by Arden Blair
Anthony made it all of three steps into the inn before stopping cold and turning around to pierce Levi with another annoyed look.
“I’m going to ask you again,” he said. “Are you sure this is where we’re staying?”
Levi let out a sigh. His family had always stayed at the Wishing Mill Inn when they’d come to Pup’s Creek. Just like they’d always thrown their coins into the creek, and their lives had turned out great. Full of love and magic. Contentment and happy families. They had everything.
Everything that Levi so desperately wanted, and was still struggling to achieve.
“I get it. This place is a little more rustic than what you’re used to,” Levi said, forcing a smile.
“That’s one way to put it.” Anthony muttered. He crinkled his nose in disgust and glared at the stuffed weasel on top of the reception desk. “It looks rabid.”
“Anthony, sweetheart, I know it’s not giving the best first impression, but it’s going to be great, and I really want you to give it a chance. You know this place has special meaning for me and my family.”
Anthony pressed his lips together tight for a moment. And thank goodness for it, because Anthony could say some real dickish things without thinking. “It’s looking like your family has no taste.”
Levi grimaced and wondered if that was the polite version of what he’d first thought or not. He couldn’t tell. “Oh come on, sweetheart,” Levi said, using the tone of voice necessary to convince small children to eat vegetables. He put the bag down and wrapped his arms around Anthony’s waist, then pushed himself in close to Anthony. “We’re always going where you pick. Just this once, can’t you do this for me? I’ll make it worth your while. I may have picked up a few things for the weekend that I think you’ll like.”
The alpha looked up at the ceiling for a moment. Levi felt the tension spreading throughout his body. For a moment, he feared that Anthony would refuse and simply walk out the door in a huff, as he was prone to do, but instead, his shoulders finally sagged in resignation.
“All right,” he conceded. “But just this once. And afterwards, I never want to hear you complain about not getting your way ever again.”
“Well, if that ain’t romance, I don’t know what is,” a gravelly voice said. Levi dropped his arms and whipped his head around, looking for the speaker.
A tall alpha stood in the shadows of an open door behind the reception desk, his arms crossed in front of his wide chest. A very, very wide chest. Levi felt Anthony shifting next to him, puffing his chest out. There was no competition. Then the unfamiliar alpha stepped out into the light. His rugged features matched his flannel shirt and worn jeans. The sleeves of his shirt pulled tight around his arms, showing off the muscles of a man who was used to manual labor. Levi blinked and looked away from the rugged alpha. If Anthony thought he liked the look of this man, he’d complain about it all weekend.
“You must be the Tates,” the new alpha said, going to a large book that lay open on the desk.
“He’s the Tate,” Anthony said, taking a step forward. “I’m Anthony Norgate.”
“Good for you,” the other alpha muttered, dark brows drawn into a forbidding scowl. “All I know is the reservation for the Honeymoon Suite is under Levi Tate.”
“The Honeymoon Suite?” Anthony asked.
“It’s just the name of the best room they have here,” Levi answered, doing his best to ignore Anthony’s glare as he stepped up to the counter. He gave the alpha behind the counter his warmest smile. “That’s me.”
The man in flannel didn’t even crack a smile. Which was odd. Levi was very charming. He prided himself on it. “Great,” the alpha said flatly, sliding a square information card across the desk to him. “Fill this out.”
Levi filled in his personal information as quickly as he could. Standing between two annoyed alphas wasn’t the most comfortable situation he’d ever found himself in, especially because it was clear from their rising pheromones that neither of them liked the other.
No matter, though. In just a few minutes he and Anthony would be up in their room, and they could start their long weekend off right. Draw a bath. Open a bottle of champagne. Light a few candles.
Levi started to relax at the thought.
He pushed back the completed card. The man behind the counter picked it up and looked it over, his lips pulling down as he scanned the information.
“Is everything all right?” Levi asked.
