Sophie Oak: Sirens in Bliss

Harper sighed. “He shouldn’t have stayed as long as he did.”

Leo frowned. “That’s an odd statement.”

Harper stopped for a moment as though he was deciding what to say. “He wasn’t cut out to be a father, you know. I think he tried his hardest, but it would have been better for all of us if he’d deserted our momma.”

Leo was deeply confused. “You’re happy he left you?”

“No. I was pissed as shit at the time. But I’m an adult now and things look differently from this side. I loved my momma. She was a good woman. She stood by her man even when she shouldn’t have. Don’t feel sorry for me. It’s not like I didn’t have male role models. I had Hiram and Mel and Bill. Sure, Hi thinks bears are out to get him. Mel hunts aliens and Bill is always naked, but they helped a boy out. I just think Momma could have found someone who would have loved her better.”

“So you knew your mother and father weren’t in love?”

Harper sucked the juice off a wing. “I don’t know that anyone could really love my daddy. It’s not that he was a complete ass, he just was closed off. I think he cared about my momma, but he didn’t know how to really love someone.”

“Your mother died when you were young?” He’d heard a couple of stories.

“I was barely eighteen. When Momma died the man who called himself my dad left. He left me and Rye with my sister, Brooke. She was just seven at the time. We had to work real hard because we couldn’t let the state come in and take her. But then I met my Rach. Lots of things changed after I met my Rach. Love, really loving a woman and being loved back, that’s the most important thing in the world. My momma was a good woman. She deserved to be some man’s whole world.”

Why the hell was this man insane? He made total sense. He had all the working parts to be a functional man. So why did Max Harper insist on being an asshole?

Maybe he just chose to be.

“Leonardo?”

Leo turned his head, following the sound that came from his left. A man stood there. Leo would peg him somewhere in his sixties. He was well dressed, though the clothes were of middling quality. He stared at the man trying to figure out who the hell he was.

“Yes?”

“Leonardo, I’m your father. I thought we could talk.”

Harper pointed a wing his way. “Now we’re getting to the drama. Nice.”

Leo shook his head, hoping he was hallucinating. Maybe the strong odor of Harper’s superhot chicken wings was causing him to see things. Because this shit just couldn’t be happening right before his wedding. He had enough to deal with. He didn’t need a long-lost father.

“What do you want?” He stared at the man who had supplied half his DNA. The man didn’t look anything like the father he remembered, but then a young mind could play tricks. Memory was a fragile thing. The man who stood in front of him was so much older than he remembered, his face showing decades of hard living.

A deep frown crossed Robert Meyer’s face. “I told you in my e-mail. I just want to talk to my son.”

“I find your timing deeply interesting,” Leo replied.

Max watched the byplay like he was invested in a tennis match. His eyes went from Leo to Robert and back again as he munched down on his precious hot wings. “Do you find it interesting because he doesn’t show back up in your life until you’re just about to get married so it’s at the worst possible time?”

Did he really need Max’s input? “Yes. That was what I meant.”

Max smiled and nodded as though giving them permission to continue. “I found that interesting, too. He’s probably here to blackmail you.”

“I am not.” Robert shook his head, but there was something in his father’s eyes that made Leo think he was lying.

The fucker.

“I just want to talk, Leonardo. I think your mother has been lying to you about me for a long time. Isn’t it time to put the past behind us and be a family again?”

Max pointed a wing at Robert. “You found out how much money he’s worth, didn’t you?” His brow furrowed as he looked to Leo. “You are worth a lot, right? I mean you work for that crazy rich Julian fellow so you’re bound to be loaded.”

“You work for Lodge? I’ve heard of him.” Robert’s face turned thoughtful. “He’s an interesting man. Your job must be fascinating, Leo. You’ve done so well for yourself.”

“Cut the crap.” He didn’t feel like playing around. “What do you want? Look, I have no idea what you’ve been doing or where you’ve been. If you have some misconception that Wolf and I have spent our lives wondering about you, you’re wrong. We grew up just fine without you. If you have a deep need to reconnect, try me again after the wedding.”

His father’s cheeks flushed a slight red, a sure sign of irritation. This obviously wasn’t going the way he’d planned.

“I think the shrink is trying to tell you to get lost or he’s going to hire me to shove a baseball bat straight up your rear.” Max nodded. “I’ll give a real good rate on that. He was married to Cassidy, right? Real fine lady. Crazy as fuck, but nice.”

“Are you threatening me, you asshole?” His father’s pleasant mask dropped. Ah, now Leo remembered him.

“Go away, Robert. I don’t want to talk to you. I’ve moved on with my life. I suggest you move on with yours. Otherwise, I might have to take Mr. Harper up on his offer.”

Max let out a long sigh. “Please do. Rach won’t let me kill anyone anymore. It’s been months.”

Robert moved back, his mouth a stubborn grimace. “Don’t think this is over, Leo.”

Max leaned over. “So he just e-mailed you? I don’t believe in e-mail. It’s just one more way for people to try to get you to do shit for them. You should be like me. Just get rid of it and don’t reload it again.”

Leo felt like growling. His father might have walked away long ago, but it looked like Leo couldn’t delete the fucker.

Aidan, Lexi, and Lucas

Lucas waited patiently as Aidan rode in. He was sitting on top of a gorgeous brown and white mustang, his spine straight, sweat on his brow.

Working man. Cowboy. Sweat and leather. It should disgust him, but his cock just sprang right up.

He needed Aidan because he couldn’t have Lexi. That wasn’t exactly right. He needed Aidan, but he needed to fuck Aidan right now because he couldn’t have Lexi.

Aidan’s head came up and a smile lit his face. At least he could still make his Master smile.

Aidan brought the horse he was riding to a stop and gracefully dismounted, his body so long and lean that it made Lucas’s mouth water.

Of course after coming so close to getting Lexi into bed, his body was primed for sex. He’d been in cock hell ever since that moment when he thought she would take his hand and let him lead her away for a few stolen hours. He’d envisioned laying her out and topping her, ordering her to suck his cock before he tied her up and fucked her six ways from Sunday.

It had been so long since he’d gotten to top her. It had been months—since before Chelsea had been born, and even then she’d been pregnant. He’d had to be tender and gentle, and sometimes he just needed some rough.

“Is something wrong?” Aidan had a tight rein on the lead.

He must look ferocious. Damn. He had to keep a lid on it or he would scare the fuck out of his Master. He couldn’t let Aidan know just how angry he was.

Shove it down. Don’t be a pain. Be helpful. It’s the only way you might have a shot at saving this. “I just thought I would come out here and see how your day was going.”

“Hey, I’ll put up Ghost for you.” One of Trev’s hands took the reins. “Thanks for all your help, O’Malley.”