Chapter 15

"I gotta go. Bye!"

Jak tucked his phone into his pocket and headed for the sidewalk. He'd catch a cab to the restaurant Damian had mentioned to pick up their food then he'd go to his office. He needed to tell him how his final went. He had called Reaux first. He felt better now than he had when he'd walked into the testing room.

He was glad he and Reaux had made up. Those couple of days when they'd been separated had been rough. He hadn;t known he was in his rut because everything else had been stacked on top of him. When Reaux had come to find him, everything had disappeared. He'd allowed himself to let go and be loved by the one person who meant everything to him.

Love. The word had been foreign to him for a long time. He knew his parents loved him but that was storge - or family love; a love between parents and children. He had no doubt Tay and Damian loved him as he did them. Damian sometimes called him philia when growing up; the love between friends. He knew those types, but he'd never loved so deeply as he did with Reaux.

The Greeks had it right when they named their god of love Eros. That was what he felt with Reaux. It was deep, passionate, and so very erotic sometimes Jak had to pause and breathe. He still wasn't sure what to do with the intense emotions that burned within him, but he hoped Reaux would help keep that passion alive. It would suck to be bonded to someone he didn't love.

He was glad he'd told Reaux he loved him. He'd been so nervous because he wasn't sure if Reaux would accept him. He'd been stupid to think the older man wouldn't accept or love him. Reaux had waited six months for him to decide what he'd wanted to do, and then help his friend when he asked on top of that. If he could wait that long, he could do anything; even love an asshole who had a nasy temper.

Damian was expecting him for lunch. They were putting the finishing touches on his parents' anniversary party. They'd decided to combine it with the annual TG party. It made it easier since all their friends would be there anyway. They just had to buy the cake and banners. Though money wasn't an issue, they hadn't wanted to spend too much lest someone check accounts. It also meant they only needed one suit instead of two.

Jak's job was to send out the notices for the anniversary. Guests weren't expected to bring gifts, but they could if they wanted. Knowing David and Antonia's friends, they would bring little trinkets or make donations in their name to some charity the couple sponsored. Though everyone was rich, they didn't gift their friends with expensive items since they knew they could buy it themselves. Donating was more their style anyway. Even Jak's parents donated to St. Jude and UNICEF. The Marquette family were truly upstanding citizens.

He stopped at the coffee cart and grabbed a latte and a donut. He wasn't super hungry, and Damian had ordered ahead of time. Jak liked his friend's choice of food and snacks so he always loaded up on them. Reaux usually argued with him about eating so much chips and pizza, but he still ate them. He was not ashamed.

He demolished the cake donut on his way to the main intersection. It'd be easier to catch a cab there. He should have asked Damian to send his car, but he'd been more concerned about his final.

"Jak!" His mood plummeted as he heard the one voice he wished not to. Dante came into his view, all smiles. "How'd you final go?"

"Well, and yours?" Jak replied. He looked at Dante's outfit and wrinkled his nose. "Did you party all night?"

Dante's smile widened even more. "Sure did! Mateo and I were out until morning. We went to our last final and killed it. Thanks to your notes, we should pass all of our classes."

Jak turned his attention to Dante's friend. He felt like he'd seen Mateo before but wasn't sure where. Like Dante, Mateo's skin was caramel colored. He wasn't as large as Dante which meant he was a Beta. His dark hair was curly and greasy, probably from partying all night. Instead of dark eyes like his friend's, Mateo's were blue. He had to be of mixed race since most Latin peoples had black or brown eyes, but Jak could be wrong as well. Genetics were a funny thing.

Mateo's smile was attractive as he flashed it at Jak. "This is your guy?" he asked. "You never said he was this handsome."

Jak frowned as Dante spewed several sentences in Spanish. "Excuse me? Whose guy?"

"Dante's been telling us he's got this new guy in his sights. He said he'd planned on asking him out after finals. We all thought he was full of shit, but looking at you now, it's clear he wasn't lying.

"Would you shut up?" Dante demanded. He turned a nervous smile to the other man. "He makes shit up all the time."

But Jak wasn't amused. "It doesn't sound like it. It sounds like he's serious."

Mateo laughed. "He was jerking off to your picture the other night. Hang on." He snatched Dante's phone and easily unlocked it. "See?"

Jak took the device and his throat dried out. He'd been playing one-on-one with Tay several months ago. It'd gotten so hot they'd stripped off their shirts to finish playing. Naturally they'd gotten sweaty. The picture on Dante's phone was during one of their many water breaks.

Mateo continued scrolling. There were many photos of Jak doing various things. Eating, walking, talking on his phone. All that was missing was him sleeping. To get that photo, he'd have to sneak into Jak's house since he couldn't sleep in public. That would have gotten him arrested or killed since he lived and slept with Reaux.

"You've been stalking me?" The words barely left his mouth before his anger erupted. "What the hell is your problem?"

Dante snatched his phone back. "I take photos of things I like. You just happen to be one of them."

Jak scowled. "How can you say that so nonchalantly?"

"Why are you yelling? So I took some pictures? What's the big deal?"

"It's illegal to stalk someone. You should know that." Jak paused as he realized something. "You asked Captain Cooper to be paired with Reaux, didn't you?"

The younger man shrugged. "It wasn't hard. I asked to be paired with his best detective. Imagine my luck when it was Reaux."

Mateo snorted. "What'd you tell him, Dante? That you were interested in special victims?"

Dante laughed. "No. I just wanted the best detective so I could get an easy A."

Jak shook his head. "You're insane. Why would you choose this major if you were just going to half-ass it?"

