“No.” He clasped his hands behind his back and stood near the window, staring at people thirty floors below. “But there's something we need to discuss.”
I tensed and wondered if I needed a visa for the Antarctic.
“Most clients prefer the CEO to be settled.”
I braced myself for what was coming next.
“And mated.”
“Father, we’ve talked about this. If and when I meet my fated mate, you’ll be the first to know.”
That’s a lie.
Well, yes, I can’t tell him our mate is human, a bartender, and he vanished without a trace.
I’d searched for Merrick. Soon after he disappeared, I’d returned to the bar and one of the other guys had told me where he lived. But he’d packed up his things and left no forwarding address. I’d checked social media and searched through employment sites where people looked for bar work.
And in my mind, I feared he’d hidden himself away because he wanted nothing to do with me. But that was extreme. He could have said he wasn’t looking for anything serious. He didn’t have to put himself in witness protection.
“And I have a foolproof way for you to find that one special shifter.” He flourished a cream envelope from his jacket that was embossed with gold. “You'll be attending this.”
There was no need to ask what that envelope contained. It was an invitation to the Shifter Christmas Matching Ball. A pixie named Bex organized it every year, and she supposedly had a talent for finding and matching fated mates.
I’d never attended, but shifter social media was flooded with talk about this ball every Christmas. To some unmated shifters, it was the highlight of their year, while others feared not finding their mate and disappointing their families. There was also a third group who enjoyed their singledom and dreaded being forced to attend the ball.
I fit into none of those categories.
“Father, no.”
“Kingston, you have a board, shareholders, and clients who expect stability from the top of the company on down.”
“I’ll find my mate when the universe decrees it and not because the company demands it.” My tone booked no argument, but Father waved my words away.
“This isn’t a request, Son.”
I wanted to scream that I’d found my mate and lost him and I never wanted to be without him.
“If you want to take over the company you must be mated.”
“Love, Father. I’ll mate for love, not because a pixie thinks she’s found my fated mate.”
I worried that Bex would somehow use magic to twist a connection into a fated match and the omega would mark me before I could protest. Gods, that would be worse than the hell I was living in.
“Love.” His sneering tone was a reminder he put little faith in love. He and my omega dad were fated mates, but their connection had faded and almost severed over the years. He looked at his friends’ and siblings' relationships, and his bitterness came from his dissatisfaction with his own relationship.
In the years since I’d seen Merrick, I’d thrown myself first into my studies and then work. I was at the office seven days a week because there was nothing to go home to, though today, I’d been planning on wallowing.
Father had no idea of the time and money I’d spent searching for my mate. Not looking for a person I’d never met but one I’d grown to know and love over a semester.
“I’m not interested in attending a matchmaking ball.” I could go to thousands of them and it would make no difference.
Father swiveled around and hissed, “Then you’re not ready to head this company.”
“What if I never meet my fated mate? What then?”
“Something can be arranged.” He strode out the door and didn’t bother to close it.
I studied the invitation and ran my fingers over my name on the envelope. It was mocking me, telling me I was a fool. But I knew that, and so did Merrick, and he liked fools.
