Blue Mountain (Pack 1)

“Mitch, I—”

“But you wanted to be here. Your mate wanted to be here. So I uprooted my life and my work to help you and this pack. I gave up a lot to be here, and what I get out of it is nothing close to what Simon gives me.”

“Mitch—”

“Simon’s been in my house for three weeks. You’re right, I’ve given him a roof over his head and groceries. But he cooks every meal. He cleans. He organizes. He listens to me talk about my work and my day. He asks me about books I’m reading. He laughs at television shows with me. We have a long way to go, I get that. But are you really going to look me in the face and tell me he’s taking advantage of me?”

“Mitch—”

“I wish my mate was having an easier time. I wish he didn’t have ghosts lined up shoulder to shoulder stretching out a mile long and making him struggle to trust anything and anyone, including me. I wish I could find every fucker who hurt him and rip them apart. Or better yet, I wish I could have found Simon sooner and saved him from the crap cards life dealt him. And, yes, I wish I could sleep in my bed with him instead of on my couch alone or even just that he’d kiss me goodnight.”

“Mitch—”

“But those are my wishes, Freddy. Mine. They’re not your business. They’re not pack business. Go ahead and think I’m a fool. I don’t give a shit. But you don’t—” His voice shook, and he swallowed down his anger and emotion. “You don’t insult Simon. You don’t make demands on him. Not now. Not ever. He’s mine. You will respect that.”

Before Mitch could take a breath to recover from the longest speech he’d ever given, his brother raced across the room. “I’m sorry.” Frederick wrapped his arms around him and hugged him tightly. “You’re right. I was a jerk. I’m so sorry. Don’t leave. The pack needs you. I need you.”

When he gathered enough self-restraint to touch gently, Mitch pushed his brother away. “I’ve had enough for one day. I’m going home.”

“Okay. But we’re good, right? You’re not moving?”

“We’re good, Freddy.” Mitch sighed and rubbed his palm over the back of his head. “But you need to keep it together. What the hell?”

“You said you weren’t coming to Thanksgiving! We always have Thanksgiving together.”

“I tell you my mate needs more time before he’s ready to meet people so I’m having Thanksgiving at home and your reaction is to threaten him if he doesn’t come meet people? Seriously?”

“Fine, that was a dumb move,” Frederick conceded. “But you don’t understand how hard it’s been on me.”

Mitch arched his eyebrows. He didn’t understand? Wasn’t he the one getting to know a recalcitrant mate? “Excuse me?” he said.

“You’re not around the pack as much as I am, and everyone’s too terrified to talk to you even when you are around, so they come to me instead. Pat and those guys know I sent you to deal with the Omega so they keep asking me what happened and I don’t know what to say. I can’t tell them you scared him off because he’s your mate, and they’ll eventually meet him and know I was lying. I can’t tell them he’s your mate, because then they’ll wonder why he hasn’t been introduced to the pack. And even if I explain that he’s healing—”

Mitch growled.

Raising his hand defensively, Frederick said, “Which is something I’d never do because I understand the need to guard his privacy, but even if I did, they’d ask me about him and what would I say? I don’t know a thing about the guy, and I’ve never met him even though he’s my brother’s mate and I’m the Alpha?” Frederick threw his hands in the air in frustration. “All these questions and sideways looks from those guys make me feel like I don’t have control over my pack.”

“Then get control over your pack. You’re their Alpha. Isn’t that what you’ve been shouting at me? Slap their asses in line.”

Frederick smiled. “That’s not the type of leadership style I like to use.”

“Fine.” Mitch rolled his eyes. “Nicely talk them into submission. Do whatever you need to do. Just leave my mate out of it.”

“Okay.” Frederick glanced down and then raised his gaze to meet Mitch’s again. “And you’re staying, right?”

Nothing was as simple as it had been when Mitch had been responsible for only himself. He had a mate to consider now. But he’d meant what he’d said to Frederick—having Simon in his life was worth the struggle. “As long as Simon is willing to be here, so am I.”

“He’ll stay,” Frederick said with certainty. “Mother Nature only gives an Alpha a mate if he can care for his mate and his pack. There’s no way you’d be fated with a mate who would take you from your pack.”