Page 41 of Night Call

However, he met plenty of attractive, compatible people every day. Johnny, the firearms officer was one. The guy that came to collect the lab waste was another. But neither Johnny nor the lab waste guy made him blush redder than a tomato.

The kettle clicked and he poured himself a cup of coffee.

‘Why are you up at this time?’Pember typed back.

There was a pause, then ‘Mina’s reflux is bad again. She can only sleep if she’s on mine or Lucas’ chest. We take it in shifts because we’re shit scared of crushing her. Especially Lucas.’

‘Oh no!’

There was another pause. ‘It’s not so bad. Alfie’s having really bad night terrors at the moment, so it’s good one of us is always up.’

Pember let out a slow breath. He’d met Oliver and Lucas’ adopted son, Alfie, a few times, but never for long and only when Alfie wanted to. They’d slowly been building his confidence around adults, and he’d finally let Pember accompany them to the park a couple of times. It probably helped that he was an omega too.

‘Oh no! Poor baby,’he typed back, a lead weight settling in his stomach.

‘I know. His counsellor said he should grow out of it, but it’s hard at the moment. Speaking of Alfie, it’s his sixth birthday next month and we’re having a little get-together. He’s asked if you’d like to come.’

Rubbing the back of his neck, Pember smiled. ‘I’d be honoured!’

‘Eh, don’t feel too honoured. He also invited the postman and the woman in the pet shop (she let him hold a rabbit so he’s taken a liking to her). Blake’s coming too.’

His eyes widened at that. ‘Really? That’s surprising.’

‘I know. After Op Sceptre I think Blake’ developed a soft spot for him.’

Pember would have found that difficult to believe, but after the last couple of weeks he realised the alpha probably had several soft spots hidden under that cold exterior.

‘What’s Alfie into these days?’

‘Anything to do with zombies. Or ghosts. Or just Halloween in general. Anyway, gotta go, Mina wants a bottle. Don’t worktoo hard, and make sure Blake remembers to get some sunshine every now and again—and tell him, light from the computer screen doesn’t count!’

Pember chuckled and took a swig of coffee. ‘Will do. Wait, did you know Blake and I were neighbours when I moved in?’

Three dots flickered across the screen for way longer than necessary.

‘No comment.’

He was about to reply when another message popped up on the screen.

‘Your telephone consultation has been arranged for 16:00hrs today with Dr Phillips. Please press 2 to confirm the appointment.’

He sighed.What a pain in the backside.

His thoughts slipped to Blake again, and how complicatedhismedication must be. Arrhythmia was no joke—an irregular heartbeat that could strike with little to no warning, regardless of the person’s age. No wonder the alpha kept himself so fit, andno wonderhe couldn’t sleep. Anxiolytics were known to cause insomnia, drastically reducing a person’s naturally occurring melatonin and messing with their enzyme induction. That, combined with long shifts and high levels of stress? A recipe for absolute disaster.

If Pember were still at university he might have done a study on it. Maybe he’d have stripped Blake’s shirt off and stuck little electro-dots all over his chest. For science.

He was already pulling on a pair of pyjama bottoms when he ambled into the back garden, coffee cup in hand. Craning his head, he looked up at Blake’s window, and sure enough he was running on the treadmill again. Not shirtless, unfortunately, but Pember could see the shape of a replacement monitor strapped to his chest. His eyes snapped to Pember almost immediately, and Pember was beginning to regret not being more sneaky.

The alpha frowned, and the pat, pat, patting of his footfalls began to slow. Grabbing a towel that was hanging over the treadmill, he ran it around his neck and face and picked up his phone. Pember’s mobile rang a moment later, making him jump.

He looked at it, then up at Blake, before finally answering. “Y-yes?”

“You forgot your coat again.”

Pember patted his hips. “I’m wearing pyjamas.”

“Yes, but it’s freezing this morning. You’ll catch a cold.”

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