asleep. She wrapped herself around my body and I chuckled. Once I got to the end of the hall I opened the door of our room and walked in.

I placed Epperly on the bed softly and had to untangle her from my body since she didn’t want to let go, not that I did either but our son needs me. Then I had to wait a couple of minutes for my morning wood to go down before returning to my son.

When I got back out to the living room Tate had managed to turn the TV on but seemed to struggle with the remote.

“You okay buddy? Need help?” I asked him.

Tate looked at me and held the remote out.

“This is different than the TVs at the places Mommy stops at.” He told me.

“This is a smart TV. Which means it has all sorts of stuff on it. What do you wanna watch?” I asked him.

“Cartoons.” Tate said.

“Anything specific?” I asked.

Tate shrugged.

“Mommy just puts on what she finds.” He told me.

“Okay I’ll show you where all the cartoons are and you can pick.” I told him.

After setting Tate up on the TV I walked to the kitchen and started some coffee.

“Mommy doesn’t like coffee.” Tate told me from one of the stools.

When did he get there?

“What does she like?” I asked him

“She likes tea.” He told me.

“Do you know what kind of tea?” I asked.

Tate shook his head. Guess I’ll just make whatever I could find. Hopefully she likes all kinds of tea.

“Can I have some b***d?” Tate asked me.

“Yeah buddy let me just find some first. You can go back in the living room. I’m going to call one of your aunts.” I told him.

“I have aunts?” He asked.

I chuckled.

“Yeah buddy. And uncles and cousins and grandparents.” I told him.

Tate gasped.

“I have all those?” He asked.

I nodded.

“Hopefully you get to meet them today.” I said.

“Cool!” He said.

“You gotta let me ask your mom first. But for now you can go back to playing.” I told him

Tate nodded and sprinted back to the living room. I went to the counter where I had left my phone. It’s 8 a.m. right now. Damn, I am tired. Epperly and I were up until I don’t even know when. There’s also a text from Tia.

Left more b***d bags on the porch for you.

Was all it said. I walked over to the front door and grabbed the foam cooler and brought it in. Throwing one of the b***d bags into the microwave to heat it up I turned back to the fridge. Once the microwave beeped I put the b***d into a cup and took it out to Tate who had gotten into the toys.

“What you want for breakfast kiddo? We have everything.” I asked him.

Tate took a drink of the b***d before answering me.

“Hmmmm.” He put his little finger to his chin making me chuckle. “Mommy really likes french toast.” He told me.

I nodded.

“French toast it is. How about with bacon and hash browns with it?” I asked.

Tate beamed at me.

“Yay!” He shouted.

I decided to make some banana bread first. It doesn’t take long but will give my mate more time to sleep. Shortly after I had started Tate came back into the kitchen and set down his cup on the counter before climbing the stool.

“Hey Dad can I ask ya somethin’?” Tate asked.

“You can ask me anything buddy.” I told him.

“How come Mommy never told me I had a Daddy or aunts and uncles and stuffs?” He asked me.

I turned my body so that I could look at my son. He looks so much like me it’s still hard to take in sometimes. With his blonde hair, same nose, lips, even eyes, except the gold flecks in them. He’s staring at me with confusion and I felt bad. Epperly didn’t know what she was doing and Tate doesn’t understand any of this.

“Well, Mommy didn’t know that I have such a big family. After Mommy and I created you, your Mommy… Well she..” I trailed off unsure of what to say.

What has she been telling him about moving around so much? Does he know the truth?

“Tate what do you know about you and Mommy moving around so much?” I asked him.

Tate shrugged his little shoulders. I say little but the kid is big for a five year old. Just like his dad. I’ve always been a big guy, I wonder if Tate will be bigger than me when he’s older.

“Mommy said we had to keep running so the bad people didn’t find us.” He told me.

I nodded.

“That’s right. Some bad people have been after your mommy since before I knew her. After we created you, your mom ran away because those people got too close to her. She didn’t know that you were in her belly and she didn’t know how to find me afterwards. You know that your mommy loves you right?” I asked and Tate nodded.

