Several people started typing at once, but the next message that came in first wasn’t from the general chat. A private message popped up on Laurence’s screen with startlingrapidity.
TeenDad2: Gwynn… you don’t live in Aurora, doyou?
A chill swept down Laurence’s spine. He replied back inprivate.
Gwynning: I do,actually.
TeenDad2:omg
TeenDad2: You’re not dating someone named Alex, areyou?
The chill turned into frostbite. Laurence’s fingers went numb, and his heart froze over. There were new messages in the general chat, but he couldn’t bring himself to look atthem.
Did TeenDad2 know Alex? There was noway.
Gwynning: There are a lot of young men named Alex in Aurora. What is yourslike?
TeenDad2: Right now, my Alex has black hair that sometimes shimmers to purple or blue. He’s got a long, pronounced, elegant nose and sharp features. He’s an omega, and a hyperrealistic artist… last nameHarper?
Laurence rubbed his mouth, too shocked to reply back right away. Not only had TeenDad2 identified Alex in indisputable detail, but he’d inadvertently let Laurence in on information Laurence didn’t already know. Information that changedeverything.
AlexH.
AlexHarper.
Samantha Harper, The CEO of Synecta’s,son.
23
Laurence
“Oh, shit,”Laurence murmured. He sank back onto the couch and dropped his phone next to his hip. “Oh, holyshit.”
His phone continued to buzz—private messages from TeenDad2 most likely theculprit.
How had he not seen it before? The eyes, the smile, the nose… Alex looked like the gender-bent image of hismother.
“Fuck me.” Laurence covered his eyes and exhaled until it felt like his chest would cave in and his lungs would collapse. “There’s noway.”
Just like there were plenty of Alexes in Aurora, there had to be plenty of Harpers. Laurence tabbed out of the conversation and brought up a Google search. If he could find a few other Alex Harpers in Aurora around the same age, he could brush it off as acoincidence.
His phone continued tobuzz.
Laurence input the search terms and held his breath. The fields populated. He tabbed over to images to see if he could find any of Alex, only to find that the entire first two rows of image results matched the young man he’d been dating. Laurence let go of the breath he was holding, tapped on a professional-looking headshot of Alex, and let the image information load. The image was a yearold.
Alex Harper, 20, has recently gained local recognition for his hyperrealistic oil painting. Ase—
The preview cut off. Laurence navigated to the site the image was linked to and continuedreading.
—lf-taught master of the arts, Alex attributes his attention to detail and astounding dedication to his craft to his mother, Samantha Harper, CEO of Synecta, the city’s largest pharmaceuticalcompany.
It wasn’t acoincidence.
Of course itwasn’t.
Laurence pushed air through his teeth in an attempt to depressurize, then tabbed back to the group conversation. TeenDad2 had been sending him private messages, continuing to tell Laurence revealing details about Alex that Laurence alreadyknew.
TeenDad2: Alex is really sweet, but also really… mischievous? He’s a totalflirt.
