Authors: Ryan Loveless
Thinking of his parents, where were they? Had they survived the night? Considering their traditionalism, Westley wouldn’t have been surprised if they’d learned Tom was pack alpha now and decided to see what Denton had to offer instead.
“It’s all about tits with that drunken lout,”
his father used to lecture whenever Westley dragged himself home after a night out with Tom, while Westley bit his tongue to stop himself from saying it wasn’t
all
about tits. Fortunately, his mother usually ended the conversation with a sharp chide against insulting the pack alpha’s son, but it was clear from her tone that she agreed. Of course, if he’d dragged himself in at half past stupid o’clock and declared he and Tom were mated, they’d be rolling out the red carpet.
Westley shook away the resentment. His parents were what they were. They loved him in their own way. If he told them about Jaylen, they’d explode. He grinned. It was almost nice to think about them out there somewhere worrying about him ruining his life by straying from their set path. At least he knew what to expect there. Here, with Denton’s plans unknown, he didn’t have any answers. Seeing a door open at the top of the stairs, he walked toward it. He almost backed up when he realized he was about to interrupt Mrs. Ward’s vigil, but something, maybe the thought of his own mother, compelled him forward. “Mrs. Ward? It’s Westley. Do you need anything?”
The chair rocked forward and Westley could see that she was holding Thomas’ hand. “I know what you’re doing.”
“
What I’m—?” Mrs. Ward had terrified him when he was younger. She was a beta who had earned the highest placement in the pack that a beta could have. Subjected to jealousy and gossip because of that, she saved her affection for her family. If a bit of it ever spilled over in Westley’s direction, the sweetness was swept away in seconds by a snapped word. She’d slapped him once, when he was fourteen. He couldn’t remember what he was supposed to have done, but was positive it was Tom’s fault and that he’d somehow pinned the blame on Westley. He was so stunned he didn’t stand up for himself. The next day, Tom had apologized, which had led to Westley getting his first blow job, and Westley would’ve been a jerk not to forgive him after that.
She turned. “Manipulating Tom so he’ll let you hide the hunter here. He’d do anything for you and you take advantage of him.”
“Did he tell you Jaylen is my mate?” Surely she wouldn’t begrudge him his loyalty to Jaylen then, especially when having a mate would get him out of Tom’s hair.
“
Then you should both leave and let Denton be done with you.”
Westley swallowed. If she held any sway over Tom, he was a dead man. “I’ll be downstairs if you need me. Sorry for disturbing you.” He stopped in the hallway to stare at his hands. He concentrated until they stopped shaking. Opting for the back staircase, which would egress into the kitchen and thus avoid the gathering that he’d outed Jaylen’s presence to, he eased himself down the thin stairwell and creaking steps. Tom sat at the kitchen table with a handful of alphas. He recognized Alex, who had always been all right to him, and Georgia, who ran the La Mer Inn. Her mate Cyrus growled at him. So the news had spread.
“Westley?” Tom half stood from his chair. “Are you all right? You look—” He gestured to his own forehead, so Westley raised his hand and wiped sweat off his brow.
“
I’m fine. Just checking on your mother.”
“
Ah.” Tom grinned. “My mother has been scaring Westley since he was a pup.” The atmosphere relaxed, and a few “Me too” comments were muttered. “How is she?”
When Westley couldn’t answer, Tom got up. “
Are
you all right?”
“
Your mother thinks it would be a good idea for you to put both me and Jaylen out.” Westley didn’t know why he was whispering. Everyone could hear him no matter how quietly he spoke. But Tom had dipped his ear next to Westley’s lips, and for the security that illusion of privacy gave him, Westley was grateful. Tom squeezed Westley’s wrist, pressing it against his hip.
“
I will never do that. You’re not worried about it, are you?” He pulled back and studied Westley’s eyes. Westley wasn’t sure what he saw there, but it evidently wasn’t what he was looking for. “West. We’re a team. You and me, and… and Jaylen too, if he’s willing. All right?”
Westley glanced over Tom’s shoulder at the alphas watching. None of them looked to be on board with Tom’s statements. But they weren’t pack alpha, Tom was. “You won’t sacrifice me for the greater good?” He ventured a small smile to show he’d chosen his words for their irony.
“Want me to pinky swear?” Tom asked. He held out his finger. Westley hooked his on.
“
Dork.”
Tom grinned. “Geek.” He stepped away and returned to his seat. “Now, where were we?”
“We were talking about how the best plan we have is to put the hunter outside and tell Denton to come get him,” Steve said. Steve was a doctor who had delivered every baby born in La Mer after 1978.
“
You were talking about that. I told you no. Start thinking of another one,” Tom said. He glanced at Westley with what he probably wanted to be a reassuring smile but reeked more of exasperation.
“
I’ll be downstairs,” Westley said. He grabbed the box of granola bars and a jug of fruit juice, trying his best not to look like he was fleeing. When he opened the door to Tom’s room, he found that Jaylen had twisted himself up in the ropes and somehow suspended his left foot in the air. He lay on his back and frowned at Westley.
“
Help?”
Westley put the food and juice down. “What did you do?” he asked as he sat beside Jaylen’s hip and started untangling him.
“Got tired of yelling, so I tried kicking,” Jaylen said.
“
Why were you yelling? The room’s soundproof.”
“
Now they tell me.” Jaylen tapped Westley’s back. “You brought food?”
“
Nothing exciting.”
“
I’m starving. I’ll take anything.”
