His heart stuttered, and only with great effort did he stop himself from rubbing at the ache in his chest. He felt a newfound respect for Rachel and Sara; they’d lived with this for weeks. Objectively he’d known it hurt, but to experience it for himself . . . ? That was a whole other level of understanding.
A hand on his thigh drew his attention, and he turned his head to see Rachel’s sad smile directed at him. “It’s shit,” she mouthed. “But hang in there.” She gave his thigh a squeeze, then sat back in her chair. He immediately felt guilty. Rachel and Sara were newly bonded. Being apart so soon, even though Sara was staying with Alpha Cornell, must be just as hard. Yet he hadn’t heard her complain once.
Sitting up straighter, he resolved to keep his emotions in check. He wasn’t the first shifter to go through this, wouldn’t be the last either. For fuck’s sake, he’d been beaten and left for dead by his fellow beta, on his alpha’s orders. He could handle this.
As Daryl took the chair next to him, Jason managed a smile. “Hey.”
Daryl nodded in greeting. “You talk to Cam?”
“Yeah, last night.” Getting a text instead of Daryl asking him in person had stung a little at first, but now Jason got it. Being apart wasn’t fun, but being together was almost worse. His instincts told him Daryl was his,could be his,and with every breath, Daryl’s scent tormented him. He wanted to shuffle close, dip his head to the crook of Daryl’s neck, and—
“Now that we’re all here, I’ll begin.” Alpha Cornell’s clear voice rang out through the room, snapping Jason out of his thoughts. “As some of you are aware, your time here is being cut short. Both Alpha Harley and I feel that you have accomplished a great deal in these past few days, and the objectives we’d set for this whole exercise have more or less been met. With that in mind, we’ve decided to bring the final task forward.” She glanced around the room, gaze lingering for a moment on Jason and then Daryl. “Today you will be split into four teams and will attempt to complete the obstacle course. Most of you have already had a walkthrough of the various parts of it and should have a fair idea of what’s expected. Some of the obstacles are single-person, but others will require teamwork to complete.”
Despite everything, excitement curled in Jason’s belly. Both he and Daryl needed something to take their minds off the potential bond, and the physical activity of completing an alpha-designed obstacle course sounded perfect.
“Alpha Jones and I have already selected your teams.” She waved a sheet of paper, then set it on the table. “We’ll see you at the start of the course in two hours.” With a wide grin that promised none of it was going to be easy, Alpha Cornell and the other alphas left the lodge, leaving a buzz of excited whispers in their wake.
Jason stood, rubbing his hands in anticipation. “Might as well go see who I’m teamed up with.”
He and Daryl followed Rachel and Jenn over to the table. Rachel picked up the piece of paper, and the room quietened.
“The teams are as follows.” She raised her eyebrow as she read, and Jason was tempted to snatch it out of her hand if she didn’t hurry up. “Team four—Jason, Nathan, Tasha, and Simon. Team three—Daryl, Rob, Kara, and Neal.”
Jason zoned out a little as she read out the other teams. He leaned closer to Daryl. “Wish we’d
had chance to get a look at what we’re in store for. You got any idea?”
Daryl gave a quick shake of his head. “Nope. But considering what else we’ve had to do while here, I reckon it’ll be hard as fuck.” He turned to face Jason, huge smile in place, and Jason couldn’t help but return it.
“You think you’re gonna win?” Jason raised his eyebrows in challenge.
Daryl laughed. “Yep. You think I’m not?”
“Well, your team’s not bad, but I think we can take you.” He nudged Daryl, competitiveness sparking between them, making his wolf dance under his skin. The ache in his chest lessened to almost nothing as they stood there grinning at each other.
“Aww look, Jenn, they’re arguing about who’s gonna come third and fourth.” Rachel stood off to the side, arms folded, a smirking Jenn standing beside to her.
“Funny.” Jason waved a finger at the three of them. “Since this is our last night, how about losing team cooks dinner.”
Jenn pointed at the sheet. “You and Alpha Cornell think alike. That’s the last line on the sheet.”
“Well, why don’t we add to that.” Jason hummed as he thought of a suitable wager. “How about the winning beta gets served by the remaining two.” Daryl frowned, and Jason laughed at him. “Come on, Daryl. I thought you were confident?”
Daryl’s sigh and eye roll couldn’t mask the excitement in his eyes. “Fine, you’re on.”
Jenn and Rachel agreed too, and Rachel pulled out her phone. “It says we have staggered starts.
How’re we gonna time ourselves? I don’t have a watch, just my phone, and I’m not sure I want to take that with me.”
“I’ve got one.” Jason tugged his sleeve up to show them.
Jenn did the same. “Me too.”
“I’m the same as Rach.” Daryl shrugged. “Just got my phone.”
“Pretty sure someone on your teams will have a watch, and the alphas will be timing us too.
Don’t try and get out of it.” Jason eyed both Rach and Daryl. “Having second thoughts?” He laughed as Daryl huffed and walked over to where Rob and Kara stood chatting.
