One Big Family (Hot Alaska Nights Book 1)

by Aiden Bates

  Bastian helped him get settled and then sat on the couch, unsure if he should stay or go.

  Here was the thing: after years of not allowing himself to get excited about guys, not even allowing himself to date, Bastian found himself incredibly attracted to an omega who also seemed into him. The fear of rejection was almost paralyzing, and yet Bastian was pushing through it. He felt like an adolescent, wanting to be around Zachary every minute of the day (and he had been for the past few!), but not wanting to overdo it. The smart, grown-up thing to do would be to just ask.

  He gulped and the sound filled his own ears. “Zachary, do you want some privacy? I can head downstairs, and you can text me . . . or, you know, whoever, Denise or Gladys . . . if you need anything . . . ”

  Zachary looked at him from his nest of pillows. His eyes were hooded, no doubt from exhaustion and perhaps the painkillers that his battered body still warranted.

  “Get over here, you,” he whispered with a smirk. He patted the space next to him, letting Bastian know that he was desired.

  Bastian had to work to keep his face from splitting into a gigantic grin as he carefully climbed onto the bed.

  “Find us something good,” Zachary said in a sleepy voice, handing the remote to Bastian. “Something funny. And not about snow.” His eyes were closed before he finished the words, but his hand gripped Bastian’s tightly, as if to not let him out of his grasp.

  Bastian relaxed back into the pillows, a little smile still playing on his lips. The relief he felt was immense. He was wanted, for now. The grown-up inside him knew that this could just be a fling, could just be a short-lived on-location romance for Zachary, but for now, Bastian was going to enjoy it.

  As he flipped from channel to channel, looking for a tropical comedy, he just kept thinking, He likes me! He likes me! He likes me!

  Chapter Nineteen

  Leave it to the warm-hearted residents of Stellar Landing to keep the food coming.

  When Zachary woke up, Bastian was snoring lightly next to him, and the end of 50 First Dates was playing. Zachary’s phone was vibrating, and he saw that he had three texts from different people in the building, sent to both himself and Bastian. James offered his famous hot wings, Holly wanted to bring down a couple of chicken pot pies (It’s your favorite, Zachary! she claimed), and Denise said she’d made an extra lasagna for dinner.

  He had to smile. What a wonderful group of people.

  Bastian was still holding his hand as he slept. Zachary watched him sleeping for a few minutes. His full lips puffed out on every exhale, making a tiny popping noise. Bastian so often had a serious look on his face that it was nice to see all of the lines smoothed away for once. His black curls fell forward onto his light olive skin, his eyelashes created little shadows against his cheek. He was not what most people would consider a “hottie,” not like a stereotypical action-star dude with blond highlights, massive muscles, and a salon tan; no, Bastian was more like a lithe, sultry model, tall and slender, with a strong Roman nose and piercing dark eyes that sometimes made Zachary uncomfortable. On more than one occasion, Zachary wondered if Bastian’s psychology training had enabled him to see things that perhaps people didn’t want him to see. It certainly felt like that.

  But then when Bastian’s personality came out—compassionate, thoughtful, introspective—he put people at ease. His voice was soft and he had a friendly word for everyone he came across. As Zachary was starting to find out, Bastian was one of the newest residents at Stellar Landing, but everyone here certainly liked him a lot. With a tight-knit group such as this, that meant something.

  He’d certainly shown himself to be a good friend to Zachary, at very least, even before the sex.

  Is that what they were? Good friends?

  Zachary had put off thinking about what that sexy night in the cabin may have meant, simply because everything had been so crazy—the accident, amnesia, being snowbound in the wilderness, and then all of his memories crashing back. But now, finally in a moment of quiet, Zachary considered this lovely man curled next to him, snoring softly.

  He liked him very, very much.

  Chapter Twenty

  The residents of Stellar Landing were oddly thrilled that Bastian and Zachary were, as they said with comically raised eyebrows, together. It had been about a month since that fateful night in the ranger’s cabin, and the alpha and the omega were trying to get to know each other while under the eager collective eye of everyone in town.

