Blake stood in his bedroom, carefully packing clothing that accompanied him on his job. He would almost miss the cabin, with the large windows and the pine trees like brush strokes surrounding him. He wouldn’t miss the loneliness, and Troy coming with him to his home, that was a dream come true.
The door creaked and Blake turned. Too late, the unfamiliar scent hit his nose and he let out a low hiss. Turning, Blake saw Troy’s father standing in the doorway of his home.
“What are you doing here?” Blake said, his voice more growl than speech.
The man did not answer right away. Instead, he took in the cabin. His gaze lingered over the spare decor and the few generic landscapes that hung on the walls.
Blake could smell the alpha pheromones emanating from Troy’s father. The scent was strong, powerful, like a spicy heat deep in the back of his nose. Blake’s lion clawed at the edge of his consciousness, ready to shift into control at any moment.
“I wondered how long it would take you to return,” the wolf said, voice cutting through the tense silence like a light through the fog.
Blake raised an eyebrow but held his body tense, ready to spring.
“I didn’t realize you thought about me at all,” Blake said. He made an effort to say this with a seductive drawl. The wolf did not flinch, but Blake could smell the stress and discomfort coming off him like smoke. Mountain lions could always smell fear.
The man met his gaze with a level stare. His eyes were framed by the same long lashes that framed Troy’s eyes, but they lacked the clear, bright openness of his youngest son’s gaze.
“He isn’t yours to take,” the man said.
“I don’t think it is your place to say,” Blake countered.
“I’m his father.”
Blake curled his upper lip and pulled his chest up, showing each muscle flexing beneath his gray t-shirt. He was an alpha, too, powerful and prepared to fight.
“I’m his lover.”
The old man’s mask broke for a second as he scoffed, his lip curling in a mockery of a laugh.
“You think you’re in love with him?” He said. “I know your type. You mountain lions know nothing of love. It’s all a power struggle for you.”
“You don’t know anything about me,” said Blake.
“I do,” the wolf continued. He stepped closer so he was striking distance away. Blake could see the sinews in his neck and the hard set of his jaw. The alpha wolf crept in the corners of his control, that much was certain. “We hear whispers of the revolts and the changes in power down from the north. I know that you stole power, I know that your pride is already figuring out how to dispose of you. You’ve been away too long.”
“My pride is my own business.”
“And my son is my business.”
Almost imperceptibly, the two men had moved closer together. Blake peered down his nose at the wolf, barely taller. His lion snarled and prepared to take control. Still, Blake tried to hold himself in command.
“You’re a bitter old man,” Blake said, “and you won’t see reason. Your people are stuck in the past. You sent Troy away because he wanted to be happy and you’re trying to send me away now. I won’t leave without him.”
“Is that what you think?”
The man’s voice was hardly above a whisper. His words sliced through the air with precision.
“Troy chose to go. I needed him to leave to protect him. You cats don’t know how to love anyone but yourselves. I was saving him from throwing away his future with a good for nothing drifter.”
“Old man,” Blake said, the muscles in his arms clenching, “I have so much more to offer your son than you ever will. Do you expect him to stay here and play second fiddle to his brother? Do you keep him around as a way to make yourself feel better? Or do you just plan to keep him in the home to replace his mother?”
“He will stay here and be loyal to his family,” the alpha wolf said. “That is how my people operate. You would never understand loyalty. I can’t expect you to, you were kicked out of your pride from your uncle. How can I expect you to know how to truly love someone if you were just tossed aside like the trash you are.”
This was too much for Blake. He felt himself snap. With a jerk, he grabbed the fabric of the wolf’s shirt and pulled him close. He growled in his face.
“You cannot fucking speak to me like that.”
The wolf did not move. He flicked a glance down to the hand tangled in his shirt and then snapped his attention back to Blake’s eyes.
“Tread carefully, boy,” the words fell on Blake like acid rain. “If you attack me, our clans will be at war. This is the way things work.”
“Your son and I are leaving together,” Blake said, voice hard. He did not care what this man thought. He had spent far too much time bending to the will of backward old alphas.
The wolf reached up and pulled Blake’s hand away from his shirt. The strength of the man’s grip was impressive. His face remained impassive as he shoved Blake’s hand away.
“He doesn’t love you,” the man said. “He is just weak, it’s always been his vice. He wants to be a follower. Loyalty has been a struggle for years.”
“Our relationship is our business,” said Blake.
“I think it is also the business of Troy’s fiancé,” the man said. “Or has he not mentioned Kylie?”
Blake felt like the air had knocked out of him. The words echoed in his ears and he stood, fists clenched by his sides, staring into nothing.
The man smirked. “I take it he hasn’t.”
With a shrug, the wolf moved away.
“That’s Troy for you,” he said, walking toward the door. “He keeps his secrets. I’m sure he would have told you, eventually. But, then again, a lion and a wolf should never trust each other. Cats and dogs, you know?”
Blake stood rooted to his spot. His cheeks grew hot with anger and he felt like the bottom of his stomach had dropped out to the floor.
“Go back to your own territory.”
These words were spoken with a hint of apology. Blake focused on the alpha wolf for a moment. The man leaned in the doorway, halfway out, his steely eyes trained on him.
“If I see you back here,” the man said, “I will have my pack take you down. Go home, forget this place. Troy was never for you.”
He left and the door swung shut with an angry clack. Blake was rooted to his spot, shoulders heaving.
After another moment, he turned back to his suitcase. His large hands grabbed piles of clothes and shoved them into the case. Any semblance of order was forgotten, now he just wanted to leave. Troy would be here soon and he was not sure if he wanted to face him.