“Yeah,” the alpha said in his throaty rasp. “Just fine. All I hope is that you two and your Maserati can bear our rustic inn for three whole days. I know we’re not the fanciest joint in town.” This unfamiliar alpha’s eyes were a rich, soft brown—totally at odds with his gruffness, and really rather attractive.
Levi felt Anthony’s manicured hand drape possessively over his shoulder. “Only time will tell,” Anthony said.
Levi blinked, mortified to realize the alpha had been looking at his own blue eyes just as intensely. He glanced back at Anthony and felt his heart skip a beat. Usually, he hated confrontation. He’d do anything to avoid it. But right now, he had to admit, he was more intrigued than worried. The two alphas were locked in some sort of standoff. A visual pissing contest. Levi might have been flattered that he was the omega in the middle if he didn’t have his heart set on a nice hot bath and an even hotter romp in the sheets afterwards. In fact, it was one of his more exciting fantasies. Two alphas fighting over him.
But that wasn’t what this was. This was just petty alpha BS. Each of them being obnoxious because they were so very different. Anthony was sophisticated and refined. His dominance showed through in the cut of his finely tailored suit and his air of natural superiority rather than his physical strength.
The alpha behind the counter was big and gruff; he exuded maleness and was probably hung like a horse. His was a primal kind of dominance. One that was bolstered by his wide shoulders and broad chest. An unforced confidence that practically poured out of him. It was there in his woody scent, too. Deep and rich, like the wet earth by the side of a forest stream. Levi had to resist the urge to lean in a little closer to get a better sense of it.
Instead, he pulled back into the more common and familiar peppery scent of Anthony. His alpha, Levi reminded himself. Or at least he hoped Anthony would be by the end of the weekend.
“Excuse me, Mr.—” Levi glanced down at the name on the business cards at the edge of the desk “—Burke.”
The alpha didn’t break eye contact with Anthony before answering. “Drew,” he said. “Everybody just calls me Drew.”
Drew Burke. A nice strong name that suited this alpha well.
“All right then. Drew,” he said in his best peacemaker voice. The one he’d had plenty of practice using over the years. “We’d love to get the key to our room from you. And then we’ll get out of your way.”
Drew looked down at him, and Levi felt a little thrill roll through him at the sight of the alpha’s intense gaze. The rush only intensified when he spotted Drew’s nostrils flare just a touch.
He wondered if the alpha was trying to pick up his scent or Anthony’s. Maybe both. Levi scanned the alpha’s face, looking for any changes, any tells, but there was nothing. Drew didn’t show any flickers of interest or revulsion. His expression stayed exactly the same, like a hard mask that never moved.
He was clearly defensive as hell. What had made this alpha so taciturn and cut off? Levi dismissed the thought, unwilling to get pulled into the mystery behind Drew’s stoic eyes. He had a way of letting his imagination run wild. Of coming up with stories about other people’s lives.
It was one of Anthony’s pet peeves about him.
And this weekend was supposed to be all about Anthony. About them together. The last thing Levi needed to be doing was fantasizing about the muscular inn owner, his broad shoulders and hard gaze.
“Thank you,” Levi said as he swiped the key off the counter. He pulled a twenty from his wallet and slid it toward
Drew. “Would it be possible for us to have our bags brought up to our room?”
The alpha didn’t even look down at the money. “Of course.”
Levi smiled before turning and wrapping his arm around Anthony’s waist, gently guiding him toward the staircase.
“I’m going to go ahead and assume there’s not a complementary wine reception in this place,” Anthony called out when they’d made it halfway up.
“Good. Then you won’t be disappointed,” Drew growled. Levi tried to suppress the shiver the new alpha’s voice sent up his spine, but he knew Anthony felt it, because he tensed and pulled away. Levi hoped his scent hadn’t changed, too. It wasn’t his fault his body reacted to an alpha jerk. All he could control was his response to the alpha’s magnetism. Which meant getting away from the man and into Anthony’s arms as soon as possible.
“I don’t want a bath,” Anthony huffed. He’d been pacing the floor of their suite for the last fifteen minutes, and nothing Levi had said had managed to calm him down. “The only thing I want is to leave this horrid place.”
