32. Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Two
Wes
“Asher?”
Wes was surprised that he recalled the younger man’s name. It had been close to a decade since he’d seen him.
“You, uh, remember me?” Asher’s hands twisted together. He darted his eyes around the living room.
“Of course. You were one of my students in Warburton.”
“That’s right. In another life. But I’ve been in Bellwether Province for a few weeks, and I was hoping to speak with you.”
Wes stepped aside. “Alright.”
He motioned for Asher to sit on the couch, trying to imagine what could have brought him there. They’d been cordial as professor and student, but not close. Their only real interaction was the day Asher asked him about adoption laws.
Cold awareness seeped into Wes’s veins.
Until this moment, he’d never put it together. They had adopted Ryde mere months after that conversation.
Asher cleared his throat. “I wish I were here just to say hi. I know it seems crazy that I’m showing up on your doorstep out of nowhere. It would be better if I had time to do this slower and soften the news.”
“News?” Assa came in from the kitchen.
“Oh. Hello.” Asher looked sheepishly at Assa. “Sorry if I weirded you out earlier. I promise I’m not a creep.”
“What happened earlier?” Wes asked.
“I noticed this man staring at me in the library before Olin showed up,” Assa said. “I didn’t realize he was a friend of yours.”
“He’s not,” Wes said at the same time Asher said, “I’m not. Not really.”
Assa perched on the coffee table. “Okay. So, not a friend. But obviously not a stranger.”
Asher extended his hand, which Assa shook. “I’m Asher Parkenson. Your husband was one of my professors in Warburton.”
Dread pooled in Wes’s belly. “Alright. Now that you two are acquainted, how about you tell us your news.”
Asher exhaled. “Again, I’m sorry if it feels like an ambush.
I wanted to meet you on campus, but you never replied to my texts.
In the library, I recognized Assa from pictures, and I almost walked over to introduce myself, but then that other alpha came over.
I wouldn’t normally just show up at someone’s house uninvited, but it was too important that I speak with you. ”
Another chill rushed through Wes. Assa placed a hand over his knuckles and laced their fingers together.
“Well, you’re here now,” Assa said. “So please tell us what you needed to say.”
Asher spoke directly to Wes. “Do you remember the conversation we had after your class? The one about decrees regarding single omega fathers under the age of twenty-five?”
Now that Wes thought about it, he recalled that they’d discussed not only adoption but also omega rights.
A few years back, the decrees had been challenged in High Court.
Nowadays, omega fathers had to agree to adoption proceedings for their children, regardless of their age or marital status.
But that wasn’t the case when he and Asher talked.
“I recall it, yes.”
“What conversation?” Assa asked.
Although Assa’s question held no suspicion, Wes did not want his husband to think he’d deliberately kept a secret.
After their polyamory was exposed, Assa had been rightfully upset that Wes never told him about the threats Lux had been making for months.
Wes promised not to withhold anything important from Assa again, even in the name of protecting him.
Asher saved Wes the trouble of clarifying. “I’m sure it didn’t seem like a big deal,” he explained. “I approached Professor Pashuk after his lecture to ask questions about the law.”
“That’s right,” Wes said. “I recall the conversation now that Asher is here, but that day I didn’t think much of it.”
Asher rolled his shoulders. “Look, there’s no easy way to say this, and I’m here to give you what details I can, but long story short, I’m the reason the agency approached you about adopting your son.”
Wes’s stomach clenched. “What do you mean?”
“After we talked, I thought about what a great father you’d make.
College professor, everyone loves you. I also had a friend in the biology department who said Assa was a good guy…
I asked you all those questions because I knew an omega in that situation.
And I might have done some engineering to ensure that you two were the ones who adopted his child. ”
“Wait, wait.” Assa moved his hands in a slow down motion. “You know who our son’s omega birth father is?”
“I do. And he’s not the man listed on the birth certificate.”
Assa squeaked.
“Then you’re saying our son’s omega father was forced to give up his baby?” Wes asked, remembering more details of their long-ago conversation as he put a hand on Assa’s shoulder.
“Yes…my brother,” Asher replied softly. “He’s the father.”
Assa’s mouth dropped open.
Wes struggled to process the information. He hadn’t known Asher had an omega brother, or really anything personal about Asher. Because why would he? But now…
“You’re our son’s biological uncle?”
“Ryde,” Assa whispered. “Did you know that’s his name?”
