Brad's Mate

Chapter 1. THE HEAT OF THE QUEENSLAND sun beat down on Brad’s face. The waves at Maroochydore were notoriously huge, but today it was flat. Especially this early in the day. He glanced around at the soft swell, the sun sparkling off the bluey-black ocean in white, glistening light. It was a beautiful day and thanks to the lack of surf, the beach was deserted save for a couple of grommets who weren’t at school yet. It should be a perfect day for him. And yet, as he sat on his board letting his fingers drift in the chilly water around him, his chest ached. What the hell was going on with him lately? Something wasn’t right, and no amount of surfing, eating, or f*****g random hot guys was sorting him out. There had to be something else, and unfortunately, a part of him knew that the ‘it’ that was wrong had to do with the ‘Borough. Nothing else made sense. He was a werewolf. He didn’t get sick and yet he felt unwell. Not to mention the fact that he was also an Alpha, the biggest and strongest of his kind. There were legends though, that told of this ache. A pain that would tug him back to his roots. A place he didn’t want to be. His accelerated hearing picked up on a decent wave headed his way and he fell forward onto his board, putting the power into his shoulders. He coasted along until the roar of the wave opened up and he popped to his feet as the majestic water picked him up. The wave coasted and took him along, the usual thrill that pumped along his veins annoyingly missing. As the wave fell flat he purposely fell from his board with a roll of his eyes, loving the icy coldness that wrapped around his heated body and cleared his head. The surfboard attached to his ankle pulled along behind him and he grabbed it up as he made his way into shallower water. He shook his long hair out of his eyes, trotting along the cool sand to where his duffle bag sat. A sharp twang pulled at his heart and he groaned, rubbing the spot over his left pec. What the hell is that? A growl rolled through his throat as he pulled the wrap-around from his ankle, grabbed his bag and headed up the sand dunes to his jeep. He’d been pretty slack with contacting anyone back in Greensborough, he hadn’t checked his email in months. It was probably time to do that. He turned on his car and headed into town, mulling over the past couple of years. He hadn’t been back to the ‘Borough since his thirtieth birthday three years ago. It had been a bit of fun to travel back after being gone for so long. The boys had put on a great party and he’d loved feeling the strength and comradery of the pack around him. But that happiness had been short lived. Within a week or two those same unsettled feelings had stirred in his gut. So, he’d packed and left. The Alphas had not been happy. The entire council had given him a dressing down. But he didn’t really give a s**t what they thought about him and his life choices. Sure. He was born an Alpha. That didn’t mean he was tied to Greensborough for his whole life. Bloody ridiculous to be tied down because of some freak accident of birth. He spotted the small internet café ahead of him. He pulled into a spare car park on the side of the road and turned the car off. If the pack did need him. Could he go back again? He frowned as he groped for his wallet. Yeah, he probably could. For a little bit, anyway. Catch up with his dad. His sister. He kinda missed her, and he was sure she’d be mated up by now. Have a kid maybe, too. That stupid uncomfortable ache surfaced at the thought and he shuddered. To think, they were all paired up by the supposed wondrous Fate. What a crock of s**t. Sure, he had a massive big birthmark stretching down one side of his leg, but that didn’t mean he had to tie himself to some random stranger. Especially if they turned out to be a woman! What the hell would he do with one of those? Fate could be cruel like that. He pulled on a tank top and headed into the small shop, instantly spotting the hot young guy behind the counter. He swaggered over and gave the guy an easy smile. When the blond’s eyes widened and roamed over Brad’s body in a hungry, lustful way, he knew he had a date for the night. Brad nodded at the guy in front of him. “Hey.” “Uh, Hi. Can I help you?” “Yeah. I just need to check some emails and stuff.” “Oh, yeah, sure. For how long?” Brad perused the laminated list of prices that were shoved at him and pointed to the smallest one. “Only need it for half an hour.” He pushed a five dollar note at the guy and he stumbled to show Brad to a computer. As desire flourished in his gut, making his c**k ache in the right way, he smiled to himself. These were the times he thanked his forefathers for his genes. At six foot five and weighing a good one hundred