He said it without an ounce of sarcasm or ill-will. He really did feel awful about it. But why? It wasn’t like he was a burden on us.
There was an awkward moment where nobody knew what to say. Finally, Dax cleared his throat and said, “I’d like to have a private talk with the pack. Is that all right with you, Xander?”
“Yes.”
I led Xander to the shade of a tree, where he sat with a grunt. Len, ever the good host, fetched Xander some venison jerky while he waited.
“Thanks,” Xander mumbled. He accepted the jerky like a dog getting a banana—grateful, but not sure what to do with it. It was like Xander had never received a gift before.
“We’ll be back soon, don’t worry!” I said.
Xander ducked his head, only giving me a slight hand-wave in reply. Me and Len gathered up the kids, then joined the rest of the pack on the other side of the grove.
“Who’s that?” Lupa asked loudly.
“Huge cat,” Ashe replied.
“Ooooh.”
“Hush for a moment, kids,” Len said kindly. As his son took a curious step away, Len ushered him back. “And don’t wander off, Leveret.”
“Guys, is this really necessary?” I asked with a pout. “Xander’s just—”
“He attacked you, Sage. Period,” Remington stated. He’d shifted to human form and was glaring at me. “I was there. I saw it.”
“Yeah, okay, but he didn’t hurt me.”
“He was so damn fast, I nearly had a heart attack thinking he killed you!”
I shrugged. “But he didn’t!”
“I want to discuss what Xander said,” Morgan said calmly. “He insisted that he was trying to scare Sage away because of his heat. This makes me think he had the presence of mind, even around an omega in season, to restrain himself. That is a feat many alphas cannot—or would not—do.”
Len nodded. “I agree. I’m glad it was Xander that Sage ran into during his cycle instead of…” He trailed off with a shiver, not wanting to think about it. He was getting into his overprotective parent-mode, which was kind of adorable.
“It’s okay, Len,” I said, smiling. “Nothing would’ve happened to me.”
“No, idiot, something almostdidhappen to you!” Remington snapped. He groaned and slapped his hand over his conflicted face. “Xander saved you from that human, remember?”
“Oh!” I grinned. “Yeah, he did do that!”
He glared at me. “Are you acting dumb on purpose or did you just want me to say something nice about Xander?”
Morgan spoke again, as cool and calm as a CEO in a room of squabbling toddlers. “There’s also the fact that Xander is injured because of me. I reacted rashly.”
Dax, his mate, grumbled, “Youdidthink he was gonna eat our son.”
“I know. But he didn’t, and because of me, he’s sustained injuries that need time to heal. I don’t think I can, in good conscience, agree to sending him away from the pack.”
“Me neither,” Len agreed. “He could barely walk on the way here.”
“It might be an act,” Remington muttered, narrowing his eyes.
Hugo, who had been quiet until now, sighed. “I don’t think it was an act. Xander’s an alpha predator. I know how much pride we have. I doubt he would behave in such a sneaky way. It must be difficult for him to depend on us at all.”
Dax grunted and gave a stiff nod. “I feel the same way. What about you, Red?”
“Me? Uhh...” Red, strangely, seemed to shrink under the question. “Do I really get a say in this? I mean, I’m the new guy around here.”