“And you know that she would do anything to protect you?” Again, Tate nodded.

“Good. Now that I found you and Mommy again, I will never let the two of you go. I will protect you from all of the bad guys and so will our family.” I told him.

“I’ve never had a family before.” He said.

“I know buddy. You are going to love them and they are going to love you.” I told him.

“Okay Daddy.” Tate said and I smiled at him before going back to my baking.

“Hey Daddy, can I grow my hair out like yours?” Tate asked.

“Sure thing buddy.” I told him.

“Hey Daddy, can I get a tattoo?” He asked.

I turned and raised a brow at him. Tate was staring down at my bare chest. I took my shirt off after putting Epperly to sleep. Being a werewolf I was used to not wearing clothes. I also live in Georgia and it gets hot.

Tate was staring at the tattoo I have over my chest. It’s Epperly’s name. Somehow I just knew she wasn’t lying to me about what her name is all those years ago.

I went through a really bad rough patch at one point, from being so far away from my mate. I got really drunk and then got this tattoo, not that I regretted it. I actually woke up the next day really happy about it. That was a couple of years ago now.

“When you are 18 you can get all the tattoos you want.” I told him and turned back around.

“Hey Daddy, where do babies come from?” Tate asked and I froze.

I turned to face him and he is just sitting there staring at me.

“I’ll tell you when you’re older.” I told him.

“How much older?” He asked.

I chuckled.

“At least another 7 years.” I mumbled.

After that I told Tate to go back to his cartoons and toys. Honestly I wasn’t sure how many more awkward questions I could take. I was not telling my five year old son where babies come from.

About an hour later I had just finished baking the banana bread. I planned to use it as a peace offering for my family, but I did save us a few loafs. Then I started cooking breakfast. I had given Tate two b***d bags and some snacks while he waited.

We didn’t want breakfast to be cold for Epperly and wanted her to sleep a bit longer. Tate is such a good son to his mom. I’m more than lucky to have a son like him. Even if he does ask me too many questions.

When breakfast was done I threw my shirt back on before getting my son. I had just sat Tate down when Epperly emerged from the hallway. She stretched her arms up above her head and yawned. Her hair is a mess around her making me smile.

My f*****g Goddess she is pretty. Even in her white baggy tank top and her gray sweat pants. My eyes zeroed in on her n*****s. Was she not wearing a bra all night? Her n*****s are poking through the thin fabric and I gulped.

“Good morning.” She smiled at us showing those beautiful dimples.

“Morning Momma!” Tate greeted her then stabbed his french toast.

Epperly smiled at our son, then her eyes turned to me.

“Go-Good morning.” I stuttered out like an i***t.

Epperly frowned.

“You okay?” She asked.

I nodded but couldn’t force words out of my mouth.

For f**k’s sake they’re just n*****s, n*****s you’ve seen before. n*****s you’ve had in your hands and mouth. I shook my head, this is not helping.

“Ooouu french toast. My favoirte.” Epperly said as she sat down at one of the plates on the table.

“I told Daddy that you like french toast. Daddy would do anything to make you happy Mommy. He even made banana bread for us and made you tea Mommy. Isn’t Daddy the best?” Tate told her.

I smiled at him. I didn’t even have to tell him how much I love his mother. Somehow Tate knows. I get the feeling that he knows a lot more than he lets on.

“Well, thank you for helping your daddy out then.” Epperly told him.

I sat down at another chair and we all began eating.

“It’s extremely unfair how good of a cook you are.” Epperly said making me laugh. “Seriously. I’ve worked at so many restaurants around the country and no one cooks like you.” She said.

“Well, anything to make you happy.” I told her with a wink.

“Uhm, did we sleep together last night?” She asked me. “I don’t even remember going to bed.” She said.

“You and Daddy were sleeping on the couch.” Tate told her and she turned to me with red cheeks.

“We fell asleep on the couch and Tate woke me up. I carried you to our bed so you could sleep longer. It was only about an hour though.” I told her before she could start asking.

“Our bed?” Epperly asked.

“As long as it’s okay with you and Tate, yeah.” I told her.

