I can’t help but watch Harley enter the hostel door as my car zooms away. A thread of worry tangles itself in my heart. It isn’t unusual for an alpha like myself to worry after the safety of an omega, especially one so close to giving birth, but there’s something different going on here.

I put it out of my mind; I have way too much on my plate to follow this train of thought any further. Harley did a fantastic job of taking care of himself and his baby up until now, and now that he has a safe place to stay, he’s even better off. And he has my number, in case he needs it.

I kinda hope he needs it.

There’s just something about a pregnant omega, especially one who’s experienced so much hardship. Even though his eyes were tired and his hair unkempt, Harley had a certain glow to his cheeks that I found appealing. And while his belly was rounded, he was clearly a fit guy, if his lean arm and leg muscles were any indication. I immediately find myself wanting to get to know him more. Refugees from other territories or the backlands aren’t uncommon in Stell, but Harley’s the first one who interests me on a personal level.

I shake my head. There I am on that train of thought. I slip my phone out of my pocket and check my messages. Lars texted me: we’ve got a situation in paisley. heading there now.

Damn. I know the situation in the Paisley, a lower income neighborhood to the north, is getting more dire, but if our pack’s stepping in…

I open the navigation app and tell my car to head straight there, instead of pack headquarters, like I was intending. I’m not fully prepared, but there isn’t much I can do about that.

I hit another button to tell the car to darken its windows, then I start slipping out of my suit. I have a shiftsuit ready in the car for emergencies like these, and I slip it on easily. It’s similar to a wetsuit people use for swimming in the ocean, but it’s made of a light material that’ll adapt with my body when I shift—meaning I can shift back into human form and not be left naked.

Not all shifters can afford shiftsuits, though.

I can see the run down buildings of the Paisley approaching quickly. Two or three story buildings of red and gray brick, the old stones rounded or chipped off at the corners, are scrunched together. Broken windows are covered with tape, and small, cobbled-together security drones buzz loudly everywhere—the residents here can’t afford the stealthier ones. I’ve been told that this was a peaceful little neighborhood at the turn of the century. Amazing how things can change just a few decades later.

And it’s too bad, because this neighborhood is largely full of refugees coming to Stell to seek a better life, much like Harley. All they want to do is find a safe community for their family. But there are shifter packs, as well as nasty groups of humans, who see them as easy prey—in the financial sense.

We constantly have to put out fires like this. A rogue shifter pack will come to shake down a block full of refugees, or even try to get the older kids to sell dangerous drugs or other illegal materials. While there are police in Stell, they aren’t the best at dealing with shifter issues. We’re a pack of shifters who want to do good, and see it as our duty to help make Stell a good place for everyone to live. It’s an ongoing battle, made even more difficult by the fact that most people outside of our territory have no idea shifters even exist. This is one of the few territories where shifters can live more or less openly.

As the car slows and the map indicates that I’m getting closer, I get up and get ready to hop out and join Lars. I can see him standing on a street corner, and he waves as he sees my car come near.

I get out of the car and it zooms away, to where, I don’t know, since there aren’t many lots in this neighborhood, but that isn’t my concern right now.

Lars claps me on the back, gently squeezing my shoulder. His suit is covered in bits of gray and white fur, and he’s breathing heavily and covered in sweat. He looks sexy, but I’m too anxious to focus on that. I hope I arrived in time.

“What do we have going on here?” I ask, ready to spring into action.

“Just took care of it, man,” says Lars. “Sorry to make you come out all the way here.”

“Not a problem,” I say, shaking my head. “I’m glad I was able to come, in case you needed me. Always better to be safe.”

“Definitely,” he agrees. “Here, let me get you to the others and I’ll give you a rundown of what happened.”

As we walk around the corner and approach a group of shifters from my pack, Lars explains everything. We’ve been in contact with these two sisters, humans who escaped their family in a more oppressive territory. They’re trying to get settled and on their feet, and they could only afford a house in the Paisley. The neighborhood is reasonably safe, it just lacks amenities. Unfortunately, when one of the sisters explored the dating scene, she fell in with the wrong kind of guy—a fox shifter.

This asshole started harassing her when she broke it off, and we had to step in. We knew he’d return to harass her, so we told her to call when he showed up next, so we could catch him in the act. Since we were successful, we worked with the cops to remove him from the territory. He wasn’t allowed to set foot here again.

The door to the sisters’ home is open, and I can see two of our pack members inside, comforting them and talking with them. I assume the perp’s been carted off already, to be held in custody in our pack headquarters.

“Looks like everything’s taken care of,” I say, putting an arm around Lars’ shoulder. Now that I know the danger’s passed, I feel like I can let my guard down and show Lars some real affection.