and twenty kilos, he was most bottoms’ wet dream. “Thanks.” He clicked a few times on the old-fashioned mouse, staring at the screen until what he needed popped up. His stomach dropped low in his gut, burning with disappointment. “Damn it.” There was an email from Grayson. Sent only yesterday. He snorted at himself and his ability to feel things from so far away. Why do I still have such a link to them? He’d assumed after being away so long he’d no longer be linked into the web of the Alphas. Obviously, he’d been wrong. Hey Brad, I hope you’re enjoying gallivanting around the country, or the world. Not even sure where you are at the moment. But I’ll keep this brief. I need you to come home for a few weeks, like... yesterday. I wouldn’t ask unless it was urgent. Call 0438 7896 0125 if you wanna talk, otherwise, I’ll check ya soon. Grayson. Brad didn’t need anything else. He knew Grayson as well as he knew himself. The man was the Alphas’ perfect boy, but he was also a good friend, and not someone to pull Brad’s strings. If Grayson needed him. He was going back. He punched in a quick reply. I’m getting on a plane. Be back tonight, tomorrow morning at the latest. He could drive all night if he had to, but flying was preferable. Quicker, in theory. If he could get a flight out tonight but last minute could be tricky. Brad calculated the time to drive versus the flights that would be possible to Melbourne tonight. He tapped on the computer, pulling up the flight schedules for today and frowning at the lack of choice, not to mention the outrageous prices. Hmm... driving might be the way to go. Maroochydore was out of the way and he’d need two flights to get to Melbourne. Then he’d need to drive to Greensborough, which was another two and half hours from the airport. He sighed with regret as he waved at the hot guy behind the counter. That blond would have been so much fun. Heading outside to his trusty jeep he jumped in and turned on the car. It would be eighteen straight hours driving to Greensborough, but he could do it. And he’d probably get there quicker than waiting for the planes and then driving a rental car up. A strange shiver crawled up his back as he considered what could be wrong back there. Was someone threatening them? Had something happened to his parents? The other Alphas? The more he thought about it, the more his gut churned and the more worried he got. He headed straight to the petrol station to fill up. He’d been camping and living out of his car for months. He didn’t need to pack anything up. He could leave right now. Like a turtle, he carried everything he needed with him. That same shiver made his body shake once again. Grayson would never call him home unless something was very wrong. No one in the pack had ever done it before and he’d been travelling for over ten years now. He pulled over and filled the car up with gas. He was going home. And hopefully it was still standing when he got there. **** “HEY STEPHEN. AARON and Grayson wanna see you at the Hall.” Stephen looked up. His focus still on the nails he held in his hand. “Ah. Okay. How come?” He was enjoying his work as a Beta. Rebuilding some of the damaged homes was a great way to stretch his overly energetic body. He had energy to burn, all the time, and he’d almost gone insane in the small Omega position he’d had up until last year. “Don’t know.” Craig shrugged, one of the other Betas working on the site. “But you better go.” Stephen blew out a long sigh. He hated dealing with the council. It had been hard enough when he’d challenged his ranking last year. They’d all talked about him behind his back and stared at him for months after he’d won the right to work as a Beta. It was just starting to settle down. What did they want now? He slid his hammer into his work belt and grabbed a short-sleeved shirt he’d hung on a nail nearby. It got too hot to wear a top while working in summer and he’d had quite a few of the unmated women looking at him while topless. The attention was great. The muscles he’d built in the last year were definitely handy for more than lugging wood around. He walked the five minutes to the Hall, looking at each of the building sites as he moved past. Anger churned in his gut like a hot melting pot. The Rogues had done so much damage to their town and for no good reason. He still marvelled at their ridiculous notions. Thinking they should be the Alphas of the group. Sure, he hadn’t been happy with his lot in life. He hadn’t wanted to be a Omega either. But he would never, EVER, have hurt anyone to go up the rungs like the Rogue were trying to do. He’d gone through the appropriate channels and was being treated well. Why hadn’t they done the same things? Because they’re lunatics, that’s what.