We drove back to Blue Knob Mountain mostly in silence. It wasn’t a defeated or a bad silence, though. A few times, I reached across so Quincy could hold my hand in the space between seats. I needed that hand to drive for too much of the trip, but I grasped his again whenever I could.
“I hope you’re not in too much trouble,” Quincy said once we were finally driving up the mountain to the lodge. “Your dad seems kind of awful.”
I huffed and smirked. “He’s a senator. Of course he’s awful.”
Quincy’s eyes went wide and his jaw dropped open a little. “Fuck. I know where I’ve seen him now. I’ve seen him on fucking TV. Your dad is Senator John Salisbury.”
“Yep,” I said, feeling my face heat.
“He’s running for governor. I’ve seen him on commercials.”
“He is running for governor,” I said with a slow nod, feeling a little sick.
“Fuck, Jack.” Quincy looked genuinely worried now. “Your dad is fucking John Salisbury, and he barged into our room in the middle of the night to make sure you were going through with the auction playtime.”
I winced. “Dad has very specific ideas of what alphas should be,” I said, though it wasn’t really much of an explanation.
“Well, he’s creepy and horrible,” Quincy said, sitting back in his seat and crossing his arms. “He’s not getting my vote.”
I almost laughed out loud as I turned into the parking lot for Kincade Slopes. It was still crowded, indicating the auction event was still going on. Of all the things, it was surreal that Quincy was so determinedly not going to vote for my dad in the fall elections.
I pulled into the parking spot the RV had been in before and cut the engine.
“Don’t tell him,” I said quietly, leaning toward Quincy, “but I’m not going to vote for him either.”
Quincy laughed. It was a pure, giggly sound that took me right back to where we’d been when we’d first run off in the middle of the night. That was reassuring. It was like the Quincy that had inspired me to do things I’d never dreamed of doing before was back.
We gathered up our things from the RV, and with a quick, rueful look around, I decided I would leave Mads and Benny a chunk of cash to pay for having the whole thing cleaned. Beyond that, there wasn’t anything I could do.
I hated feeling helpless.
“You ready for this?” Quincy asked me, taking my hand once we were out of the RV.
I drew in a deep breath and nodded, then started forward with him toward the lodge’s front entrance.
“You know, even though it didn’t turn out like we intended, this adventure might just have changed my life,” I said.
“Oh yeah?” Quincy asked, glancing up at me in the newly fallen darkness. The lamps that lit the parking lot reflected like stars in his eyes.
I smiled and held his hand tighter. “Yeah. I’m going to stand up to my dad. I don’t like his version of what he thinks an alpha should be. I’m my own kind of alpha.”
“You’re a much better sort of alpha than he’ll ever be, I’m sure,” Quincy said as we stepped into the lobby.
“I’m nearly thirty years old,” I went on, gaining strength and courage as I went. “It’s well past time for me to live my own life and make my own decisions about things.”
“Damn straight,” Quincy said, smiling at me.
“You guys are back,” Mads greeted us as we approached the front desk. He wore a smile, but that immediately disappeared. “I’m really sorry to do this to you, but I’ve been instructed to buzz Mr. Salisbury’s room as soon as you return.”
“It’s okay,” I said, holding up my free hand. “We know what we have to face.”
“Sorry,” Mads said again, then picked up the desk phone.
Five minutes later, my dad came storming down the stairs and into the lounge with the fireplace, where Quincy and I stood, looking out at the nighttime vista around Kincade Slopes.
“Where have you been?” Dad demanded through clenched teeth. “This is supposed to be an in-house event. Do you know what could have happened to my reputation if you were seen anywhere in public with an omega like that?”
I blinked and nearly rocked backwards, I was so surprised by my dad’s objection to my and Quincy’s adventure.
