Chapter 14
MARK
The employee break room at Griffin’s bar smelled faintly of coffee and lemon cleaner. It was small and utilitarian, with a few metal chairs and a worn couch that had probably seen better days.
I sat on it while Zack rummaged through the first-aid kit, muttering something about people who thought they were invincible.
He was fussing again. His hands moved fast, brow furrowed, as if I were bleeding out instead of sporting a few scratches and bruises.
“Zack,” I said, trying to catch his gaze. “It looks worse than it is.”
He shot me a look that said don’t even start. “You have claw marks across your shoulder, Mark. That’s not nothing.”
“They’re shallow,” I insisted. “You should’ve seen me after a pack sparring session. This is barely a warm-up wound.”
Zack didn’t seem convinced. He dabbed antiseptic on a cotton pad and pressed it gently against my shoulder anyway. I hissed at the sting.
“Uh-huh. Barely a scratch,” he said, rolling his eyes. “You’re lucky Griffin kept everyone else away before the situation got worse. Theo could’ve hurt someone.”
I tensed at that reminder, but the guilt on Zack’s face was worse than the burn of the antiseptic. He hesitated, lowering the pad.
“He only came here because of me,” Zack said quietly. “If I’d just been more firm with him before, maybe—”
“Zack.” I reached for his wrist, stopping him before he could say more. “You can’t take responsibility for what Theo did. None of us could’ve predicted that. He made his own choices.”
Zack’s shoulders slumped, the tension draining a little.
“Still feels like it’s my fault,” he muttered.
“It’s not,” I said firmly. “You told him it was over. You made that clear. What Theo did tonight had nothing to do with you and everything to do with his pride.”
For a second, Zack just stared at me, like he was trying to decide whether to believe me. Then his expression softened. He sighed and leaned closer, his forehead resting briefly against mine.
“You always know what to say,” Zack said.
“That’s new,” I murmured, smiling despite myself. “Usually you tell me I talk too much.”
Zack huffed a small laugh. “Only when you’re being smug.”
“I can’t help it,” I said. “You bring it out of me.”
He looked up then, eyes bright and clear despite the exhaustion in his face.
For a long moment, neither of us moved.
His thumb brushed the edge of one of my bandages, a careful touch that sent a shiver of anticipation through me. It wasn’t about desire right then, not entirely.
It was relief. Gratitude. The bone-deep awareness that I could’ve lost this before it even began. I wanted to kiss him. Just once. To remind myself he was real and still mine.
Before I could, though, the door opened.
Griffin stepped inside, clearing his throat with that signature “I hate interrupting but I have to” sound. Zack jerked back slightly, cheeks coloring.
Griffin raised an eyebrow but said nothing about the scene he’d walked into.
“I’ve got Theo dressed,” Griffin announced. “The lion’s still out cold. I doubt he’ll wake up anytime soon, but we should get him out of here before the humans start asking more questions.”
Zack straightened. “We’ll drop him off at the hospital.”
I nodded. “Good idea.”
Griffin gave us both a long look, then added, “Fast thinking kept things from getting ugly tonight, Mark. I’ll tell Cooper you guys are bringing Theo to the hospital if he calls.”
“Thanks,” I said.
Zack helped me up from the couch, his hand lingering a little too long at my back. Together, we followed Griffin out the side door.
Theo was already bundled in a blanket, his breathing shallow but steady. His belongings were folded in a paper bag at his side.
We carried him to Zack’s car. The drive to the hospital was quiet, except for the hum of the tires and the low whisper of the heater.
Zack kept glancing at me between stoplights, as if making sure I was still in one piece.
I broke the silence first. “You don’t have to look at me like I’m about to fall apart.”
“Maybe I just like looking at you,” Zack said without missing a beat.
That earned him a grin. “Smooth.”
He smirked faintly. “You’re just not used to me being nice.”
The drop-off at the hospital was quick. We explained to the night nurse that Theo had too much to drink and gotten into a minor scuffle. It was half-true, half-lie, but believable enough. They took him without question.
As we walked back to the car, my phone buzzed. A text lit up the screen.
Cooper: My office, once you’re done at the hospital.
Zack peered over. “Cooper?”
“Yeah. Guess he’s not waiting until morning,” I said.
Zack slid into the driver’s seat. “Then let’s get it over with.”
The pack house was mostly dark when we pulled up, except for one light at the corner.
I could already imagine Cooper behind his desk, arms crossed, with a look that said he was disappointed but not surprised.
“I’ll go in alone,” I said, unbuckling. “You should head home. I don’t know how long he’ll keep me.”
Zack frowned. “Not a chance. I’ll wait.”
“Zack—”
“Don’t bother arguing. I’m not leaving you here.”
Zack looked so damn stubborn I didn’t even try to fight it. Instead, I leaned across the console and kissed him.
“Thanks,” I murmured.
He smiled faintly. “That’s what mates do, right?”
The word hit me square in the chest. Mates. Hearing it from him filled me with a warmth I couldn’t put into words. I didn’t even care that Cooper was probably pacing his office by now.
“Yeah,” I said quietly. “That’s exactly what mates do.”
Inside, Cooper was sitting behind his desk, paperwork stacked neatly beside him. To my surprise, he didn’t look angry.
“Sit,” Cooper said, motioning to the chair opposite him.
I obeyed, bracing for the lecture I knew was coming.
But instead, Cooper leaned back and said, “You handled the situation better than I expected.”
That threw me. “You’re not mad?”