Epperly looked at Tate, who was too busy stabbing his french toast to notice our conversation. Then she looked back to me. I smiled at her hoping it reassured her of any doubt she was feeling.

“What if I wake you up with another nightmare?” She whispered to me.

I chuckled at her.

“I have a feeling you’ll never have a nightmare again as long as you sleep with me, but if you did I wouldn’t mind.” I told her.

“Okay.” She said quietly.

“We don’t have to if you don’t want to.” I whispered to her. “There are a couple spare rooms.”

Epperly looked at Tate then back to me.

“I’ve just never not slept with Tate before, not since he was born.” She told me.

“I can get us a baby monitor so we can see and hear everything in his room from ours if that would make you feel better. He’ll be right across the hall and you two are safe here.” I told her.

Epperly chewed on her bottom l*p for a moment before answering.

“Okay. As long as I can have the monitor.” She said and I beamed.

After breakfast Tate asked me for another b***d bag. I heated one up for him and he sat on the couch and watched some more cartoons. He scarffed down the b***d and then brought me the cup before returning to his toys. I chuckled as I watched him go, then I turned to do the dishes.

“Are you sure it’s normal for him to be drinking that much b***d? He isn’t even a full Vampire.” Epperly asked me.

I nodded.

“Yeah baby I’m sure. I was the same way after I shifted, his body is making up for lost time.” I told her.

“Lost time?” She asked.

“Yeah, he should have been craving b***d since he was born, My sisters did, but I didn’t. After I got my wolf I was nearly ravenous. Only me and my little brother Atreus were like that though.” I told her.

Epperly only nodded to that.

“I can do those. You cooked afterall.” She told me after a while.

“Nope. I got it. You just have a seat.” I told her and she took a seat on one of the stools.

“Do you have to work today?” She asked me.

Slight panic hit my veins. Why would she want to know that? Is she going to leave me again?

“Uh, no. It’s Saturday and the BOC trainees get the weekends off. Unless they really need the work.” I told her.

“Good.” She said making me smile.

“Uhm, there is something I would like to do with you guys today, but we don’t have to. We can stay here all day if you want to.” I told her and then turned around to face her.

“Okay, what were you thinking?” She asked.

“Uhm, well. I want to show you guys the area today. Tour the school… possibly get Tate enrolled.” I started.

“You want to enroll Tate here?” She asked.

I shrugged.

“He wants to go to school. This is the best school for him. Plus you and I are both right here for him.” I told her.

“What if he doesn’t fit in? Or what if something happens to him and we can’t get to him in time?” She rushed out.

I walked over to her and rubbed her arms.

“Hey hey.” I said softly. “I have siblings that work in the school. Not to mention all of the teachers are more than qualified to handle something should it happen. Plus the entire territory is guarded. I work right out back of the school and you will be right here.” I told her.

“What if we can’t get to him in time though?” She asked panicked.

I shook my head.

“It’s not a problem my love. I can teleport.” I told her.

“You can teleport?” She asked me incredulously. I nodded. “That’s helpful..” She mumbled.

I chuckled.

“Yeah, that and I already taught our son how to mind link so he can talk to me whenever he needs to.” I told her.

“Mind link?” She asked.

“A mind link is a werewolf thing. Usually you can communicate telepathically within the pack. For my family, we can do it if we share b***d or a deep connection. Tate is my son. I tried it with him yesterday before he drank the first cup of b***d. He was worried how you would feel if he liked it.” I told her.

“Oh.” She said.

“Does that make you feel better about enrolling him? I can introduce you to all of the teachers today if you want.” I asked her.

Epperly nodded.

“You promised to always protect him and I trust you.” She said and I beamed at her.

“There’s something else that, uhm, well I guess I do want to do today.” I told her.

“Okay.” She said.

“My family wants us to have dinner at their place today. They want to meet Tate.” I told her. Epperly froze. “We don’t have to do that though Epp. I have a big family. Like really big. It’s going to be a lot.” I told her.

“How big?” She asked.

