by D. J. Heart
“Is his father going to be okay?” he asked. If Chad’s father was going to be okay, he wouldn’t feel so guilty.
“I got that impression, but I don’t know.”
“Is he an alpha?” Peter asked, suddenly curious. It wasn’t unheard of for two betas to have an alpha child, but it was unusual. If that was the case, it might explain some of Chad’s behavior.
“I don’t know. Do you want me to find out?” Merchant hooked his thumbs in the front pockets of his jeans, once again looking perfectly relaxed. A part of Peter was tempted to bare his teeth in a little growl, just to put him in his place.
“No. I’ll talk to him. Did he say anything else I should know?”
Merchant hesitated, and Peter furrowed his brow in a warning frown.
“Not really. He just… seemed a little beaten up. His ribs were obviously bothering him, and I think he was hiding a limp.”
Peter’s frown deepened. He had dominated Chad pretty thoroughly, but he hadn’t been rough with him. Did Merchant think that Peter was the one who had hurt him?
“Anything else?”
Merchant shook his head.
“Then you can go. I’ll call you if I need anything else.”
Merchant nodded and left the office, closing the door softly behind him.
Peter went back to work, but he didn’t get much done. He was distracted, his mind circling back to Chad with alarming frequency.
He didn’t like the way things stood between them. It gnawed at him. Closing out his browser, Peter pinched the bridge of his nose and wondered when he’d become such a clingy wreck.
He actually wanted to book a flight and follow the younger alpha. It was pathetic.
Restless and embarrassed, Peter packed up his things and left the office. He called Aiden from the elevator, asking him to meet him at the gym in half an hour.
Hopefully a day spent working out and besting Aiden would get his mind off Chad.
***
Chapter 16
Chad met his mother at the curb outside the hospital main entrance. She looked tired, with dark circles under her eyes and her hair made up in a messy bun, but when she saw him she smiled brightly.
“Chad, it’s so good to see you,” she said, hugging him tight. Since the top of her head only reached his chest, Chad had to bend down awkwardly to hug her back. It was wonderful.
“You too, Mom,” he said. “How’s Dad?”
His mom pulled back, still holding onto his sides as she looked up at him. The expression in her face was exasperated.
“He’s going to be fine. He has to take it easy for a week—and the doctors recommended he make some changes to his diet—but looking at him now you wouldn’t know he just had a heart attack.” She shook her head like she couldn’t believe something like this had happened to her husband. “He’s looking forward to seeing you.”
Chad grinned, relieved that everything looked like it was going to be okay. He shifted his backpack further up on his shoulder, looking toward the hospital entrance.
“Can we go see him now?” he asked. He wanted to see his dad for himself.
“That’s the plan. He’s up on the third floor,” his mother said, taking his arm and walking him into the building.
They made their way up to his dad’s room, and when they stepped inside Chad felt a lump in his throat. Seeing his dad in the hospital bed with all kinds of wires and machines hooked up to his body was awful.
“Hey son, it’s good to see you,” his dad said, sitting up in the bed. He waved Chad over for a hug. Feeling big and clumsy, Chad reached down and hugged him, worried that he was going to mess up the wires.
“So how long do you have to stay here?” Chad asked when they broke the hug. His dad shrugged.
“The doctor said I can probably go home tomorrow if things keep going smoothly.”
Chad was relieved. If they were letting him go home, they had to be pretty sure he was going to be fine.
“But I don’t want to talk about me. I’m going to be fine. What’s new with you?”
Chad blinked. Peter was the first thing that popped into his mind, but telling his parents about what may or may not be a one-night stand was out of the question.
“Nothing much. I made friends with a guy in my building, and I’ve signed up for classes at the training center. Other than that… I haven’t been doing much.”
“What does your new friend do? What’s his name? Is he an alpha?” his mother asked, pulling up two chairs and angling them toward the bed. Chad sat down, preparing himself for what he knew was going to be a near-endless barrage of questions.
“He’s a computer science graduate student, his name is Topher, and yes, he is an alpha.”
Chad knew they would be happy that Topher wasn’t military or that he didn’t work for Tank Security. They weren’t afraid to tell him exactly what they thought he should be doing, and it didn’t involve working as a private contractor. According to them, Chad should be going to college.
“Computer science, that sounds interesting,” his dad said. Chad didn’t have to guess where this was going.
“Is that something you think you’d like to do?” his mother added.
And they were off.
***
Chad and his mom went home after a few hours, his dad practically chasing them out of the room. They drove home, and while his mother showered and got changed, Chad went up to his old bedroom to put away his things.
Stepping into his childhood room after being away was always hilarious. As a teenager he’d been fiercely territorial of the space, any intrusion making him aggressive and unreasonable, and despite his parents’ vehement objections he’d plastered every inch of the walls with posters of omegas.
