Page 73 of Alpha Heat
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Urho glanced overhis shoulder at Jason and Vale in the back seat. The roads from the train station in Virona weren’t paved, and the ruts had them all jolting all over the place. The old driver didn’t seem to mind, obviously accustomed to it.
“We should have told him when we were arriving,” Vale said. “He’ll be annoyed when we simply show up.”
“Xan won’t care at all,” Urho said. “He’ll just be excited to see us.”Especially me. I hope.As they got closer, ridiculous insecurities nagged at him.
“I didn’t mean Xan. I meant Caleb. As omega, he oversees the house. He’ll be embarrassed if they aren’t ready for us when we arrive.”
“They know it’s sometime today,” Jason soothed. “And we did try to reach them by phone, but the lines were busy.”
Vale shifted in the seat, his stomach distorting the lines of his clothes. Urho smiled to see Jason reach out and touch his shifting belly, a happy lift to his lips. “Is he traveling all right?” Jason asked. “He’s moving now, but it seems like he’s been awfully quiet today.”
“I think the motion of the train lulled him to sleep,” Vale said, putting a fond hand over top of Jason’s. “And now these potholes have woken him.” He hissed and squirmed. “Don’t stand on my bladder,” he muttered darkly at his stomach. “You’d better be cute when you come out.”
Jason laughed just as Zephyr screeched from the cat carrier at their feet. Vale had insisted on bringing her instead of sending her away to the cattery. Urho turned back to face the front, nodding at the beta driver, and remembering how Vale’s green eyes had filled with tears.“I can’t leave him there for months!”he’d wailed, and Jason had instantly caved, packing Zephyr into a travel case and suffering only half a dozen scratches and a single bite for his efforts.
“This here’s the place,” the beta driver said, entering the gates and going up the drive that led to a gorgeous, massive house at the top of the hill. The facade was faded, but newly planted winter flowers brightened the otherwise dismal-looking mansion.
“Lofton Estate,” the man said as he came to a stop, spitting some tobacco into a cup he carried between his thighs for that purpose. “They got servants what will help with the bags. So if you want to pay up now…”
Urho found the correct amount in his wallet and offered it plus a generous tip. No harm in getting on the good side of some of the locals early on in his stay. “That’s for avoiding the potholes when you could.”
“Got an expecting omega aboard,” the man said with a grin. “Can’t let any harm come to that wee one.”
Vale groaned as Jason helped him out of the car, and Urho hung back, staring up at the house and trying to place it into the puzzle of stories Xan had told him over the phone since arriving here. The dunes below in the back and the sea sweeping away from them in green-gray, white-capped waves, had played a role in many of Xan’s babblings about walks with Caleb, or time alone, but the windows at the front of the house didn’t offer up clues as to what lay beyond them.
The driver and Urho grabbed their luggage from the trunk and placed it beside the car. Urho shook the man’s hand and then he was off just as the front door opened and a beta servant was pushed aside by Xan, who darted out with his dark curls combed neatly, and his fashionable, casual suit impeccably fit.
“You’re here!” he cried, throwing himself into Urho’s arms and hugging him like they were long-lost brothers. Urho ducked his head to take in Xan’s unique scent. A warm, settled feeling passed over him, but then Xan pulled away and turned to Jason, embracing him as well, and—more cautiously—Vale. Urho had to fist his hands to keep from reaching out and hauling Xan back into his arms.
“You’re huge!” Xan said to Vale, eyes wide. “There’s only one in there, right?”
Vale narrowed his eyes, and Xan burst into laughter. “I’m kidding. You look amazing. Are you hungry? Caleb has a big lunch put aside for you, and a ton of other options, like fresh produce from the southern regions if you’re not in the mood for something heavy.”
He turned to the house, smiling in the direction of the door, where Caleb stood barefoot and yet regal with his blond head held high and a welcoming smile on his face. He met Urho’s gaze with a warmth that made every doubt and lingering guilt about Urho’s relationship with Xan melt away.
Ren, the beta servant Xan had nearly bowled over, began taking their luggage inside, and a second beta came out to help him. Urho nodded absently when Ren said, “I’ll take them up to your respective rooms, sir. If there’s a mix-up of any kind, we can sort it out later. Your rooms will all be along the same hall.”
Jason ruffled Xan’s hair, and the two of them grappled playfully in the front yard, kicking up dust and laughing like pups. They’d nearly fallen to wrestling when Vale said, “Darling, I’m feeling tired.” Instantly, Jason snapped back to attentiveness, and Xan, like any alpha dealing with a pregnant omega, was all solicitousness and help.
“Let’s get you inside.” Jason grabbed the cat carrier with Zephyr in it and Xan called out, “Caleb, Vale’s tired.”
Caleb wrapped his arm around Vale’s shoulder as soon as they reached the door. “Oh, sweet thing. Let’s get your feet up and a nice heating pad for your back. Do you want some fruit and cheese? Or would soup and a sandwich be better? We also have chicken, potatoes, and—”
“Soup and sandwich please.” Vale touched his dark head to Caleb’s blond one. “I’m so glad you’re here.”
“I feel exactly the same,” Caleb said. “I know that we’re going to become great friends.”
Xan’s hand tentatively touching his brought Urho’s attention back to the boy beside him. Or young man. There was something in Xan’s face that looked ever so slightly more mature than when they’d last met. He looked more settled, perhaps. Urho didn’t know what it represented, but he slung an arm around Xan’s shoulder and said, “How careful do we need to be? Is your cousin home?”
Xan smiled and sidled closer. “He’s at his club right now. Ren and his people won’t talk. We’re safe enough.”
Jason stooped to open the cat carrier at the doorway and Zephyr took off out of it like a shot. “The cat pan is there,” Jason said to Ren, motioning to where it sat with the luggage. “Where should we put it? In our rooms?”
Ren called to a young beta boy. “Run to the village to find a few more cat pans and extra litter.” Then he said to Jason, “The house is quite big, Mr. Sabel. It’ll be best to offer the cat a few options.”
“Thank you so much. We really appreciate it. She’s a good cat, I promise.”
