Oliver placed his fork down and clasped the alpha’s massive hand between both of his own. “Stop pouting, you big baby. That’s not what I meant and you know it.”
Lucas frowned as he met Oliver’s gaze again. “What did you mean?”
Oliver cleared his throat. “What I mean is, I want both of us to move forward with a clear head. We can’t be going around growling and snapping at everyone that comes within a five metre radius. We’re not teenagers. We have to make responsible life choices.” Well shit, he sounded more like Julian with every passing second.
The alpha’s eyebrow twitched as he slowly leaned across the table and pressed two fingers to the centre of Oliver’s forehead. “Perhaps you should listen less to this—” he said, sliding his fingers down his face and between his collarbones. “And more to this.” He poked Oliver’s chest, which made him squirm.
“Easy for you to say,” he replied, a sad smile thinning his lips. “Have you ever given anyone the bite?” He wasn’t sure if he wanted to know the answer, but he asked anyway.
“No.”
“Not even the ex-girlfriend from Barcelona?”
Lucas chuckled and shook his head. “Especiallynot the ex-girlfriend from Barcelona. She harassed me for six months after we split up.”
“Oh Jesus. It sounds like we’ve both had our share of horrible exes.”
“Indeed.”
The rest of the evening passed in contented quiet. They stood at the sink doing dishes together, put away the laundry—of which there was a lot—and as eight o’clock drew closer, Oliver found he hated the thought of sleeping alone.
Lucas, rather unfortunately, was heading up a nighttime raid on another property in the neighbouring town.
The thought of Pember and Patrick had been scratching at the back of Oliver’s mind like an annoying little insect. Matteus wasn’t wrong, Patrickwouldhave played Oliver’s hatred off as jealousy. He’d done it all throughout their relationship—calling him crazy or deluded when he smelled another person on his skin. Still, he couldn’t shake the thought of Pember—sweet, ambitious Pember—as just another victim falling prey to the alpha’s two-sided charm. He’d use him and abuse him, wring him out like a rag until there was nothing left.
“See you in the morning,” Lucas said, kissing his forehead.
“Yeah,” Oliver replied, rubbing his face across the lapel of the alpha’s coat. “Stay safe.”
They hung in the hallway for a long moment. Lucas’ nose nuzzled in his hair as a low rumble reverberated through his chest. “Sleep well,” he said, not turning to leave.
Oliver smirked into the fabric of his jacket. “Oh dear. Is this one of those ‘no you hang up’ moments?”
Lucas chuckled, drawing him closer. “It could well be.”
“You’re going to be late.”
“I know.”
They eventually parted, and Oliver pressed his head against the front door as he locked it. He wasn’t sure if the alpha would be returning to his flat after his shift. Neither of them had broached the topic, as though they were afraid of the other’s rejection.Man, he’d become a weak-willed bastard over the last few weeks.
Turning to the coat hooks by the door, he grabbed his own jacket and rummaged around in the pocket until he found the slip of paper containing Pember’s number. He hesitated before punching the digits into his phone. Padding to the living room, he slumped down on the sofa and pressed ‘call.’
“Hello?” Pember answered, his soft voice carrying a strained edge.
“Hey. It’s Oliver. From the police station.”
Pember exhaled. “I was just thinking about you!” he replied, his tone lightening a little.
“Y-You were?”
“Yeah. I was at the police station earlier today. Some idiot crashed into my mum’s car whilst we were out shopping. I had to give a statement. It was quite nerve-wracking to be honest.” The words came out so quickly that Oliver had a hard time keeping up.
“The statement or the car crash?”
“The statement! I was so scared that they’d arrest me if I couldn’t answer their questions.”
Oliver huffed out a laugh. “That’s not how the police operate. If we locked up every witness, we’d never be able to solve any crimes. Are you okay? Were you hurt?”
