Page 59 of Alpha Heat

“Ren tells me that your cousin has already eaten and headed into town,” Caleb bit out when he spotted Xan leaning against the doorjamb of his room. “Perhaps he’ll stay gone.”

“I’m sorry for his rudeness yesterday. I loathe him so much myself that I can’t say much more than that.”

Caleb shrugged.

“He said you’d already met. How?”

Caleb rolled his eyes. “I’ve met plenty of alphas in my time, Xan. It was at a Philia soirée.”

“Oh, of course.”

Caleb hated discussing the strain he’d been under at the Philia soirées before Xan came along, so Xan dropped the subject. “I heard you telling Ren how you’d like the room arranged.”

Caleb dotted some silvery powder over his eyelids and smoothed the shimmer out. “Yes. I would have preferred to be at the end of the south end of the hall where wind blows hardest, but as we agreed last night, it’s better for me to room beside you so Janus has fewer oddities to report home about.”

“When he goes—” surely hewouldgo! “—you can move into any room you like.”

“Once I have this one the way I like it, I suppose I’ll be content enough.” Caleb smiled. “I’m sorry if I’m cranky this morning, darling. I had trouble sleeping with all this red and black everywhere.” He waved a hand around at the canopy over his bed, the blood and coal striped wallpaper, and the still-lingering cushions. Xan couldn’t imagine how many there must have been since he knew Ren had taken away an armful and a half already.

His own room was pleasantly masculine with heavy wood furniture and thick, warm blankets. The color scheme was beige, brown, and cream, with a hint of green to bring in the color of the sea from the windows. He was content with it as it was. But whoever had decorated the room Caleb had taken possessed very different tastes.

“We can switch rooms tonight,” Xan ventured.

“No. I prefer the view out this one.” He nodded toward the bed. “Lay down and see for yourself.”

Xan plopped onto Caleb’s bed, missing the soft nest of their old home, but awed by the scene out the window. With just a turn of his head, he could watch the giant ocean waves beat against the base of the cliff at the end of the beach on their property.

“Dramatic,” he murmured.

“A real show.” Caleb smiled and stood from the vanity. “Speaking of, we should get our show on the road. There’s so much to still be done. And you should call Ray, don’t you think? Find out what’s expected of you and when you should start.”

The servants they’d brought, as well as betas Ren or perhaps Janus had hired from the village, scurried all around the lower floor of the house, removing dust cloths, polishing wood, shining silver, moving furniture, and generally waking the house up after years of sleep.

Xan found his way to the library, positioned just off the great hall, and then into a small interior room that could serve as his office. It had a view of the north-eastern grounds, and out the window he saw some servants from wolf-god only knew where mulching and preparing flower beds within a small, twisting walk of a garden.

He supposed Ren had arranged for it in anticipation of his and Caleb’s orders. The man was good at his job.

The small office contained a functional desk—less overwrought than the giant, sprawling one in the library—some filing cabinets, and a private phone on the desk. There was a comfortable-looking sofa pressed up against one wall and a small record player on a table by the doorway. Xan opened and closed the doors of the filing cabinets, making sure that Janus hadn’t claimed this room for himself, and then, satisfied that it was sufficient for his needs, he shut and locked the door behind him.

His sat at the desk and picked up the receiver. His fingers itched over the dial, an urge to hear Urho’s voice claiming him. He wanted to know how his lover—would he ever stop feeling the exclamation point after that word?—had liked the roses. Had wooing him like an omega worked? Or had Urho hated it?

Xan swallowed hard and put the receiver down again. He took slow breaths and watched the men outside his window carting wheelbarrowfuls of mulch and carrying slats of violet, gold, and yellow winter flowers. He decided to put off the call to Urho for last. The dessert could come after the vegetables.

Picking up the phone again, he put in a call to Ray, who asked, “How are things there?” His voice was warm and familiar in a way that uncoiled the knots from between Xan’s shoulder blades.

He tucked the phone against his ear and twisted the long cord between his fingers. “Fine, except for the surprise guest we found already set up here upon our arrival.”

Ray snorted lightly. “I’m guessing Janus was his usual charming self, then?”

“He immediately offended Caleb.”

“Ah, well, he’d better watch that.” Ray sounded a bit distracted, and Xan could hear papers rustling in the background. “Father wouldn’t want your omega unhappy, especially with his heat coming up.”

“Heaven forbid we do anything to upset an omega before his heat.”

“I know you understand how important it is to keep Caleb joyful and eager to conceive,” Ray scolded. “Father wouldn’t want Janusor youdoing anything to offend him.”

“But father doesn’t mind if Janus offendsme. Which he does just by being here.”