  With so many of them married and with families, the occupants loved nothing more than helping singles get paired up, which was no small feat in their tiny community. It was especially exciting for them to have a gay couple. Zachary and Bastian were like a pair of rare birds nesting in their midst.

  The attention was cute . . . and annoying.

  While helping Gladys put up the projector and screen for a Saturday night movie in the rec hall, the men listened to horror stories of some of the blind dates she’d been on since moving into Stellar Landing a few years ago.

  “If you think Poltergeist is scary,” she said with a nod to the DVD that was ready to load, “you should have seen the long-haul truck driver from Juneau. The guy had three teeth. Total. I don’t know what Aaron was thinking.”

  “No! Aaron did that?”

  “Yeah, and Denise was pissed. Then to make it up to me, Denise tried to hook me up with her hairstylist, Stefan. Okay, I don’t mean to perpetuate any stereotypes, but—”

  “Stefan is gay. Obviously.”

  “Yes!” Gladys laughed. “Like, people, I am not that desperate! And my mom created an online dating profile for me, as a ‘birthday gift’ when I turned thirty.”

  “Oh no,” said Zachary, appropriately aghast. “Like on OKCupid, or what?”

  “Alaska Single Gals-dot-com,” she said with a smirk. “Lots of long-haul truckers on there. I had to just ask everyone to knock it off. If and when I want to meet someone, I’ll go visit my brothers in Fairbanks or my best friend in Seattle. Until then, let me be!”

  Thus, it was no surprise that everyone was so obviously thrilled about Zachary and Bastian spending so much time together, eating dinner in the café, attending social events, and heading out to doctor appointments and day dates now that the snowstorms seemed to be finished for the season and Zachary was mostly mobile. Everyone in Stellar Landing took a little bit of credit for the romance of the season.

  “It’s a little creepy, right?” Zachary said in a whisper as they sat in Holly’s café eating breakfast. Every time he looked around, big, goofy grins greeted him, and occasionally a wink.

  “It is,” Bastian acknowledged, “but they don’t mean any harm. Most of them have been cooped up here for a while. Wait until the summer residents arrive. They’re all a lot more cosmopolitan. They won’t give us a second glance.”

  Both Bastian and Zachary went awkwardly quiet at that. Bastian accidentally went to that uncomfortable, unspoken place—the summer. Where would they be in a few months? They hadn’t broached the topic at all yet. They finished their meal in silence and then went their separate ways, Bastian to work at the school, and Zachary to make some calls to his editor at National Geographic.

  While Bastian and Zachary hadn’t spoken about the future, Zachary and his boss had. With Zachary’s head and ankle almost fully healed, it was time for him to finish up the work he’d started in Stellar. They didn’t want to risk him hobbling out into the wilderness to photograph the birds. No, that ship sailed a few weeks back. Instead, the Nat Geo editing board in DC was eager to get their hands on the photos of the Stellar residents and their interesting life stories. Zachary had managed to get several beautiful intimate shots before the accident, and wanted about fifteen more. That wouldn’t take long.

  After that?

  “Costa Rica, baby,” his editor said, his voice full of glee. “We figure you deserve a sunny climate next, and you will not believe this story we’ve got lined up for you down there. A convent out in the jungle
has been overtaken by feminist, sex-positive nuns. They’re saving souls by day, turning tricks by night, and tearing down the patriarchy one pope at a time. Everyone’s been really impressed with this human-interest piece you’ve got going on in Alaska, and I think you will really do justice to the Costa Rica story. And I don’t trust any of my straight guys to go down there!”

  Zachary laughed. It sounded like a fascinating assignment. As he spoke to his editor, he looked out the window at the gray slush that had already replaced the shimmering white snow. It was still cold outside, and even with the daily excursions around town, he had cabin fever.

  But what about Bastian?

