Icing the Omega

by Harper B. Cole

  As I came out of the bathroom I was confronted by a strange sight: one of the cats was sitting on our table. I suppose, that itself wasn't strange, considering we were in a cat café. What was strange was that the cat seemed to be staring at Carrick and Carrick’s lips were moving as if he was talking to it. The cat glanced at me then stood, stretched, and hopped off the table.

  “Alright?” Carrick asked as I returned to the table.

  “Yeah, thank you. For everything, I mean it.”

  “I'll give you a lift home. And I'll see you next practice?”

  I returned his sly smile. “Sounds good.” We tossed our empty cups in the trash and started off.

  “See you, Cambry! he called over his shoulder as we left. I looked around, but didn't see his cousin anywhere.

  “Bye,” I called too, just in case he could hear me.

  I probably could have walked back to the apartment, but I wasn't sure my knee could make it after skating. I watched Carrick drive away before heading into my apartment.

  I gazed out the window for a while, watching a couple of boats go by in the dark. I wasn't sure if it was because I had gotten on the ice again, as disastrous as that felt, or because Carrick’s advice had really struck home, or even because I had a really good cup of coffee… but I felt happier than I had in a long time. I stood and stretched, flexing my sore knee, while rubbing out of tight spot near my collarbone. If I was going to keep playing hockey, I needed to get back into shape.

  Chapter Three

  Carrick

  Before I knew it two weeks flew by. I spent a chilly night in my bunker for the early October full moon. I woke up, beat to hell and exhausted, like always. I dressed and headed inside my parents’ house for the post-full moon breakfast. Rion and Elliott were already there, as were my parents. It was much easier to spend the full moon with your true mate; none of them had a scratch on them. My sister Tessa and her true mate, Kylan, were there as well, looking just as content after decades together as Rion did after hardly six months. Mother fussed over me, as usual, and I headed up to my room.

  I felt much better after a hot shower and followed the smell of bacon and eggs to the kitchen. Dell had joined the group and was at the table with his head in his hands, looking like he was nursing a hangover. Full moons grew harder on lone alphas with as we got older, and Dell had obviously seen one too many. Rion had been in his position, until meeting Elliott. Every month there was an unspoken fear that we wouldn't all make it back to the kitchen in the morning. It was part of why we all like to spend the full moons together. It was nice to wake up and know immediately that the whole family was okay. And more than one alpha, and the occasional beta as well, had succumbed to their injuries long after sunrise, alone in their bunker with no one knowing that they were hurt until it was too late. If anyone was late to breakfast we went straight to their bunkers to find them.

  As far as I could remember that never happened with us. The only time anyone of us had been seriously injured during a full moon was when I was still a baby. That incident, however, was a little different than the usual alpha hurting himself during a full moon. My eyes drifted of their own accord to Cambry as I thought about it. That was the night Cambry’s parents were killed by a hunter. Luckily, the hunter overlooked the tiny kitten in the bunker with them. Cambry looked as bad as Dell, even though he was my age. There was no hard and fast rule about how old an alpha had to be before one full moon proved to be too many, just the rule of thumb that it was usually older alphas who ended up dead. But if you were suffering from any sort of depression or loneliness, it could happen any time.

  “You okay?” I asked Cambry.

  “Yes.” He sounded short, and I wasn't sure if he’d appreciate me pushing the issue.

  His cat couldn’t quite cause the same level of damage to itself that our wolves did, but it certainly didn't spare him from injury. One of his ears looked almost shredded, like the cat had been clawing at itself. It wasn't so bad that it wouldn't heal within a couple of days, but still concerned me.

  “Is something bothering you?” I asked him softly.

  “I'm fine, Carrick,” he snapped. A couple of family members glanced up at him in concern. He shot them a smile. “I've just been thinking about taking my year away a little early,” he announced. This time everyone looked up.

  “Why is that?” my mother asked.

