Tarek Bloom was no stranger to early morning phone calls, and he blearily fumbled for his mobile to shut it up before it disturbed Braun too much. For his part, Braun mumbled something and rolled toward the other side of the mattress. Tarek flipped the phone open, already climbing out of bed, and said, “Constable Bloom.”

“It’s Roken.” Senior Constable Roken was a supervisor who worked weekend shifts, or picked up shifts with Higgs or Lars—the work week nighttime supervisor—took time off. Tarek squinted at the alarm clock. Barely after five in the morning, new work week, so Roken was on duty another three hours.

“Yes, sir, what’s going on?” Tarek left the bedroom and shut the door behind him. A lot of background noise on the other end suggested Roken was outside.

“The pawn shop where you located the Dale videotape and camcorder caught fire early this morning.”

Tarek nearly dropped his phone. “Sir, are the Tetchs alright? I got the impression they live above the shop.”

“Both are alive. Got some smoke inhalation, though, and they’re both on the way to emergency.”

“Goddess. How badly was the shop burned?”

“Interior is toast, most of the stock burned, but Tetch says he smelled smoke and called Fire and Rescue, then got him and his omega downstairs and out. Department put the fire out before it did much damage upstairs, but the building might not be salvageable.”

“Damn it. Do you think it was arson?”

“They’ve only just deemed it safe to start investigating, so we won’t know for sure for a while. I wanted you to know, since they’re connected to your case, and Tetch was screaming up a storm about them being targeted because of the investigation.”

“I appreciate the heads-up. I’ll head to the hospital now. I promised Casey I’d protect them.” And now a pregnant omega was suffering smoke inhalation and had probably just lost his home.

“You do that. I’ll copy you on whatever the arson team finds.”

“Thank you, sir.”

Tarek used the bathroom light to find his uniform and get dressed.

“W’sup?” Braun mumbled from the bed.

“I need to get to work early, firecracker, something’s happened with a case.” With his clothes situated, Tarek dug Braun out from under the covers and kissed his forehead. “Go back to sleep.”

“M’kay.” Braun was so not an early morning person.

Tarek peeked into the nursery for a glimpse of Rei, safe and sound, then headed out to his car. Emergency wasn’t too crowded this time of the morning, and he found his targets quickly. An angry voice boomed from a cubicle, screaming Tarek’s name and demanding a lawyer. Tarek flashed his badge at a nurse, who let him into the cubicle.

Mervin and Casey were together, Mervin standing while Casey was reclined on the bed. Both men were soot-stained and wore oxygen masks—well, Casey wore his, while Mervin had pushed his down neck. “There you are, you son of a fucker,” Mervin snarled. “You said you’d keep us safe.”

“I need you to calm down,” Tarek said in his best ‘don’t fuck with me’ tone. Mervin’s rage was infecting the entire ER and the last thing he needed was for the alpha doctors to start snarling at their patients. “We will have a conversation, not a shouting match.”

“Babe, please,” Casey said. “You’re scaring other patients.” His big eyes also seemed to say, “you’re scaring me, too.”

“I’m sorry.” Mervin wrapped an arm around Casey’s shoulders. “I was just so scared today.”

“I know, but me and the baby are okay. The doctor said so.”

“So you’ve both been examined?” Tarek asked.

“Yes.”

“Hamilton did this,” Mervin snapped. “He somehow found out we had the camcorder, and he wants to send a message. He destroyed our store.”

“Our team is investigating the fire, Mr. Tetch,” Tarek said. “If it’s arson, we’ll react accordingly, but you also live in an old building full of stuff. It could have been an accident.”

“Yeah, we’ll see, won’t we?”

“Either way, I’m truly sorry about this, and I’m glad you’re both all right.”

“Thank you, Constable,” Casey said.

“Has anything unusual happened in or around your store recently? Any odd activity? Suspicious customers? Anything beyond your possession of that tape that makes you suspect arson?”

Both men went silent as they considered his questions.

“I mean, we’ve had a few new customers, but we’re a pawn shop,” Casey replied after pulling his mask down. “We have a lot of regulars, but it’s also a big neighborhood.”

“Do you both work the shop every day?”

