Free Owned By The Alphas: Part Three by Faleena Hopkins Page B

giving Calt his due respect in his own home, impressed Calt, and surprised him. He’d had such ill feelings toward the other alpha for so long that he had not expected to like him.
    Calt tipped his head back and howled. All joined in; Red as well. Ali’s hands rose up as though in water, floating up at her sides to breast-level as she listened and looked around, her mouth slackened with amazement at the harmonized cacophony of sound. Calt then shook out his fur and changed back to his human form, the others not far behind. As his spine cracked together one vertebra at a time, he rose to his great height and looked to his left to share a moment with Red.
    “Come. Let me show you my home.”
    “I would be honored,” Red replied.
    Calt looked to the others. “Go and get some sleep, everyone. Lucin, would you mind lighting torches in my den? No, make it one torch.”
    Lucin grinned and bowed his head. He stole a glance at Lorn, then broke into a run, disappearing inside. That glance captured Calt’s attention for half a heartbeat, but was lost in the more important issues of the day, and tomorrow night. But he’d seen Lorn watching Lucin and vice versa, in a way that caused his insides to twitch on increasingly more occasions over the passing months.
    Bloo, Lorn, Dak, and Calus, all went inside, and when Borhan went to follow, Calt stopped him. Red and Ali waited by his sides. “Your leg looks much improved, friend.”
    Borhan stretched it out and gave it a shake. “I lost two days worth of muscle, but it will be back together in no time. Still has a slight ache and when I do this…” he bent the knee deeply, “this hurts like hell. But I give it another day or so and then the pain will not be worth mentioning at all.” He smiled, but the smile did not reach his golden eyes.
    “Say what you need to say.”
    Borhan paused on a glance to the other alpha. When he met his friend’s patient gaze again, he said only, “It is your life,” and bowed his head. “I will see you at sundown.”
    “Rest well,” Calt replied.
    They watched Borhan walk inside and when he was gone, Calt motioned with a raise of his great hand. “Come. Let us try this no sex thing, shall we?”
    Ali rolled her eyes on a grin and walked in front of them. Red threw Calt an appreciative look regarding the human’s backside and Calt nodded, his smile widening. Ali called back, “Don’t think I don’t know you’re checking me out.” Then she spun around and walked backward. “You are checking me out, right?” Her eyebrows twisted together. The alphas laughed and nodded. She ran back to them, the color deepening on her cheeks. “Good. That would have been embarrassing.”
    She took their hands and said to Red, “You’re going to love his den. Oh!” Her smile vanished as she worried it might be an insult to Red’s home to love Calt’s so much. But Red smirked and dispelled her awkward feelings.
    “I can already see this is a far cry above my home, but Gypha wanted the tree, and so we have done our best with what we have.”
    Calt caught of glimpse of pride mingled with a desire for better in all things, crossing Red’s features. But then the look was gone, replaced with a pleasant interest in the new surroundings. Letting go of Ali’s hand, Calt walked ahead as they neared the first room–his den.
    “This is where I sleep.”
    “He’s here so that if someone comes, he will protect the others,” Ali announced.
    Calt smiled at her. “That’s right. You’ve been talking to Lorn, haven’t you?”
    She glanced to the floor. “Um…mmhmm. She’s taught me a lot.”
    As they walked inside, Calt watched the other alpha take in the room. Lucin placed the lit torch in the wall’s natural crevice and asked, “I could light a fire, too?”
    Red started to say something, but stopped himself.
    Calt asked him, “What is it?”
    “I don’t want to step on your toes, but I believe Ali is shivering. A fire would be nice.” His manner