Page 2 of Brutal Alpha

“And Noah,” I said, turning to the final newcomer. He was the most boyish-looking of the bunch, with warm brown eyes and a jittery, irrepressible energy. Try as he did to play along with Jace’s game, he folded within a few seconds, grinning.

“You got us!” he said, and though Jace tutted in disappointment, the corner of his mouth was quirked up in a smile.

That only left Ethan. After absolutely nailing my introduction to the rest of the gang, I felt brave enough to lift my hand to my chin pensively, furrowing my brow as I took him in. With every year that passed, I swore he got better looking; his square jaw was sharper than when I’d last seen him, his face a little broader to balance the hard cut of his cheekbones and perfectly frame his slate-grey eyes.

“Hmmm,” I said, desperately thankful it didn’t come out breathless, “remind me?”

Ethan frowned, the corners of his mouth turning down.

“Ethan,” he replied, clearly irritated. For a moment, I was mortified until Xander reached over to punch him on the shoulder.

“That was a joke, buddy,” he said. “I know you’re allergic to humor, but I at least thought you could recognize it in other people.” He rolled his eyes at me while Ethan’s frown deepened.

“Oh. Right,” he said. “Hi, Julia.”

He didn’t look at me as he said it, his frame still tense. So that had gone horribly. I wanted the ground to swallow me. I wanted to burst into flames. But alas, neither of thesethings occurred. Before silence could descend, awkward and consuming, I forced a smile.

“I hope you guys are hungry. The mothers of Lapine brought us enough food to feed five Packs.”

To no one’s surprise, the five shifters who’d just completed an island run were, in fact, hungry. It was a relief to make myself scarce for a few minutes to shove as many casserole dishes into the oven as was physically possible. I’d probably have to do another load before the guys were done, and I was glad of it. I’d only been slightly exaggerating when I told them how many offerings were decorating our kitchen counters.

After declaring that the sad, boring stuff was tomorrow’s problem, Caleb’s friends set to thoroughly distract him with tales of their various misadventures since they’d last seen him. They carried on in the same manner throughout dinner and were still going when I excused myself to bed. At the bottom of the stairs, I turned back, taking a moment to watch my brother’s laughter. It was good to see him like this, and I was thankful for this raucous band of brothers he’d found on his travels.

Sleep came easier that night than it had done in the last few days, but when I opened my eyes again, it was still dark, and I was desperately thirsty. My bare feet were quiet on the cold wooden floors as I crept down the corridor, though I didn’t know why I bothered: Caleb slept like the dead.

In my half-asleep state, I didn’t remember that the two of us weren’t alone in the house until I walked into the kitchen and came face to face with Ethan, who was in the middle of pouring himself a mug of tea. The scent that filled the kitchen was soothing and floral, but it did nothing to stop the deep blush that stained my cheeks. I was wearing nothing but an oversizedtee, the garment barely covering my ass and leaving every inch of my long legs on show.

“Uh,” Ethan said, “hello.”

“Hi,” I managed. “Just, um, getting a glass of water.”

He nodded, stirring his tea as I tried to open the cupboard door without flashing my ass. Unfortunately, I was so focused on not exposing myself that I wasn’t as cautious as normal about the cupboard doors and opened it straight into my face.

The wood bounced off my eyebrow ridge with a dullthunk. I swore, and then Ethan was beside me.

“Watch yourself,” he growled, apparently annoyed that I would do something as inconsiderate as hurting myself.

“I can’t,” I pointed out. “My depth perception sucks ass.”

That brought him up short.

“Right. Sorry.” Then he reached past me to grab a glass from the cupboard, pushed the door closed, and filled the glass, pushing it directly into my hands.

“Thanks.”

He only nodded once, curtly, before returning to his tea. Considering myself dismissed from my own kitchen, I turned to leave.

“How’s Caleb been managing, really?” Ethan asked, and I stopped.

“I mean, as well as he can, I think,” I told him. “I wish he didn’t have to—to keep it all together like this, y’know? I think he’s worried that the Pack will like… completely destabilize if he allows himself to feel his feelings.”

Ethan took a sip of his tea, apparently immune to the scalding heat of the water.

“He’s not wrong, though,” he said, placing the mug back on the counter. “I know Abe had some pretty ambitious Betas; if Cal falls apart, if he doesn’t assert his right as Alpha, then one of them is going to decide they could do a better job, especially since he’s still so young.”

I know Ethan was speaking from experience; he had been Alpha on Ferris since he was my age. At twenty-two, the authority sat easy on his shoulders, but it hadn’t always been that way. I knew my father had been instrumental in helping Ethan secure his power over Ferris, and now he was returning the favor for Caleb. I only wished the truth were easier on my brother.

“Is there anything I can do to help?” I asked.

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