Page 9 of Convincing the Heartbroken Beta

Chapter Four

Cameron glanced sideways at Hawk who was snoozing in the passenger seat of the Alliance SUV. He’d stayed with Hawk for a couple days, but now Hawk was well enough to travel to Wolf Creek. They’d had the chance to get caught up already when he’d gone to visit him after Alpha Brandon had taken over Sascha’s care. It hadn’t been very long into their journey before Hawk had dozed off and left Cameron alone with his thoughts.

He tapped his fingers on the wheel as the long, lonely highway stretched out before him. The sun was peeking out from behind the gray clouds and the roads weren’t too wet anymore. The summer had been warmer that year, so there was less snow visible than usual going into fall.

Sascha.

Cameron hoped the traumatized omega would be all right with Brandon. When it had been time to go, the awkwardness between the two shifters had been agonizing to witness. He couldn’t imagine what it must’ve been like for Sascha to have to ride alone with Brandon the same hundreds of miles back to the Wolf Creek Pack that he and Hawk were traveling. Cameron had already decided to make a point of checking in with him when they arrived.

Then there was Hawk. The last time he’d spoken of his feelings to his friend had been when Hawk was hiding Jasper back at the Guardian Pack, right as everything was falling apart. Even then, even before he’d known about Jasper, he’d realized it was futile to hold onto the hope that he and Hawk could ever be together.

Being alone had become so difficult to bear. Yet, he wasn’t sure he could ever give his heart away again. He’d wasted too many years pining for someone who was never going to be his, lying to himself that things might change someday and Hawk would see what a good mate Cameron could be.

Except I can’t get pregnant.

Who could’ve guessed that would ever be an issue? Half the shifters had thought it was all bullshit, and the other half wasn’t sure. He’d been conflicted himself. A lot of his fellow betas had assumed that if the stories were true, Elam’s ability to get pregnant had come about when he’d been turned, that the shifting gene had gone kerflooey in his body at that point. But now there was Jasper and Sascha—and maybe even the other omegas from the prison—who could get pregnant. Between that and the recent upheaval in the packs, the Alliance was on the brink of tearing apart.

Sascha.

Cameron couldn’t stop thinking about him and worrying whether he and the baby were okay. Betas never stood up to Alphas if they planned on living too long, but if Brandon wasn’t nice to Sascha, he wasn’t sure he could stop himself.

A groan pulled him from his reverie. “Are you purposely hitting every pothole?”

Cameron chuckled. “Quit being a big baby.”

“Baby?” Hawk brought his seat upright. “I might heal faster than a human, but getting shot is painful for any species.”

“Okay, tough guy. I’ll drive more gently.”

Hawk flicked his arm. “I’ll show you gentle.”

“Dork.”

“Mutt.”

“Whisker licker.”

Hawk snort-laughed and grabbed his injured arm. “Ow, don’t. What does that even mean?”

Cameron grinned. “Use your imagination.”

Hawk shook his head, chuckling. “I’d rather not. Anyway, are we almost there? I’m starving. Eating that weird hospital food didn’t do it for me. And I can’t shift to get any fresh kill right now.”

“I’d pull over and see if I could catch some for us, but I’m kind of anxious to get to Wolf Creek. It shouldn’t be more than an hour.”

“What’s the big rush?”

Cameron sighed. He didn’t know what his problem was, why he couldn’t keep his thoughts to himself. It was like he couldn’t shut up.

Hawk flicked his arm again. “What aren’t you telling me?”

“I’m not sure how much you remember from when you were shot, but there was an omega, a pregnant one, that Jasper’s father was trying to drag away.”

“Yeah. Of course I remember him. That’s what got me so pissed off. Why?”

“Well, Alpha Brandon asked me to watch over him. Turns out, that omega? He’s his fated mate and he’s Jasper’s friend Sascha.”

Hawk gave a low whistle. “Fuck. I hope this doesn’t upset Jasper too much. Is Sascha okay at least? And the baby too?”