"Because you're here." Jak glared at him. "I've been watching you for a long time. All the girls said you were the best upperclassman so I was curious as to what you'd do. You were never interested in men so I had to bide my time. Then you suddenly stopped sleeping around. Imagine my surprise when I found out you were not only bonded but to a man as well."

"So you thought you could sway me?" Dante shrugged lazily. "That's not how I operate. I don't date someone while I'm with someone else."

Mateo waved his response away with a flick of his wrist. "You weren't going to stay with Reaux. It wouldn't work if you did."

Jak pointed at the Beta. "Does he always talk in circles? Or is he full of shit?"

The Beta laughed. "You're an idiot. Dante wasn't going to let you stay with his rival. It would be too easy for you to leave and go back. He was going to make sure it never happened." He stepped close to Jak and dropped his mouth to the other man's ear. "He was going to break your bond. Well… he is."

Break the bond? No one had ever been able to do that despite trying. And Jak didn't want his bond broken. He'd spent nearly two years cultivating this relationship. He'd found successes and failures with Reaux, and they'd argued a ton. But he didn't want anyone else.

Angry, he stepped around Mateo and started for his original destination. He couldn't stay around the two of them anymore. Hearing everything from their own mouths made it so much worse. His instincts had told him this guy was crazy, and Reaux's later warnings had been correct. Dante had been after him, and he'd been blind enough to walk right into it because he'd wanted to make Reaux happy. He felt stupid and used.

"Jak, wait." Dante stopped him before he got to the light. "I'm sorry I wasn't honest; I should have told you I liked you, but you wouldn't have listened."

"You're right! You knew damn well I was taken, and you still pursued me. You created several strains in my relationship," Jak argued.

"Are you sure that was me, or were they already there?"

Jak shoved him away. "Bastard."

Dante grabbed his hand and pulled him back. "Jak, stop."

"Leave me alone!"

Jak's response was muffled as Dante covered his mouth. The Alpha's pheromones flared as he tried to calm Jak, but they weren't strong enough to do so. Jak let go of his own and felt as they hit Dante like a ton of lead. Dante shrank back, finally falling to his knees clutching his chest. He panted as he looked up at the other Alpha.

Jak pitied Dante at that moment. He figured the other Alpha had always used his pheromones to get people to do what he wanted. He'd thought Jak was one of those people. What he failed to realize was that Jak was a strange specimen. Depending on the situation, he could withstand Tay's and Reaux's subduing pheromones. They never intentionally used them on him, but he could still stand while others fell.

He turnd and walked away. He had every intention of doing so, but Mateo was a Beta thus immune to his pheromones. He grabbed Jak's hand in another attempt to stop him.

"I don't think you understand," he said. "What Dante wants, he gets. And he wants you."

Jak pulled Mateo in close then used his forearm to push him away. The Beta stumbled back and landed hard on his ass in the bushes. Mateo jumped up and charged at Jak, spearing him roughly into the asphalt. Jak kicked him just as hard, using both feet to launch him five feet away.

As he stood, there was a loud honk. Jak turned and barely had time to brace himself before the car slammed into his midsection.

He hit the hood with his chest then cracked the windshield as he was tossed into the air. He clipped the trunk wth his shoulder before crashing to the ground, coming to a stop in the road. His head cracked the white line of the crosswalk, and he saw stars and stripes in his vision. His blood thundered in his ears as his heart raced uncontrollably.

He'd only seen this in TV shows. How was he not dead? He should be. The impact alone should have killed him. With his heart pounding, he barely heard Dante and Mateo as they called his name. Mateo had escaped any injury thanks to Jak's powerful kick.

Through grainy vision, he saw the car come to a stop as a flood of people left the sidewalks on either side of the street. A blond headed girl filled his vision, taking away the looks of Dante and Mateo. He saw her mouth moving but didn't hear what she said as his hearing filtered in and out. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see several people subduing Dante and Mateo as they argued with them.

The blond headed girl shifted up to his head. Her hands were warm on his cool cheeks as she held his head straight. He blinked into the bright sun then focused on her.

"Am I going to die?" His mouth worked but he couldn't hear the words. Something dripped from his mouth. He couldn't raise his hand to rub the stickiness away.

He blinked as he saw the girl's tears threaten to slip over her bottom eyelids. He wondered why she was crying. If he could move, he would lift a hand to wipe them away. He coughed once, and a searing pain made those white dots dance before his eyes again.

"No, honey. You're not going to die. We've called for help," she said.

Jak felt a wave of relief wash over him. He stared at the girl as she spoke to someone at his feet. He wanted to see who she was talking to, but she was holding his head steady so he couldn't.

"You're an Omega," he muttered. Blood dribbled down the other side of his mouth.

"Yes, I am. I'm trying to help ease your pain."

There were slightly piercing wails followed by lights. Jak stared at the girl and watched her mouth move as she talked to someone he couldn't see. He knew medical jargon when he felt it. He felt a bite to his skin as one of the emergency workers started an IV on the ground. His vein pulsed as the fluids started to course through his veins.

A yellow piece of foam filled his vision, and he felt the girl lift his head as gently as she could. It didn't matter. Jak was in the third level of hell's worth of pain. His head was strapped into the foam and the emergency team prepared to move him to a backboard.

When they rolled him, his vision dimmed. His whole body screamed in agony, and he wasn't sure if he did or not. But the pain was enough to darken his gaze completely.

In his pocket, he could feel his phone vibrating constantly. He wondered who could be calling at a time like this.