Eric climbed off of Julian in an awkward scramble, and Julian sat up, trying to maintain the shreds of his dignity. “We didn’t see you there,” he managed.

“Clearly,” Logan said, raising an eyebrow.

“You fall down,” baby Cash giggled. Gabe shushed him, but Julian could tell the other Omega was trying to bite back a laugh.

Julian got to his feet, brushing at his clothes in a vain attempt to get rid of the sand. “Did you guys need something?” He could tell by the heat that rushed to his face that he was probably red as a tomato. The Omega couldn’t bring himself to glance back at Eric, but he saw the Alpha stand up out of the corner of his eye.

“We’re just about to head home for the day,” Gabe said with an obviously forced cheerfulness. “Julian, could you come with me? I just want to go over the schedule for tomorrow before I leave.”

“Yeah, of course,” Julian said, knowing full well that whatever they talked about would have nothing to do with the schedule. He noticed Logan was looking steadily at Eric, his eyes narrowed slightly. He felt a little jolt of surprise that the Alpha was reacting so strongly.

Julian and Logan had been friends as kids, but as they got older (and the Alpha got cocky, in Julian’s opinion), their friendship had faded. But over the past year, they’d grown closer again, thanks to Gabe. Julian found he enjoyed talking about the past with Logan and sharing memories of what it was like to grow up in Bright Beach, but he was startled and a little honored to see the Alpha being so protective toward him. It was pretty amazing how marriage could change a man.

Cash toddled over to look at the wreckage of the sandcastle. “It break?” he asked, looking up at Eric.

“It did,” the Alpha said solemnly. “But I bet you could fix it if your dad says it’s ok.”

The toddler turned around to look hopefully up at Logan, whose suspicious look melted into a smile as he gazed down at his son. “Ok, but just while your daddy talks to Uncle Julian,” he said. Cash squealed in delight and plunked down on the sand.

Julian smiled at Logan as he passed him and followed Gabe up the boardwalk that led to the parking lot. Sand fell off of him with every step. The smell of Eric clung to his clothes, the distinct Alpha scent still making his heart beat a little faster.

The Omega tried to look calm, but his mind was racing. What the hell had he been thinking? Of all the stupid things he’d done in his life, a sudden makeout session with a man he couldn’t stand had to be in the top five. His cheeks were burning thinking about how he had acted. It wasn’t enough that he had let Eric kiss him. Julian had clung to him and kissed him right back.

And the worst, the absolute worst part of all was that he’d loved every second of it. He’d loved the way Eric’s soft stubble had felt against his cheeks, the contrast of his silky soft lips. He’d loved the way the Alpha had kissed him, hard and slow, like they had all the time in the world. He couldn’t help but shiver when he thought of the jolt of pleasure when Eric’s tongue had teased his own. And Julian was pretty sure he hadn’t imagined the sheer size of the hard-on that Eric pressed against his thigh.

If Gabe and Logan hadn’t shown up when they had… he didn’t know what he would have done.

The thought bothered him more than he could say. All his life, he had prided himself on his self-control, his discipline. And all it took was one Alpha to unravel everything.

Yeah, Julian knew he was in big trouble.

* * *

When they were alone inside the little gym, Gabe turned to Julian. “Look, I don’t want to tell you what to do, but what was that?”

“That was nothing. Eric and I are not even a thing,” Julian answered quickly. “He came out to apologize to me and it just… got out of hand.” He could feel his face getting hot again, so he hurried to continue. “That kiss meant nothing to me, and I’m sure he feels the same way. Trust me, he’s the last person I’m interested in, for so many reasons.” He knew that the more he talked, the more suspicious he sounded, but he couldn’t seem to shut up.

Gabe raised an eyebrow. “That’s funny, I wouldn’t be kissing the last person I was interested in.”

Julian tried not to be annoyed, but he felt like his friend was judging him. “Gabe, you’re a good friend, and I know you’re looking out for me, but I can handle this,” he said, hoping he sounded more confident than he felt. You know I’m not interested in a relationship right now, and even if I was interested, he’s leaving town in a few weeks. I’m not dumb enough to get involved with someone I have no future with. Ok?”

The other Omega still looked a little worried, but he nodded. “I know you’re not dumb, Julian. It’s just that you were such a good friend to me when I had that drama with Logan. I’m just trying to return the favor,” he said, giving Julian a gentle hug.

Julian smiled at Gabe. “It was obvious that you and Logan were meant to be,” he said. “But you don’t need to worry about me. I can take care of this.”

* * *

Julian couldn’t face the Alpha after what had just happened. He needed some time to think, and being around that man with the memory of his kiss fresh in his mind would be too much at the moment. Gabe offered to let Eric know that Julian would talk to him later, and he agreed, though he felt like a coward. He was glad the building blocked the view as he left the gym and climbed into his car, heading toward home and a little peace and quiet.

Too late, he remembered that he and Eric had never come to an agreement on the budget. Well, he had the Alpha’s number. Maybe he could just text?

Eric. He could still catch a faint hint of the Alpha’s scent on his t-shirt if he breathed just right, and it was driving him crazy. It was just lust, he told himself. And you’d have to be dead not to find Eric attractive, with that blond hair and that wicked smile and the perfect ass in his work-faded jeans.

But no, there was something more. The fact that Eric had followed Julian out and talked to him instead of ignoring him was something new and strange. And although he’d told Gabe he could take care of it, he had a problem.

Because he’d lied. Gabe had his share of boring, meaningless kisses in his life: the dull-first-date-ending kiss, the obligatory-New-Year’s kiss, the three-glasses-of-wine-experimental kiss.

But when Eric kissed him, it was something entirely different. That kiss had sparked through his nerve endings like electricity through a wire, lighting him up in a way that he thought was impossible. The Alpha’s lips had been warm and demanding, his arms strong. Even the gentle scratch of his stubble was pleasurable, a delicious counterpoint to the softness of his lips.

Julian knew even thinking this way was a terrible idea. The man was leaving soon, no matter what happened. And despite that kiss, they argued every time they met.

Not to mention there was the whole matter of Eric stealing his house, the thing that had brought the Alpha into Julian’s life in the first place. But for some reason, the thought of losing the house had bothered Julian less lately. If he was honest, he had barely thought about it at all. Maybe he was just accepting the inevitable outcome?

Well, no matter what, one question remained: what the hell was he going to do now?