“Pretty much.”

Mervin put Casey’s mask back on. “You breathe, I’ll talk. You and the baby need it.”

“My apologies for being intrusive,” Tarek said. “It often helps to get an immediate statement while the memories are fresh.”

“I get it, and I’m glad you came yourself, instead of being too scared to face us.”

Tarek tried hard not to bristle over that comment. “I take my job very seriously, Mr. Tetch. This isn’t personal for me, but it is for you, and I want to get to the truth. Have you noticed anything or anyone unusual in the shop? Especially yesterday?”

Mervin scratched his chin. “Hard to say, to be honest. We’re a pawn shop, not high-end retail, so we get characters in and out. Sometimes teenagers high on Flax trying to sell worthless shit for their next score.”

“Did you have any sort of video surveillance on the store?”

“Nah, just some fake cameras to deter theft.”

Damn. “Well, your building is close to an intersection, so we might be able to pull traffic cam footage for the last few days.”

“Okay.”

“Do you two have somewhere to go after this?”

Mervin shrugged. “My parents, I guess. It’s a tiny place, but we can’t really afford a hotel.”

“All right. I’ll need you both to come to division as soon as you can for official statements.”

“Guess we can head over once we’re released. Get it all over with, so I can take Casey home—uh, to my parents’ place so he can rest.”

Casey reached out to squeeze his mate’s wrist. “We’ll be okay. What did I say the night we mated?”

Mervin turned his hand so they were palm to palm. “As long as we’re together, we can do anything.”

“Exactly.”

Tarek had made similar promises to Braun when they officially mated, and he was genuinely sorry for the trouble the Tetchs were now going through—especially if they’d been targeted because of Tarek’s investigation into Senior Hamilton. “If either of you remembers anything important before we chat again, please call me.” He gave Mervin another card. “In the meantime, I wish you both well.”

“Thank you, Constable,” Casey said. Mervin grunted.

Tarek didn’t take it personally. Mervin was wound tight, ready to pop, and he needed time alone with his omega. Hopefully, Casey could talk him down a few degrees before they arrived at division. Despite alpha constables and patrolmen being required to take a pheromone suppressor, tempers could still sizzle with so many of them working in close quarters.

He grabbed a hospital coffee on his way to division, which wasn’t great or what he liked in the morning, but he made do. His desk was in a larger office space shared by several constables, and he was way early for day shift, but he got to work anyway. Some new leads had come to fruition over the weekend, and he spent time pouring over those notes and reports.

Around eight, Isa Higgs popped into the office. “I hear you’ve had a dramatic morning,” Higgs said.

“Yes, sir.” Despite their mates being close and spending time together off-hours, Tarek had trouble referring to his superior as anything else while at work. He outlined his conversation with the Tetchs.

“Accident or arson, it’s tragic to lose your business. Hopefully, their insurance will cover the damages.”

“Yeah. Did Constable Roken have any updates on the fire?”

“They traced the source of the fire to an electrical outlet, which has the inspector leaning toward an accidental electrical fire. However, the building had both smoke alarms and a sprinkler system, none of which were triggered by the fire.”

“That’s unusual.”

“Very.”

Which meant this was more than likely arson, not an accident.

“And don’t go taking this personally,” Higgs added. “You did not make them targets.”

“Sure feels that way.”

“I know it does. Believe me, I’ve been there more than once, especially early in my career as a constable. You did your job, full-stop.”

“Thank you, sir. The pep talk helps.”

“Anytime.”

Higgs excused himself, and Tarek smiled at the older man’s departing back. He and Liam had come over for brunch yesterday—along with Kell and Ronin, of course—and they’d spilled the new baby news. Tarek was genuinely happy for his boss, who’d lost his first mate four years ago to a tragic illness. Now he had a new mate, four thriving children, and a fifth on the way.

Sometimes Tarek saw the big families his friends had, or thought about the big family he’d grown up in, and he dreamed of more kids. But then he looked at Braun and Rei, and he remember how fragile their life together was. As much as Braun was terrified for Kell’s current pregnancy, sometimes Tarek caught hints of wistfulness, too. The idea of growing their family was both exciting and terrifying.

