Page 24 of Impaled By His Omega Prince
“They’re excellent preventatives but not foolproof.” Jori turned and sat beside Lumic, folding his hands in his lap. “There are options.”
The word, the way he said it,options. Lumic swallowed so hard his throat clicked.
“Options that come with consequences. We could also send you away for a while…” Jori cleared his throat. “But I’ll need a few days to get the ingredients, and screechwasp honey is nasty stuff at the best of times.”
Lumic stifled a sob and shook his head. “I need… I need to think.”
“I understand.” Jori stood and bowed his head, shuffling away and toward the door. “But whatever you decide, do it for you, not for others. You were forced, and—”
“I wasn’t forced! I loved him. Love him.” Lumic had to believe he was still alive, Askara. He reached for the quilt he’d stashed in his bed and brought it to his face.
Jori paused and nodded before patting his shoulder and leaving. Under his breath, he said something that Lumic didn’t expect. “Pray things go your way.”
And so, he did. He made his way to his window, staring at the evening sky. “Mothers, either one of you…hear me…”
Chapter Seventeen
Lumic
Pallosar paced the parlor, face pale and posture slumped. “Of all the things… Lumic! No! No. I’m not mad at you. I’m mad at the situation.”
“Stamel has three bastards and nobody cares.” Lumic’s voice came out in a hoarse croak.
“But we all know society has different rules for omegas than alphas, Lumic!” Pallosar glared at him and sneered. “This is going to make finding a partner for you a very difficult prospect if this gets out, Lumic.”
A sharp knock interrupted Pallosar’s rant as the door swung open. Oryn stood there, face a mask of pity and something else Lumic couldn’t put a finger on. Thinly veiled glee? It turned his stomach more so than his condition, and he didn’t realize why until Oryn spoke.
“I could not help but overhear what is going on.” Oryn did not look at Lumic. He kept his gaze trained on Pallosar with an expression that was nothing like his usual range. “I would like to offer a solution, if possible.”
Pallosar waved a hand to tell him to speak, eyes aflame with frustration.
“I’ll stand by Lumic. He cantake care of the situation, and I’ll wed him. I’ll restore his honor.” Oryn bowed his head low and Lumic bit his tongue to keep from laughing the alpha out of the room.
But to Lumic’s surprise, Pallosar wasn’t offended, laughing or even disapproving of the offer. He slanted his silvery eyes toward Lumic, his gaze contemplative. “Youdoknow him well.”
Lumic did know him well, and he knew him well enough to know that the alpha was an alcoholic and good for little elsethan fighting. He’d corroborated with omegas who’d lain with Oryn and knew the alpha lasted as long as snow on a summer’s eve. Beds didn’t have time to grow warm in the minutes it took him to finish and leave, whether his partner was happy or not. Lumic would never be happy with him, but he held his tongue. A delicate balance in rejection lay ahead of him.
“I am flattered you think of me that way, Oryn. Our friendship has meant much to me these past few years.” Lumic swallowed his bile as Oryn’s grin widened. Every thalm of Lumic’s body told him to reject the male, to run, to scream and fight. Intuition could be a powerful thing. Since Lumic’s first reaction was always sarcasm, the fact that he even had the thought to be kind to Oryn was a warning to his psyche.
“And since I know what you’re going through, I think I can help you. We’re a team already, and as a mated pair, we could be great.” Oryn’s bright smile didn’t meet the slime hidden deep in his gaze. Lumic had never seen anything like it before, a manifestation of something foul.
“I think it’s a lovely idea in concept, but I’ve had many suitors and have to weigh my options for the good of the country.” Lumic cleared his throat and glanced warily at his father, who didn’t look displeased, still entertaining the option. “I wish to speak to my fathers. Both of them.”
Oryn’s grin faltered, bile beneath it. The slight shift of his gaze made Lumic scramble for words. “I’ll have an answer for you in a day.”
Pallosar clapped his hands and smiled joyfully before whispering a spell, a pretty little butterfly of thalmic light fluttering about as it whisked by. “Kershai will be on his way.”
Lumic avoided his omega father’s attention for all of two minutes before he gave his son a quick gesture.
Cutting his gaze to the side, the expression on his father’s face was anything but entertaining. In a breath, not even a whisper, Pallosar spoke. “I do not trust him one bit.”
Lumic nodded in agreement and glanced back toward the door, watching the shadows underneath slip idly by this way and that. Despite not being needed, Oryn hovered about the door, eavesdropping no doubt. “I think Da and I will have much to talk about. I cannot tell you how sorry I am—I did the best I could.”
“I understand, Lumic. I really do. Coming off nightflower and being stressed, it’s no wonder you succumbed to an alpha’s advances. It’s a tragedy.” Pallosar cast his wary gaze toward the door, his shoulders tensing.
“I’m sorry. I cannot say more than that.” Lumic’s voice cracked, and the silence stretched on for a pause nearly as pregnant as he was.
A booming voice from outside rang out. “Oryn! Why are you in Lumic’s parlor?”