  “Can I get back to you on it? I don’t want to lose my focus on the Stellar piece.”

  “Yeah, baby. But don’t wait too long. We need to get someone down there before the place is shut down, and if I have to, I’ll send Henderson. He’ll probably come back with the clap, but at least he takes a good pic.”

  They hung up laughing, but Zachary sobered up quickly.

  It was time to have that conversation.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  That strong jaw.

  It was the first time that Zachary noticed that, when Bastian was upset, a muscle could be seen clenching over his jaw. It flinched ever so slightly.

  Bastian’s lips were in a tight line and he was looking down at his hands as they kneaded dough. The dough was getting quite a workout.

  “I thought it would be fun to make homemade pizza tonight,” Bastian said, his words coming out as barely more than a whisper.

  “That is fun!” Zachary chirped, louder than he meant to, and then he felt like an idiot. “I love homemade pizza.”

  He walked to the sink to wash his hands and then joined Bastian at the counter to help. A forced smile was plastered on Zachary’s face, and he started gossiping about the latest news—people were wondering if the Stellar mayor was going to run for office again—but behind the grin, his stomach was flipping and his brain was spinning.

  The sadness was coming off of Bastian in waves. And it was all Zachary’s fault. He’d told Bastian that he had a new assignment in Costa Rica.

  Their romance had certainly been whirlwind, making it hard to tell at first if there was an actual future for the two of them. Zachary didn’t want to jump to any conclusions. Regardless of whether or not they were destined for a lifetime of love or just a few more weeks of lust, Zachary had a career! A career that he was passionate about and had a commitment to. Certainly, Bastian didn’t want some swoony omega to quit his job in a moon-eyed fit of infatuation.

  Zachary also knew that he was very prone to tuning out his own emotional needs and desires in an effort to protect himself from getting hurt. As the two men worked side by side, he forced himself to think about what he really wanted.

  The past month with Bastian had been like a dream. Yeah, it was quick, but it was just as full of tenderness as it was passion. There were hot nights—like recently, they got frisky in the elevator, the memory of which made Zachary’s cheeks flush—but there were even more nights spent cuddled on the couch, laughing their asses off at a Melissa McCarthy flick or crying together as they read a particularly poignant “Dear Sugar” column. Zachary had observed Bastian working with children of all ages, and thought to himself, He will make a wonderful father; he’d seen him helping Holly change light bulbs in the café and thought, What a magnificent human being.

  He had yet to say it aloud, but he was pretty sure that he was falling madly in love with Bastian Byers.

  Thus, the question: Did Zachary want to drop his dream job so that he could be with his dream man?

  No. He didn’t.

  Zachary loved being a photographer. The camera was like an extension of his arm, and his eyes, and his brain, and his heart. Picking up a camera for the first time as a kid had felt like everything just clicked into place.

  Even now, standing at the counter, chopping peppers, Zachary realized that the real question was: Did Zachary want to be with an alpha who expected him to drop his dream job?

  Zachary looked out of the corner of his eye and saw that muscle still clenched in Bastian’s jaw. What emotions were being so carefully restrained in there?

  “Bastian?”

  The alpha was surprised by the breach of the silence and turned to Zachary. His brown eyes were so wide and open, that it was almost painful. Those eyes gave all and received all, always.

  “You know I—I care about you, right?”

  There was a pause, a tiny pause that was barely noticeable, but Zachary felt it, right before Bastian pulled him against his chest.

  “Yeah, Zach, I do. Of course I do.”

  When Bastian kissed Zachary on the top of his head, like he always did whenever he gave him one of these strong, all-encompassing hugs, and it sent a surge of warmth through him. It wasn’t lust—lust was from those kisses where their tongues danced and teeth nipped. This was something else.

  It was love.

  “I don’t want to end this,” Zachary said, his words mumbled as his face was pressed into Bastian’s flannel shirt, which smelled of a gingery cologne and Italian spices.

