I have a theory.
Rayek and Winnowill actually DID Recognize at their first meeting in Blue Mountain, but Winnowill used her powers to not have a child, and was powerful enough to lie in sending that it wasn't Recognition.
I mean, she seems to be powerful enough that other set in stone rules don't apply to her. (Immortals are tied to the palace. Only Wolfrider souls can roam the world.) Rayek had never Recognized before, so he wouldn't know how it was supposed to feel. (Leetah wasn't really sure it was Recognition with Cutter at first.) This would explain the devoted obsession Rayek has with Winnowill after what was essentially a one night stand. (This only enhanced by his already obsessive personality.)
And honestly, who knows? Maybe she did have a kid with him. After all, it was certainly less than 2 years after their joining that Rayek zoomed into the future. (It was, what? A few months, at most?) Maybe she had a kid during the time skip.
My two top suspects are Dre-ahn and Reef.
