“Thanks.” Alec leaned against the worktop, tall and imposing, the sort of build people seemed to associate with shifters. With his short dark hair and intense brown eyes, he gave off that do-not-fuck-with-me vibe that a lot of shifters managed to project. Tim had long since accepted that he’d never be that way, and, considering he liked his human patients to feel at ease, was probably for the best. He still had the usual shifter strength; he just didn’t look like he did.
Which came in handy sometimes. Fighting wasn’t something Tim cared for, but he would do it in a heartbeat if any of his pack were in danger.
He took a drink from his can and then set it on the side. “Not that I don’t enjoy seeing you, but haven’t you got better things to be doing at seven o’clock on a Friday night?”
Tim didn’t keep tabs on him or anything, but Alec wasn’t one for staying in if he didn’t have patrol.
Alec shrugged. “Maybe later. First I wanted to check in with you.”
From the sounds of it, this wasn’t going to be a quick conversation. Tim glanced from his bedroom to the living area. “Does this need to be private, or…?” The soundproofing in his flat as a whole was adequate, but if Alec definitely wanted to keep it from the rest of the building, then the bedroom was the best place to talk. For obvious reasons, all the bedrooms and bathrooms were fully soundproofed.
Alec shook his head. “Living room is fine.”
“Okay.”
They walked over to Tim’s corner sofa and sat. Alec lounged in the corner, with one ankle propped on the opposite knee. “Are you involved with Seb Calloway?” He tilted his head a little and inhaled briefly, and Tim snorted.
“No, as you can tell.” He hadn’t seen Seb since Sunday; any trace of his scent on Tim had long since faded.
“Had to ask.” Alec smirked and sat forward. “You wish you were, though, yes?”
Tim rolled his eyes. “Yes. And that’s not news to you, either.” He sighed, wondering where this could possibly end up. “What’s going on?”
“Cam met with Alpha Newell three days ago, and again today.”
Tim took another sip of his Coke, his mouth suddenly dry. A bad feeling settled in his gut; meetings with the P-Pack alpha rarely meant anything good these days. “And?”
“And according to Newell, they’ve been keeping an eye on Calloway. For his own safety, apparently.”
“Really?” Tim frowned. “Is he supposed to be in danger?” The only danger Tim could see was from P-Pack themselves. “And if so, why not report it to Cam. Why take it upon themselves to protect him?”
“That’s exactly what I said.” Alec grinned, and for a second it softened his features. He was hot for an older guy—okay, so he was only ten years older than Tim, but he was so serious most of the time that he seemed older than that. But then his smile faded and the mask was back in place. “According to Cam, Newell believes that some of the rogue shifters have returned.”
“Returned? How is that possible? I thought you killed them all at the warehouse.”
“We did.”
Now Tim was really confused. The aftermath of that fight had been brutal and bloody, fatal to some. But they’d eradicated the rogue pack. There should be no threat anymore. “Then how—”
“Newell suggested there was a chance that some of them got away.” Alec sneered as he said it; his teeth lengthened and a low growl filled the room.
If Tim didn’t know him as well as he did, he might be a little bit terrified right then.
But Alec’s control was impeccable. “He didn’t come right out and say it, but the implication was thatwelet some of them escape. Not his pack.”
A harsh laugh burst out before Tim could stop it, because Alec’s unit were meticulous. If tasked with killing all the rogue pack, then Tim would bet everything on them completing that task. To suggest they’d let some of the rogue shifters slip through their fingers was naive at best, insulting at worst. Even if a few had managed to get away, they would have been tracked and hunted down. “That’s bollocks.”
Alec’s smile was back in an instant. “That’s also what I said. I fear I’m becoming a bad influence on you.”
His smile stayed in place this time, and a surge of affection welled up in Tim’s chest.
He was well aware of Alec’s reputation in the pack: hard-edged, serious, private—but Tim never saw him like that. Moments like the one they were having now weren’t one-offs. Alec laughed a lot. Tim wished he’d let more people see this side of him, but most of the pack saw the guarded side.
And then there was Nathan…. But that was a different story altogether.
Tim busied himself with drinking his Coke while he waited for Alec to get to the point of his visit.
“Cam doesn’t believe Newell either, but he can’t come out and say that without offending another alpha and risking the consequences.”
