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Silas

The scent of sex as Silas’s dad entered the boardroom was very off-putting.

He really didn’t want to think about his parents getting down and dirty at the office.

Hell no. And after the shock of the bombshell his parents had dropped about retiring four hours earlier, Silas was already struggling to get his thoughts in order.

Booker had come up with a speech and as he was the oldest, his six brothers had all volunteered him to deliver it.

Shitheads! They always did this to him, pushed him forward.

He didn’t sigh, it was pointless.

Dad’s gaze swept the room and Silas saw the flash of resignation before he took his usual seat at the boardroom table. How would it be without him there?

Silas just couldn’t envision Dad not being there. Didn’t want to, when it meant that he was going to have to return to Hazardville permanently. The clutch in his belly came again at what that meant.

Dad had barely sat before Silas launched into the rehearsed speech.

“Dad, this is an honor you and Popi are bestowing onus. We all see that. We are all grateful for the trust you’ve placed in us to continue the business.

We don’t want to mess with the success of the business.

You have always been the face of the company… a shifter… not divergents.”

Silas winced internally as he stuttered his way through the first bit, trying not to look at his father’s wolf.

A shifter, Dad had bucked society’s expectations of mating with another shifter.

When he’d met Popi, it had been love at first sight.

His parents' love story was epic and had lasted four decades, despite his Popi being divergent. They had forged a fashion empire on acceptance of all. Silas was proud of his parents. Of their achievements, he just wanted them to continue with what they’d always done.

“I’m proud of every one of you. You are the face of this company and have been out there doing business for years and slaying it in a competitive market.

If folks don’t like it, just to be clear, they can go fuck themselves.

We don’t need those types of people associated with our business. Now is that all?”Dad asked.

A hot ball of tears gathered in the back of Silas’s throat and his eyes ached as his brothers grinned at Dad’s not so eloquent turn of phrase.

The silence was deafening, and Silas didn’t have a response to how Dad wiped away any concern he had about Silas being the figurehead of the business.

They all had to work together and if they couldn’t agree then Hollis Adice, head of the PAs, would step in and cast the deciding vote.

Silas didn’t voice aloud what he really thought about that decision and went on to the next point.

“Okay… then, can we discuss the living arrangements? Although we understand you feel it might be best to run the business from Hazardville, it’s not our home any longer.

We have homes and have settled down in cities elsewhere—”

Dad held up his hand, one silver brow arching as he tilted his head. “Settled down how?” His sharp gaze traveled across the room. “None of you have a partner to consider, do you?”

Jupiter, the most averse of them all to having a relationship of any kind beyond fucking, spluttered and reddened. “Partner…god no.”

He sounded as horrified as some of his brothers looked, as one by one they shook their heads in reply to Dad’s question.

Silas shifted uncomfortably in his seat, but Dad kept his gaze on Taylin.

They all knew Taylin had the hots for Hollis.

“So you own properties you’ve invested in, yes?

I’ve visited those places. None of you have more than a bed and possibly a table with chairs in them.

Is that your interpretation of settling down? ”

Silas easily caught on, sat forward, his hands bunched on the table in front of him, a wild fluttering in his chest making it hard to get his words out. “Is this about us not having boyfriends?”

Silas had not had a long-term boyfriend in several years and he had no intention of getting one to please his parents. Fuck that! Coming home was one thing…

Life was too crazy. He didn’t have the energy for it.

“No. I’m just assessing how coming back here to live affects y’all that you’d object to our wishes about that?

It’s not a backward small town where nothing happens.

” His expression softened. “Your Popi needs me here with him. His body is changing, aging, and those changes are hard for him to deal with when I’m not there for him.

They are hard for me too,” Dad confessed, and there it was, the guilt.

Guilt made it impossible for Silas to fight against what his parents needed.

It was selfish when they’d given them all so much.

“Dad, why didn’t you say something?” Booker asked, his voice thicker than normal.

“I’m telling you now. I need you all to pull together for me and Popi. And having you all close will help with that too. He misses you all so much.”

Kodi gave a heartfelt sigh. “You brought out the big guns.”