“Oh come on, honey,” Levi said in his most soothing tone. It didn’t work. If anything, it only made Anthony’s glare stonier. “This place isn’t that bad. It’s just…quaint. A quick dusting, some taxidermy-focused decluttering, and it would be incredibly charming.”
Anthony stopped pacing long enough to shoot Levi a withering look. “Quaint? My grandfather’s house is quaint. This place is like something out of a horror movie.”
Levi rolled his eyes. “It’s not that bad.” It kind of was that bad, but he couldn’t admit it, or Anthony would never let it go. They’d be 80 and celebrating their anniversary and Anthony would say, “Remember that hellhole you took us to before we got engaged? How horrible it was?” No, thank you.
“Not that bad? Really?” Anthony practically shouted. “There’s a wooden wheel attached to the wall of our bathroom. A wheel! I think that backwoods simpleton downstairs actually mistook his tool shed for an art studio.”
Okay, Anthony had a point. It wasn’t exactly Levi’s favorite form of decor, but it was like Anthony wasn’t even trying to have a good time. “We’re in an old mill,” Levi said with a shrug. “It fits the theme.”
Anthony’s cell phone buzzed again, and he stopped bickering long enough to look at the message.
“Who is it?” Levi asked. Anthony had been getting text messages all morning.
“Nothing. It’s no one,” he muttered, typing out a reply and ignoring Levi completely. Which was just fine with him. “And why are we in the Honeymoon Suite?” Anthony suddenly demanded. “Why don’t you explain that to me? This place is empty. You had your pick of rooms, and you chose the Honeymoon Suite. What the hell is that about?”
Levi felt his stomach twist. He hated when Anthony made the transition from complaining about his problems to complaining about him.
“I told you, it was—”
“The nicest room here,” Anthony finished for him in a mocking sing-song voice. “Tell me, Levi. Why did you think we would need the nicest room in this place? In this ridiculous town where your family has gotten engaged for generations. I didn’t want to say anything, but you leave me no choice. You brought us here, to this crumbling place, because you thought you could trick me into proposing.”
Levi collapsed onto the bed. “Trick you?”
“Wasn’t that the hope? The coin? The wish?” He shook his head and paced a hole in the carpet. “This wasn’t just a weekend away. Honestly, I feel ambushed. You owe me an apology.”
Levi blinked. “What now?” What sort of semantic nonsense was this? Anthony was berating him and being a jerk but he was expected to apologize?
Anthony doubled down on his stare. “Not only that, but we get here and you can’t even keep your attention on me for five minutes.”
A rush of heat poured in to Levi’s cheeks. “What?”
“Don’t play innocent with me,” Anthony growled. “I saw the way you were drooling over that hulking imbecile.”
“I was not.”
“Are you kidding me? I was surprised you didn’t present your ass to him right then and there!”
“That’s not fair,” Levi shot back. “I would never do that to you!”
“It’s payback, isn’t it? I made one mistake. One drunken mistake—which I apologized for—and now you’re trying to make me feel guilty by coming on to that prick downstairs.”
Levi didn’t know what to do. He’d only looked at the man. Stolen a quick sniff. Was that really comparable to Anthony cheating on him? He’d seen Anthony flirt openly with other omegas. Heard him discuss the beauty of their bodies and the irresistible pull of their scents. And if that was what Anthony was willing to do while he was around, Levi could only shudder at the thought of what went on when he wasn’t there. But he’d forgiven Anthony, went out of his way to trust him, even though Anthony had betrayed him once before.
Levi pressed his lips together and stared down at the floor. He needed to take a breath before he said something he regretted. Something that would turn this weekend from the dream he’d planned to a nightmare and end everything for good.
As if it isn’t already. Levi cursed the thought as soon as it floated through his head. He wanted nothing more than to take it back, but once the idea was planted, there was no way that Levi could ignore it.
