Chapter 4
Brighton
Brighton's head ached and his leg throbbed. The chatter around him just tightened the band of pain around his skull further, but he didn't say a word. He didn't want to spoil their moods. Besides, it seemed the the pain was becoming more bearable regardless. Josh had offered him painkillers and they were finally starting to kick in.
The smell of stew filled the house and Brighton's mouth started to water. They had been mainly living off of dried provisions or game they had caught themselves and cooked over a campfire. He hadn't appreciated home cooked meals before. They were a luxury he vowed to never take for granted again.
Josh called them to help themselves, but before Brighton could try to even sit up, Josh placed a hot bowl on the small table in front of him. The stew looked divine; thick and full of meat and vegetables. He smiled at Josh. "Looks great."
The omega murmured a thanks. His chocolate brown eyes lowered. Brighton couldn't help but be reminded of Jack's mate Riley. Like the red-headed omega, Josh didn't seem to know what to do around other people. Both lived on a small homestead away from other shifters.
Though, in Brighton's humble opinion, he thought Josh was prettier.
As far as Brighton could tell, there was no one else living there. He couldn't detect even a trace of another alpha. Josh was wearing a loose and worn short sleeve shirt and Brighton had managed a glance at Josh's shoulders. The skin was clear of any sort of mating mark.
As he ate his stew, Brighton pondered Josh. He wondered who Jacob's father was. An omega raising their child on their own wasn't too unusual--widows were unfortunately common among wolves--but an unclaimed omega with a child? That was definitely unusual. Especially in the southern Wolflands. At the very least, the alpha of the child would want to protect his bloodline.
Brighton was snapped out of his thoughts when he realized Ivan was talking to him. He blinked. "Sorry?"
Ivan huffed. "I said, how are you feeling?"
"Sore." Brighton shrugged. "The painkillers are kicking in."
"Good." Ivan nodded, "I'd ask how your head's doing but I doubt I'd be able to tell the distance."
"Hah, hah. Go to hell," Brighton said.
He set his empty bowl down and lay back again. He rolled onto his side, back to the room. He inwardly rolled his eyes at himself. Josh's life was none of his business. The guy was kind enough to stitch him up and let them stay in his house for the night. He needed to focus on his small pack's next move and nothing else.
They were looking for mates. That was their purpose. Unclaimed, single omegas that were looking for their own alphas. That was the plan, and he needed to stick with it.
And he knew that Josh was not what he was looking for. This particular omega almost definitely had far more important things on his mind. If he wanted a mate, he would have joined a pack. The fact that he had decided to raise his son alone was a clear indicator of that.
Still, Brighton couldn't help but think that the omega had very pretty eyes.
The thunder continued to grow closer. By the time the sky grew dark, it was pouring outside. Brighton knew he wasn't the only one thinking that they owed Josh for his hospitality. They might have spent the miserable night in a drafty old barn or even worse, out in the open.
From now on, Brighton vowed that they would plan more carefully. And no more testing old half-assed architecture. And when they reached Foxhold, they would have to pick up some medical supplies. They had no excuse for not having even a basic first aid kit.
There was a fire roaring in the hearth, filling the house with warmth. The others were lazing around. Ivan was dozing in an armchair. Aidan and Gavi had made themselves comfortable in a pile of blankets on the floor. Gavi was was sipping on a bottle of wine Josh had supplied. Brighton almost felt like they were back at Summerwood, when the four of them shared a cabin.
Josh was upstairs, arguing with Jacob about bath time. By the sound of it, Jacob was pleading his case well. Eventually Brighton could just make out the sound of splashing.
"Cute kid," Ivan said.
Aidan smiled sleepily. "I can't wait to have one. " He held out his hand and Gavi handed him his bottle. They were all thinking about Josh. About how there was an unclaimed omega right above them.
"Hey," Brighton whispered. "About Josh. No chasing him, alright? He's been good to us so far."
"Agreed," Aidan said.
"Unless he shows interest in one of us first," Gavi amended.
"I doubt that'll happen," Ivan said. "He seems like he has other priorities."
The sound of creaking stairs brought their conversation to a halt. Josh poked his head in. "Anyone need anything else?"
There was a round of "nope"s and "I'm fine"s. Josh nodded. "Well, help yourselves to the kitchen if you're hungry. And there's more firewood just around the side of the house if you run out." He gestured to Brighton. "To be safe, wake him up a couple times to check him over if you can."
He looked to Brighton. "Are you in pain at all? Do you need more painkillers?"
"I'm fine," Brighton said. "Thank you."
Josh's eyes held his for a moment longer before he coughed awkwardly. "Well, goodnight then." The house was silent except for the sound of retreating footsteps.
Brighton was suddenly aware of three sets of eyes on him. "What?" he asked, annoyed.
"Oh, nothing," Aidan said. "Goodnight."
"Goodnight."
"Night."
Brighton glared at his friends. "Weirdos," he muttered. Rolling his eyes, he settled back into the couch cushions, burying his face in his pillow.
Brown eyes followed him into sleep.
Brighton opened his eyes to find a face inches from his own. He swore loudly and jerked back, sending a wave of nausea through him. His head throbbed and he fell back against the couch, breathing heavily.
Jacob seemed unperturbed by his reaction, but the kid did back up slightly. "You swore," he said accusingly, folding his arms.
Groaning, Brighton draped an arm over his eyes. A small finger poked his cheek lightly. He glanced back at the kid, eyebrow raised. "Can I help you?"
"Dad wanted to know if you were awake and if you wanted food," Jacob said.
