Chapter One

Hollis

Five years later

Why did Lane want me here with his and Derick's sons, but no one else?

Hollis was getting a feeling of dread in the pit of his stomach. Lane had always made Hollis feel like he was part of the family… but this? No, this was something else.

Lane Starling, an omega divergent, was the joint owner of Starling Enterprises with his husband Derick, a wolf shifter who'd defied society's views about mating with a divergent. Society deemed alphas, betas or omegas who had an animal spirit but couldn't shift into their animal form, as ‘divergent'. The term got treated like a slur since it had become apparent that there were two differing species in the last two centuries: divergents and shifters .

As the decades passed and more divergents emerged, the divide grew. Derick Starling had flouted society's expectations and married Lane forty years ago, creating a company that was renowned for accepting everyone, despite what they might or might not be.

Hollis was proud to work for such a trailblazing company… when I don't have to work with a certain son.

Taylin, since the first moment he'd laid eyes on him, had knocked him off balance. Five years and still he had the ability to make Hollis forget his sensible nature. It took concerted effort to act like Taylin being in the room—hell, inside the building—didn't make Hollis super aware of the attraction he felt.

Taylin's masculine scent was musky with hints of forest fruits. It was enough to distract Hollis's animal half to the point he sometimes had to excuse himself from meetings just to get a grip of himself and have words with his animal, ones the pesky brat ignored.

You want to lick him too.

Easier to pretend he hadn't heard and focus on the other men at the table, all wearing varying looks of concern.

Lane and Derick had eight sons, three of their own and five they'd adopted. He observed them from under his eyelashes as he returned his attention to the reason for the meeting. He easily picked up that something important was going down. It was in the air that vibrated with a kind of tension that made Hollis sense a potential threat, but to what? Him? Lane's sons ?

"So what you're saying is that in the past, when you've delayed me, it's cause of the impact on another part of the business?" Julian's question was met with a wide smile from his father, Derick.

"Exactly." Dark penetrating eyes moved over everyone at the large boardroom table and Hollis noted his inclusion. The growing storm of nerves in his stomach swirled together like a tornado. "What I want is for you all to take on my role, work with each other to reach a common goal."

Derick's statement drew involuntary words from Hollis. "Good luck with that." His whisper gained attention from the shifters in the room.

Hairy balls!

What the heck was wrong with me speaking aloud?

He resisted checking just how hot his cheeks were when he felt the sweat gather at his hairline. Instead, he dropped his gaze to his trembling hands, which he folded to hide his reaction. He'd spent years with these men and understood just how hard this was going to be for them all, and for himself, when they didn't play nice.

He didn't dare shift his attention towards Taylin to see his reaction. In the five years Hollis had worked to establish a barrier between them, it was currently at its pathetically thinnest. The infuriating man had a habit—a dreadful habit—of aiming his stunning smile at the drop of a hat, at the unsuspecting. Him, usually! Hollis was wise and hadn't fallen for such nonsense.

"Hollis, that's where you'll come in. "

Derick's deep voice carried past his thoughts and Hollis's head popped up. His eyes hurt at how fast they widened. How had he got anything to do with this? "Sir?"

"There are eight casting votes, so they will need a majority vote to carry through a motion. That will be you. Lane has been giving you increased responsibility and he trusts you to be the one to step in when it's needed."

"He does?" Hollis burned with embarrassment at how squeaky the words came out. Convinced he felt the weight of Taylin's stare on him, Hollis refused to look in that direction to check and see if he was right. Because right now, Hollis was freaking out, and it took all his years of experience to hold all his emotions in check, keeping his expression from revealing just how much he wanted to slink away.

How could they want him to be the voice of reason between the brothers? Were they insane? Had they lost their freaking minds?

The rest of the men stared at Derick like he might have lost his marbles, that the bag that held them when he came into the room had somehow ripped open and they were now slipping all over the floor, waiting to trip up an unsuspecting employee—him.

"What! How can he make those types of decisions?" It was impossible to read Silas with how restrained he was being, but Hollis bristled at the implication that he wasn't capable of what Derick was suggesting, when he most definitely was!

Was he backtracking? Yeah, he was, but he'd keep that to himself .