Asher sucked in his bottom lip. “I know his name and what he looks like. That’s also why I recognized you in the library.
I’ve kept track of your family—” He stopped, as though realizing how his words sounded.
“Informally, of course. Just enough to keep an eye on Zeller’s baby.
” Under his breath he mumbled, “It was the least I could do for him.”
“Zeller,” Assa breathed out the word like an appeal. “That’s your brother?”
“Yes. And before you ask, he doesn’t know about you two…or about Ryde. But before I explain more, I want to clarify that I never planned on approaching you or making any demands. Bending people to their will is more my parents’ style.”
“Fuck,” Wes said, dropping his head in his hands. “I just realized this means our son is Keyes and Deveron Parkenson’s biological grandson.”
Asher nodded.
“Do they know?” Assa asked.
“No. And to be honest, they don’t care.” Asher’s voice soured.
“Once Zeller refused to marry an alpha they approved of, they pretended the pregnancy wasn’t happening.
Having a single omega father for a son was out of the question.
They were the ones who had the fake birth certificate drawn up, with the fake names and birthdate, and they paid the agency to give the baby to someone who wouldn’t ask questions and who could never connect the baby back to them.
They hid Zeller’s condition from almost everyone, bribing or threatening the few people who knew.
As far as the world is concerned, Zeller Parkenson was never pregnant. Never gave birth.”
Wes’s head swam. Asher’s story cleared up some unknowns he and Assa had wondered about for years. But that didn’t make absorbing it any easier. And even with so many details left to be filled in, the most important question remained.
“Asher, if Keyes and Deveron don’t care about their grandson and you never planned to contact us, why are you here now?”
“Because I have reason to believe Zeller is looking for his baby.”
Assa covered his mouth with his hand. His knee trembled, knocking against the coffee table.
Wes glared at Asher. “Why do you think—”
Footsteps pounded on the staircase. The men froze.
“All done,” Ryde called out as he hopped down onto the landing. “Smells good. Did Pop make pesto pasta? I’m starving.”
Wes watched as Ryde went straight into the kitchen and, finding no one, turned toward the living room.
“Oh.” The seven-year-old stopped short, seeing Asher.
There were a few awkward beats before Assa said, “Ryde, this is Asher. He’s a friend of ours.”
Asher’s face paled as he stared at Ryde. Wes nudged him in the ribs with an elbow.
“Hello,” Asher said uneasily, like he’d never spoken to a child before.
Ryde gave him a curious look, then remembered his manners. “Pleased to meet you,” he said.
“You as well,” Asher mumbled.
“Ryde, do you think you can plate your own pasta?” Assa asked. “You’ll need to be careful since the burner is still on low.”
“I’m almost eight, Pop. Pretty sure I can handle putting noodles in a bowl.”
Assa’s lips twitched. “Don’t get sassy.”
“Sorry.”
“It’s alright. After you get your dinner, you can watch TV in the den, so Dad and I can finish our talk with Asher.”
Once they heard the TV turn on, Assa said, “Leave it to our lippy child to break the tension.”
Wes laughed lightly but Asher’s silence was deafening as he stared blankly at his lap.
Finally, Asher whispered, “He looks just like him. I’ve seen pictures, but I never realized. The hair. The little mole. And he’s feisty.” He sank back against the couch. “Zeller has a son… A son… Obviously he was never going to give up.”
Wes sympathized with Asher’s obvious emotion.
And he appreciated the inadvertent proof that Asher hadn’t been overly thorough about keeping tabs on them.
But he needed to ensure the man understood.
“Ryde is our son, Asher. Make no mistake. No matter who gave birth to him, Assa and I are his fathers.”
“Of course you are!” Asher said genuinely. “I didn’t mean to imply otherwise. There were just so many choices that led to this moment. Many of them mine. And now, I’m questioning everything.”
Wes admired his husband’s empathy as Assa patted Asher’s knee. “It seems like you’ve had this bottled up for a long time.”
“You have no idea.”
“So how about you start at the beginning.”
***
An hour later, Asher had answered most of their questions, but Wes knew he’d think of a few more once he and Assa had fully digested the heartbreaking story surrounding their son’s birth.
Wes felt a wave of grief for Zeller. He would never be sorry Ryde had come into their lives, but Asher had not been shy about describing the depth of his brother’s pain.
As Asher told it, Zeller was only eighteen when he’d gone into heat unexpectedly. Their parents were away, forcing the family’s trusted butler, Antoni, into making quick decisions.