“I’m not thrilled there was another fight involving you,” he admitted. “But you did what you had to do, and you did it without anyone getting seriously hurt. Griffin filled me in.”
I exhaled slowly. “I didn’t want to fight him. He shifted first,” I told him.
“I know,” Cooper said. “And you kept your control. That’s what matters.”
It took a second for his words to sink in. Praise from Cooper was rare.
“What’ll happen to Theo?” I asked.
Cooper’s expression turned thoughtful. “I’ll let him and his band perform at the New Year’s event. After that, he’s banned from Pecan Pines. This pack doesn’t need his kind of trouble.”
I nodded. “That’s fair.”
Cooper gave me a look that was almost fond. “Go home, Mark. You’ve had a long night.”
I stood, still a little stunned at how painless that had been, and left his office.
Zack was waiting in the hallway, sitting on one of the benches with his elbows on his knees. He jumped up the moment he saw me.
“Well?” Zack asked. “I didn’t hear any shouting, so I’m guessing that’s good?”
I laughed. “Better than good. Cooper didn’t chew my ass off. Said I did well.”
“See? Told you you’d be fine,” Zack said, relief flickering across his face.
I smiled. “You wanna stay over at my place tonight? It’s late, and I could use the company.”
Zack hesitated only a second before nodding. “Yeah. Let’s go.”
The drive to my family’s cabin was quiet and comfortable.
The woods outside blurred past, moonlight silvering the branches. When we arrived, the house was dark except for the porch light I’d left on earlier.
“Try not to wake anyone,” I whispered as we stepped inside.
Zack grinned. “You saying we’re sneaking in?”
“Exactly.”
We tiptoed through the hall, muffling our laughter until we reached my room.
I shut the door behind us and finally let out a long breath. The tension of the night started to slip away, replaced by something softer.
Zack moved first, reaching for the hem of my shirt. “You’re still bleeding a little,” he said.
“Then maybe you should help me wash it off,” I murmured.
The corner of his mouth curved up. “I was hoping you’d say that.”
We stepped into the bathroom. Zack told me to take off my shirt. He had that stubborn look on his face, so I complied. Then he turned on the tap.
Steam filled the bathroom, curling up around us like mist. The tiles were cold beneath my feet, the contrast sharp against the warmth of the water cascading from above.
Zack stood close enough that I could feel the steady rhythm of his breathing.
“Turn around,” he said softly, reaching for the washcloth. His voice was gentle, almost hesitant.
I obeyed, letting him tend to me. Zack’s movements were slow, deliberate. He traced over the cuts and bruises, cleaning away the streaks of blood that had already begun to dry.
“You really don’t have to do this,” I said after a moment.
“I know,” Zack replied, his tone calm but firm. “That’s why I want to.”
Something in my chest tightened. I didn’t know what to say to that. So I stood there, letting him finish, letting the sound of the water fill the silence between us.
When he was done, Zack turned off the tap and grabbed a towel. He handed me one, then used another to blot the water from my hair.
We stepped into the bedroom, both of us wrapped in towels and exhaustion. Zack sat on the edge of the bed, his eyes following me as I pulled on a clean shirt.
“You scared me tonight,” he said suddenly.
“I scared myself,” I admitted. “When Theo shifted, my wolf wanted to end it. For a second, I almost didn’t stop him.”
Zack looked up, his expression softening. “But you did stop. That’s what matters.”
I sat down beside him, elbows resting on my knees.
“I thought I was going to lose you. Not because of him, but because I’d let myself turn into the kind of man you couldn’t stand to be around,” I said.
Zack reached out, his fingers brushing mine before curling around my hand.
“You’re not that man,” he said quietly. “You made a choice tonight. The right one. And that’s the kind of person I want beside me.”
I swallowed hard, the weight of his words settling deep in my chest. “You really mean that?”
Zack smiled faintly. “You still need proof?”
“I think I just… needed to hear it,” I told him.
Zack squeezed my hand. “Then listen carefully, because I’m not saying it twice. I choose you, Mark. Not because you’re perfect. Because you try. Because you care, even when you mess up.”
Something broke open in me then, the tension I’d been holding onto for days finally giving way. I leaned in, pressing my forehead to his. “You have no idea how much that means to me.”
“I think I do,” Zack whispered.
We lay back on the bed, the silence between us now easy and full of warmth. Zack curled into my side, his head resting just beneath my chin.
His hand found mine again, fingers tracing lazy circles against my skin, grounding me.
“I don’t want to think about Theo or the pack or anything else right now,” he murmured. “Just this.”
“Just us,” I said, tightening my arm around him.
He nodded, eyes already drifting shut.
“You smell like soap,” he murmured sleepily.
“Guess that’s better than blood and adrenaline,” I joked softly, earning a quiet laugh.
“Much better.”
We stayed like that for a long time, listening to the wind outside, the steady tick of the old clock in the hallway, the rhythm of our breathing syncing into something calm and certain.
When I finally felt him relax completely, I realized that every scrap of fear and doubt I’d carried all night was gone.
“Goodnight, mate,” Zack whispered drowsily.
The word still hit me like a pulse of warmth straight to the chest. Mate. He’d said it again.
“Goodnight, my mate,” I whispered back, pressing a kiss to his hair. “Sleep well.”
Zack shifted closer, murmuring something incoherent before falling asleep for real.
I stayed awake a little longer, watching the moonlight spill across the floorboards, listening to the steady sound of his breathing.