Lane moved around the table towards the seat he'd vacated to get up and hug Jupiter when he'd gotten upset at the beginning of the conversation. He was a loving father and had—it seemed—an innate need to make sure everyone was alright, including those he worked closely with. Hollis was positive Lane would adopt all the PAs he worked with if he could, including Hollis.

"Hollis is more than equipped to rationalize what decision is required. He has a business management masters and has been working alongside me for the past five years. He's perfect for arbitrating if it's required. " When Lane stopped next to his husband, he rested a hand on Derick's massive shoulder, his fingers flexing. "As the base of operations is here in Hazardville, you will all need to relocate back in town."

"You gotta be shitting me!" Kodi ground out, bouncing out of his seat, pursued by his twin brother, Kari, but Hollis wasn't listening because he was reeling from this second blow. They were all going to move back to Hazardville?

All eight brothers were going to be here!

Under one roof!

All the time!

Oh gods, how was he going to cope with that and the PAs. They were going to freak.

You're doing enough of that for everyone, his animal side pointed out, enjoying itself way too much in Hollis's opinion.

This is going to make my life—

It's going to shake up your boring existence, is what it's going to do .

Unsure how long he'd zoned out for, he jolted to his senses at the scent of sex wafting down the table towards him.

"Have you got any questions? Anything you'd like to say?"

Lane was looking at Hollis, so he felt compelled to reply honestly. "Not right now." He kept his tone soft, working to refrain from being squeaky again. "I'll need to consider everything first. But I'd like to say thank you for trusting me."

He counted in his head, working to meet every brother's stare, recalling exactly how hard he'd worked over the last five years. These men weren't going to ruin how much he loved his job—they weren't.

He sucked in a breath and set the boundary he was positive the brothers would cross because he'd worked with them. But he wasn't going to be a pushover, no siree. His Mamma didn't raise no fool. "I'd like to make something clear here and now. I won't allow anyone to bully me into something I'm not sure about, so be warned. I'm no pushover."

Taylin's head dipping caught Hollis's eye, and he noted him paying more attention to his tablet than to what Hollis had said. The hurt that came got pushed to one side to be explored in private at a time when every pair of eyes, bar Taylin's, wasn't focused on him.

Fine, if Taylin wanted to play it like that, then he was going to find Hollis was more than a match for showing indifference. He was a damn professional!

The conversation was over minutes later as the scent of lust increased and Derick all but dragged Lane out of the boardroom, leaving their sons and Hollis alone. He at least kept his thoughts about what might or might not be happening when Derick and Lane reached one of their offices to himself. Their sons, not so much, which signaled it was time to leave.

Hollis stood, his mind whirring with everything, and the potential impact on his organized life. He reached the open door before someone called his name. He twisted in the doorway to look back at the men who remained sitting around the table, all showing varying degrees of interest in him.

"Yes?" He quirked up his brows, unsure whether it was Kodi or Kari who'd spoken. They were too similar to say.

"Where are you going? We need to discuss what this means. How are we going to deal with this situation if you leave?" Kari asked impatiently.

Hollis cast his eyes over the alphas— men— he was now going to be answerable to. Showing weakness as an omega was the last thing he wanted to do. His animal form was a pygmy slow loris. A big-eyed ball of cuteness and he'd often gotten taken for a ride because of it. He'd learned his lessons a time long ago.

He turned around fully to face them. Back ramrod straight, he chanted, don't show weakness. Don't show weakness. He might look adorable and harmless, but he wasn't defenseless. He was venomous and had a nasty bite if he felt threatened.

"As I advised Lane, right now I need to consider this information. When I have, I will check your calendars and schedule a meeting that works for y'all. I'm sure y'all have a lot to sort in the next couple of days before your fathers step down from the company."

How would that change things? Starling Enterprises' fashion business was world renowned for many reasons. These eight men were now in charge.

God help them all!

Met with what appeared to be stunned silence, Hollis nodded and made a quick exit, feeling for now like he might have just dodged a bullet. For how long though, was anyone's guess.

Hollis made his way down the hallway, moving silently on the plush carpet, keeping his gaze down, unsure of who was aware of what they'd just discussed. He was good at being invisible; it was a skill. He went straight to Monica, suspecting that as Derick's trusted assistant and what Hollis often referred to as ‘the librarian of all things Starling', she would know what the heck was going on.

She had worked for the company for the same length of time as Hollis, employed only a week apart. They'd become close friends as the newbies, although it would seem not close enough for her to give Hollis a heads up.

