I slowly woke up, disoriented by the strange noises around me. I blinked my eyes open and found myself staring at an industrial-looking white ceiling with little squares of plasterboard tiles. My jaw was throbbing and my left arm felt heavier than usual, almost like it was being held down.

It took a lot longer than it should have to slowly turn my head and take stock of my environment. What the hell? I quickly realized that I was in a hospital bed when I saw the hoses leading from a machine at my bedside to an IV in my right arm. Slowly, I turned my head to the left and saw a cast on that arm. Ah, that explained why it felt heavy.

But even stranger, I saw Dallas and Houston sitting in plastic chairs in front of a large window, quietly chatting. I tried to open my mouth to ask why I was here, but I couldn’t move my jaw. Dallas was the first to see that I was awake. He stood to his feet and rushed over to my bedside, brushing my hair back from my forehead as he gently smiled down at me.

He took a cup from my nightstand, and held a straw to my lips. “Here, have a sip before you try to talk. Your throat is probably dry as hell.” I winced as the ice-cold water flooded around my teeth. Dallas gave another gentle smile. “Your body is pretty sore, it’s going to take a little bit of adjustment until it heals.”

After I managed to get some water down my throat, I pulled away from the straw, signaling to Dallas that I was done. Houston came around to my other side, holding my good hand between his as he looked at me through tear-filled eyes. I fought to get words out, and finally was able to talk with a slight slur.

“What happened?” I looked back and forth between the two of them, searching their eyes for some sort of clue.

Houston shook his head, tears now streaming down his face as he stroked my hand and tried to compose himself. Dallas had a resigned expression as he calmly explained that I’d been attacked and a neighbor had called for help after finding me on Fred’s front lawn surrounded by my belongings.

I shook my head. It didn’t sound right. None of it did. I started to deny it when flashes of Fred and Henri having sex flashed through my head, followed by blurred memories of Fred’s fists. The hurt from that day came back fresh, especially when Houston found his voice.

“Fred says that he doesn’t know what happened, but I don’t believe that fucking pig for a second. His story is that you grabbed your shit and were leaving and an unknown assailant must’ve attacked you on your way out. But I know you, and you wouldn’t have left him in a fit of anger. That’s not your style. You would have weighed the pros and cons and worried yourself sick over it before you made a decision.”

It took a lot of effort, but I managed to get the words out. “Fred… and Henri… they were in bed when I got there. I grabbed Henri and pulled him out of our bed, then Fred started hitting me. That’s all I remember.”

Houston’s face iced over. “That rat bastard was fucking another guy in your bed? What a fucking douche. And then he had the balls to beat you up on top of that? Please tell me that you’re going to press charges and get a restraining order.”

I shrugged helplessly. “What good would it do? It’s not like I can call the cops on him, he is the cops.”

“Well, you need to do something, babe. If that neighbor hadn’t called it in, who knows what would’ve happened to you. As it is, you’ve got some bruised ribs, lacerations everywhere, and a broken arm. What the hell, Kyle? That asshole needs to pay for this.” Houston was beyond furious at this point.

Our conversation was interrupted when a nurse came in and started bustling around, poking and prodding at me as she took my stats and chattered about how well I was doing.

After she’d finished, she was leaving the room as she looked back and gave me what she considered good news. “The doctor will be in to see you at some point this morning. If all goes well, he plans to discharge you tomorrow and you’ll be able to go home.”

Once she was gone, my eyes filled with hot tears as I started to cry again. I felt strong arms carefully wrap around me and my first thought was that Houston had a much stronger grip than I’d realized until I slowly recognized the scent of Dallas’ cologne. I stiffened with embarrassment and started to pull away, but he hushed me.

“It’s okay, Kyle. Just let me be a friend to you right now, okay? Please tell me that you’re crying because she said that comment about going home, not because of that douchebag.” I nodded jerkily, unable to speak over the sudden tightness in my throat as I cried.

Houston grabbed my hand again. “Don’t worry, babe. Look, you can come home with me for as long as you need to. I don’t care how long it takes for you to find your own place, my guest room is your guest room, if you know what I mean.”

Dallas pulled away and looked back and forth between me and Houston with a frown on his face. He shook his head. “I’m not comfortable with that, Houston. He’s injured and Fred is vicious. And Houston, you’re smaller than him. I’d feel better if I knew he was with someone that could pick Fred up one-handed.”

I managed to talk again. “Maybe my old apartment might be available and then Houston won’t be in danger…” My voice trailed off and I started to cry again when it occurred to me that I’d just given Fred my most recent paycheck toward the mortgage. And I’d given him my savings long ago.

Once I’d calmed down enough to talk again, Houston tugged my hand. “Don’t cry, babe. Tell us what’s on your mind.”

It was embarrassing, but I told them the truth. “I’ve been helping Fred pay off his mortgage. I gave him all my savings and the only thing I have left from my last check is the money I keep for my allowance.”

Houston’s eyes narrowed. “Never use the word allowance again. So help me, I’ll hire someone to go cut that fucker’s throat if I hear any more.”

Dallas clenched his jaw but didn’t say anything about what Houston or I had said. Instead he brushed my hair back again with another one of those tender smiles.

“Forget all of that for now. You’ll have plenty of time to get back on your feet financially. First, we need to get you healthy again and into a safe environment. Why don’t you come stay at my place instead? I have a guest room too. In fact, as your friend, I insist on it. If you need help moving around, my twinky kid brother isn’t going to be much use.”

When I looked at his clenched jaw and saw the way his hands kept starting to fist and then release themselves, I wondered if maybe he could be hiding anger issues like Fred had, or if he really was different.

“What’s your angle?” I blurted out without thinking. “No alpha is just that nice for no reason.”

Houston barked out a laugh. “There you go! You tell him, babe. I’m glad to see you growing a spine. But listen, my brother isn’t one of those alphas, and I promise that he doesn’t have an angle. He really is just that nice, which you already know from having worked with him for so long. Trust your gut.”

As I listened to my friend’s words, it occurred to me that I’d always had second thoughts about Fred that I’d pushed aside. I’d been so blind for so long. As hard as I’d tried to make that relationship work, I’d always had a gut feeling that something wasn’t right. Was that what Houston meant by trusting my gut? If so, he was right about Dallas. My gut never felt anything but butterflies around him—never anything dangerous.

“Go on, Kyle. Take him up on it,” Houston pushed. “Dallas has a point about you needing someone larger than me at your back, and I’ll feel so much better knowing that you’re safe.”

After a brief moment’s hesitation, I slowly nodded my acceptance.