“Well, I have 11 other siblings, some of them are not here but I have a feeling they will be if we show up for dinner. My uncles are here visiting and they have a lot of adopted kids. Not to mention my older sisters have kids and one of my younger brothers has a couple too. And my parents are here.” I told her.

“You have 11 siblings?” She asked me. I nodded. Didn’t we do this already? “Holy shit.” She whispered and I laughed.

“I’m the third, and the oldest boy. Two of them still go to school here too, one you met yesterday.” I told her.

“They have all been helping me look for you and I think they’re going to be extremely shocked and happy to meet Tate.” I said. “But we do not have to if you don’t feel comfortable. I’m not trying to pressure you or anything. I want you to like it here.” I rushed out.

Epperly seemed to think about it for a moment.

“Can you tell me more about them first?” She asked.

I nodded.

“My two older sisters are mated. The oldest, Aureailla, is mated to the Lycan King, his name is Ryce. He looks mean but he’s a big softy as long as you’re family. Relly is a big sweet heart though, you’ll love her. Tia is the second oldest and runs the school and the BOC here.” I turned to give her a look.

“She is also mated to a God who helps run the school as well. So, Tate will not only have another creature like me right in the school with but also a God on his side.” I told her.

“And this God isn’t one of the ones after me?” She asked.

I shook my head.

“No, Max didn’t even know he was a God until about six years ago. He’s actually how we found out that the Gods are hunting down other people like him, and apparently like you. I promise he is a good guy.” I told her with a wink.

“Okay. What about the rest of your siblings?” She asked.

“Well, after me there is Acaisia and Akari. The first set of twins. They look a lot like me and have also met their mates. Their mates are also twins and demons, s*x demons.” I told her.

“s*x demons?” She asked.

I nodded.

“Yeah, I’ll explain later. They are super nice too. Bou is a big sweet heart, not what you would picture of a demon. He also is very handsy with my sister no matter who is around. It’s kind of normal for our kind but it gets uncomfortable with them sometimes, so I’m sorry about that in advance. His sister Bianca is Ahkari’s mate and they are a perfect pair. Bianca is kind of a hard a*s but Kari mellows her out.” I said.

“They sound sweet, go on.” Epperly encouranged me.

“Then there is Ares and Azai. They’re twins and complete opposites even though they look exactly alike. Azai is a teacher here, along with his mates. He has two, a boy and a girl. They both work here as well, one in the infirmory and one helps with sciencey stuff, I’m not really sure honestly.” I told her with a laugh.

“Ares is an a*****e so when he acts all dickheaded around you don’t take it to heart, he doesn’t have another mode. But… He is very protective of his family which means he will be the same way with you and Tate.” I told her.

“I know why Tate, he’s your son, but why me? Do you really think that your family would be that willing to protect me? Especially after I kept your son from all of you?” She asked sadly.

I walked over to her and grabbed her face in my hands.

“You are still so new to this world, you don’t understand. You are my mate Epperly, you’re family because of that. Even with our situation, even without you being marked yet. You are mine and I am yours. We are two halves of a whole. They will protect you and welcome you with open arms.” I told her with a smile that quickly faded.

“Unfortunately my family are Morningstar’s so open arms doesn’t always mean sweet.” I told her.

Epperly giggled.

“That’s fine. I’m not afraid of people being rude, I’ve delt with it my whole life.” She told me with a smile.

I thought about what she had told me last night. My mate is so much stronger than I ever realized she was. She’s been through so much and managed to keep pushing through. Epperly is so admirable.

“Okay, tell me the rest. I want to know what I’m getting into before I meet them.” She said as she moved my hands from her face but held onto them.

I smiled and sat in the stool next to her.

“Atreus and Akeehla are the next ones. Neither are mated yet. They are as thick as theives and sinister. Harmless though, unless you get on their bad side. Kee… Well Kee has issues but I won’t tell her story. She has helped me out the most when it came to looking for you. She came really close a few times but you were always gone. Kee is probably the most powerful out of my siblings honestly. She can see into your soul so be prepared for that.” I told Epperly.

“See into my soul?” She asked.

