Chapter 13: Alden - Wrong Date, Right Mates

The doorbell chimes once. It chimes another three times while I ease away from Elliott. At least my poor omega is so exhausted he’s dead to the world.

Whoever’s at the door holds the button for so long it makes an ominous buzzing noise and stops. Then someone hammers the door with their fist. Bang. Bang. Bang.

“What is this, a raid?” I mutter, snagging a pair of boxer briefs from the drawer I packed with spare clothes. I swipe a pillow from the couch because there’s no hiding this erection beneath thin fabric, then yank the door open, catching my visitor mid-knock.

“Where’s Elliott?” asks my now intruder as he marches inside. “The omega.” He scans me from head to foot, eyes narrowing on my pillow.

“Excuse me?” I close the door quietly behind us, and whisper, “He’s sleeping. Who are you?”

“Who am I?” He splays a hand on his chest, then points with the theatrical drama of a drag queen, “Who are you?”

I extend my hand. “I’m Alden.”

“So he found you after all.” He rises on his tiptoes and scans the room.

I shift to the side, planting myself between the intruder and the guest room. “Yes. If you can just lower your voice⁠—”

“Why hasn’t he answered his phone?” the intruder asks at full volume. “Why hasn’t it moved from this location?”

“A phone? I didn’t realize he had one with him.” I should have realized, though. I would have if I hadn’t been so flustered by Tyler. “Maybe my roommate…”

The intruder feints left, darts right, then dashes to the kitchen, and shouts, “Elliott?”

I follow. “That’s just the kitchen, and my friend’s room.”

He kicks Tyler’s door open, fists raised. “Elliott?” Then he clears the bathroom and dives down to the floor to look under the bed.

I pinch the bridge of my nose. “You said you were Elliott’s friend?”

“And his roommate.”

“He told me about you. Noel, right?”

The intruder narrows his eyes on me like I attained this information through brute force or something, and makes a beeline for the guest room. I close the distance, and block the door. “Wait. Let me see if he’s still covered up.”

“Elliott, are you in there?” he shouts over my shoulder, right past my ear.

“Please stop shouting. He’s had a very exhausting morning.” I whisper-shout. “I promise he’s safe.”

“If you want me to leave, you need to show me proof of life,” he whisper-shouts back, jabbing a finger into my chest. “If not, I have an alpha waiting outside to call the cops.”

“I completely understand. Just a minute.”

I’m pretty sure he’s full of shit, but let’s hope I’m right for the sake of the potentially imaginary alpha’s life. I may have tolerated Tyler touching Elliott, and a non-threatening omega, but I’m on edge now that I’ve left our nest, and I’m going to lose my shit if an alpha comes near him.

My hackles raise as I turn my back to him. I won’t be surprised if he attacks me from behind at this point. I open the door and tread lightly toward our nest, then peel back the gap in the blankets. Elliott’s still asleep, white sheet arranged around his lap, exactly the way I left him, so beautiful that my breath catches.

I lift my finger to my mouth. “Quiet.” I gesture for him to enter and pull the blanket wide enough for him to look in.

“Please note the rise and fall in his chest for your proof of life,” I whisper.

He nods gravely.

“You’re welcome to get closer. Quietly. But you know him best. If you want to wake him, I’ll defer to you.”

The friend shakes his head and backs out of the room. I release the blanket, cocooning him in our nest again.

“I’m Noel,” he says as I close the door to the guest room. “Sorry about that.”

“Don’t apologize. I’m glad he has such a good friend.” Anyone willing to battle Elliott’s potential kidnapper with only a bluff and some bravado will always have my respect. I bring my fingers to my mouth, tempted to bite them. “Actually, would you like to stay until he wakes?”

Suspicion fills his features.

“If that’s okay with you and your alpha, of course.” I walk to the kitchen, trailed by Noel.

Noel crosses his arms over his chest. “Why?”

“He’s had a rough day.” I open the fridge and hide behind the door while I figure out how to explain Elliott’s unfortunate series of events. “Do you want something to drink?”

Noel doesn’t respect the sanctity of a fridge door shield, and wedges beside me to grab a Diet Coke. “Thanks.” He pops the tab. Bubbles fizz. He takes a sip. “Rough day, how?”

“I don’t know the whole story, but he followed my scent to the beach and met my roommate instead. I think they might be scent matches.”

Noel whistles.

“Yeah.” I agree with whatever that whistle means. Probably something along the lines of Damn, sucks to be you. “And my roommate is…”

“A dick?”

I nod. “Elliott took the rejection well, and wanted to stay. But seeing as you’re conveniently here, it might be nice for him to speak to someone who isn’t me.”

He stares at me for a long second, inspecting me.”

“Okay, Allistair. You got any snacks?”

“My name is Alden.” I open the first drawer of the pantry we added when we remodeled our tiny kitchen.

“I know.” Plastic crinkles as he sifts through the drawer.

I lean against the counter opposite. I think misnaming me on purpose means he’s starting to trust me. Hopefully. If Elliott is going to be my mate one day, I need to be friends with his friends.

He nods seriously and shoots a text. Maybe there’s an alpha after all.

My skin itches with the need to be next to Elliott. What if he wakes and thinks I left him like Tyler did? What if he needs me? What if someone breaks in through the closed window without me hearing?

“Do you mind if I go back in?”

Noel plunks on the couch, kicks off his flip-flops, and picks up the remote. “Take your time. We don’t have AC at home.”

My omega is still there where I left him, except he’s rolled toward my side of the bed, like even in sleep, he’s soothed by my scent. I crawl in behind him, and something broken inside me heals when Elliott burrows against my chest without waking.

I’ve never had sex like that before, where two puzzle pieces fit perfectly together. Now I understand why people call sex making love. But something is still missing. Just like with Elliott and his nest, I wish Tyler were here with us.

An insane thought rises to the surface. What if we’re meant to be a pack? What if that’s why Elliott needed Tyler’s scent? What if Tyler and I understand each other so well because we’re meant to be pack mates, and we’ve been too oblivious to realize it? What if there’s a way to share Elliott with Tyler?

I discard the idea immediately. That would require Tyler to admit he’s attracted to Elliott beyond his excuse of evolutionary compatibility. But he’s never budged about the mutual attraction between us. No. The real outcome will be Tyler shrinking himself, slowly carving himself out of my life like he did with Niall.

And just like with Niall, I’ll break Elliott’s heart when I’m forced to choose between them. Then it’ll just be me and Tyler, eighty-fucking-years-old, sitting in rocking chairs on the porch like Mrs. Bollard next door. Mateless.