Not naked ones, obviously, but clad so scantily they might as well be. And all of them in heat. Looking around the room, everywhere Chad turned there was a picture of an omega staring back at him with a look like his knot was the only thing that could set the world right.
As a teenager it had made him feel powerful and strong, but now it just made him horny.
Unpacking his clothes—three pairs of underwear, two T-shirts and an extra pair of jeans—Chad kicked off his boots and lay down on his old twin bed.
He wondered sometimes what it would have been like if his dad were an alpha. If it would have been easier for him, or if the presence of a stronger alpha would have grated on him and made him even more territorial.
He wouldn’t have had to put up with as many lectures on omega rights, that was for sure. Chad still cringed when he thought back to the fight he’d had with his dad when he was seventeen and had saved up enough money to visit an omega club.
He’d stormed out, furious that a beta would try to deny him his natural right. Filled with self-righteous indignation, he had marched up to the club with his friends, bought his ticket, and then been firmly turned away by the alphas guarding the door.
Apparently, the fake ID he’d bought wasn’t nearly as good as advertised.
Chad had been so humiliated he hadn’t talked to his parents for a month.
There was a knock on the door, and Chad was startled out of his reminiscing.
“Chad?” his mother called. “I’m ordering us some food. Would you like pizza or Chinese?”
Chad jumped off the bed and opened the door, stepping out in the hallway. His mother was wearing a fluffy bathrobe with her wet hair combed back from her face, looking much better after her shower.
“Chinese would be great. You want me to drive and pick it up?”
“If you don’t mind?” his mother asked, smiling.
“Not at all. Let me just shower while you order and then I’ll head out.”
His mother smiled and thanked him, leaving him to shower and get changed.
***
Chapter 17
It had been five days since his night with Chad when Peter found the note in his kitchen. He had just gone to make himself a cup of coffee, wondering if h
e had milk or if he needed to call down for some, when he spotted the piece of paper lying on the counter.
Thank you for last night, I had a great time. Sorry I had to run—signed up for morning classes.
Chad Brand
Peter read the note twice, tracing the phone number on the bottom of the page with his finger. He didn’t know whether to laugh or slam his fist on the counter. Why couldn’t Chad have left the note in the living room, study, bedroom, hallway or any of the rooms that Peter actually used?
It would have saved him so much fucking grief.
Heart beating uncharacteristically fast, Peter pulled out his phone and dialed Chad’s number. As he listened to it ring, he consoled himself that at least now he wasn’t coming across as being at all desperate or clingy.
“Hello?”
Peter’s cock twitched at the sound of Chad’s voice.
“Chad, this is Peter Tank. I’m sorry I didn’t call you sooner, I’ve just had a lot on my plate. How are you?”
“Peter,” Chad exclaimed, sounding surprised but pleased. “Don’t worry about it. I’m in California, actually. My dad was sick so I flew out to help.”
A knot of tension Peter hadn’t even been aware of loosened in his belly. He’d been worried that Chad would be hesitant or cold when he called, but that wasn’t the case at all. He leaned back against the counter and crossed his ankles, relaxing.
“I’m sorry to hear that. Is he going to be okay?” Peter already knew the answer, but he didn’t want Chad to know that. He was entirely aware that he’d crossed several lines by keeping track of Chad the way that he was.
“He’s going to be fine. I’m actually flying back tomorrow.”
Peter grinned. He felt like a teenager talking to Chad. There was an honest-to-God flutter in his stomach at the thought of seeing the younger man, and his balls felt full and heavy between his legs.
“That’s great. Would you like to go out with me sometime after you get back?”
“Like a date?” Chad sounded happy, and Peter grinned.
“Yes,” Peter said. He wasn’t entirely sure what he wanted from Chad, only that his feelings were a bit more possessive than they had any right to be. But a date was a good place to start.
“I’d like that, sure. When?” There was no hesitation in Chad’s voice. Peter reached down and fondled his shaft through the front of his suit, closing his eyes and imagining just what he’d like to do to Chad after—or during—their date.
“When have you signed up for morning classes? I don’t want a repeat of last time.” Peter kept his voice light.
“Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays,” Chad said, sounding a little embarrassed. “And I’m sorry about that, by the way. I should have woken you up to say goodbye.”
Peter agreed wholeheartedly, but he didn’t say it. “That’s fine. I didn’t tell you either way, so you didn’t do anything wrong. How about Wednesday night?”
That should give Chad a day or two to get settled in after his trip home.
“I’d like that.” Chad sounded happy, and Peter loved that he wasn’t trying to seem cool and unaffected. He decided he should follow suit and demonstrate a bit of the enthusiasm he was feeling too.
