Silence stretched on between us as I tracked my eyes over him, wondering how long he would stand there before squirming. It wasn’t long. A minute later, he shifted, eyes darting from me to Aidan.
“Senator Sterling,” I said, flicking a bead of condensation off my glass. “I don’t usually take unannounced private meetings.” A smarmy smile slid across his face, and I debated shooting him in the shin. “Why are you here, and what is this offer that couldn’twait?”
Whisky stung my throat as I took a slow drag of the fifteen-year Midleton. Sterling straightened, trying to look taller. His suit may have been crisp and tailored, but he looked greasy and unkempt.
“I would like to introduce my daughter, Willow Sterling.”
A disgusted grimace tugged at her lips as he wrapped an arm around her waist. The gesture looked anything but affectionate, and I had the urge to break his fingers for touching her.
Some primal desire pulsed beneath the surface, my alpha already protective of the omega.
Now I recognized her. I remembered seeing her forced grins in a couple of newspaper articles next to her father.
As she turned away from him, the overhead light caught a glimpse of a crescent scar beneath her eye, along with a slight discoloration of her tanned skin.
Anger surged from some ancient place within me, my alpha commanding me to seek retribution formyomega. Blood rushed south, my trousers uncomfortably taut.
No.
Not mine.
Just an omega.
Aidan narrowed his eyes, rocking off the wall, sensing the shift in my patience.
I relaxed my frame, trying to make my features less intimidating as I faced his daughter, Willow.
“Pleasure to meet you, Miss Sterling,” I said, dipping my chin. My Ma would come back from the grave and haunt me if I ever disrespected a woman. “I am Kaelen Finnegan.”
She flashed a tight grin that was more a grimace as she glared at her father. While she may have agreed to accompany him, whatever he was planning, she wasn’t privy to.
“Mr. Finnegan,” she said, stiff and uneasy.
“Wonderful.” Senator Sterling beamed, clapping his hands together. The motion set me on edge, making my teeth grind. “As you know, Mr. Finnegan, I am running for governor and I am finding myself in need of some assistance from your organization.”
Aidan didn’t bother to hide his snort, paling slightly when Iglared at him. If the senator were coming to me, he wanted more than a simple donation. My fingers brushed over the rough grip of my gun, and I enjoyed watching sweat bead off his brow.
“Whatassistanceare you looking for?” I asked.
“Your influence. Your connections. Maybe my opponent has a secret mistress. I’m sure you understand.”
“Dad,” Willow hissed, scowling at him. “Are you mad?”
“Quiet,” he spat at her.
No one should talk to her like that. If she were mine, I’d rip him apart.Shite. I was on the verge of doing something rash. My eyes snapped to Aidan’s, his expression tight. Willow was undeterred by her father’s admonishment, growling at him like a tiny lioness.
A rare glimmer of amusement twinkled in Aidan’s eyes, but he stayed out of it.
“And why should my family do this for you?”
A smirk tugged at my lips. Willow’s eyes widened, her scent perfuming in the room as she stared at the tattoos on my exposed forearms. That thick, beautiful scent almost sent me to my knees. My vision blurred as I struggled to remain upright.
“I propose an alliance,” Sterling’s grated voice cut in. “A marriage with my daughter, an omega, for you.”
“What?” she shrieked, the pale pink in her cheeks turning a frosty white.
“I don’t deal in people,” I snapped, pushing off the desk and towering over the other alpha.
