I pulled my phone out of my pocket and answered it. “Hey, Dad.”
“Is there a reason why you’d sign a Hera contract and not tell me, Stone?”
“It was a last-minute decision,” I replied, not at all surprised that he knew. Waiting a week to grill me surprised me more. I had no doubt that my father had known about my choice the night it happened.
“Oh, well, now that you’ve explained, I feel a lot better,” he bit out.
Shutting the microwavedoor on some leftover pizza, I reminded him of the last conversation we had. “Weren’t you the same person who told me I needed to pick someone to sponsor?”
“I told you to pick a Circe, Stone,” he snapped. “Not a goddamn Hera.”
“And what’s so wrong with signing a Hera contract?” I asked.
“Other thanthe fact that you signed a Hera contract just so you could fuck your supporter?”
My spine snapped straight. “Be careful how you talk about my fiancé, Dad,” I warned coolly. “Because that’s not what this is.”
“Stone, a week ago you weren’t interested in sponsoring anyone, and now you’re locked into a Hera contract. Don’t tell me this isn’t about your dick, son, because we both know differently.” Before I could tell him to go get fucked, he added, “And it’s the first one in The Order’s entire history, Stone. You didn’t think that would make waves?”
“IfThe Order was going to have a problem with it, then they never should have incorporated the Hera contract into the initiations,” I fired back. “Why does it matter so much?” When he didn’t immediately reply, realization dawned. “They’re pissed because I hadn’t given them time to do a detailed background check on her, am I right?”
“You blindsided everyone, Stone. And…it ruffled some feathers,” he admitted.
“Well, if it makes you feel better,I did my own background check on her before I committed,” I told him, giving him something to work with.
“As your father, it does,” he replied. “As an Order member, not really.”
I barked out a laugh. “Well, that’s just tough shit, Dad. And you can tell the other members that’s a quote.”
“Stone, this is serious,” he went back to snapping. “It’s not a goddamn game.”
“I’m very aware of how serious all this is, Dad,” I snapped back. “I’m not fucking stupid.”
“And your initiating class? What do they think about your Hera?”
“My initiating class doesn’t give a fuck,” I told him. “Well, other than August Remington, that is.”
“Why does Remington care?”
“He’s got a thingfor Rylee,” I admitted. “That’s her name, by the way.”
His voice was like an angry hiss coming through the phone. “I know what her name is, Stone. I know every-fucking-thing about her by now.”
I scoffed. “No doubt.” I knew the second that Alexander had filed the paperwork, The Order was going to do a thorough investigation and background check on Rylee. She had to be just as worthy as the initiated members. More so, actually, since she was going to be so powerful.
“Isthat why you picked her? To piss off August Remington?”
“Oh, give me a break,” I drawled out. “August Remington isn’t that relevant to me, Dad. I didn’t find out he had a thing for Rylee untilafterI had chosen her. It came up in my inquiries about her.”
“Isit going to be a problem, Stone?” he asked, his voice tight.
“Only if he doesn’t stay away from my wife,” I told him truthfully.
“And the prenup?”
“What prenup?” And this was the part where I was pretty sure that he was going to lose his shit and come down here to pay me a visit.
See, while my family was wealthy as fuck, I had my own money. My family’s legacy had been willed to me when I had turned eighteen, and has increased with each passing year, finally to reach its maximum potential upon getting my college degree.