“Yeah, it’s complicated to explain but you won’t be able to keep anything from her. Not that she would tell you or anyone about it unless she was worried. She doesn’t like that she can’t turn it off and respects everyones privacy as best as she can.” I told her.

“Atreus is a quiet kid but he loves to play pranks.” I said with an eye roll. “He glued all of Tia’s things on her desk, to her desk once. Pissed her right off.” I said with a laugh.

“Sounds like my kinda person.” Epperly said with a smile.

I raised a brow at her.

“You like to play pranks?” I asked.

Epperly giggled, her dimples coming out nonstop.

“Back at base CJ and I used to play pranks on some of the people there. All harmless of course.” She told me.

I chuckled at her.

“You never cease to amaze me my love.” I told her.

Epperly blushed and then cleared her throat.

“I believe you still have a few more to tell me about.” She said.

“Right. The next born is Axton. He is also an a*****e, don’t take it personally. Ax isn’t as bad as Ares though but he is more mouthy. He just turned 18 not too long ago. And he just joined the BOC so you might see him a lot. I work my family extra hard.” I told her.

“Why?” She asked.

“Because we have been trained our whole lives. We even spend a year with our grandpa in Hell to train. Our parents forced us to learn how to fight since we were kids. And we are powerful. So I work them harder. People depend on us because we are the strongest and can’t die.” I told her.

“Okay wait.” Epperly said as she waved her hands in front of me.

“Why did your parents make you learn to fight so young and I’m sorry, you can’t die?” She asked.

I chuckled at her and grabbed her hands again.

“They taught us because the Morningstar’s and Anderson’s have many enemies. They wanted us to be prepared.” I said.

“Has anything ever happened to any of you?” She asked softly.

I nodded.

“Kee was kidnapped when she was 12. It took us two years to find her.. It’s a long and sad story and not mine. But, that did cause security to go up here. Before you ask it was humans that managed to take her and ever since that situation no one has ever dared to try it again. My parents slaughtered everyone who was involved.” I told her.

Epperly nodded.

“And what about the dying thing?” She asked.

“Well, I shouldn’t say we can’t die because we can, we just come back. I assume that Tate is the same, there hasn’t been a tribird that has been able to be permanently killed. So that is something you can be happy about. Our son will live a very very long life. And once you have my marks, you’ll be the same.” I told her.

“How is that even possible?” She asked me.

I shrugged.

“Hell if I know. Just part of what we are.” I told her.

Epperly nodded but I wasn’t sure if she really understood what I was telling her. This was a lot of information after all. Maybe I’m overloading her.

“Do you want me to stop? I know this is a lot to take in.” I asked her.

Epperly shook her head.

“No, you only have two more to tell me about.” She said.

I nodded.

“Alright. Alessio is the second to last born, the youngest boy. He’s…special. A special little s**t head. The kid knows way more than he lets on and he’s super good at egging on fights. But he is really laid back and he attends the school too. He will be in a different area than Tate since Less is 16 though.” I told her.

“He sounds fun.” She said.

“I guess so.” I mumbled. “The last of my siblings is Amory.” I told her.

“The one I met yesterday.” Epperly said.

I nodded.

“She can see the future so apparently she knew you were here without being told.” I said.

Epperly frowned.

“I thought that Seer’s didn’t exist anymore?” She asked. I raised a brow at her and she shrugged. “I know some things.” She mumbled making me laugh.

“Okay then, well, Seer’s don’t exist anymore, that’s true. Mo is a special case I guess. She’s a bit of a freak even for us but we love her anyways. I think she is the most excited to get to know you. She’s only 12, she won’t be in the same section of the school as Tate but she will be closest.” I told Epperly.

“Wow.” She mumbled. “That’s a lot. And they all want to meet us?” She asked.

I nodded.

“You don’t have to though. I know that this is all a lot for you two. You guys just got here yesterday.” I said.

Epperly shook her head and waved her hand.

“Tate and I are used to the fast life. We have moved a lot and met a lot of people every day. This might be extra scary but… This is supposed to be home right?” She asked and I nodded.

“Besides, I’ve kept Tate from his family for long enough. So, let’s go meet them.”