It was rare for alpha/omega mated pairs to adopt, because they were the life-bringers of society, but not completely out of the question.

A sweet, familiar fragrance hit him, along with the rich aroma of good coffee, and then Braun plunked himself onto Tarek’s lap. He had two takeout coffees and a paper bag in his hands, and he dropped a quick kiss onto Tarek’s mouth. “Morning.”

“Good morning.” Tarek kissed him again. “Where’s Rei?”

“Dropped him off with Kell and Jax. I needed to run some errands this morning, so I thought I’d surprise my early riser with breakfast.”

“This is a very welcome surprise.”

Tarek’s coffee was exactly how he liked it, and Braun opened the bag to show off four different pastries. Braun moved to the chair next to Tarek’s desk, because other constables were arriving on duty. While Tarek didn’t mind showing affection for his mate, he was on the clock and one of the senior staff on duty.

It often amazed him it had been ten years since he’d come to work for the constabulary. Time moved so quickly, and he needed to slow down and enjoy life. So he ate his apple fritter slowly, tasting every bite. Watching Braun eat an éclair put naughty thoughts in his head, because of the pastry cream oozing out one end.

“Constable Bloom?” Patrolman Corinth stood in the office doorway with two familiar figures visible behind him. “Sir, you have visitors.” He stepped aside to allow Mervin and Casey Tetch to enter.

Both Braun and Tarek’s chairs faced the doorway, and in his peripheral vision, Braun went completely rigid, hand squeezing the last bite of éclair in his fist.

“We came for those statements,” Tetch said. He helped Casey sit in another empty chair, then stood directly in front of Tarek’s desk. “Am I interrupting?”

Tarek put his unfinished food down. “Not at all.”

“What’s he doing here?” Braun asked, an edge of fear and anger in his voice.

“Who? Mr. Tetch? He’s a victim in a case.” Worried now, Tarek ignored the Tetchs and focused on his mate. “Braun, what’s wrong?”

“Oh shit,” Tetch said.

“What’s going on?” Casey asked. “Merv?”

Braun’s overt distress sent Tarek into overprotective mode, and he stood, chair spinning back and crashing into another desk. “Why is my mate afraid of you?” Tarek snapped.

Tetch, Tetch, why is that name so familiar?!

“The night I escaped Lawry’s house,” Braun said. “The alley. He was one of the alphas who tried to rape me.”

“What?!” Casey replied. “That’s impossible.”

“One of them was named Tetch, but I don’t know if it was his first or last.”

A years-ago conversation roared back to life. Tarek’s best friend Dex had summoned him to his place because the night before, Dex and his husband Serge had saved an omega from being attacked by two alphas. The omega had been Braun and from the moment they met, Tarek and Braun had felt the mating bond. Tarek had been incensed that the two men who’d attacked Braun were never caught, but they’d both eventually made peace with it. And now one of Braun’s attackers was standing right in front of Tarek?

Rage.

Two patrolmen lunged before Tarek made it around his desk, and they herded him away from Tetch. Braun retreated with them, leaving the length of the office between Tarek and his enemy. Casey stared with open shock, while Tetch seemed…regretful. Not that Tarek gave a shit, because years later or not, Tetch had terrorized and hurt his mate, damn it!

“What’s going on?” Karter Jenks’s voice boomed through the office, and even though Tarek had been on the force longer than the younger constable, the command made him freeze instantly. “Bloom? It’s not like you to start a fight.”

“It’s my fault,” Tetch said. “I upset his mate.”

Karter glared at Tetch; his own mate was one of Braun’s best friends. “What did you do?”

“He didn’t do it on purpose,” Braun said. He wrapped his arm around Tarek’s, and this close, Tarek felt the faintest trembling from Braun. Braun also seemed heavily focused on Casey, whose hands were folded protectively over his swollen stomach. “Not this time.”

“Okay, can someone please explain this to me? Corinth, Peterman, let Bloom go. He’s good, right?”

Tarek nodded slowly, unable to take his eyes off Tetch—not while he was in the same room as Braun. He also couldn’t seem to get his voice to do anything except want to snarl.

