Page 17 of Convincing the Heartbroken Beta

Cam blinked repeatedly. “Uh, get him some?”

“That’s it?”

Brandon’s eyes darted around the room as if he were about to have a meltdown. His grip strengthened around Cam’s arm.

“Ow,” Cam said through gritted teeth. “You’re strong.”

“Huh?” Brandon glanced down to wear he was squeezing Cam’s arm. He let out a small gasp and let go. “Sorry. I’m… This is completely out of my realm. I didn’t pay any attention when my sisters had pups, never had any interest since I was never—” He crossed his arms with a frown. “Fuck. I don’t know what to do.”

Cam arched his eyebrows. So far, he hadn’t heard Brandon curse. “Hey, it’s cool. I’ve got this covered. Before I joined up with the Guardians, I helped my sister and cousin with their babies. Watched what they went through during their pregnancies and everything.” He chuckled. “Like, there was this one time when my sister had to have some muskrat, which is totally gross, right? But I took one for the team—”

“Okay, okay, got it.” Brandon clasped his shoulder, the touch much gentler this time. He met Cam’s gaze. “But thank you. You have no idea how relieved I am.”

Brandon let his hand drop and Cam swallowed hard. He felt the loss of the touch immediately, had been captured by the Brandon’s grey eyes. But he wasn’t going down that road again. Sure, he’d never interfere with fated mates no matter what. However, he wasn’t about to let himself start falling for someone who wasn’t even interested in him.

Cam licked his lips and Brandon quickly looked away. “Yeah. No worries. I’m here to help, right?”

Brandon gave a jerky nod but wouldn’t face him. “All right, let’s get Sascha settled then I’ll head into town to get those olives.” He glanced Cam’s way but kept his eyes averted. “I could also go out and take down a caribou in case I’m gone a while, keep you guys stocked with meat. The local herd size has been pretty large this year, so it shouldn’t take me too long.” He cleared his throat. “Anyway, I’ve got lots to do.”

Cam ached to ask Brandon about how long he’d be away, but the Alpha had already made it quite clear that such an inquiry wouldn’t be welcome. While he was still worried about Sascha’s feelings, he discovered his own emotions were giving him grief.

Even though such thoughts would be nothing but trouble, he didn’t want Brandon to go.