Chapter Three
Gwyn
T he noise behind me drew my attention, stirring me from the stupor I’d fallen into. It had taken everything in me not to turn around and look for Carl after we’d returned to the bar and he hadn’t followed me to my seat. Part of me appreciated that he had left me alone, while the omega part wished he’d ignored the hints and come back over to keep me company.
I turned my head just enough to see him walk out the door, my shoulders drooping further. My head was fuzzy enough that I was getting sleepy, but I wasn’t sure it was enough to keep the ghosts at bay once I was home.
I stared at my glass, realizing it was empty again. I’d finished the one I’d left when I took Carl to see the café, and then another, but I couldn’t remember if there had been another after that.
“Would you like some coffee?”
I curled my lip as I looked up, the world tipping and blurring a little as I lifted my head.
“No.”
David shook his head and leaned on one elbow, his brows making a vertical line in the middle of his forehead.
“Then how about some water?”
I sighed, turning away from him once I realized what he was doing.
“I can’t believe you’re cutting me off, David. I thought we were friends?”
I was proud that I’d managed to keep the whine out of my voice, although I wanted to stomp my foot over the younger man deciding I couldn’t have any more.
His chuckle came from behind me as I slid off the stool. For a moment I wasn’t sure my legs were going to hold me up, but everything settled after a breath, and the fuzz cleared more the longer I stood, even though my head was throbbing along with my heartbeat.
“And I can’t believe you’re not falling on your face. It’s because we’re friends that I have to cut you off. If you did something foolish, I’d have to ban you from coming back, and neither of us want that.”
Scoffing, I started to shake my head but stopped when the world rocked a little too much. I tried not to be obvious when I reached for the back of the stool to steady myself, but I must not have succeeded when I missed the first time.
“Are you sure you can make it home?”
I lifted my hand to wave it at him, but I was further gone than I’d thought because I started tipping again.
David was over the bar and holding my elbow before I could get a grip on the stool to stay upright.
“I’ll be fine.”
I tried to pull away, but he refused to release me, and part of me was glad he was keeping me steady since my eyes kept watering too much for me to tell if the lights were swaying, or if it was me.
“Nope. Either you wait here until you sober up, or I’m walking you home.”
A snort escaped, followed by a hiccup.
“The point was to not be sober. And you have a job to do, so you can’t just leave.”
I saw him glace around before shrugging.
“They’ll be fine for a few minutes. I’LL BE BACK. DON’T TOUCH MY LIQUOR.”
He bellowed the last part, making me flinch as I wondered how such a lean guy could create so much noise.
A chorus of voices answered him, good-natured complaints and threats following us to the door. The brush of cold air as he opened it and walked me through made me shiver, but it helped clear my head enough for me to be able to lift it and look around.
“I’ll drag you to the appointments myself if you keep skipping them. I know firsthand how much it helps, so quit being a jackass, Jackass.”
Carl’s deep rumble pulled my eyes to where he stood beside a younger alpha sitting on one of the motorcycles. Their outlines were blurry, but the light above the door was enough for me to see them despite the dark clothing they wore.
“Whatever. I need to go.”
The growl of the motorcycle cut off anything else that was said, but Carl’s body language showed his irritation. It was instinctual to hunch into myself and flinch away when he turned toward us.
“What’s going on?”
The betas I’d known before would have pulled away from me the moment we drew an alpha’s attention, but David remained steady, supporting me as my knees grew weaker when memories flashed through my head.
“I’m walking her home to be sure she gets there in one piece. She had a bit too much.”
Carl’s soft huff was enough to tell me he’d closed the distance between us, the wind bringing a heavy dose of his scent to flood my lungs. It reminded me of s’mores, chocolaty notes blending with sugar and the smokey smell of fire.
It made my mouth water and my core clench.
“I’ll take her. You don’t want to leave those idiots alone in there.”
A crash from inside the bar punctuated Carl’s statement, and David cursed under his breath. Gentle fingers touched my chin, turning my head until I met David’s dark eyes, and while there was a crease between his brows suggesting he was angry, I only saw concern in his gaze.
“Is that alright? I can always have Carl go in and deal with them while I walk you home.”
I was torn. The omega part of me was perfectly happy with having the alpha escort me. She’d let him escort me right into my nest, and that was the problem. Something about the big alpha had put me at ease and stirred a part of me I’d thought dead and buried long before my mate had been.
But David was responsible for the bar, and I was keeping him from doing his job. If he got in trouble for what was happening inside, it would be my fault, and I already had a heavy enough load of guilt.