"I didn't say wake him up," came an exasperated voice. Josh leaned against the doorway rubbing his eyes. "Jake, leave him be."
"He swore," Jacob said.
To Brighton's amusement, Josh's eye twitched slightly. "Of course he did! You probably scared him half to death. Go eat your breakfast."
Jacob gave Brighton a disappointed look. It was comical on his young face and as soon as he was out of the room Brighton let out a low chuckle.
"Bossy little thing." Josh shook his head. "Sorry about that. How are you feeling?"
Honestly, Brighton felt like shit. His head felt a little better than the other day, but not by much. Experimentally, he flexed his ankle and immediately hissed at the throbbing pain that shot up his leg. Still, he managed to push himself to sit up. "Not bad," he finally replied.
"Liar," Josh said. "Do you think you could eat something?"
Brighton shook his head. "Maybe in a bit. Where are the others?"
"They went hunting a little while ago," Josh said. "One of them, Aidan I think, left for Foxhold. Said he needed to let them know where you are and that he'll be back this evening."
That's right. The pack was expecting them. Brighton looked down. His leg was still red and puffy and it hurt like a bitch. But if he shifted, he shouldn't have a problem making it in his wolf form. And he always healed quickly. The fracture should be healed in a couple weeks. Perk of being a wolf was that they tended to heal faster than humans.
"We'll be out of your hair soon," he promised. The omega was probably getting sick of them. "Foxhold's not too far away."
To his surprise, Josh shook his head. "You're kidding, right? You can't put pressure on your foot, I can tell your head's killing you, and a walk like that's going to be agony on your ribs."
"We can't put you out like that," Brighton insisted. "It's going to be a few weeks until I can walk properly again and we can't take advantage of you like that."
Josh bit his lip, looking uncomfortable. "I just don't feel good about kicking you out. Even if Foxhold's close, it's still a long way for someone injured."
"What then? We can't just freeload off of you for the next month," Brighton said.
The omega looked conflicted. Then he mumbled something so low that Brighton couldn't quite hear. "Sorry?"
Josh brushed his hair out of his face awkwardly. "I could use some help around here to be honest. The roof's leaking and the smokehouse is falling apart. It's going to take a long time to get it all done by myself. And it needs to be done before fall is over."
Brighton perked up immediately. "We could help you with all of that. We helped build houses from the ground up in our old pack."
"You think the others would be okay with that?" Josh asked, still unsure.
"Oh yeah," Brighton said. "They won't mind."
He actually didn't really know how they would feel about that, but Josh had been good to them. They owed him and if all he needed was a few home repairs, then that was no problem. The others could just suck it up.
He tried to stand up but suddenly Josh was in front of him, gently pushing him back down. "Not so fast," he admonished.
"I need to use the bathroom," Brighton told him, flushing slightly.
"Then move slowly," Josh said. "Here."
Before Brighton knew what was happening, Josh was slowly and carefully pulling him back up. He pulled Brighton's arm over his shoulder and wrapped his own arm around Brighton's waist. Brighton got a lungful of the omega's scent and had to fight off a snarl from his inner wolf. Josh smelled like honey and grass after rain. It was intoxicating.
The proud alpha part of Brighton that protested at the extra help was completely blocked out by the heat that began to fill Brighton's body. He bit the inside of his cheek hard and prayed that Josh didn't notice. He thanked the stars that the smaller wolf seemed oblivious.
He managed an awkward hop to the bathroom and Josh left him alone to take care of business. As he was washing his hands, he glanced at himself in the mirror and winced. He looked absolutely terrible and suddenly he understood why Josh was so adamant on him not leaving. He was pale with dark bags under his eyes, his hair was a tangled mess, and there were purple bruises covering his arms. He gently pulled up his hair. The cut on his head was red and irritated looking through the stitches.
Carefully he shuffled to the door again and Josh was there, immediately steadying him. This time he didn't have any problem leaning on the omega as he made his way back to the safety of the couch. His ribs ached badly and he leaned back into the cushions, closing his eyes with a sigh. He was gasping and sweating and just wanted to pass out again.
"Let me see your head," Josh said.
Brighton tried not to enjoy the feeling of delicate fingers moving through his hair and tried not to feel disappointed when they left. They were back a second later and something blissfully cool was rubbed across the inflamed cut.
"Last thing you need is an infection," Josh murmured.
There was the sound of shuffling, then Josh pressed two pills into Brighton's hand. He disappeared into the kitchen and came back with a glass of water.
"I don't want to empty your supplies," Brighton said, but he took the pills anyway. His body really was killing him.
"I gave Aidan a list of stuff to pick up so don't worry about it," Josh said. "Wait until the pills kick in and then see if you can eat something, alright?"
Brighton nodded and immediately regretted it. He gritted his teeth through the wave of nausea, breathing deeply until it passed.
"So," he said when he had his voice back. "You been living here long?"
"For almost seven years," Josh said, taking a seat.
"It's a nice place," Brighton said. "You build it yourself?"
Josh nodded. "I had some help though. Kira helped quite a bit, as well as a few wolves from Foxhold. It started out with just this room and the kitchen and I just added over the years."
"That's cool. So it's just you two?" As soon as the words left Brighton's mouth, he wondered if he'd overstepped, but Josh didn't seem phased.
"Yeah. It's hard work, but it works."
Before he could say anything, Josh was helping him to lie down. "Try to sleep."
Brighton wanted to protest that he'd gotten enough sleep, but his eyes drooped and his body suddenly felt heavy. He was gone before he could say a word.