“So’s mine.”
“Do you have a clock in this room?”
“No. I hardly ever sleep here. I mean, my dad seriously only uses this yacht about three times a year. Whenever he’s got a big fundraiser in the summer and he wants to impress a bunch of people. The rest of the year we live in the Bitar.”
“You mean the governor’s mansion?” Holden repeated, raising his eyebrows. “The one near Laurelwood Park?”
I looked down at the comforter and picked at a piece of fuzz. I really hadn’t planned on telling him any of this. “Yeah, my dad is the governor of Oregon.”
“Dang. So, that’s why he was doing a fundraiser with all those famous people last night. I thought I saw Cameron Styles talking to Chief of Police Adams when we snuck past the bar. I was wondering why they were down there.”
“Yeah, they’re both friends with my dad. Or whatever you call bigwig people who donate lots of money.”
“I don’t want to pry, but you don’t sound too happy about any of this,” Holden said, gesturing to the room with his hand. “The party, the yacht … your dad.”
“I know. I probably sound like a spoiled asshole. I have so much more than so many people, and I’m complaining.” I sighed. I usually didn’t like talking about any of this, not even with my best friends, but there was something about Holden. I wanted to tell him everything. I wanted him to know the real me, instead of just seeing me as a rich kid who’s had it made his whole life. “It’s my relationship with my dad that’s the main problem. I know I’m not the son he’s always dreamed of. He makes that clear to me pretty much every day. I guess I feel like a failure no matter what I do, and this morning it’s hitting me really hard.”
“You mean, because you’re …” Holden held his finger over my belly and made a circular motion.
It was such a funny way to refer to me being pregnant that I couldn’t help but laugh. “Yeah, because I’m pregnant. My dad is seriously gonna kill me.”
“Hmmm.” The sound of Holden’s deep voice and his sexy lopsided grin made me feel better, but it was only temporary. As soon as I remembered what my dad had said to me last night I was pissed again.
“He even said something about this exact thing right before the party.”
“About you getting pregnant?”
“Yeah.”
I opened my mouth and almost kept talking, but suddenly I stopped. I was tired of talking about my dad, and thinking about him. He was such a dick, and imagining how he’d view me now, knowing that I was pregnant, pretty much sucked all the joy out of it for me.
The thing was, there was a part of me that was excited about the idea of being pregnant with Holden’s baby. I knew that was crazy, and that I didn’t know him very well at all, but I honestly didn’t regret anything that happened between us. It was actually really amazing. If there really was such a thing as love at first sight, that’s exactly what it felt like happened last night.
“What did he say?” Holden asked, after I hadn’t said anything for a while.
I shook my head. “It doesn’t matter. Even if I wasn’t pregnant he’d find something else to be pissed off about. Believe me.”
Holden pulled back the covers and put his warm hand on my stomach. “So, how do you know? Can you feel it?”
I closed my eyes for a moment. “Yeah, kinda. I mean, I can’t feel anything inside me. I just feel different this morning.”
I looked back up into Holden’s eyes. I wanted to tell him one of the reasons I felt different was because of him. I suddenly had all these overwhelming feelings, feelings I’d never had about anyone before. I felt so comfortable with him, and so safe. But I didn’t want to freak him out, so I didn’t say anything.
“Well, I just want to let you know that no matter what you decide, I’ll totally be behind you. I’ll take you to the clinic and pay for anything you want to have done. I won’t leave you stranded like this. I promise.”
Welp, I thought. There’s my answer.
I was so glad I had stopped myself. If I’d told him that I thought I was in love with him he probably would’ve laughed his ass off. This was clearly just a one night thing for him. Without using the word, he was basically telling me he would help me pay for an abortion.
“Thanks,” I said, looking down. “But I’ve got money. You don’t have to worry about any of that.”
“I’m serious, Brent. I want to help you in any way I can.”