  Cambry shrugged. “We are getting into the off-season and my shop is well staffed. And Carrick is getting ready for his. Might as well go too.”

  “You want to come with me?” I asked eagerly. We usually staggered our years away. I wasn’t really sure why. I suppose maybe it was because our parents hated the thought of having more than one of us away at a time. And since an alpha couldn't spend a full moon in the bunker with another alpha, there was no real point to going away together. But, a year away somewhere fun with Cambry sounded awesome. I often thought of the year away as sort of a burden, more so than vacation. No reason it couldn't be a little more exciting.

  “Oh.” Cambry looked uncomfortable. “Actually, I just kinda meant we’ll both be gone at the same time, so we’ll have more time here together…”

  “Oh.” That was a short-lived excitement.

  “Do you have an idea of where you want to go?” Tessa asked.

  “I'd steer away from the usual town,” Rion said. Referring to where he had just spent his year away. There was a community college there and it was a good excuse to drop in for a year, and there were plenty of part-time jobs to use as a cover. There was also a convenient bunker hidden in the woods for full moons.

  “Why is that?” asked Finch, Tessa's oldest son. His own year away was coming up.

  “The hunter,” Rion said. “He knew about that bunker. The wardens haven’t seen hide nor hair of him since the night I got back, but for all we know he’s back there. It might be best to give that town a wide berth for a while.”

  “I agree,” our father said. “For all we know that's where he was from.”

  “But he followed Rion there, didn't he?” Finch asked. “I thought there were pictures of Rion taken here.”

  “There were,” I confirmed. “I wasn't planning on going down there anyway.”

  “Neither was I,” Cambry said. He shot me a conspiratorial wink. I wasn't sure if he had been planning on going there or not, but the more we talked about it the more my mother would start to get worked up. She was a tough alpha, and fiercely protective of her family. Unfortunately, she had a bit of an overprotective, borderline irrational, emotional streak. If she got into her head that the hunter would be coming after us during the year away, we’d never hear the end of it. Knowing her, she would try to insist that I put off going longer. I wasn't leaving until the hockey season was over, but I didn't think I could last another year on the team without them starting to notice how long I've been playing, I couldn't delay my year away. I didn't even want to put it off by a few months, because I wanted to start up hockey again wherever I ended up staying. Sure, I would be with a different team, but it would be one more year that I get to play.

  “Good,” my mother said. “I don't want you there anyway. At least not until this nonsense with the hunters is cleared up.” She narrowed her eyes at me. “I don't even like you going to the mainland for your hockey thing.” Before I could protest, she turned to glare at Cambry. “You're just lucky you've got a warden presence in your café or I would want you there either. Same to you,” she added to Tessa. My sister owned the island bakery and I knew she had a warden hanging out there as well.

  We were probably all lucky that my mother didn't put up more of a stink about us trying to go about our normal lives with the hunter incident so recent. I think it helped that little Verona was keeping her busy; she was the first grandchild in a long time.

  After breakfast I took most of the day to relax and spend a little bit of time in our hot tub. Soon it was almost time for me to go pick up Brooks and head to practice. Cambry caught me in the
hall as I was heading out.

  “You going to play tonight?” he asked in surprise, eying my gear. “You never play the morning after a full moon.”

  “It’s just practice, not a game, so it’ll be an easy workout. But I’d rather not miss it.”

  “Gee, I wonder why.”

  I shifted my equipment to my other shoulder, away from the sore spot. “Am I that obvious?”

  Cambry chuckled. “Come on, Carrick, you two are in my shop all the time. I can practically smell the pheromones. It doesn't take a genius to figure out he's your true mate.”

  I swallowed nervously. “Do you really think he is?”

  My cousin put a hand on my shoulder and smiled at me. “What I think doesn't matter. What do you think?” Before I could answer he stepped back and gave me a little push in the direction of the front door. “And what are you going to do about it?” There was no mistaking the challenge in his voice.

