Seb’s mouth curled up into a lazy smile. “Well, thanks to my doctor, I’ve been signed off for another week.”
“I never actually asked what it is you do for a living.” Tim had happily scribbled out a doctor’s note for Seb to send to his boss, too concerned about everything else at the time to be bothered asking questions. Which wasn’t all that professional of him, but whatever.
Seb leaned his head back on the sofa and closed his eyes. “I work in an office.” He waved his hand about. “Doing some data crap that I won’t bore you with.” He looked as though he had no intention of elaborating, so Tim let it drop. “My boss said I can probably do a couple of weeks working from home after that, maybe more. He just needs to check it with his boss and HR.”
“That would be better, surely?”
Cracking one eye open, Seb turned to face him. “I knew you’d think that.”
Tim looked pointedly at Seb’s leg. “Are you saying that getting to and from work every day with that on would be fun?”
“No.”
“Well, then.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket and held it up for Seb to see. “I’m going to call Alec. Okay if I use your bedroom?”
Seb nodded. “Be my guest.”
With a smile of thanks, Tim left the living room and headed for Seb’s bedroom, closing the door behind him once he was inside.
Alec answered after the first ring. “Just a second.” He sounded like he was walking, and Tim heard a couple of doors shutting before “Everything okay?”
Tim sighed and walked over to look out of Seb’s bedroom window. “We had a couple of visitors from P-Pack.”
“They give you any trouble?”
“No. The opposite, in fact. They came to apologise.”
Alec’s laugh was humourless. “Did they now.”
“I know you don’t trust any one of them right now, but the ones who came seemed genuine, as far as I could tell.”
“Did you recognise them?”
Tim automatically shook his head. “Not by name.” He gave Alec a quick rundown of what was said, the silence on the other end giving away nothing. “What do you think?”
“I need to talk to Cam.”
“Yes, of course. Sorry.” Tim was closer to Alec than most members of the pack, and sometimes he forgot that there were things Alec couldn’t tell him. Tim might be the pack doctor, but he wasn’t high enough in the chain of command to be privy to everything.
“It’s nothing personal, Tim.”
“It’s fine. I understand.” He heard Seb talking in the living room. “Nathan and Jared know about it.”
Telling Alec felt almost like a betrayal. It shouldn’t. Alec wasn’t just his friend; he was also his beta and one of Cam’s right-hand men. But a small part of him was conflicted, and he shifted uncomfortably. Thankfully, Alec didn’t say anything other than to acknowledge what Tim had told him. He probably expected as much. If he and Nathan didn’t dislike each other so much, maybe this wouldn’t be such an issue. Tim debated whether to voice it. “Maybe it’s been long enough. If you and Nathan could just—”
“No.” Alec sounded more resigned than angry, but his tone still made Tim drop it. “I understand how you might feel caught in the middle of this, but Nathan and I can work perfectly well together without needing to dredge up the past.”
Tim managed to hold back his huff of laughter. “Work well together” was a bit of a stretch. “Okay.”
“Thank you for telling me. I’ll suggest to Cam that we include Nathan in any discussions that involve him, Jared, or Seb.”
“Oh.” That was a big concession and Tim faltered, not sure how to reply. Alec was usually the last person to want the rest of the pack involved until absolutely necessary, and given his feelings about Nathan….
A couple of seconds passed before Alec spoke again. “So,” he began, and Tim immediately sensed the change in tone, “they believed that you and Seb were together?”
“Yes.” Tim’s cheeks heated. “The… um… evidence spoke for itself.”
Alec’s burst of laughter was unexpected and made Tim smile. “I see.” Another pause. Tim waited. “Be careful.” Alec’s voice was softer now, no trace of amusement or authority. This was Tim’s friend talking. “I know I actively encouraged you to do this.”