I could feel Holden’s eyes on me, but I couldn’t look up. I had this crazy feeling I’d start crying if I did, and I absolutely didn’t want to cry right now. No one wants to be around a sad, sobbing, pregnant omega.
“Hey, let’s get dressed,” I said, changing the subject. “I’m sure our clothes are dry by now.”
I managed to get out of bed and cross the room without having to look at Holden, and as soon as I started pulling up my pants the feeling of tears welling up in my eyes thankfully passed. I took a deep breath and turned around to face him. “We should be good if we go down the stairs we came up last night. They go to the kitchen and my dad is hardly ever in there. We should be able to sneak out without him seeing either one of us.”
Holden nodded his head and I opened my bedroom door, then the two of us walked as quietly as possible down the hallway. When we got to the kitchen I peeked my head around the door and didn’t see anyone, so I motioned for Holden to follow me, thinking the coast was clear. But it wasn’t.
“There you are! I thought maybe you fell overboard.” I froze when I heard my dad’s voice, and when I turned around I saw him standing in front of the fridge with a bowl in his hand. “And who’s this? A special guest?”
I glanced at Holden, and he looked terrified. The situation seemed hilarious all of a sudden, and I would have laughed if I wasn’t so worried about my dad sensing that I was pregnant. He knew my scent and I didn’t want to get too close to him. “Dad, this is Holden. Holden, this is my dad … er … Governor Evans. We were both just heading out.” I turned to lead Holden out of the kitchen, but my dad had other plans.
“Why don’t the two of you stay for lunch? We’ve got all these leftovers, and Bruce has set out a nice spread on deck. He’s an internationally trained chef, you know. And you can call me Jonathan, by the way,” my dad said as he extended his hand to Holden. “No need for any formalities among friends.”
“No,” I said, cutting the handshake off. “Holden has to get to work, don’t you, Holden.”
Holden looked like a deer caught in headlights. He quickly glanced at me, then over at my dad, and before Holden could say anything, my dad put his arm around his shoulder and guided him out of the kitchen. “Oh, come on. There’s plenty of food. You can’t skip the most important meal of the day. Especially after, what I can only imagine, was a very eventful night with my son.”
“Dad!” I yelled, but he was already out on the deck with Holden. “Jesus!”
I followed them out onto the deck. It was sunny and I really wished I’d brought my sunglasses with me. I had a headache and a hangover and I really just wanted to get back in bed.
“So, what is this job you have to get to?” my dad asked as he sat down a the table.
Holden pulled a chair out and perched on the end of it. I could tell he was really uncomfortable, and I couldn’t blame him. I’d been around my dad my whole life and he even made me uncomfortable.
The table was filled with plates and trays and bowls of food, and it all seemed so excessive, considering it was just my dad at the table before we got there. But I had to admit I was pretty excited to see everything. I was ravenous.
“I … uh … I own my own business,” Holden said as he filled his plate.
“Ah, an entrepreneur! Now that’s what I like to see. A man with ambition. So what is this business of yours?”
“Well, I guess you could sort of call it catering. I provide food for people who are hanging out on the Willamina River,” Holden said, gesturing over his shoulder. “People who
are out there boating or swimming, they get hungry and thirsty, so my business is to provide things for them to eat and drink.”
“Fascinating! I can’t believe I’ve never heard of this sort of thing. Did you come up with the idea yourself?”
“Yeah, well, I suppose so. For this city, anyway. It’s something I had read about a while ago. On the Mediterranean, for example. There are some similar services for all of the people who visit the beaches and water in the summer.”
“And those people who are swimming, how do you get paid if they’re in their bathing suits?”
“Well, I’ve been doing this for a couple years now, so the regulars know that I’ll be there. I have a route that I take, and I always stop at the same spots around the same time every day, especially on the weekends. So, usually people have their money handy. I can pull up right along the boats and the docks. But for people who are swimming, I’ll pull close to the shore, and that way people can wade back and forth to get their money and their food. It works out pretty well.”
“That’s fabulous! And as it fairly lucrative?”