  “That’s what I’m trying to figure out,” I muttered.

  I jogged out to the car, trying to stretch my muscles that were still sore from the full moon.

  It was a short distance to Brooks's apartment; it was a small island after all. He was waiting for me outside and I grinned like a madman as he came into view. Was it my imagination or had the pain in my neck intensified? Excitement washed over me, just at the prospect of him getting the car with me. I could hardly wait as I popped the trunk so he could toss his gear in with mine.

  “Whoa,” he commented when he saw me. “Are you okay? What happened?”

  I didn't think I looked that bad, but it seemed it was enough that he noticed.

  “Just a scuffle with my brothers. For fun, I mean,” I added when his expression turned to one of alarm.

  “Looks like you came out on the wrong end of it,” he chuckled.

  “You should see them,” I countered.

  We slid into an easy banter as we drove toward the arena. It was moments like this that convinced me we really were true mates. Being with him was so easy, so enjoyable.

  Even so, I noticed he looked a little sleepy. When he yawned a third time, I had to inquire.

  “Trouble getting to sleep last night?”

  Brooks shrugged. “Sort of. I just couldn’t seem to stay asleep.”

  Interesting. That was supposedly a sign of a true mate as well. They were restless on full moons.

  Now, I just had to figure out how I was going to do this. Surely I couldn't just start yammering on about shifters and true mates while sitting in the car. With my luck he’d open the door and try to tuck and roll to escape, if I did.

  We got to practice and changed before heading out on the ice. I couldn't remember the last time I practiced after a full moon and I was starting to regret it. I missed easy blocks and must've fanned on the puck twenty times. My side lost the scrimmage miserably and I was pretty sure it was mostly my fault. Even the coach told me to take a break and get some sleep.

  “Are you sure you're okay?” Brooks asked me as we headed down to the locker room.

  “Fine,” I assured him. “Just had a rough night I guess.”

  Thanks to the crummy hot water in his apartment, Brooks always took an extra-long shower after practice. Since most of the other guys didn't bother and headed straight home, we were nearly always the last ones left. Normally, I was dressed and ready for him by the time he finished. This time, I took advantage of the hot water as well. We stepped out of the showers at nearly the same time and I couldn't resist taking a look at him. He glanced over at me and a cute flush crept over his cheeks, before he quickly turned away.

  I took my time dressing, half hoping that he was watching me. When he finished we started up to the parking lot together.

  “I noticed your car was almost out of gas, if you stop on the way home I'll buy it for you,” Brooks said to me.

  “No, no,” I said quickly. “An alpha… That's okay. I'll get my own gas. I appreciate it though.” I hoped he hadn't heard my accidental use of alpha.

  He shot me a confused look, but quickly replaced it with a stubborn frown. “You've been driving me all over; back-and-forth for three weeks. The least I can do is get gas for you. Oh crap.” He patted his back pocket. “I forgot my wallet!”

  “I'm in no hurry,” I told him. “I'll wait while you grab it.” Ordinarily, I would've gone with him, but I was really feeling, and regretting, my decision to skate the day after a full moon. He turned and jogged back down the hallway, obviously favoring his knee.

  After he went out of sight I headed out to the car on my own. As I walked, I wondered if maybe that was the moment I have been waiting for. And I just missed it. I was about to tell him that an alpha should provide for his omega. It would've been the perfect statement to use as an opening for explaining things to him. He surely would've asked me what an alpha and omega were… Damn. That would’ve been perfect.

  I drummed my fingers angrily on the trunk of my car, wondering if I would get another opportunity or if I just had to bite the bullet and tell him. I opened it up and tossed my equipment in.

  Before I close could close the trunk, I remembered that Brooks would need to put his stuff in too, so I might as well leave it open. As I was staring at my gear, somewhat distracted by my thoughts, I heard Brooks call my name. He sounded kind of alarmed. I stepped back away from my car and turned to look at him. He was racing across the parking lot with a terrified expression on his face! He screamed my name again and then something hit me in the back.

