Page 26 of Silas's Sweetheart

“You’re not Jupiter, Rue, or Kodi for that matter. Sex for you has always come with complications.” Dad spoke like he was gentling a skittish horse.

Silas’s fingertips traced the path of the foam dribbling down the bottle, but his gaze never shifted from the man who thankfully didn’t display any pity. “I’m not sure I understand,” he murmured, finding it hard to get the words out when the clenching inside him suggested they were headed in a direction Silas did not want to go.

“You’re careful with sharing who you are, protecting your heart. You have done so since the day those boys attacked you.” He reached over and laid a hand on Silas’s, halting his fingers. “That boy stole something that day. Something I couldn’t give you back.”

“And what was that?” he choked out, feeling the room closing in on him.

“Trust. You trusted that boy, gave him your young heart, and he trampled all over it with his betrayal.”

Silas couldn’t quite catch his breath as he exhaled on a shudder. Even Booker didn’t know how Silas had allowed himself to be lured into a trap. He’d told no one of Jason’s betrayal. He was Silas’s first boyfriend. A boy he’d shared his first kiss with. One that made his heart tremble with that first blush of youthful love. Such a sweet moment, one that he often reminded himself was fake. His body bore the scars of the attack Jason had set up. The slurs stung, and the fists and kicks were nothing compared to the pain of betrayal. It ripped open his heart, leaving him wanting to die in that alleyway from the reality of that first relationship.

“How… how did you know?” he finally managed to rasp.

The squeeze he received made him look up from the counter where his gaze had fallen. “When I had the boys investigated.”

“You what?” Silas blinked rapidly. Had he known this? They had pressed charges, but because Silas was divergent, Taylin jumping in and Booker having kicked ass, they had made it look like Silas had set up the boys. None of the boys had returned to the same school and Silas hadn’t thought about why, just glad they weren’t there. That he could suffer a broken heart without witnesses. Now he could see, and it made sense Dad had played a part in that.

“Do you think I wouldn’t look at how they managed to trap you so easily? Jason set you up because you trusted him. Loved him. And ever since, you have guarded your heart. Don’t let that fucker steal the possibility of you finding someone to love.”

“Dad, no—”

The hand holding his squeezed a little harder. “No, Silas, you deserve love, the same as everyone. You were naïve, and he took advantage of that. Not all men are like him. Many have honor. All you need to do is look at popi. Whoever this omega is you arehaving sex with, he makes you smile the way your popi makes me smile, Silas.”

He was about to deny it when Dad shook his head. “He does, I can see it, so give me some credit. All I’m saying is, don’t shut yourself off to the possibility of more.” He rose before Silas could decide how to respond.

He sat for a long time, staring at the mess on the counter his beer had left. It was too much of a shock to realize that Dad had knowledge of things Silas thought only he knew. Eventually, he stood like that of an old man weighed down by the past.

He trudged up to his bedroom, his gaze going to his parents' door.

Could he put himself out there? Moreover, did he want to?

Chapter Ten

Ziggy

Rue wore a perpetual scowl as he argued with Silas, or so it seemed to Ziggy. “I need the materials delivered to Ashby. Delaying now is fucking suicide for the whole range if we want it out straight after fashion week when interest will be at its highest.”

Silas glowered back, and Ziggy crossed his legs to keep his reaction under control. “You aren’t listening to me. I’m not delaying. I understand the urgency and the impact on sales.”

The gritted teeth look was suggesting that things were about to get hairy. If Ziggy had learned anything from these meetings between the brothers, they didn’t hold back their feelings, not one iota.

“We’re just getting over one logistical hauler nightmare. Give me fucking five minutes to figure out how to get the international market exports back where they should be. I got Ziggy to email you all about Dore, so you were up to speed. That was supposed to avoid this kind of situation, Rue.”

“I got it, but nowhere in there was how we deal with getting out the materials we need for the international fashion houses, like yesterday!” Rue snapped, his eyes literally firing temper bullets at Silas who didn’t so much as flinch.

The chair Silas was sitting on creaked as he leaned back, fingers tapping on the arm of the chair that, just ten hours earlier, Silas had been tied to. “As I said—if you were listening to me—we are working to source the trucks we need to make all the fucking deliveries. The biggest hauler we had for international deliveries fucked off and left us in a hole. One Ziggy, Laken, Isley and I have worked our asses off to find a workable solution for, in both short and long term. We need time to set everything in motion, so stop riding my ass.” The threat was there, flashing in his eyes.

Did Rue pay any attention? No.

Rue rose and towered over Silas’s desk, slamming his huge hands on it, making it shift a good inch. “You like having your ass damn rode or why else would you let these fucking hauliers shaft you!”

Silas stood, matching Rue’s anger with that of his own, leaning over his desk. Ziggy felt it zinging around the room as the two alphas faced off with each other. “The only one here who likes to get shafted is you!”

Monty made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a snort, but his expression was totally professional as he watched the exchange with utter fascination, the same as Ziggy.

When Ziggy witnessed Rue clenching his huge hands into fists, he was up out of his chair ready to deflect—protectSilas. “I can stay late and go through all the suppliers and hauliers, see if any can find any additional space to get the deliveries in on time for your deadlines.” Ziggy never took his eyes off Rue, but out of the corner of his eye, he saw Silas shake his head.

“Why should you be the one working extra when this is his fucking issue?” Silas’s tone was icy and Ziggy realized too late he’d overstepped in his need to help.

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