We don’t often seem like we are, but Lars and I are a couple. The thing is, we’re both alphas. It’s rare that alphas fall for each other, but it happened with us. It would’ve been fine as is, but we can’t have kids, not without an omega—a man who can become pregnant. That’s something that aches in my heart daily. I love Lars, but I also want kids more than anything.

The sensible thing to do would be to adopt, but Stell’s social infrastructure works too well. New parents are given a lot of support, so they have all they need to care for a baby—and themselves—and don’t often feel the need to put it up for adoption. Healthcare and education are advanced here, and people rarely have pregnancies they don’t want. There simply aren’t that many babies to adopt here, and the waiting list is a mile long.

Nope, if we want a baby, we have to do it the old-fashioned way. It’s something we talked about for a while, but we put it on the backburner.

I think of Harley again, his soft face swimming into my mind. He’s cute, there, I said it. Maybe that weird feeling I had earlier was romantic in nature. Then again, every alpha’s a sucker for a cute omega.

“Anything interesting happen today?” Lars asks as we wait for my car to pull up. He got a ride with someone else, and most of the pack dispersed by now.

“Actually, yeah,” I say, and as we ride back to headquarters, I tell him how I met Harley and made sure he was safe.

“Wow,” says Lars. “A pregnant omega. I wonder if…”

I know exactly what he’s thinking. “Doubt it,” I say sourly, and I sigh.

We’re silent for a moment, as the car enters the streets of Stell’s downtown and skyscrapers rise around us. The black glass façade of our pack’s headquarters comes into view, and the car drops us off before zooming around to the underground parking lot. We go up the high speed elevator to our floor, where our apartment awaits us.

Now that we’re safe and sound at home, I can relax. And when I relax, I tend to get interested in Lars… Of course, when you have such a sexy alpha as your partner, it’s hard not to be aroused all the time. The fact that he just finished a mission, and his suit clings to him, accentuating all his curved, bulging muscles, just adds to my desire…

He went to take a shower, so I slip out of my suit and go into the bathroom, which is just starting to steam up. We have a garden tub and a shower, and Lars is sitting on the edge of the tub, watching it fill up with hot water.

Perfect.

I touch his shoulder, cool with sweat and condensation, and he looks up at me, his ice gray eyes bright. I sit down next to him at the edge of the tub and look over his body. God, I’ll never tire of him. His smooth skin glistens, the smattering of blonde hair on his chest covered with tiny crystals of water spraying from the faucet, and his cock is a deep pinkish red, starting to get hard from the sight of me.

It’s flattering. The hazy look in Lars’ eyes tells me he’s thinking the same thing I am. He reaches out and touches my knee, sliding his hand up my inner thigh. His touch is warm, and the rising steam makes the room even warmer. He must have put some soap in the tub, because a fresh fragrance fills the air, and a layer of foamy bubbles rises on the surface of the water.

Trust Lars to turn an ordinary moment into something romantic. I love this man.

Our lips press together and it’s like fireworks are going off. This is always how it is when I’m with him. Some people don’t believe in the fated mates legend, but I do. I love Lars, and I know, in the very fibers of my being, that we belong together.

His lips break away from mine, and start to travel down my jawline and neck, making me moan. My cock twitches, desperately wanting friction. I reach down and grasp it firmly as Lars leaves bruises on my neck. I fist my other hand in his hair and pull gently.

This is what sex is like when two alphas go at it. We’re both full of energy and wanting to push at each other’s boundaries. You wouldn’t think two alphas could be fated, but we are.

Most other fated mate pairs I’ve ever heard of is an alpha and omega. I’ve heard of people like us, but I’ve never met them.

But that’s okay. Our pack accepts us and we’re happy.

Lars moans when I attack his neck with my own tongue, nipping at his collarbone. I pull apart for a moment when I realize the bath is ready.

When he realizes it too, we step into it, taking care before resuming our previous activity. Submerged in the hot water, my cock throbs.

We’re going to be in here for a little while, I can tell already.

After washing off, we rest our tired bones on the bed. Lars told me he’d take a quick nap, then we can make dinner later. I can’t, and don’t want to sleep. I’m still thinking about Harley and wondering how he’s getting along. I can’t believe I met him only earlier today.

I wonder if I should text him, but then I remember that he didn’t give me his number, I only gave him mine. It’s up to him to contact me if he wants.

If I really want to, I can call the hostel and ask if he’s okay. But that would be completely nuts. It’s the kind of thing an anxious parent would do to their kid on their first school trip, or something.

No, I have to let it go. But I can’t help but ask myself, why can’t I?