The Rogues Who Went Rogue
Chapter 71

felt hopeful; the third time, which was now, he felt like the most blessed creature in the world.

Tate's heart stopped everytime Stella called him 'dad' around Margaret. The pessimistic part of him thought that Margaret would be angered and tell her daughter to stop acknowledging him like that. But when Margaret said nothing the first time, he felt relieved; the second time, he He matched Stella's smirk when he said, "Says the one who's trying to converge every conversation with me to only one topic."

"Which topic is that?" Stella questioned.

"You're doing it again."

"I know," Stella chuckled, and as embarrassed as Margaret was, she couldn't help but smile at her daughter's happy face. There was no worry or fear. For once, Margaret saw a cheerful teenager. It was amazing how Tate could give her that.

Stella finally decided to cooperate and started talking about some bushes with small flowers that had white and gold petals being her second favorite part of that place. "What are they called?"

Tate smiled. "Coincidentally, they're estellas."

There was brief silence before Stella accused, "You're lying."

"Why would you say that?" Tate asked with zero humor.

Stella studied Tate's expression, and when she deduced that he may be telling the truth, her brows furrowed when she turned to her mother before addressing her for the first time since they got into the car, "Mom! You told me estellas were blue and black!" "They are, Stella." Margaret responded in her strict voice, and added, "They were blue and black estellas all around Fleet Wood, and watch how you're talking to me."

Tate decided to butt in, "That flower has many colors. The soil, temperature and overall humidity of this part of lycan territory must be different from those in Fleet Wood. I'm not sure if they have blue and black estellas here, but white and gold ones seem to grow pretty well in this region."

Stella relaxed and spoke accusatively, "Oh, that's not so bad. For a minute there, I thought mom lied."

Tate sighed in frustration, and threw her disapproving look. "Stella, seriously."

"Fine," her eyes went to her mother through the rear view mirror for a brief moment to mutter, "Sorry." Tate nodded in satisfaction. "Much better."

It bothered Margaret but impressed her wolf that Tate had better control over her daughter than she did. How did he do it? He didn't have any siblings he had to look after, neither did he mention having any experience with dealing with children or teenagers. How did he know what to say and do to get Stella to behave?

They reached the police station with two minutes to spare, and Stella opted to wait in the car while Tate escorted Margaret in. As soon as they both entered the station where Officer Katie was waiting, Margaret began, "Tate?"

His feet pulled him into an automatic stop, and his soft eyes peered into her hesitant ones as he replied with a wide smile in an affectionate whisper, "Yeah, Mar?"

"Uh..." she glanced at the car outside and then back at him when she asked, "How...How do you get Stella to listen to you?"

Tate's eyes widened in surprise for a moment before he scoffed in amusement and said, "Mar, that teenager doesn't listen to me. She's a teenager. I asked her to go to bed at 9:30, and she kept telling me it was too early." "9:30 IS too early."

"Hey hey hey. Are you on my side or hers?"

"Sorry. It's just..." she sighed. "She might not listen to...everything you say, but...I can see that she listens to you more than she does me. Most of the time, I just...don't know how to reach out to her."

The helplessness in his mate's voice squeezed his heart, and he began thinking about what worked so far with Stella before he suggested, "Maybe talk to her about what she loves and ask her why she loves it? She loves taking photos, especially at night. Maybe try to ask to see a few of those the next time you meet her?"

After a moment, she muttered, "I'll try that."

They see Officer Katie, who was nice enough to give them a grace period of another minute for Margaret to add, "How did you find out about that hobby of hers though? How did you make her talk?" Posted by FindNovel.net; visit us for more free novels.

"I didn't," Tate admitted sheepishly. "Lucy did." "The queen?"

"Yeah, she loves children, and is naturally good with pups from every pack. She has a way of making them feel heard and important. For Stella, Lucy just asked her what she liked to do at the dinner table the other night, and your pup just started showing us photos from her phone. took a leaf out of Lucy's book, and started talking to Stella about what she liked and hated when it was just the two of us. Before I know it, I'm learning that she could skip firewood duty on her birthdays and doesn't like rooms with windows because she's terrified of what she may see if she looks out, like a possible intruder or a fight."

Margaret didn't blink when she internalized his words, learning about her own daughter through her mate she just met days ago. Officer Katie gave Tate a signal, and Tate reluctantly nodded her way before assuring Margaret, "Stella knows that you love her, Mar. She knows that you'd do anything to protect her. Getting to know her at a deeper level might be...awkward at first, but once the gears are warmed up, you'd get her talking in no time. She might even grow the guts to ask about you, and when she does...try not to shut her out. Life has not been easy on you Mar, but Stella shouldn't have to go through the aftermath of what you had to become to survive and bring her up. You've come a long way. Your pup deserves to know the strength you developed throughout your journey. She might even draw inspiration from you one day, you'd never know."

Margaret's eyes glistened when she responded in a whisper, "I just wanted to protect her from all that I couldn't avoid. I didn't think I was shutting her out."

Tate held her and tried not to make eye-contact with Officer Katie before he pecked a kiss in her hair and muttered, "It doesn't have to stay that way, Mar. We can fix it together, okay?"

Margaret parted their bodies before giving a gentle nod. "I'd like that. Thank you, Tate."

"I'll see you tonight."

Margaret remembered. "Practice with the decipios."

"Yup. Let's hope for the best."