Long dark hair curtained gorgeous features as Monica's dark, expressive eyes lifted from the computer and met Hollis's gaze over her overflowing desk. No matter how silent he was, she never got caught unaware. Perks of being a vampire bat.

A grin appeared on her face before he reached her desk. "I wondered how long it would take you to come see me. "

She rose gracefully from her cherry red seat, casting a glance at Derick's closed office door. Slim fitting, black trousers gave her the appearance of having long legs, but she barely reached five feet tall in stocking feet. It was something she often moaned about and why she wore five inch killer heels in her favored red.

The forest green blouse she wore floated about her as she came and took his hand, dragging him back the way he'd just come, heading it would seem, to the coffee lounge that was on this floor.

Every floor had one. Their bosses were very generous and wanted their staff to have every amenity that helped them be productive, including copious amounts of coffee, soft drinks, and snacks.

Met with the scent of sugar and fruit, apple if his nose was correct, Hollis held back his groan of complaint as his tooth cleaning tongue roamed over his teeth, already anticipating eating a slice of cake. Few people realized his animal had two tongues, one of which was abrasive, and used like a toothbrush to help with all the fruit he liked to eat. It was full of sugar, much like the cake always in this coffee lounge. He hated to admit when it came in cake he had a particular weakness for it.

The door clicked shut behind them and Monica's hair flew around her slim shoulders when she bounced up and down. "Well, did you say yes? "

"I—"

"I really wanted to say something, but they barely gave me time to adjust to the news. I mean, how the heck am I going to keep all eight hotties in check?"

"I—"

"They all like to get their own way and I'm not sure they'll try to steamroller over me. Derick was clear though, I'm not to take any nonsense from them. Do you think they'll listen to us?"

This time Hollis waited to see if she was going to start with more questions. When two seconds ticked by he reckoned the firing questions part of the conversation was over for now. "I haven't really said anything, other than that I won't be a walkover. And that I was honored, ‘cause I am. As for keeping them in check, you've been doing that for years. As for listening to us… that's tricky to say when we barely get to see them, except for important meetings and new business that relates to their particular area of interest. Then it's usually just one or two of them, not all eight."

She nodded sagely. "You're right. We need a plan."

The door opened and Frey came in, his gray-green eyes narrowing as he glanced between them. His normally smooth brow wrinkled as he strolled towards Hollis, who swallowed the sigh of displeasure at what Frey might have overheard.

Frey, a fennec fox, had excellent hearing. "What you two gossiping ‘bout?" Frey rested his hip causally against the counter and plucked up a piece of cake, his gaze moving between them and the white chocolate and jammie treat he held .

Dressed in casual chic, he could have been a model on any magazine cover. He liked to wear the line of clothing the firm sold that targeted the ‘hip and trendy' workforce.

As he glanced down at his suit, his favored attire for work, Hollis scowled. He was clearly neither hip nor trendy.

Frey's features were strong, yet he came across as a delicate flower with full lips and wide expressive eyes that never hid his emotions. Expressions fleeted over his face as he continued to watch them both.

"We aren't gossiping," Hollis stated in a hoity-toity tone, hating that he'd been doing exactly that and got caught out.

Frey rolled his eyes at him. "If you say so." He bit into the chocolate and moaned, his free hand going to his throat. "Goodness, this is better than sex," he exclaimed loud enough that Hollis was sure those on the corridor would hear.

Monica's giggles came with a snort from Hollis. "Then your sex life can't be any good," he snapped waspishly, instantly regretting it.

Frey batted long, blond eyelashes at him as he took another bite, the moan this time more obscene. One fit for a porn movie that Hollis would never own up to watching when he was going through a heat.

A chuckle from behind them got a flash of heat rolling through Hollis when he scented fruits of the forest. Feeling like he might expire recalling exactly what he'd said, he turned and found himself staring directly at an amused looking Taylin.

Could this day get any worse ?

"That's a theory that maybe needs testing," Taylin directed at Frey, bringing out the big guns as his smile turned seven shades of wicked.

It seemed it could!

Being utterly still was one of Hollis's abilities, and right then, not even an eyelash flickered at how Taylin flirted openly with Frey. Hollis wanted nothing more than to lick the venom his body produced on his arm and bite Frey when he licked his lips and held out the treat.

"Wanna try… some?"