River Wolf(44)

In fifteen minutes, Brett’s grandfather surrendered to him and he ascended. He won the pack over, secured his family and lost his best friend in a matter of days. Luc’s declaration of Lone Wolf stunned him. At first he’d believed, as with all things, Luc had been joking.

It had taken him two years to accept that Luc’s play hadn’t been a prank, but a real desire to wander the world without the tether of pack. Over the years since, they’d gotten together on a handful of occasions, resuming old habits and familiarity with ease. The question of dominance never arose because Luc wasn’t his wolf—he was only his friend.

Only.

“Dude, you have so mastered pissed face. It’s kind of scary.” Pissed face. The description they gave his grandfather when they’d earned his disapproval.

“I’m not in the mood.” The five simple words would have shut down his other wolves, but not Luc. He snorted.

“From what I hear, you haven’t been in the mood for over a year. How is that working out for you?” A man trapped by having his broken leg hoisted and under fighting weight shouldn’t offer a challenge he couldn’t support. “You’ve been in a bad mood for months, yet all you do is sit and brood. Who are you, and what did you do with Brett?”

“Luc, this isn’t a game or at least not one I’m interested in playing.” They’d been discussing Colby. “Why are you being a jackass about her?”

“Hey, you answer my question, and I’ll answer yours.” Settling against the upraised bed, Luc folded his hands beneath his head. Glib. Challenging.

“When Gillian says you’re fit for travel. You’ll be escorted to the edge of the territory and you can get back to your life.” Such as it is. “If you need anything in the meanwhile, let her or Owen know, and I’ll decide whether we can get it for you.”

Standing, Brett swung the chair back to its corner.

“Dude, what the fuck is wrong with you?” Nothing playful lived in his tone.

“Dude, I’m Alpha. Not your buddy.” The words tasted like crap. “We’re not playing some kind of one upmanship here. You showed up on my doorstep with a problem. We’re fixing it. End of discussion.”

If fixing it meant sending Colby on with her life, so be it.

“You really don’t see it.” Luc shook his head. “What the fuck happened to you? Marco was a dick, but this isn’t you.”

“I am exactly who I need to be.” The discussion was over. “Gillian will be back in a few hours. I’ll ask my mother to check on you.”

Pacing away, he headed for the door. The pack needed him. Pierce was right. They needed to do more bonding events. As dumb as it sounded, he’d never had to plan them before. They had a habit of simply occurring.

“You’re not going to ask, are you?” The words halted him.

Turning slightly, he glanced at Luc. “Ask what?”

“Why didn’t I go to Three Rivers with the others. I know my sister is talking about it.” The delivery demanded a response.

“I don’t really care.” The lie echoed between them. Pivoting, he faced his oldest friend. What the hell did they really know about each other anyway? Luc left more than two decades—nearly three—before.

“Bullshit. You don’t want to care, and maybe that’s cool. But the last time I checked you weren’t a coward.”

“You want to challenge me, Luc? Stand up and do it. I don’t kick cripples when they’re down.”

Rage simmered in the air. Unsurprisingly, Luc jerked the tie holding his leg aloft and fought to sit. Pain etched into his expression and sweat beaded his forehead. When his right leg hit the floor, he stood, balancing on it. “Okay, asswipe. I’m on my feet.” Which lasted all of about three seconds before he wavered and began to topple.

Across the room in a heartbeat, Brett caught him and kept him upright. “You really are an idiot.”

“Yeah,” Luc’s grin wobbled almost as much as he did. “I missed you, too.” Then he gave Brett a hug. The embrace didn’t hold an ounce of fierce power, but something much more profound. “I should have been here for you when that bastard hurt all of you. I should have been here for my family.”

Accepting the hug, Brett kept his emotions in check.

“I want to come home—Alpha.”

He couldn’t stop the emotion slamming into him then. “You’re…”

“An asshole.” Luc agreed. “I know.” Then the son of a bitch passed out.

Balancing Luc’s bulk, Brett had a care with getting him back on the bed and then reattaching his leg to the pulley and raising it again. Gently as he could he made sure he was secure then checked his right leg. It was swollen and mottled in places. “Do not hurt yourself further,” he ordered the unconscious wolf. “Even if you did it to yourself, Gillian will kill us both.”