Phoenix Reborn: An Alpha Pack Novella by J. D. Tyler Page A

what she had to tell me until the time was right. She said,
You are your namesake
. I hadn’t even
told
her my name.”
    The memory still gave him the chills.
    “You are your namesake,” Noah repeated. “Phoenix?”
    “Yeah. A bird that rises from the ashes.”
    “Except you’re a wolf.”
    “Well, I wasn’t then. The point is, she said my gift is that of the phoenix. That if I die, I can be reborn, but there’s a hitch.”
    “Of course there is,” Noah said dryly. “What’s the hitch?”
    “I have to die by fire.”
    His mate stared at him, horror slowly dawning on his face. “No way. Fuck that shit! You’re not going to die, by fire or anything else! That’s insane!”
    “I don’t want to die, but you heard Nick,” he said, taking Noah’s shaking hands in his. “You believe me, believe
in
me, don’t you?”
    “Of course I do! But—”
    “No buts. Remember what Nick said, when the time comes. I don’t know what it is, but it sounds bad. Believe in me, and remember my gift.”
    He was every bit as freaked as Noah. But when he saw the tears well up in his mate’s eyes and spill over, his only thought was comforting him. Quickly, he pulled Noah into his arms and kissed him.
    “Ah, baby. It’ll be all right, you’ll see.”
    “Nick’s visions always come true,” he replied with a sob. “I spent so many years wishing for somebody of my own to love. I can’t lose you now.”
    “Hey, they come true, but not always exactly like he saw them. Micah was supposed to die, remember? But the course of events changed, and he didn’t.”
    Belatedly, he realized what Noah had said—somebody to love.
Does he love me?
    “I know, but it still scares me.”
    “Me too. But we’re not going to let this ruin our time together, you got that?” Tilting his mate’s face up, he gave him a searing kiss, soothing him by rubbing palm down his back.
    “Okay,” he breathed.
    “Good. Now let’s get that shower and get to dinner. That is, if you’re not too tired to go to the dining room?”
    “No, I’m good. It will be great to rest after dinner, though,” he admitted.
    That was a testament to just how exhausted his mate was, and Nix was afraid he’d pushed him too hard and worn him out. They’d made love twice, and gone for a long walk as well. Maybe it had all been too much.
    Once back in Nix’s quarters, Nix undressed himself and his tired mate. Then he got the water warm, pulled him into the shower, and soaped him from head to toe. There was no messing around this time, though Nix could’ve been ready to go again with very little encouragement. This was a time to simply pamper his man. Out of the shower, he toweled Noah off, thinking how much he enjoyed this new sensation of taking care of his mate. Very much. Being concerned for his welfare, seeing to his needs, seemed as natural as breathing. He hoped every day it would get easier and he’d get over this irrationalfear of being with a man in public.
    Thanks, sperm donor.
The bastard didn’t even deserve the title “father.”
    “I still don’t have any clean clothes here,” Noah said suddenly. “Can we stop by my apartment?”
    “Not a problem. In fact, why don’t we go get you a bag of stuff to keep here? You might as well stay here until we can figure out which quarters we’re gonna live in.”
    Noah blinked at him. “Did you just ask me to move in with you?”
    Nix hesitated, then said shyly, “Yeah, I suppose I did. You’re my mate, I like having you around, and I don’t plan on letting you go anywhere. What do you say?”
    “As proposals go, it could use some work,” Noah said with a grin, “but yes, let’s get some of my stuff. I’ll stay with you until we decide.”
    “Great!” Nix felt absurdly happy, and pulled Noah in for a kiss.
    * * * 
    A few minutes later, that giddy feeling was gone, replaced by something like shock. Noah’s apartment looked like the inside of Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory, there were so