He wasn’t going to do shit for me, and I knew it. Elliot was a nice beta, but that’s about all he was. He couldn’t help me. Hell, that was probably why he was transferred here in the first place.

“Maybe he has a crush on you, Tate,” Sergi said, as he lowered the wood pallet onto the stack. Sergi was my boss, but he was also my friend.

“He’s a beta. And no. Just no. I’d never go on any dates with a cop,” I said.

The idea of dating an officer from Watson County grossed me out. This town was as corrupt as they came, and that meant the police were running the show. As lovely as Elliot was, he was probably crooked too.

“Ha. A beta, huh.” Sergi laughed and wiped the sweat from his forehead. We had been building this set of model homes for three months now, and it felt like we weren’t getting any closer toward getting the job done.

“That’s right. A beta from Texas. That’s what I hear, anyway,” I said.

“You think he’s honest? I’ve met a lot of betas who happen to become omegas later in life. It’s a trend,” Sergi said.

I shrugged and threw off my gloves. “Who cares?” I asked. “Anyway, I think I’m going to call it a day. It’s hot as hell, and I need to start on dinner at home.” Not to mention, Rowan was probably wondering where I was.

There was something different about Elliot, though. I couldn’t put my finger on why he had taken an interest in our family, but it seemed like he was going to give us a try.

Sergi stared at me with a giant smirk on his face. I couldn’t enjoy how humorous this was for him. “Just watch. This is where it starts. First, the cop helps you out. Next, he’s sucking your—”

I felt my cock turn firm against my thigh. I coughed awkwardly and shifted where I was standing. “Stop right there. You’re getting lewd again,” I warned.

“You’re getting turned on again,” he said, winking. “Once an alpha, always an alpha. Am I right?”

I frowned. It had been years since I lost my husband, but I hadn’t correctly made an effort to find a new partner. I hadn’t even had sex since then. To most alphas, this was unheard of.

I wasn’t trying to be celibate, and I still got the same urges. But I had a kid, a home, and a whole other set of responsibilities. Sometimes, it felt like I had no time for myself.

“Sergi, I appreciate the talk, but I have to go home to my kid. I’ll see you soon, though,” I said.

“Tomorrow,” he corrected me. It was Friday, which meant that we had the weekend off. I was confused.

“Tomorrow?” I asked him.

“Me and the guy are cooking dinner at home, remember? You said you’d come, man,” Sergi said.

Sergi was the only one from this town who I could actually call a friend. He was a reliable carpenter, and he hired me after “the accident” was publicized all over the news.

“Right. The dinner. I wouldn’t miss it for the world,” I said.

Sergi grinned. He ran and gave me a huge hug, constricting my airway. “Really? You just made a grown man happy,” he said.

I laughed, but he really squeezed the air out of me. “You’re just about the only friend I enjoy making happy,” I said.

“Except for that beta cop,” he joked.

“Very funny, Sergi,” I said. I put my hand in the air and waved him goodbye. “Tomorrow!”

I stepped into my old car and drove home. On the way there, I eyed the police station. Out front, a group of alphas was laughing loudly and drinking beers right out in the open. The beta cop from the other night was nowhere to be found.

“Idiots,” I whispered.

The police were so nonchalant about breaking the law. It just spelled one thing: injustice. Nothing would ever get solved in this town because of that behavior.

Those moments were a dime a dozen, and I wasn’t trying to get too involved in that headspace. I was just trying to get home to my boy.

…but then I saw it. I swear, it happened in slow motion. The white truck from the other night stopped right next to me at the light. At first, I didn’t even register the sight.

I looked out of my window and smiled like I usually do. The sun was shining brightly ahead of me. I felt good.

When my brain picked up on who I was staring at, my smile fell off my face. For as long as the light was red, we just stared at each other. The three men in the truck looked broken down. I recognized the driver as a man named Sid, a local criminal around these parts, but that’s not all he was.

“What’re you looking at, old man?” the passenger asked. He was wearing a red bandana around his neck. Trying to act tough, he filtered it over his mouth.

“Stop playing around. I could break you,” I said.

I wasn’t a fighter. In fact, I had only been in one fight in my whole life, and it was back in the fifth grade. However, my stature was big enough to give the impression of a fighter, and I wasn’t a man to mince words.

Sid revved his truck’s engine and laughed maniacally. He punched his fist against the interior and threw a sharp glance at me. “Could you break us? Really?” Sid asked.

