Koios nodded even as an unreasonable rage began to bubble inside him. He went into the changing room off to the side. Gideon kept the room fastidiously clean and organized. Each pack member had their own clearly labeled locker space. Shelves along the side wall contained the supplies Gideon tended to use in his training sessions. Koios had watched enough of them to recognize the tools of Gideon’s trade.
What he hadn’t expected was to see his name above one of the sections or a set of the workout clothes Gideon insisted everyone in the pack wear during training.
His mood quickly soured. He’d given in too much. They all seemed to be under the mistaken impression that he planned on staying. Koios clenched the shorts he’d be expected to wear for the massage in his fist. This was all a huge mistake. He’d fallen under their spell, or worse, into their trap.
The urge to run, to hide, nearly overwhelmed him.
He wasn’t safe here. No one was.
“Breathe.”
Logan’s voice startled him. Koios spun around, his heart leaping out of his chest. He couldn’t breathe. The ache in his chest spread until a giant fist squeezed his lungs and heart. He couldn’t draw a breath, yet his heart pounded terrifyingly fast in his ears.
“Look at me,” Logan demanded.
Koios couldn’t refuse, no matter how hard he tried. He looked up and found Logan in front of him. The alpha gripped his shoulders and stared into his eyes. They changed from their normal brown to wolf blue. “Breathe.”
It was an order from an alpha, and Koios couldn’t refuse. The fear began to fade, and Koios managed to suck in a shaky breath.
“Good. Another.”
And again, Koios complied. His anger bubbled up again, and he pushed Logan’s arm away from him. “I’m fine.”
“You’re not.”
The simple statement dared Koios to argue again. The fire inside him demanded that he fight, that he yell his frustrations. Logan had to get it through his head that Koios wasn’t his, he wasn’t pack. This was a temporary situation, and then he’d go back to the life he’d had before. That was what he wanted.
“Better,” Logan said. “Ben is here so I’m going to leave you alone to change. I hope you’ll take a minute to reflect so you don’t take out your mood on Ben.”
Logan turned and left before Koios could argue.Dammit. He took another few breaths. He should get changed. Goddess knew he’d never hear the end of it if he kept their dear sweet Gentle Ben waiting.
Koios jerked at the ties on his shirt, loosening the fabric before tossing it into his freaking locker. His pants followed, then he tugged on the ridiculous shorts. He hated being exposed like this, and every damn one of them knew it.
He returned to the training room, ready to rip someone’s head off, only to find Ben standing at the massage table with his tablet in hand. He chewed on his bottom lip as he stared at the screen, his brow creased into a frown.
For some unknown reason, the unsure expression on Ben’s face settled Koios’s nerves, which was absolutely ridiculous. Ben was the experienced one here. He should be exuding confidence. Koios should not be comforted by the fact that Ben looked anything but confident.
“Yikes,” Ben murmured.
Koios had been glaring from the door for longer than he realized. He refused to apologize. He’d done nothing wrong. If Ben couldn’t handle his scowls, he needed to go away.
“Let’s get started. I need to get back to work.” Koios moved over to the bed and stared at the setup.
“I had Gideon make some supports for your wings. We’ll see how it works.”
Koios closed his eyes, took a breath, then let it out. “I thought we were working on making me stronger.”
“We are. Here,” Ben said, patting the table. “Sit down.”
With another less-than-happy sigh, Koios sat on the table. Ben put his finger on Koios’s forehead. He didn’t push, just placed it there. Koios wanted to bite it off, but Ben distracted him with a series of questions.
“How many hours a day do you sit?”
“All of them,” Koios replied.
Ben moved his finger to the back of Koios’s head. “We need to work on that. Outside of your injuries, do you have any other places that are painful? And please don’t downplay anything. I need to know what we’re working with so I can provide the best treatment.”
“My lower back usually hurts,” Koios admitted.
