Page 3 of Adding Fuel To The Flames

This argument was always the same and, quite frankly, Rhys was tired of fighting about it. "Dad, I keep telling you, I didn't kiss that guy. He gave me the creeps. He is the one that grabbed me, not the other way around. I tried to get him to let me go, but he was damn near seven feet tall and built like a brick shit house. When I slammed my knee into his balls, he got a bit testy, no pun intended."

Dain scoffed, "Yeah, whatever, just please be careful."

It hurt Rhys that his father didn't believe him, but he was used to it. For some reason his dad always took everyone elses’ side. The thing was, the guy that night really gave him the fucking heebie-jeebies. Rhys wished he had never gone to that fucking club, but he had been working so hard since coming from the other realm and he wanted to relax, take some time, and have a bit of fun. Dancing was always something Rhys loved to do. Besides it being relaxing, it often gave him a way to get out there and maybe find his mates. He figured Aspen had some real sexy ski instructors, and it would be a great place to go. Damn, he had fucked up on that choice. Instead of an enjoyable evening and some down time, he found himself being attacked by that behemoth of a man, and if the stalking shit was any sign, brick shit house had decided that Rhys was going to be his.

"Rhys, this place isn't like it used to be. You are going to get hurt or worse. You need to stop flaunting your shit and making passes at people," Dain argued.

"I didn't make a pass at that fuck wad. He damn near killed me because I said no! I keep telling you, I didn’t like the bastard on sight, and I refused to dance with him. I refused to go with him to one of those private rooms. The fucktard grabbed me and started dragging me towards a room anyway. I kicked. I screamed. If it hadn't been for one of the bouncers, who in the hell knows what that prick would have done to me. While the bouncer was dealing with him I took off. I was going to open a portal to get my ass home, but somehow that son of a bitch got to me before I could do shit," Rhys yelled.

"Enough, Rhys. I don't want to hear another word," Dain snarled.

Rhys felt like he did when he was a child. His nanny would break one of his father's vases, or someone would steal something from his room and it was Rhys that would get the blame. Not able to tolerate another second of shared space with the man who donated his sperm for his birth, Rhys turned and headed out of the cellar. Dain was yelling, "Rhys, I'm not through talking to you."

Rhys took the stairs faster, but Dain just wouldn't take the hint. "Rhys, I said I wasn't through talking to you."

"But I am finished talking to you," Rhys hissed, rushing up the stairs as fast as he could.

The construction on the club was almost finished, but there was still a lot of pounding and saw sounds all around him. However, he would rather hear the sounds of construction, then listen to another word exit his father's mouth.

Dain grabbed Rhys' arm. "Son, listen to me. I understand that things got out of hand, but you can't go around leading men on and expecting a different result."

That was just it! Rhys felt his anger building and knew there was no way to stop it from happening. He pulled at his arm, but his father refused to let him go. Through gritted teeth, Rhys snarled, "Let me the fuck go. I didn't lead that man on. I didn't do anything! For the love of all the Gods, I said no! That man attacked me, father. He used some kind of power on me that made mine utterly useless."

Rhys saw that damn look cross his father's face and knew the man didn't believe a word Rhys had to say. Fury like nothing he ever felt before came over him. "Go away, father."

Dain sighed and shook his head. "Maybe if you didn't dress like you do or wear your hair like a girl, or even put all that makeup on, men wouldn't constantly come at you like a wanton. Maybe if you...."

"Oh, by the fucking Gods, are you serious?" Rhys shouted, stopping all construction around him and not caring. "I like how I look. There is nothing wrong with how I look, or what I wear, or do to my hair and eyes. It does not give anyone the right to touch me if I don't want to be touched. I said no and that should have been the end of it. This fucker did not take no for an answer!"

Rhys turned to leave when all his anger turned to sadness. Dropping his hands down in front of him, Rhys stared at his empty hands. Turning around, Rhys asked in a tear-filled voice, "Why did you ever want a child?"

Dain looked taken aback by the question. "What the hell kind of question is that?"

Shrugging Rhys replied, "Just answer it. Why did you ever want a child? You were never around. You and I never really did anything together unless it was for royal business."

"Rhys, I have loved you since the moment you were conceived, and we did a lot of things together. It just seems you can never remember those times. I just don't want you hurt. You mean the world to me,” Dain argued.

Shaking his head, Rhys wiped a tear as it slid down his cheek. "I don't believe you. Actions speak louder than words, father. All I ever wanted was someone to love me for me. I knew if I could find my mates my life would finally be happy and perfect. I always knew that they would love me no matter what. My mates would care if someone tried to harm me, and they wouldn't blame me for everything that ever went wrong in their life."

Dain squeezed Rhys' arm gently. "Rhys, I do love you. It's just..."

Rhys felt sadder by the second, shaking his head, saying, "See, that's just it, Dad. With unconditional love, there isn't any 'It's just' starting a sentence."

Rhys turned to leave and saw two of the most handsome men he had ever set eyes on in his life. The one had short dark hair and stood damn near seven feet tall and he held a much smaller man that was even shorter than Rhys' own five foot five, but he had the most beautiful long dark hair that Rhys knew would tickle his chest in the best of ways.

Sauntering over to them, Rhys sounded even more sensual than he ever could remember. "Please say there is some way I can help you."

"For the love of...Rhys, that is Day and his mate Ethan!" Dain hissed.

Rhys felt his heart beating faster and his palms start to sweat. Ethan stepped forward holding out his hand. "It's nice to finally meet you, Rhys. My mate and I have heard some very interesting things about you."

Rhys could listen to this man talk all day and night. The sound was more lyrical than some of the best music Rhys had ever heard.

Day stepped forward and his voice brought chills of desire racing from the tips of his toes straight to his balls. "Hello, Rhys. Ethan and I came to talk with you."

"What are you here to talk to my son about?" Dain asked in confusion.

Rhys watched Day shake his head in annoyance. "Dain, I liked you from the moment I met you. However, right now I am really not sure how I feel."