  Chapter 4

  Brooks

  What the hell was wrong with me? I grabbed my wallet from my locker and paused for a moment, trying to collect myself. At first my friendship with Carrick seemed like a blessing. We got along so well. I couldn’t remember the last time I had a friend like him. I could swear we had been best friends forever, yet I had barely known him a month.

  But that moment earlier… I checked him out. I had actually looked at his half-naked body, and not only had I caught myself thinking that it was attractive, but I had actually gotten slightly aroused. And that freaked me out more than a little bit. Mainly because I was straight. I had never been with a man, in fact I had never been remotely attracted to one. Every fantasy I ever had was about a woman… Until meeting Carrick. In the past three weeks I seemed to be dreaming about him practically every night. Some mornings I woke up with the dream fresh in my mind and an erection. One morning I woke up to sticky sheets and a fading recollection of his face.

  I trudged down the hall toward the parking lot. Part of me felt excited to see him and get into the car with him, even though we just spent the afternoon together. It was like I couldn't get enough of him. Another part of me wanted to back off. If I didn't stop spending time with him there was no telling how much stronger this crush was going to get. If it was a crush. Maybe I was just that hard up for a friend. This was the most social I had been in years, and Carrick was really the only personal I was spending time with.

  In its own ironic way, it seemed like I had zeroed right in on the loner of the team. I often overheard other players planning to get together or discussing things they did between practices with each other. They rarely invited Carrick, and if he did participate in any of the activities he never mentioned it to me. I slowed my pace, frowning. Actually, that was sort of odd that the guy who never seemed to spend any time with the team was suddenly spending every moment with me. Why was that? God, I hope he didn't have some sort of crush on me that was somehow affecting my reaction to him. I hoped I wasn't going to have to have an awkward talk where I broke it to him that I was straight. And I really hoped that, if I was right, that I wasn't about to lose the only true friendship I had in a long time.

  Just the sight of him standing by his car made my heart flutter. I reached up and rubbed the sore spot near my shoulder. It was bothering me more than my knee had been recently. I hoped that I just strained it or something and wasn't developing arthritis in a new joint. I couldn't remember any old injuries to my should
er that might be contributing to it. Then again, I was so consumed with my knee it was possible other injuries had gone unnoticed.

  A man passed beneath the light of a street lamp. I thought nothing of it until he came into view again, clearly moving in Carrick’s direction. It still didn't quite register until another light illuminated the gun that he was holding.

  I wonder if I didn’t play hockey if I even would have had the reflexes to react. As it was I just stood there, stunned, for a fraction of second. He advanced on Carrick and raised his gun. I dropped everything except for my hockey-stick and started running, ignoring the pain in my knee.

  “Carrick!” I screamed. He started to turn toward me, putting his back to the man with the gun. Shit! I put on a burst of speed and tried to shout a warning.

  The sound of a gunshot shattered the night and stopped me in my tracks. Carrick looked surprised and, just for a moment, I thought that maybe the bullet had missed. Then Carrick dropped to his knees. The man moved toward him, lining up the gun for another shot.

  And in that moment I didn't give a damn about the fact that Carrick was a man I was having bizarre feelings for. Or that I was supposed to be straight, but dreamed about him every night. All I cared about was him. Alive.

  Without thinking I rushed toward the gunman and swung my stick, knocking the gun out of his hand before he could fire again. Despite my screaming it seemed that he had been so focused on Carrick he hadn’t noticed me. I swung again. This time he tried to dodge and my stick connected with his shoulder instead of his head. The impact was enough to jar my arms, so I knew it must have hurt him quite a bit. He staggered back, and looked angrily between me, his gun, and Carrick.

  My heart was in my throat; Carrick had collapsed to the pavement. I edged carefully between him and the man, hockey-stick raised and ready.