“Dad!” I practically yelled. “Quit bothering Holden! Let him eat!”
I wanted my dad to leave Holden alone, but I wasn’t exactly sure what to change the subject to. At least when my dad was focused on Holden’s business he wasn’t paying any attention to me.
I’d made sure to sit across the table so I wasn’t upwind of my dad. I didn’t want to give him any indication that I might be pregnant. To be completely honest, I wasn’t one-hundred-percent sure of it myself, but I had a very strong feeling.
Like I told Holden, I felt different. Also, I couldn’t seem to get enough food in my stomach. I piled my plate high, and no matter how much I shoveled in my mouth it just didn’t feel like I was getting anywhere near full. My stomach felt like a bottomless pit that went on forever and ever.
Luckily Bruce came to the table just then and distracted my dad. “I had security call the authorities, sir. They said they’ll be taking care of the situation presently.”
“Thank you very much, Bruce.”
“Anything else, sir?”
“I’ll have some more coffee, thank you.”
“Of course.”
“Authorities? For what?” I asked as Bruce went to get the coffee carafe.
“Oh, there’s been a few eyesores mooring in this area lately. Almost making this stretch of the pier look like a shantytown. I noticed one in particular this morning that was very rough. It barely looked seaworthy. So I had Bruce call the authorities. Hopefully they’ll be able to do something before all sorts of low-quality vessels start to move in.”
Holden stood up so fast his chair almost fell backward. “Thank you so much for breakfast … er … Lunch, sir. It was very good. But I really do have to be going.”
“So soon? I’m sorry to hear that. I’d love to hear more about your business, son. You’re welcome back anytime”
Holden was already halfway across the deck. “Thank you! That would be great! I’ll talk to you soon, Brent … I mean, see you later!”
And just like that, Holden was gone. I didn’t have his phone number and he didn’t have mine. Neither one of us even had a phone anymore. The thing was, I didn’t actually have the money to buy us new phones, even though I told Holden I’d take care of it. I hadn’t had a real job in a while, and I usually lived off of the money I got from my dad. And I was pretty sure my dad would be upset if I put two brand new phones on his credit card.
I was going to have to figure out how to swing it. I’d promised Holden. Besides, it was the only excuse I could think of to see him again. And those two things—seeing Holden again, and making good on my promise—were suddenly the most important things in the world to me.
Chapter 6
Holden
I ran as fast as I could down the plank to the wooden dock, up to the pier that ran along the river, then down to the dock where my Treat Boat was tied up. There was no way I could afford to get towed. I mean, I wasn’t even sure there was a tow truck for boats, but I sure as hell didn’t want to find out. I couldn’t lose my only source of income, especially during the busiest season of the year.
When I spotted my cute little boat bobbing up and down at the end of the dock, right where I’d left it, I breathed a huge sigh of relief. I didn’t see any cops around, or coast guard, or whoever patrolled the river and pier, but I didn’t want to wait around for them to show up.
I ran down the dock, untied my boat, then jumped on board. I turned the key to fire up the engine, but nothing happened. There was a sputter, and a low moan, but it wouldn’t start.
“Goddamnit! Start, you stupid boat! I need to get out of here!”
I tried two more times with no success, then picked up a metal rod and hit the engine a couple times. It was a trick that usually worked when it was making this exact noise.
“Come on!” I yelled. I swore to myself that as soon as I had some extra money I’d get a new one. I just didn’t know when that would be. I hit the engine one more time for good measure, then I threw the rod down. But my heart sank into my stomach when I heard a voice behind me.
“Excuse me, young man! I’m going to need to see some identification!”
I turned around and a couple of uniformed cops were walking up the dock beside my boat. One of them grabbed a hook and pulled my boat back to the dock, then held it there in place with his foot so I couldn’t go anywhere.
“Hey,” I said, waving at the cops. “Have I done anything wrong?”
I actually knew I wasn’t supposed to be moored there. I’d only planned on leaving my boat there for an hour last night, but that hour turned into at least twelve, maybe more.