  “Me neither.” It was a whisper again, tight and tiny, holding emotions in check.

  Ask me to stay. Beg me to stay. Tell me to stay.

  So many alphas were arrogant, domineering pricks who controlled their relationships and their omegas to suit their own needs. Bastian was too caring, too sensitive to put his needs above anyone else’s.

  I just had to fall for one of the good guys, thought Zachary. Damn me to hell.

  Bastian cleared his throat. “There’s a lot to see and photograph in Alaska. Maybe you can plan to come up a few times a year. And I have to get continuing education credits every so often. We can meet up anywhere in the States. Whatever works.” He gently pushed Zachary away from him and held him at arm’s length. “Your work is important to you, and that makes it important to me. It’s going to be fine.”

  “Thank you.”

  Zachary wasn’t sure it was going to be fine. At all.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Bastian threw himself into his work.

  Once some insurance stuff was taken care of, he got his gang of handymen back together to finish the sunlamp therapy room. Then he started booking appointments for the residents, which were followed by interviews and surveys about how the residents felt after their sessions.

  It was Alaska’s summer—sunny and cool and gorgeous—and no one stayed inside if they could help it, so it was time for the psychologist to find the residents’ baseline: how happy were they when the weather was great and they were free to roam about outside? The answers to this question would be compared to the answers from the previous summer, and then the same question would be asked again once the sky turned white with snow and everyone was stuck inside again.

  Research was his life, and, fortunately, Bastian enjoyed it.

  It was also how he separated himself from his emotions. If he focused on others, and turned their emotions into numbers (How happy are you, from 1 to 5, with 1 being completely unhappy and 5 being extremely happy? asked all of his forms), then he could help people in a most logical, statistical way, and keep his mind off his problems.

  The day after Zachary told him about his assignment in Costa Rica, Bastian sat at his desk all day, entering numbers into his database. More than a hundred subjects in the study, three forms each, twenty questions on each form. He was in nerd heaven. Nerd-vana, he joked to himself without cracking a smile.

  Zachary texted him three times and called him once. There was a tap on the door at one point, but it could have been anyone. Bastian could apologize later: “on a roll,” “deep in research,” “lost track of time.”

  It wasn’t that Bastian was mad at Zachary or didn’t want to see him. In fact, he longed for him, wanted comfort and reassurance. But Bastian was wounded and he wanted to lick his wounds in private until they weren’t so fresh.

&nb
sp; It had happened before and it was happening again: Bastian was not enough for Zachary. Zachary, who’d been on all seven continents, who had played with baby elephants in India and climbed Mount Hua Shan in China and stood on top of Bluff Knoll in Australia, needed someone who was as adventurous as he, someone who could keep him interested.

  Studious, quiet Bastian was not that someone, and now Zachary was leaving him.

  He wanted to beg Zachary to stay with him, but that would be wrong. Just as Bastian was unwilling to give up the career he’d worked so hard for, it would be ridiculous to assume Zachary would do the same. He would probably die of boredom, anyway.

  They finally got together that night, and Bastian used the planned excuses. They watched a movie and then each read to himself on their side of the bed, Zachary with a detective thriller, Bastian with a community psychology journal.

  When they clicked off the lights, Bastian sighed.

  No wonder he’s leaving.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Flip.

  Flip.

  Flip.

  Zachary sat in the waiting room of the doctor’s office, located inside the hospital where he’d been brought after the rescue from the ranger’s cabin. He was told there would be a wait, and it was going on seventy-five minutes. Oddly enough, there was a stack of National Geographic magazines on the table next to his chair, and Zachary flipped through one mindlessly, not even noticing when he occasionally came across a series of photos that he himself had taken.

  It was the first time since his accident that he’d gone to the doctor alone. People did it all the time, of course, but he carried a huge empty feeling inside. Even the drive, up the winding road that went through the national forest outside of Stellar was bland since Zachary was alone in the rental car with no one to point out birds or debate politics or sing 1980s power ballads with.