“I told you, I’m fine. I can get home alone.”
His lips pressed into a thin line, brow arching as he let go of my arm and the world started tipping again. His expression said it all, even before a larger hand cupped my elbow and straightened the world for me.
Heaving a sigh, I flapped my hand at David, shooing him back inside. I could hold onto my wits long enough to get through my front door, and if the inner part of me was disappointed by the thought of shutting it in Carl’s face, that was just too bad.
“Fine. FINE.”
I rounded on Carl, stumbling as he lost his hold due to the quick movement. I would have ended up flat on the pavement if he hadn’t managed to catch me, thick arms pulling me far too close to his broad chest. His scent was too strong, too potent, with my palms pressed flat to the slabs of muscle under his shirt, and my breath caught as I stared at lips that smirked back down at me amidst the darkness of his beard.
“You can walk me to my door, but that’s it. Don’t get any ideas.”
My voice was so breathy I couldn’t even believe the words that came out. I couldn’t pull my focus away from his lips, so close to mine, and I frowned when they were suddenly farther away.
“I’d never get ideas about my new boss. I’m just trying to make sure she stays in one piece long enough to pay me.”
A shiver ran down my spine at the thought of bossing this big alpha around before I scoffed at the idea. He might be civil enough in public, but in private was always a different story. I was sure he’d be willing to fuck me if given the chance, but I wouldn’t be the one in charge.
“So, where do you live?”
Normally I would have been hesitant to give out that information, but I couldn’t keep lying and saying I could make it there on my own. And if he was going to be helping me do repairs to the café, I might be able to get him to do some to the duplex as well, so he’d end up with the address anyway.
“Over on Sycamore, a block down.”
It really wasn’t far, but the distance felt daunting when my vision was swimming in and out and the world swayed with each step I took. Carl let me lean on his arm, and I had no choice but to trust him to get us there since the drowsiness I’d suffered at the bar was creeping back. My eyelids grew heavier with each step, and there were times when I blinked, and somehow we’d passed an entire yard before I pried my eyelids open again.
“Hey sleepy, which way?”
I hummed, struggling to lift my head from where it had fallen against his bicep and open my eyes. The streetlight above us made them water, and I had to rub my free hand over my face a few times to focus enough to see where we were. He’d brought me to the corner of Sycamore, but the far side was lined with duplexes, and he had no way to know which was mine.
I tried to speak but it felt like my tongue was glued to the top of my mouth, and I finally gave up, pointing to the left. I could see my sad little yard, weeds overgrown since I hadn’t gotten around to buying a lawnmower yet. The grass was completely dead, but it wasn’t any different in front of the homes beside mine, so I told myself there was no reason to be embarrassed. I’d had more pressing concerns than yard maintenance.
We plodded along, Carl keeping his strides short so I wasn’t forced to rush to keep up with his longer legs. Once we reached the sidewalk that led up to my door, I managed to grunt and jerked my chin to let him know to turn.
I blinked stupidly at the peeling grey paint for a few moments before I remembered I needed to dig my keys out of my pocket. I didn’t carry a purse since I found them pointless when the only things I had to put in one were a phone, my keys, and a single bank card, but the pockets on women’s clothing were comically small. I was growling by the time I managed to wiggle my fingers through the tight slit to wrap around the metal clip my keys were attached to.
I fumbled the right one into the lock and turned it before Carl’s warmth disappeared. I looked back at him as darkness beckoned me forward.
“Delivered safely to your door. Can you get into bed okay?”
I was past the point of being tempted to drag him in with me. There was a slow throb between my ears, and my eyes burned. My stomach felt like there was a firepit inside it, and all I wanted to do was get horizontal and forget the world existed for a while.
I worked my jaw, biting the inside of my cheeks to get enough moisture to speak.
“Yeah. Thanksssshhh.”
The porch light didn’t work so I couldn’t see his expression with the streetlight throwing him in shadows, but I imagined his little smirk as he huffed a quiet laugh.
“Drink some water and take meds now, or you’ll regret it.”
“Mmm.”
I threw a backhanded wave over my shoulder as I leaned on the knob to step inside, keeping my eyes cast down as I shut the door behind me. I even managed to lock the deadbolt into place before pressing my back to the door and letting myself slide to the floor.
I knew I’d feel like shit in the morning, but the relief from thinking about what had happened on this day so many years ago was worth it. I didn’t even feel the tears sliding down my cheeks as I closed my eyes and drifted off into a dreamless sleep right there on the tile.