Page 73 of The Omega's Alpha
“Would you please hold for the President?”
Lysoonka…“Sure.”
“One moment.” There was a soft not-quite click and then the line was filled with a waiting silence. No music. It was strange and unnerving, but who wanted to listen to badly adapted versions of sixties B-sides while waiting for the President?
The line went live again. “Mr. Mercy Hills, it’s Robert Whitney, how are you today?” He had a very typical New England accent, tightened and blunted by what I suspected was vocal coaching.
“Very well, Mr. President. What can I do for you?”
“I just wanted to call and say thank you for your invitation. Mrs. Whitney and I would love to attend. It sounds like a great party.”
“We hope so, Mr. President.” Holy shit, I’d never expected this. Where would I put them? “Will you need accommodations?”
“No, no, we can’t stay that long. You know, government never sleeps. But we’d like to see the ceremony and catch the first part of the reception if that’s okay with you.”
“Absolutely. We look forward to hosting you.”
“Well, then, that’s settled. I’ll let the First Lady know, and my security team will be in touch with yours. You have yourself a good day.”
“And you too, sir.”
The line went dead and I sat back in the chair. My hands shook as I hung up the phone and I stared at it with my brain chasing its tail. This was entirely…
Unexpected.
I started to laugh, and I couldn’t stop even when Seosamh poked his head in through the door.
“What’s so funny? Was it really the President?”
I nodded and wiped my eyes. “Quin is going to kill me,” I said between chuckles and laid my head on the desk. “Why, oh why, did I send that invitation?” I wheezed out a few more laughs then staggered to my feet. “Okay, I’m going to go back to the apartment and see if I can get hold of Quin to tell him I took care of it.” A hiccup caught me off-guard, making me laugh some more. “Mac is going to burst a blood vessel.” I closed the door behind me and went for my phone.
Good thing I was leaving the enclave for the fashion show and my visit to the doctor in a couple of days. This was going to be like setting a pup in the midst of a herd of deer.
Chapter Sixty
“All the reservations are made,” Quin assured me as he tucked me into the back of the pack’s sedan.
“I know,” I reminded him wryly. “I made them.”
“You’ve got all the paperwork, right?” He laced his fingers through my hair, cupping the back of my head. “It feels so far to send you. And without Mac this time.”
“I’ll be fine,” I assured him and leaned forward for a kiss. The sun, just barely up, painted streaks of yellow and salmon across his face. “I love you.”
“I love you too.” He seemed conflicted, then he sighed. “I’m being ridiculous. They’re not going to do anything to you.” A shadow crossed his face.
“Of course not,” I said. “That was way up north. Nothing’s going to happen to me here.” A shifter from one of the northern packs had been cornered and badly beaten coming home from working on a construction site three days ago. No one knew if he’d make it—he was in a coma in hospital, and Quin had come to me wondering if there was anything we could cut from the mating ceremony to save money to send to his pack. Hospitals were expensive—Intensive Care even more so.
They never found the guys who’d done it.
Quin’s jaw flexed and he nodded. “Just, be careful, okay?”
“I’m always careful. You know that.” I grabbed his hand and squeezed. “I mean it. I won’t go anywhere without my phone and at least one of the guys.” Edmond was going with me again, and one of the older Green Moon fellows. His name was Blaine and he was a couple of years older than Quin, with gray at his temples and lines on his face from working outside in his younger years. He seemed steady, and more importantly, he’d been outside walls a number of times at Green Moon, and had even been to New York once. He was driving. And we were meeting one of Quin’s old friends from the navy there, Harris, who was going to act as a native guide of sorts. I’d be fine.
“All right. I wish I could go with you.”
I grinned cheekily at him. “I know you do. Have fun with Mac.” Mac was cranky. And stressed. The White House had already sent someone over to criticize everything Mac did and Jason had told me that it was driving Mac bonkers. I was certain that they’d be able to find a compromise between what we could afford to change, what they were willing to pay to have changed, and what the Secret Service wanted in the way of protection. But that wasn’t my problem. And Quin was still coming down in a day or two, whenever he and Mac were done dealing with the latest incursion of the Men In Black.“We need to go. It’s a long drive.”
“Yes,” Quin said, and even though he was trying for bright and cheerful, I could hear the reluctance in his voice. “Is it bad that I’m looking forward to retirement?”