The passenger of the vehicle laughed with him, much like a macaw bird. They made me sick.

“Stop fucking with my family,” I said.

The light turned green, but none of us were moving our vehicles. The cars that had begun to stack up behind us honked their horns.

Sid lowered his eyelids. “Or what? I mean… we don’t really have to listen to you, right? We’re not obligated under law,” Sid said. The men in his car laughed. The loser in the back seat opened the door and displayed a hunting knife with serrated edges.

I kept my eyes fixed on the weapon. Sure, I could have prolonged the talk, but that would have meant Elliot would have to drain the lake to find my body. No way. I had to back off.

I put my hands up in front of me and sighed. “Okay. You win,” I said. “I know you don’t give a fuck about us, but lay off my boy. He doesn’t deserve it. Rowan has been through enough.”

Sid stopped smiling, but the passenger in the front seat made a crying gesture. Sid hit the man in the back of the head. “Ow!” he yelled.

Then, Sid pointed directly at me. “You’re lucky I didn’t gut you like a catfish. Watch yourself,” Sid said.

As soon as they sped off, I pulled the car over to the side of the road. I stepped out of the vehicle and leaned over in the tall grass. I vomited all of my lunch.

“Fuck,” I whispered. I fell back against the tire and took a deep breath. I closed my eyes and tried to think of better times, but my heart was beating at a million beats per second.

“Disneyland with the family. That time we went to New York City. Watching fireworks explode on the 4^th of July in the old park, next to the lake,” I whispered to myself.

All of those memories flashed before my eyes. Those were comforting times, back when life made sense. As I sat against my old car, I felt lost.

“Hey!” A voice called out to me. I immediately put up my fists, ready to defend myself.

Then, I saw him. “Elliot?” I asked.

Elliot looked like a fish out of water. He held his belt loosely while running from across the street. He was out of breath, but he was smiling. “I saw you driving,” Elliot said.

I quickly threw in a piece of gum to freshen up my breath. I didn’t do it because I liked the guy. I did it because of the bad taste in my mouth leftover from the short experience with Sid.

“That’s nice,” I said. “But I’m not sure I understand why you’re running over here. Your cop buddies are going to give you shit for a lifetime now.”

Cars sped by us, moving at speeds over eighty miles per hour. Elliot finally reached me. “You can’t park here,” he said. “They’ll ticket you in a second.”

“What about you? Are you going to ticket me?” I asked. I couldn’t figure out Elliot’s angle, but whenever he looked back at the station worried, I felt a jolt of electricity. I stepped forward until our bodies were nearly touching.

Elliot hesitated before choosing his words. “Um. No, I’m not going to write you a ticket today,” he said. Elliot stammered back awkwardly. “But if you keep bringing attention to yourself, they’re going to force me to take your car in.”

There was something about him that calmed me down. For a cop, he exhibited a gentle fragility and a lowered ego. It was refreshing, but it wasn’t something I was used to.

I glanced at his pink lips and quickly looked away, feeling my cheeks start to burn up. I changed the subject. “I saw the guys from the other night,” I said. “The same three morons. Right at the light over there.”

Elliot’s eyes widened. His warm lips curled against his cheeks. “Well, I’ll be damned! You did it, Tate! Did you get a plate?” Elliot asked.

I laughed at how excited he was getting over this. “Yeah, I got the plate, but there’s no need for any of that. Sid Carwell,” I said.

Elliot looked from left to right. “Let’s get in your car and drive for a bit,” he said. “I don’t want the guys at the station fucking with me any more than they already do.”

“That’s understandable,” I muttered. We both stepped in the car. “Look, man. If those guys are bothering you, you might as well quit now. They’re not going to stop. I’ve lived in this town my whole life. The alphas at the police station are hell to be around.”

“I’d rather not talk about that,” he said. Elliot wasn’t listening to any of my warnings, but I didn’t blame him for shifting focus back onto the topic of hand. I merely wanted to help him out by convincing him to leave.

Outside of the window, the dark trees loomed above us. Trash littered the streets. Old signs were barely rooted into the earth. Down here, you had to be tough. This place wasn’t for making new friends.

“Suit yourself,” I said. “I feel bad for you. I hate seeing new folks as nice as yourself get stomped out so fast.”

