Page 10 of Healing the Alpha

In the kitchen, as I wrap a bag of frozen peas in a dish towel, I can’t stop my heart from beating a thousand miles a minute, even as a quiet smile tugs at the corners of my lips.

Kyle

Sitting in our regular booth at Duke’s with my pathetic, useless lump of an arm pinned to my side is its own special form of torture.

The place is rammed, heaving with the usual soundtrack of nondescript rock music, clinking glasses and laughter. Further down the table, Jed is talking loudly at a totally bemused Cassius while Aiden rolls his eyes fondly. Dylan and Levi are sitting across from Max and me, and Levi is gesturing wildly with his drink in his hand, his clean scent flaring as he tears into some poor rival’s defensive technique. Dylan is watching him with his usual quiet intensity, a hint of amusement behind his dark eyes.

Normally, I’d be right in the middle of it, talking shit and taking shots until the lights come up. In fact, that’s exactly why I came out tonight—desperate for a hint of normality after not being able to go to work or the gym for weeks on end, the two things that usually keep me grounded.

But instead, I’ve been reminded that I still can’t hold a glass with my left hand for more than thirty seconds at a time, the vibrations from the speakers make everything hurt, and even an hour of conversation makes me feel like I’ve run a marathon.

“Levi’s exaggerating,” Dylan says dryly. “His defense was solid, he was just inexperienced and didn’t expect you to come at him like you were on catnip.”

“Catnip?” Levi gasps, looking horrified. “It is called speed, mon cher. I keep them guessing, non? Just because you use the same combinations every time you fight…”

“The same combinations that had you cowering in the corner of the ring when we sparred earlier?” Dylan shoots back, a rare smirk teasing up his lips. Levi grins wickedly, his scent spiking combatively.

Max roars with laughter next to me, letting out a low whistle. “Ladies, ladies, save it for the ring! Or the bedroom. I never know with you guys.”

The conversation moves on, but I find my awareness drawn to Levi and Dyl more than usual. They’ve never explicitly confirmed that they’re together, although it’s hardly a secret in the gym’s inner circle—we went to the housewarming for their one-bedroom apartment six months ago, for fuck’s sake—and I think they both enjoy the ambiguity of the whole thing, Levi especially.

But it’s not just the housewarming, or the fact that we’ve all walked in on them making out in the locker room at some point or another, that makes it obvious that they’re an item. It’s the way they move around each other. Even now, Dylan instinctively leans into Levi’s side in the booth, and Levi occasionally brings his hand up to rest against the nape of Dylan’s neck, just because.

I’ve never given it too much thought before. Just like when Marcus and Alex announced they were dating. I just thought: huh, two alphas. Good for them, but they must just be built differently to me, because I could never. Sometimes I’ll get too close to another alpha while I’m waiting in line for a coffee, and their scent will get me so irritable I have to leave the coffee shop just to calm down.

But I’m straight, and they’re… not. In my head, that was all the explanation needed. Different strokes, and all that.

My eyes involuntarily flash to Max next to me. It never occurred to me before the last few weeks that I don’t react that way to him. Never have, despite him being one of the most alpha alphas I know.

He’s still chuckling, his broad shoulders relaxed and his ginger scent warming the air between us. My pulse skips, my heartbeat strange and unsteady as I force my gaze back down to my glass, swallowing past the sudden dryness in my throat.

A booming laugh floats across from elsewhere in the bar, someone slaps the table so hard it vibrates, and the music blaring through the speakers suddenly seems painfully loud in my ears. Every noise and sudden movement sends a dull ache throbbing through my arm and up to my skull, the muscles in my neck locking up. I roll my wrist and tuck my broken arm closer to my chest in a vain attempt to lessen the pain, leaning back into the leather.

I think I’m being slick, but Max catches on instantly, the humor leaving his face and his nostrils flaring as my scent starts to sour.

“Okay, that’s a wrap for us,” he announces, squeezing my knee firmly under the table, the warmth of his hand bringing me out of my pain for a few short seconds. “I’m totally beat. Early night for me.”

“Words that have never come out of Max’s mouth before,” Jed snickers, and Aiden swats him on the leg, shooting me a sympathetic look.

“So you can be up bright and early for a day of exciting business admin, I assume?” Marcus says with a sardonic smile.

“Exactly,” Max says. “Because I had definitely not forgotten that’s what we’re doing tomorrow. Because I’m totally a responsible business owner.”

Max helps me up from the booth, letting me carry my own weight across the bar, but as soon as the door has swung closed behind us and we’re out of sight of the guys, he quietly slips an arm around my waist. I all but collapse into him, suddenly totally overcome with exhaustion.

“I can walk,” I mutter stubbornly. “I didn’t break my legs.”

“Who says I’m helping you walk?” Max says, his voice low but close to my ear. “Maybe I just wanted to check how these ribs are healing up.”

He swipes a thumb over my side, the touch sending a shiver through me even through my clothes. If he notices, he doesn’t mention it.

“I really thought I could handle a few drinks out with the guys,” I say bitterly, taking a lungful of the cold outside air as Max props me up against a wall so he can call a cab.

“And you did,” he says as he dials the number and presses his phone against his ear. “You just started turning gray, so I thought tapping out early was the safest option. You’ll get there, Ky. Small steps.”

Max doesn’t take his hand off my leg the entire time we’re in the cab home, and I don’t fight him when he slides my jacket off, bends down to carefully untie my shoes, and helps me get ready for bed before crashing on my couch.

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