Something was wrong. Anthony was acting strange. Sure, he was always particular in his tastes. He liked things to be a certain way. But this was more than that. It was almost as if the alpha was itching for a fight. Looking for any excuse to blow up their special getaway.
And if that was the case, then maybe Levi should just throw up his hands and give the man what he wanted.
“I think you’re overreacting,” he said, hating that his voice trembled.
And that was all it took.
After a year together, he and his alpha had learned a lot about each other. Anthony had learned how to scold, and guilt-trip, and emotionally manipulate to get what he wanted. And Levi had learned which of his buttons Anthony wouldn’t stand being pressed.
Questioning him was the biggest one. Question his motives, his emotions, or his fidelity, and there would be an explosion. Anthony’s face turned a bright shade of red as his body grew still. “What did you say?”
Levi looked up at him. He willed the tears that were already welling to stay in his eyes. “You heard me.”
“I never should have come here,” the alpha said, storming over to the door and throwing it open. “I’m going home. Now you can come with me if you want, or you can choose to wallow in this backwater, but you have to decide right now.”
Levi filled his lungs. He wanted the deep breath to steady his nerves, he really did. That’s how it was in the movies, after all. A steadying breath, and then the hero could go on with all the courage in the world.
But Levi didn’t feel that way. He just felt as scared and defeated as always. Like the frightened doormat he’d become. Too afraid to move forward without a strong alpha at his side.
“I’m staying here.” His voice might have been little higher than a whisper, but his answer came out clear.
Silence filled the room for a long moment. Countless seconds passed. Levi didn’t have a clue how many. All he knew was he could still feel Anthony’s hard gaze beating down on him.
Finally, a frustrated growl broke the silence, filling the suite with its rage.
“Then it’s over,” Anthony said, low and final.
“It’s over,” Levi repeated numbly, even though it was unnecessary. It was like he needed to say it, too, in order to believe it.
“Well, then I hope you really like this Honeymoon Suite, because as far as I’m concerned you can live here now.” Anthony’s voice echoed off the walls before he slammed the door shut.
And that was it. Anthony was gone. Levi sat on the edge of the massive mattress, listening to his footsteps disappear down the hall. A minute later, he heard the car start a
nd roar away. And then he was alone.
Alone in Pup’s Creek. Alone by the Wishing Mill. Alone in the Honeymoon Suite.
So much for the shiny silver dollar, Levi thought before slumping down on the bed to cry.
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The Second Chance Suite
Christ on a cracker, this is bad, Chase thought as he stared at the annoyingly gorgeous face of Byron Hardwick.
Dear God. There was one face Chase thought he’d never see again. Hell, it had been one of the few things in life he’d been certain of, like death or taxes or yet another season of The Bachelor. He’d have bet his limited income on it.
Byron Hardwick, the hot alpha he’d ditched and lamented over for the last ten years, was the single biggest regret in life. And now he was standing right in front of him.
Ten years. That was a long time. It seemed like forever since Chase had looked into Byron’s dark eyes. Forever since he’d felt the alpha’s strong arms wrap around him, pull him close and ignite a wildfire in his veins.
But first love tended to be fiery like that. Byron had been Chase’s first real boyfriend, his college sweetheart. Their relationship had burned hot and bright, filled with all the passion and desire that came with youth.
That’s why it couldn’t last. Eventually, they grew up, and reality reared its ugly head. Byron might have been one hell of a lover, but he also had a wild streak and a penchant for finding trouble, qualities that were at odds with Chase’s political aspirations. In the end, their lives were just too different. Their ambitions too incompatible. So Chase had pulled up his big-boy pants and left, knowing full well he’d never see the greatest love of his life again.
At least, that’s what he’d had thought, right up until five seconds ago when the front door of the Wishing Mill Inn had opened, and Byron Hardwick had walked through.
For a moment, Chase hadn’t believed his eyes. Maybe he was having a stroke. Why else would visions from his past be flashing before his eyes? That was far more likely than Byron Hardwick casually walking back into his life.