Page 22 of Homecoming

“Sure. I always have.”

“Wow. Can I interview you? I have to guess at most of the social interactions between alphas and omegas.”

The ladies chuckled.

Mini paused. “What did I say?”

Thera smiled. “None of us were born omegas. We got the dubious distinction of resembling them for the purpose of luring our mates in. It worked too well.”

The ladies at the table laughed.

Loken braved the collection and crouched at her side. “So, will you dance with me?”

Aeryn looked at him. “Like normal dancing?”

“Yes. You and me, together.”

“The music sounds reasonable, so yes.” She put her hand in his and got to her feet. Haravin watched, smiling, until Narro offered his hand.

Amby was smirking when Exoval claimed her.

Aeryn heard Thera explain, “Heis an omega.”

They laughed, and when Aeryn danced with Loken, she could see Thera earnestly talking to Mini, explaining the alphas and the betas and omegas and combination possibilities. The wind carried the conversations over to her.

Loken sighed. “I see I don’t have your full attention.”

He slid a hand down to her backside. “So, would you be willing to negotiate with me?”

“I don’t know. I had a plan to flirt tonight. I needed an ego boost.”

“Aw, why do you need to feel pretty? You are gorgeous.”

“And yet, Sohar speaks lustily about scantily clad women on the deck of the yacht. All these women who will strip off at a chance to sail with him. I wanted some men to think about me the way he thinks about them.”

Loken sighed. “He was trying to impress upon you that he is a desirable mate.”

“I know that. I have known since I got that damned diamond jammed into me. It’s like having a bicycle that you know you are getting for your birthday and everyone telling you how muchthey liked looking at the bike in the store, touching it, and taking it for a spin. It doesn’t matter that it wasn’t yours at the time; you just don’t want to hear about its life before you between someone else’s legs.”

He blinked at the analogy. “That makes an astonishing amount of sense, and I am sorry that that thought is in your way.”

She looked at him sadly. “I am sorry that the thought is inyourway.”

He cupped his hands on either side of her jaw. His kiss didn’t leave much room for thought.

She saw a flashing on her wrist, and a blue light was alerting her. The same light was happening on Loken’s. She asked, “What’s that?”

“You haven’t gotten this far in negotiations before?”

She bit her lip. “I just arrived here yesterday.”

“Ah. That makes sense. Well, now, this is the point where we sit quietly and discuss what we are willing to do and what is out of the question.”

“What about where are we going to do this?”

“You don’t have a room here?”

“Yes, but it is adjoining with my boss. I am close with her but not that close.”

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