Deepwood Weald A bar song (tipsy).

His answer intrigued her. Towhee’s right brow arched slightly as he elaborated on the complexities of paternity in what she presumed was a former pack. He used the word “tribe,” which she decided she liked, even if their parenting guidelines left a little to be desired.

Don’t come at me for this, Towhee said, but I always insisted the mother was most important. But dads are important too. Did she—your kids’ mother—not want you more involved? she wondered, thinking all the way back to her early motherhood days.

She could recognize now that she’d been rather possessive and selfish, though in her defense, Meerkat had been her miracle and there was no way to know who’d sired her. She wondered if that applied to Dutch’s situation, especially considering his “more or less” answer.

A hundred, more or less, she replied cheekily to his volley.