Dad’s eyes twinkled with mirth. “It’s the truth.

I need y’all to be in the same place to make this work and for the company to continue to expand and grow the way it is.

The expansion has happened because of your commitment.

The shared goal of inclusion. Our company policies have changed government policy and to continue that good work, there needs to be cohesive measures in place.

Ones that don’t need to include me. And you were wrong earlier, you guys are the face of this company.

So, can you do this for me? For your Popi? ”

When Dad looked at him, there was the love that so many divergents had never experienced from their parents. “Yes, we can.”

A grin revealed the dimple he had on his left cheek when Silas glanced in Jupiter’s direction. To lighten the mood he said, tongue in cheek, “Although I’m not gonna be responsible for the complaints from the staff that don’t know Jupiter can’t keep his snake in his trousers.”

“Screw you! You’re just jealous ‘cause”—Jupiter glanced at Laken—“what was the name of the little beta who followed me around town when I was seventeen?”

“The pimply kid or the one who had the long bangs that covered his eyes and made him trip all the time?” Laken gave him a gleeful smirk, the asshole.

“The bangs!” Jupiter exclaimed.

“Ray… no scrap that, it was Reggie.”

“Stop encouraging him,” Silas snapped, a scowl forming over his flushed features.

He hated to think about just how much of a sap he’d been over Reggie, a snake shifter.

Silas had along time fascination with snakes, which had started when he’d seen Reggie shift.

Not that he’d tell his brothers that, except for Booker, who he shared everything with.

“You pined over Reggie for months and all he could see was my gorgeous self,” Jupiter preened, his eyes glowing with mischief.

“Does it ever get old, loving yourself that much?” Kari groaned. He used the most put upon voice that tickled Silas with how much he sounded like a parent when he used it.

Jupiter, whose smile drew admiring looks from men and women, beamed at them all. “Look who’s talking! And nope.” His hand flicked down his body. The suit he wore was form fitting and styled to emphasize his willowy frame. “Someone’s gotta love all this amazingness.”

Silas got an ache just under his heart at recalling a time that Jupiter never talked about, how he came to be a part of their family. What he’d looked like when Dad had carried him into the house. Inside was still the boy who’d been tossed aside by his parents to be used by the pack for…

No, Silas didn’t want to dwell on something that made him sick to his stomach. He got up and rounded the table to drag Jupiter up out of the chair, giving him a bear hug. The rich scent of amber filled Silas’s nose as he held him tight. “We all love your ugly mug, asshole.”

“You speak for yourself,” Booker said, no hint of sarcasm as he winked at Silas over Jupiter’s head.

Dad’s gaze held Silas’s, his expression revealing none of his thoughts. “So, does this mean y’all have given up your attempt to change my mind?”

Several hours later, Silas couldn’t figure out how Dad had turned the tables on them so fast and made them give up so easily.

An extensive conversation with Ethan, the manager of his ranch who was expecting him back to deal with several issues, just exacerbated Silas’ frustration.

Ethan had been very vocal about being left with the additional workload when Silas had no timeframe to return to Darling Ranch. His haven.

His sanity.

Silas blew out a breath and got out of the company car.

“Do you require me to wait, sir?”

Silas tugged on his tie, which felt like it was strangling him, and shook his head. He needed to let off steam and had no plans on leaving Hidden Desires until he had. “No March, you can leave.”

With a nod, Silas closed the door and stalked up to the nondescript building in front of him, hearing the departing car crunching over the gravel.

The exterior gave nothing away about what was inside one of the most exclusive omega heat clubs in this part of the country.

Just on the outskirts of Hazardville, Silas had been a VIP member since the age of twenty-five, when it had opened.

He tapped in the code to unlock the exterior door, which led into a private lobby.

Cast in red, the black flocked wallpaper looked like a velvet cape covering the walls.

The thick, red carpet cushioned the sound as he walked towards the double doors in front of him.

No noise penetrated the area, thanks to the building’s soundproofing.

They had also used extra insulation materials to block out the smells from the omegas in heat.

What he smelled in the lobby was only the scents others wore. Beyond was wholly different.