“Mr. Kolhn?”Loriun startled from his brooding. “Yes, Kaoi?”“There’s someone here to see you.”
Loriun quirked a brow at the Omega. “I am not expecting anyone.”
Kaoi grimaced, glancing over his shoulder, then leaning further into the room. “It’s Ashford Montgomery.”
A cold thrill rushed through Loriun’s body. Dread, anger, curiosity, anxiety, suspicion. What the hell did Beau’s sleazy politician father want that warranted an unscheduled, personal visit?
“Fine. Show him in, and bring us some water. Tepid water,” he added. “From the bathroom tap.”
Kaoi let out a nervous titter before vanishing around the door.
When the door swung open again, Ashford Montgomery was the one to enter.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Kolhn,” Ashford said. His expressionless face gave nothing away.
“Mr. Montgomery,” Loriun responded tightly. He gestured to a chair, and Ashford lowered himself into it. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”
“I trust my son is adjusting well?” His voice was disinterested, though the intensity in his brown eyes told a different story.
Loriun noted with discomfort how similar those eyes were to Beau’s. “I believe so. But it has only been a day, so there is little to report.”
“Good, good, glad to hear it. Now, Mr. Kolhn, I haven’t come just to check in on Beaumont.”
“I thought not,” Loriun said drily. A thick cloud of perfume emanated from the man’s body, making him cough slightly.
“As you know, the election is coming up soon,” Ashford said, mouth thinning beneath his silvery, handlebar mustache. “And I’m afraid to say that my polls are not looking as good as I had hoped.”
“How terrible.”
“Indeed. According to my most recent surveys, many of my constituents are displeased with my son’s decision to transfer to the Paeil Islands. I’m sure you are aware that the good people of Florida have their concerns about the impact of the Mer’s arrival on our planet.”
“I am aware.” Loriun couldn’t puzzle out where Ashford was going with this conversation. Was he trying to say that he wanted Beau back? A pang of horror cut across his chest.
“Now, I’m willing to overlook this little roadblock,” Ashford went on. “As head of Interspecies Relations, I have been working toward a greater sense of peace for both my people and yours, not to mention my duty as a father to support my son.”
Loriun bit back a scoff. Even a blind fool could see that Ashford was a humanist through and through.
“So what exactly is the purpose of your visit here?” Loriun asked, keeping his voice low.
Ashford heaved an exaggerated sigh. “I never like to be the kind of father who sticks his nose in his son’s affairs.”
Says the man who took it upon himself to recruit Alphas for his son.
“However, Mr. Kolhn, I can’t pretend that humanity isn’t upset by the whole Omega thing. People want our world to go back to its roots—with men and women, as God intended. My constituents may be able to move past my son’s chosen lifestyle, but I fear that some things could be seen as inexcusable."
“Such as?” Loriun had to force the words through his teeth.
Another dramatic sigh, this time coupled with an artificial expression of regret. “My son may be gay. There is nothing I can do about that, and folks are slowly coming around to people like him. But men doing the biological job of women? Men carrying and giving birth to half-alien abominations? That’s something neither I nor my people can allow.”
As he finished his little speech, Ashford Montgomery settled back into his seat, eyes fixed on Loriun’s. It was at that moment Loriun learned brown could be cold.
“Let me make sure I understand you correctly,” Loriun said slowly. “You willallowyour son to stay with me and live his life. But you draw the line at our having children.”
“I’m glad we understand each other. My career would never survive the news that my son is contributing to the population of humanity’s greatest enemy.”
Unadulterated rage bubbled between Loriun’s contracted scales. “And if we do not give a damn what you want?”
Ashford’s expression darkened. “Now, Mr. Kolhn. I didn’t want to have to bring this up. But I assume you haven’t told Beaumont about your donation, have you?”