“Good. I’ll pick you up at seven.”
Chad tried to argue that he didn’t need to be picked up, but Peter shot him down. Picking Chad up was a small but significant display of dominance. Peter didn’t want to start things off with the younger man on too equal of a footing. If Chad couldn’t handle submitting outside of the bedroom too, it was better they found out now.
“Have a nice flight home, and I’ll see you on Wednesday,” Peter said, ending the call. He pushed away from the counter, coffee forgotten, and headed to the living room.
Getting comfortable on the sofa, his legs spread wide as he unzipped his fly to free his rock-hard cock, Peter picked up the remote and turned on the DVD player. Two alphas appeared on screen, both of them dressed in tight leather pants, their muscles and cocks bulging beautifully, and Peter started jerking himself off.
As the stronger alpha quickly subdued his opponent, wrestling him into a leather hood and cuffing his arms behind his back, Peter’s balls pulled up and his cock twisted. Closing his eyes, imagining Chad bound and laid out before him, he shot his load all over his chest.
Milking his knot, the sound of the alpha on screen fucking into his submissive filling the room, Peter relaxed his head back against the couch and allowed himself a moment to just enjoy the fantasy.
When his balls were empty and his cock went soft, Peter cleaned himself off with a towel. He wondered if Chad would ever let him do anything like that to him for real. It was one thing to be held down and fucked, and quite another to be bound in head-to-toe leather with a gag shoved in your mouth.
Aiden, or any of the alphas he’d tried dating, had let him get as kinky and controlling as he wanted.
Tucking his spent cock back into his pants, the smell of come lingering on his skin, Peter hoped that Chad would be different.
***
Chad hung up the phone and stared out the window overlooking the yard, a grin spreading on his face. He had pretty much given up hope that Peter was going to call.
Speaking to the dominant alpha had left Chad feeling giddy and almost like he was floating. It was like Peter had burrowed in under his skin, and now just the sound of his voice was enough to get Chad going. And Chad liked it.
“Chad! Dinner is ready!” his mother called from downstairs, startling him. He realized he’d been standing there like an idiot, staring out the window at nothing.
“I’m coming!” he called back. The phone had rung just after he came out of the shower, and Chad was still naked and a little wet. He ignored the droplets of water still clinging to his skin and pulled on his jeans and a shirt, running out of his room and crashing down the stairs like he’d used to do as a teenager.
“You’re in a good mood,” his dad said, looking up from his seat at the kitchen table. Chad shrugged, unable to help the smile on his face.
“I’ve got a date,” he said, sitting down. His mother set the roast she had cooked on the table and sat down, handing the carving knife to Chad.
“A date?” she asked as he carved the meat. Chad nodded, not quite sure how much he wanted to tell them.
“Mm-hmm,” Chad said, noncommittally. He lifted a thick piece of meat over onto his mother’s plate, and then gave a much thinner piece to his father. The doctor had been very firm when he said that his dad needed to cut down on red meat.
“Boy or girl?” his dad asked. He didn’t look particularly happy about Chad’s selection of meat, but he didn’t complain.
“Man,” Chad said, the word coming out more pointed than he’d intended. No one who ever met Peter would dare call him a boy. If there ever was someone who deserved to be called an uber-alpha, it was Peter. He exuded power and control unlike anyone Chad had ever met.
It was as intimidating as it was hot.
“An alpha, actually,” Chad said. His parents both froze, looking at him with matching wide-eyed expressions, and Chad forced himself not to fidget.
He wasn’t embarrassed by the fact that he wanted to date Peter. Or rather, he was determined not to be.
“An alpha? Really?” his mother didn’t sound judgmental, just really, really surprised.
Chad didn’t blame her. He had never shown any interest in alphas when he was younger, as demonstrated by the posters lining the walls of his bedroom.
“I’ve just never met anyone like him. He’s got this presence. It’s intense.”
His dad frowned. “So he’s more…” he looked like he knew what he wanted to say, but wasn’t sure he should.
“He’s way more dominant than me,” Chad answered the question his dad had been wanting to ask.
“And you’re okay with that?”
Chad shrugged. “He’s just… he’s so dominant that fighting him isn’t even an option. It just feels natural to let hi
m take the lead. It’s weird, but I like the way he makes me feel. It’s nice.”
Chad felt a little defensive. He knew it was out of character for him to be okay with being the less-dominant person in the room, but he knew how he felt. He wasn’t stupid enough to try denying himself just because there was a specific way alphas were supposed to act. Before, Chad had disliked being around alphas more dominant than himself because it made him feel on edge and vulnerable. Peter didn’t make him feel like that, and so he didn’t mind.