“
Here.” Westley grabbed the box and set it next to Jaylen’s head. He finished freeing his foot while Jaylen ate. When he turned around, four wrappers littered Jaylen’s chest.
“
What?” Jaylen asked.
“
Are you a vacuum cleaner?”
Jaylen grinned. He managed an approximation of a shrug for someone lying on his back. “Said I was hungry. Did you come down to check on me or try again to convince me not to kill you?”
“I came down because up there there’s people pissed off at me and talking about throwing both of us out to Denton like it’ll solve their problems, so I figured I’d come down here because at least I know where I stand with you.”
Jaylen licked his fingers clean. “So we’re almost in the same boat.”
“Universally hated? Yeah. Great boat. Do you have to do that?” Westley didn’t mean to look at his crotch to see how it was responding to Jaylen’s soft core porn show, but Jaylen noticed and grinned. He finished off his ring finger with a wet smack. “Tell me something about you that no one else knows.”
“
Why?”
“
Because we’re down here with nothing else to do. Something embarrassing.”
“
And you’ll tell me something?” Westley asked.
“
Yeah.”
“
Okay. My first week of college, I accidentally rushed a sorority.”
“
You what?”
“
I got confused about the letters! Once I got there and realized it was all girls, I made up some stupid excuse and bolted, but yeah, that was probably the most embarrassed I’ve ever been. Your turn.”
“
Hold on. I’m not done laughing at you.”
“
You’d better make yours good.”
“
Better than that? Doubtful. Okay. When I was in high school, I was making out with this girl, and she touched my dick and I jizzed all over her hand.”
Westley blinked. “That’s it? Your teenaged hair trigger penis?”
“It was in science class, right before the bell rang. She was my lab partner and I had to sit through the entire ninety-minute class with jizz in my pants. I was scared to death it would turn out to be flammable when we lit up the Bunsen burners.”
“
You thought semen was flammable?”
Jaylen raised his hands. “I never claimed to be a genius. Plus, you know, I was worried about the smell. Wasn’t exactly showering on a regular basis back then. Pretty much only when my parents made me.”
“Eww.”
“
Exactly.”
“
Did you have to walk around with a wet spot? Because if you did, I’ll concede that your embarrassing moment is worse than mine.”
“
Praise Jesus for Trapper Keepers.”
“
What are those?”
“
Shut up. You’re not that much younger.”
“
Favorite color?”
“
Are you kidding?”
Westley glanced at the door. “You got somewhere else to be?”
Jaylen sighed. “Red.”
“
Mine’s green. Pine tree green. Not grass green.”
“
Thanks for the clarification.”
“
No problem.”
“
Favorite, I don’t know, movie?” Jaylen asked.
Westley grinned, pleased he was taking part in the conversation, however reluctantly. “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.”
“Seriously?”
“
Yeah. It’s the best one.”
“
No way it’s better than Raiders.”
“
Oh, it is
on
,” Westley said. “Top three scenes in Raiders versus top three scenes in Crusade. Go.”
“
Screw that. Raiders has Marion. She’s hot
and
kick ass. Crusade has a traitorous bitch.”
“
Who gets dropped down a ravine in classic Disney-style. What’s not to like?”
Jaylen grinned. “You are so lame, man.”
“Can we agree that Temple of Doom is terrible?”
“
Dude. Guy ripping a heart out with his bare hands.”
“
Oh God. Did you learn that from him?”
“
I’ve never done it, but it’s possible I memorized his technique.”
“
Christ.”
“
And what about that whipping scene? You can’t tell me you didn’t think that was hot.”
“
If you think because I’m an omega, I’m into that...”
“
Hot, fit, sweaty shirtless guy whipping another hot fit, sweaty almost shirtless guy. What’s not to like?”
“
You
liked it?”
“
Hell yeah.”
“
Which part turned you on more? The guy doing the whipping or the one getting whipped?”
He shrugged. “Either way looked hot to me.”
“So yesterday must have been a blast for you.” It was out before he could stop himself. Jaylen’s face shut down.
“
Yeah, real pleasure to get tortured by the bastard who used my family for clawing class. What the fuck is wrong with you?”
“
I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking. I didn’t mean it,” Westley said.
Jaylen relaxed with effort. “It’s okay. I forgive you.”
“Um. Favorite... vegetable?”
“
Asparagus.”
“
Seriously?”
“
I think it’s neat how it makes my pee smell.”
Westley burst out laughing. “You are so weird.”
Jaylen grinned. “I’ve kind of got a fucked up life. I have to take my pleasures where I can get them.” He fixed Westley with a stare. “First person you killed.”
“
I don’t—”
“
Come on, Westley.”
“
Well, it was... Cody.”
“
Cody? Who you killed yesterday?”
“
Yeah.”
“
Seriously.”
“
I think, there might have been, a classmate when I was ten or so. But I, um, I don’t remember doing it and Dad said, Dad said he did it, but he kind of looked at me like, wrong, and I never believed him and, and that’s when I started hating who I was, I mean really hating it because I never understood until then that there was more to being a wolf than running around and playing and I... I....” He broke off so he wouldn’t start crying. He didn’t notice the gentle pressure on his arm until it got tighter. He looked down to see Jaylen’s hand on him. “I hate having no control over what I do, coming to butt naked anywhere from forests to the town square, and wondering if I’ve accidentally pledged myself to some beta wolf trying to up their status to alpha by taking La Mer’s most eligible omega as its mate. That’s what they call me, you know. Behind my back. Sometimes to my face. As a joke.”