“There have been reports of suspicious activity around here lately. We’re going to have to see your identification and your slip registration.”
I fished in my pocket for my wallet, then pulled out my boating license and docking permit. “I don’t have a slip registration, but I’ve got a temporary docking permit. I use my boat to deliver food up and down the river. I was just dropping something off for a party on one of the yachts, and this was the only place I could find to tie up my boat.”
The cop glanced at me, then at the pieces of ID I gave him. He had that suspicious look that most cops had, like everyone but them was trying to pull a fast one, but finally he handed my ID back to me. “Okay, you can go. But next time try to find a better place to stop. This isn’t a very good spot.”
“Will do,” I said, saluting the cop for some bizarre reason. I was annoyed but didn’t want the cop to know it. I was lucky to get off like I did. But it irked me that I was being treated like a potential criminal because my Treat Boat didn’t fit in. I knew the only reason they were asking for my ID was because I didn’t have a fancy yacht. There was absolutely nothing wrong with my boat. Everyone in this section of the pier were discriminating against it because it was old.
I’d done a ton of work on it to get it into excellent shape. Yeah, it needed a new motor, but the body was solid. It wasn’t going to sink or fall apart or anything, I made sure of that. But they obviously didn’t care. None of the people in this rich part of the pier gave a damned about anything that wasn’t fancy and new. They probably couldn’t stand the thought of looking at anything they thought was old or beneath them. I knew this wouldn’t be happening if I had new speedboat, or a mega yacht, like Brent’s dad.
“Just be careful,” the cop said. “We’ve got a holiday weekend coming up, and there are going to be a lot of boats out there. We don’t need any accidents.”
“Yeah,” I said, putting my ID away. “Sure thing.”
I waited until I turned around to roll my eyes. I couldn’t believe the cop added that part on at the end, telling me to be careful. He had no idea what kind of boat captain I was.
I wanted to get the hell out of there. I hated having the cops standing around staring at me while I tried to start my boat again.
“Yo
u’re not a stupid boat,” I whispered. “Just start this time, okay?”
But to my relief, I heard the cop’s footsteps as they made their way down the dock, and within a few seconds they were up on the pier and out of sight.
I took a deep breath. It felt good to know that they were gone, but I needed a second to collect my thoughts. I didn’t really understand why, but for some reason I was really distracted. Even through all of this—running to my boat, and getting a talking to from the cops—I couldn’t stop thinking about that omega. About his incredible scent, and everything that had happened last night.
It was all so unexpected. I seriously was not that kind of guy. I’d never actually had a one night stand before. I’d never even had sex with anyone that I hadn’t dated a few times. In fact, I preferred to not sleep with someone until I’d gotten to know them—talked to them about their preferences, and had some kind of feeling about our compatibility. But somehow, last night I lost complete control. I’d knotted inside complete stranger.
I stood there and thought about Brent for a few minutes. About his eyes, and the way he looked up at me, especially when he was sucking my cock. It was an image I couldn’t get out of my head. I kept seeing those eyes and smelling Brent’s incredible scent. It didn’t help that it was lingering on my skin, and somehow, even on my clothes. It was like his scent permeated everything that was in the room.
I just wanted to get home and take a shower and try to forget everything that happened, even if it was just for an hour. But I had a feeling there was no way I would be able to. I knew what I’d done, and I knew eventually I was going to have to take responsibility for my actions.
I went to the helm and turned the key, and the engine fired right up.
“Hell, yes!” I yelled. “Treat Boat, for the win!”
I didn’t wait even two seconds before I hit the gas and got the hell out of there. I knew I’d be back. I was telling Brent the truth. I would help him in any way I could, even if he decided he wanted to keep it. My head was still so messed up from everything that had happened last night and this morning, and I was confused about what I was feeling.
Portville Summer Series: The Complete Collection Books 1-4: (MM Nonshifter Omegaverse) Page 32