Silence came again. This time it was longer. Ashley, who had been silently watching her son’s reaction for a while, slowly leaned back in her chair as if she had expected it.
“If you’re not sure, then that’s just a lie.”
Grayson’s lips lifted again at his usual cold tone.
“What I feel is definitely love. It’s different from before.”
“Really?”
Ashley snickered and asked.
“Do you know what Dane Striker feels?”
Grayson’s eyes moved for the first time. They moved to one side, stopped there for a moment, and then returned to their original position.
“Maybe?”
Ashley sat up from her chair as if it was time. He gave orders to his son, who was following him.
“You stay here. Don’t come out until I say it’s time.”
“Yes.”
Grayson obediently sat back down in his chair. Ashley checked him and left the reception room. An employee was standing outside guarding the door.
“Don’t let Grayson come out.”
“Yes, I understand.”
When Ashley ordered, the employee immediately answered and blocked the door with his body. Only then did Ashley move her feet and walk down the hallway.
Knock knock, Dane and Koi turned their heads at the same time at the sudden knock. The door opened between them and Ashley appeared.
“Ash! ...... Grayson?”
Koi, who had happily stood up, quickly glanced behind him and asked. Ashley answered him in a flat tone.
“I told you to stay in the reception room. I have something to say.”
“What do you want to say?”
When Koi tilted his head, Ashley shifted her gaze to Dane.
“Dane Striker, can I talk to you for a moment?”
Dane stopped at the cold voice. Why did that man suddenly come to me? Koi was also curious. Ashley, who signaled Dane to come out with her finger, said to Koi, who was trying to follow her.
“You wait here, don’t come out.”
“Uh.......”
Koi looked back and forth between Dane and Ashley as if he was flustered, but soon sat back down on his chair with a resigned expression. Dane felt strange because the atmosphere seemed somehow familiar.
When he went out, an employee was standing in front of the door. As Dane walked after Ashley, he immediately blocked the door they had come out of. As if he would not allow anyone to enter. He thought he couldn’t tell whether he was locking Koi up or trying to prevent someone from intruding, but suddenly he remembered something he had forgotten.
〈There’s a villa my father built nearby.〉
〈He must have tried to confine Daddy.〉
Dane felt strange again at the fact that the man who built the villa to confine his partner was none other than °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° Ashley Miller, walking ahead. And that partner was the same Koi he had just talked to.
I feel like I’ve gotten involved with some ridiculous family... ... .
Just as he was thinking about something unpleasant, Ashley opened the door to a room. He nodded lightly as if telling him to follow and stepped inside first. Dane reluctantly followed suit, but he had no choice but to follow.
Slamming the door behind him, Dane was left alone with Ashley Miller in the empty, cold hall.
Suddenly, he smelled a sweet scent. It was a familiar scent, but Dane knew that it was different from what he had smelled before.
This was Ashley Miller’s pheromone scent. Like other hyper-alphas, this man was spraying incense around him as if it was a given. If there were any omegas around, they might get horny, but he had never imagined showing such consideration.
Dane was not unaffected, and his mood worsened. Fortunately, his nature was hyper-omega, so his tolerance was higher. Ashley, who was standing a few feet away from Dane, who was frowning, spoke first.
“Dane Striker. I called you this because I wanted to ask you something.”
“Go ahead.”
Dane spoke in his usual rough manner. Ashley frowned, not liking his reaction, but did not point it out. It was a relationship that wouldn’t last long anyway, so there was no need to worry about this or that. There was something else more important.
“Grayson said he was dating you. Do you agree with that?”
Dane paused for a moment. He had no idea what Ashley would say to him, but he felt something unexpected. Dane, who had been scratching the back of his head, confessed the truth.
“I could say I agreed....”
He felt uncomfortable after saying it. Dane added as if making an excuse while receiving Ashley’s persistent gaze.
“There was an unavoidable situation. I did it because I wanted to....”
Dane felt something strange as he spoke. Ashley’s expression changed subtly. Why is she looking at me like that? He wondered, but Ashley suddenly opened her mouth.
“That guy raped you?”
Dane paused again at the sudden question.
“Huh?”
When he opened his eyes wide and looked at her, Ashley unexpectedly distorted her face and let out a deep sigh. With an expression that said, “You did it after all.”
“So, are you going to sue?”
“Huh?”
Dane asked again, sounding tired. Then Ashley quickly continued.
“Tell me what you want, and I’ll do anything you want. Of course, I’ll do whatever it takes to get rid of that guy.”
Ashley Miller spoke as if she would give him all her money. For a moment, Dane’s eyes were filled with incredibly expensive cat items that he couldn’t even put in his shopping cart, but he struggled to resist the temptation.
“......It wasn’t Miller who did it, ahem, I...... I did it.”
Damn heat cycle, damn heat cycle!
Dane felt his face turn red and tried to look away as he confessed.
“I...... laid on Miller.”
An awkward silence flowed between them. For the first time in his life, Dane felt like he wanted to run away somewhere. Ashley didn’t say anything for a while, wondering what was on his mind. He just stared at Dane silently, and finally slowly opened his mouth.
“You did that guy?”
Dane couldn't answer and just nodded slightly. Ashley frowned and tilted her head to one side.
"Why?"
It was a reaction that he couldn't understand at all. Of course it was. Dane bit his lower lip and finally confessed.
"The heat cycle came..."
"Ahhh..."
Only then did Ashley seem to understand. Well, if that wasn't the reason, Dane wouldn't have even imagined sleeping with Grayson in the first place.
Ashley thought as she watched Dane like that. An omega, maybe? She hadn't expected it, but it wasn't something she couldn't understand when she thought of Chase's partner, Joshua Bailey.
Ashley quickly gave up on her thoughts and turned her attention to the matter in front of her.
"So, he said he was going to sue you?"
This time, Ashley asked an unexpected question. Dane was so surprised that he couldn't help but look at his face again.
“Huh? No, that’s not......”
“Then what’s the problem?”
The one who was embarrassed was Dane. Ashley asked him again, looking puzzled as he trailed off.
“If Grayson doesn’t have any complaints about it, then there’s nothing I can do about it, right?”
Dane was speechless and just stared at Ashley’s face.
What’s going on, this family... ... .
I thought I hadn’t lived an easy life so far, and I’d seen a lot of things, but I’d never imagined this kind of situation. Did I just roll around at the bottom? Is this what rich people’s lives are like?
What on earth is that reaction to an omega raping his son?
Dane just stood there blankly, unable to understand. Was it because they’d grown up in different environments? No matter what, was that a normal reaction?
Suddenly, he remembered a memory he’d forgotten. Grayson, who had said he’d been locked up. And he didn't even know it was corporal punishment.
The image of this man locking little Grayson in a dark basement and closing the door was so vivid in his mind that Dane felt his mind freeze.