“A few years ago, I used to go out and party a lot,” Tetch said, mostly to Casey. “I’d get drunk, harass betas, generally be an alphahole.”

“I know,” Casey replied. “You told me that when we met. I don’t judge you for your past.”

You should.

Maybe Tarek shouldn’t be so quick to judge, considering Mikel and Brogan, but damn it, this man hurt his mate! He did not have to be reasonable about this.

“I was out late one night with a friend,” Tetch said. “We were drunk, and we’d both done Flax, and we caught the scent of an omega going into heat. No alpha scent on him at all. So we let alcohol and pheromones tempt us into…chasing him.” He pointed at Braun. “We cornered him in an alley, and I thank the goddess every day that a pair of betas came by and stopped us.”

Casey had gone horribly pale. “Oh, no. You didn’t.”

“They tried,” Braun snapped. “Your lovely mate there and his pal hit me, kicked me, and they were going to rape me.”

“Goddess, no.”

“I’m so sorry,” Tetch said, his gaze latched on Braun in a way that made Tarek want to pop the other alpha’s eyeballs out. “I don’t have a good enough excuse for how I acted, so all I can say is I am so sorry for how I treated you. For how much we scared and hurt you.”

Braun stared at the man but said nothing. Tarek considered telling Tetch where he could shove his apology.

“I’m sorry, too,” Casey added, his soft voice strangled with grief.

“Hey, no, don’t apologize for his actions.” Braun tugged away, and it took everything inside Tarek to stay put and trust his omega. He gave Tetch a wide berth, then came to kneel next to Casey. “This isn’t on you, and this doesn’t say a thing about you or your son. What he did…it gave me nightmares, but you know what? It also gave me my mate.”

Casey shook his head, tears running down both cheeks. “How?”

“The betas who saved me? One of them is my mate’s best friend. It’s how we met. I learned not very long ago that sometimes we’re meant to be in a place, at a certain time, in order to meet certain people. I do not forgive him, and I never will, but your mate is how I met mine.”

“I’m so glad you did. I remember the joy of meeting my bondmate. It’s something so unique and precious, especially for omegas.”

“Yes, it is.” Braun took Casey’s hand. “What happened is the past, and I won’t take your mate from you and your baby by pressing charges.”

Tarek growled. He did not like or agree with that idea, but Tarek also knew better than to contradict Braun in public. Braun was as stubborn as any alpha, and if Tarek dissented now, Braun would dig his heels in over the decision. “Constable Jenks,” Tarek said, “can you please take statements from the Tetchs over this morning’s fire?”

“Absolutely,” Karter replied. “We’ll use one of the meeting rooms.”

“Thank you.”

Once the Tetchs were escorted out, Tarek and Braun met in a crashing hug. Tarek swept his trembling omega into his arms and inhaled the sweet scent of him. “I’ve got you, firecrackers, I’ve got you.” He sensed the patrolmen nearby, probably not trusting Tarek’s restraint with Tetch still in the building, and he ignored them. Nothing mattered except Braun.

“Well, that wasn’t how I saw my morning going,” Braun said, his voice muffled a bit by Tarek’s armpit.

“Me either.” Tarek kissed his thick, wavy hair. “The coincidence is shocking.”

“What were they even doing here?”

“They’re part of my early call-in this morning. I should have made the connection sooner. I knew his surname sounded familiar but I couldn’t place it.”

“Why should you have? The alley happened a long time ago, and we never identified who the two alphaholes were.”

“Now we know one, and you don’t want him arrested?”

Braun looked up, his bright green eyes glistening but his cheeks dry. “No. His mate is innocent in this, and I won’t separate them with a baby on the way. I could never do that to another omega. I don’t know what Rei and I would do without you.”

“You’ll never have to find out.”

“I hope not.” He shivered. “You’ve already been shot once since we met.”

“I was doing my job protecting your brother, and I’d happily do it again. Anything for my family.”

“Just don’t go being a hero again any time soon. I’ll need you here to keep me from losing my shit when Kell gives birth in six weeks.”

“I’m not going anywhere, firecracker.” Except maybe back to work, but even that inevitability could wait for a little while longer while he continued to comfort his mate.