Elliot’s face turned a darker shade of red. He turned away from me and peered into the side-mirror to see if any of the cops had paid any attention to him. “See. You know I’m right,” I said.

“I know one thing,” he said.

“And what’s that?” A smile formed on my face. I was pressing all of his buttons, but I didn’t mean any harm in it. It was nice to have some close company, even if it was fleeting.

“You have nobody on your side, and you’re acting cockier than you should. Those idiots back at the station hate you, Tate. I’m the only one on your side,” Elliot said.

Elliot’s words went straight to my gut. I leaned back against the old leather seat and sighed. “You’re right,” I said. “I need to stop poking so much. I just have so much goddamn resentment for those people.”

“I wear the same outfit, badge, and I wield the same weapons. But I’m not the same as them,” Elliot said. “Now, tell me who this Sid guy is.”

I chuckled and pushed my tongue against my lips. This was going to be hard to explain. “You want the whole story?” I asked.

Elliot frowned. He put his hand on the door handle. “Stop playing around, or I’ll leave,” he said.

“Sid has connections,” I said. I tried to put it in better terms. I leaned forward against the seat, closer to Elliot. “There is a hierarchy here. Top to bottom. Most cities have rules. This town has families.”

“Go on,” he said, glancing back at the station. “I want to hear all of what you know.”

I hesitated. I wasn’t sure what trouble I was getting myself into, but I had a strong inkling this wasn’t going t lead to great things. Though, when I looked at Elliot’s honest face, I couldn’t hold back. He needed to know what went on here.

“Sid is the mayor’s boy. He was born with a silver spoon in his mouth, and two bottles of bourbons in both hands. Meaning, he can do whatever the fuck he wants, and he knows it,” I said.

I took a deep breath. Thinking about Sid made me feel constricted and helpless. Elliot could only look at me with a doubtful expression. “You want me to go after the mayor’s boy?” Elliot asked.

“I know. It’s career suicide,” I said, sighing. “It’s fine. I don’t want you to do anything. There’s no solving this mess. My boy and I are stuck with this shit forever.”

Elliot looked worried. He ran his palms over his face and pressed his fingers into his temples. “I wasn’t transferred to this place. I moved here because my father lives here. He lost his vision two years ago. Not only that, the doctors diagnosed him with dementia last year. I can’t afford to take him to a fancy place, and I sure as hell don’t trust those cheap clinics,” Elliot said.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered. I didn’t know why Elliot was telling me all of this, but I wanted to let him know that I was there for him, as a friend. “If you need to talk, my family’s here,” I said.

“It’s fine. But I can’t go out there into those woods. I can’t risk my neck to save this town. Do you understand? My father needs me,” Elliot said, firmly.

I nodded. I understood full well. “And those bastards shoot to kill,” I muttered.

“And why shouldn’t they? They have every reason to defend their corrupt kingdom. For us cops, this is just a job,” Elliot said.

“A job with little benefits, right?” I asked him.

“Oh, man. If this job had any benefits attached to it, people would be signing up left and right.” Elliot chuckled a little before exhaling, defeated.

“But I want to help you. So I’m going to keep an eye on things, from afar. I’m not knocking on any doors. I’m not infiltrating anybody’s property. Hear me? I’ll keep an eye out,” Elliot said, extending his hand.

“I appreciate that,” I said.

For a second, we stared at each other. Elliot’s eyes were a dark blue, like the tumultuous ocean. His eyelashes extended naturally, and up close, I noticed his unique freckles.

Okay. Elliot was cute, despite my weariness to say so, but I wasn’t on the market. Most likely, I wouldn’t ever get back to that point in my life.

I could still admire a man’s handsome face, or the tight spots around a man’s crotch when their jeans bunched up. I could still feel the pleasant rise of my cock when I inhaled a man like Elliot’s scent. Right?

“So…” Elliot whispered. I snapped out of my trance.

I glanced down at his hand and shook it. His hand was clean and smooth. I held onto it for a little too long. “Sorry,” I said, pulling away. “The stress. I’ve been zoning off lately.”

It was a lie. I was looking at Elliot like I was interested, and he knew it. Thankfully, we both acted like it didn’t happen.

“It’s okay.” He laughed and patted my thigh. “I’ll keep in touch, Tate Highland.”

Elliot shut the door. I leaned back and let out a quiet noise of disbelief. Looking down at the center of my pants, I noticed something. My cock was as hard as a rock.