Skaydal - Hybrid's Omega

8

Josiah

I slowed down as I neared Amani’s house and took a deep breath. This was my first date and while I was excited, I was also nervous as hell. I pulled into the driveway and parked the car before I switched off the engine. The house looked like many of the others, so it didn’t give me any indication of what type of people Gavin and Kathy are, but it was now or never. I got out of the car and headed for the front door. I knocked and waited.

“Josiah,” Gavin said as he greeted me. The first thing I noticed was that he wasn’t smiling. In fact, he looked annoyed.

“Um…hello Gavin,” I greeted awkwardly.

“I suppose I should let you come inside,” he huffed out, and I frowned. Wasn’t that the plan? To officially meet her parents as her mate? Had I missed something? I hesitated as I glanced over my shoulder. I had no idea what the protocol was, and I suddenly wished I had spoken to Zack or Grayson about this.

“Dad,” I heard Amani’s voice and I relaxed slightly. “What did we talk about?” Gavin ground his teeth together and I noticed how firmly he gripped the door.

“Yes,” Gavin snapped as he finally stepped aside. “Come in, Josiah,” I hesitated, but then I saw Amani and I smiled as I entered their home. She looked lovely in a pale-yellow sundress with her hair that hung loosely around her shoulders.

“Hello Amani,” I greeted and then I paused. Should I kiss her cheek? No, surely, I shouldn’t do something like that in front of her father.

“Hello Josiah,” she said with a blush.

“Ok, living room,” Gavin ordered, and I immediately obeyed, which actually annoyed the hell out of me. I wasn’t a child. We headed into the living room and Kathy stood up when we entered.

“Hello Kathy,” I greeted her politely. Kathy, at least, smiled as she held out her hand.

“Hello Josiah,” she said as we shook hands. Luckily, the moment was over quickly, and I hurriedly sat down on the loveseat. Amani sat down next to me while Gavin sat down on the arm of the armchair where Kathy was seated. The tension was thick, and it made me feel extremely uncomfortable. What was I supposed to do or say? Suddenly I felt like an idiotic child as I fidgeted in my seat.

“So, Josiah…what do you do for work?” Gavin questioned, and I frowned. Work?

“I don’t work,” I stated, and he nodded thoughtfully.

“If you don’t work, how do you support yourself?” he asked, and I was tempted to remind him that I had a massive settlement sitting in my bank account. However, I had a feeling that wasn’t the answer Gavin was looking for.

“I have some money saved up,” I said softly, but I knew that wasn’t enough, and I wasn’t about to lie to them. “I have enough money saved up,” I corrected.

“Enough money saved up to support yourself?”

“Yes,” I confirmed.

“And your…savings…will it be enough to support you and Amani and…maybe some children?”

“Dad!” Amani exclaimed, but I reached out and placed my hand on top of hers to stop her.

“Gavin, with all due respect, I have enough savings to support the whole of Skaydal,” I am not one to boast or brag and I certainly wasn’t doing that now, but clearly the man needed to understand that I was more than financially stable.

“Noted,” Gavin huffed out and I sighed. This wasn’t going to work. I had that feeling and so I stood up and faced Amani’s parents.

“I am well aware that I came to Skaydal with every intention of destroying Grayson, and I am more than aware of all my faults,” I took a deep breath before I glanced down at Amani. “I can even understand your concern for your daughter, but…” I turned back to them and sighed softly. “I never thought I would ever find my mate. I didn’t even think I had one, but here we are, and I will admit that I have no idea what I am doing. I’ve never dated, and I’ve never been involved with anyone romantically or even sexually. I was born and then trained. I didn’t have a childhood or anything like that. Once I was trained, I was sent out to rage war with many innocent lives. My past is mine and I lived with that guilt for many years,” I looked back down at Amani. I hadn’t planned to tell her my history this early on, but perhaps it was for the best. “My name was cleared, and I have made peace with who I am and the life I led before I came to Skaydal,”

“Josiah,” Kathy whispered, and I pressed my lips together to stop myself as I waited to hear what she would say. “Everyone deserves a second chance, and I am relieved that you understand our concern. Amani is our only daughter and we…we are worried about what this relationship will do to her,”

“What would it do to her?” I asked curiously. “I have no ill intentions. In fact, I have no intentions. All I want is to get to know her and pursue a relationship with her,”

“And mate with her?” Gavin growled out and I actually blushed.

“When and if the time presents itself,” I said honestly. I wasn’t going to lie to her parents, but this wasn’t any of their business, was it?

“I don’t like you,” Gavin then stated. “I really don’t like you and I, personally, think that you and Amani should reject each other. She can do far better than the likes of you,”