Page 62 of Alpha Awakened
Over the next few days, Ice’s attitude toward Hazard continued on in the same dismissive vein. The man barely spoke to him. When he did, he no longer called him Hazard. Ice addressed him only as Corporal Mitchell in the coldest, most aloof tone he’d ever heard from the man. Invitations to work out together were rejected and if he even attempted to flirt, he was met with a glare so cold it was a wonder he wasn’t flash frozen where he stood.
Hazard was hurt and confused by the change. Patience wasn’t one of his strong suits, so he decided he wasn’t going to waste time trying to figure out Ice’s mood or wait for the alpha to tell him what was wrong. He would ask him directly when neither of them was busy.
Thursday afternoon, Hazard walked out of the gym. Across the way, he saw Ice going for a jog down the runner’s path. This could be the perfect opportunity for a private talk. His calves and quads were tired from a leg day workout, but he sprinted to catch up with Ice, splashing through puddles from a recent rain as he ran.
He fell in to step next to the alpha, having to jog a little faster than his usual pace to keep up with Ice’s long strides. The sky was a foreboding gun metal gray, hinting at more rain to come, and Hazard’s ears tingled from the cold, rushing wind. At first he was quiet and Ice didn’t speak either. They ran next to each other in silence, passing beneath wet, leafless tree branches for a quarter mile before Hazard spoke.
“Did something happen, Captain?”
“No.”
“Did I do something that I need to apologize for?”
“No.”
“Then what’s up with you?”
“Nothing.”
Hazard clenched his teeth together to hold back a frustrated growl. “I swear to Mother Wolf if you give me another one word answer I’m going to get violent.”
Ice slowed to a stop but continued to stare straight ahead. Hazard stopped too, choosing to face Ice as they stood in the middle of the path.
“What do you want me to say?” Ice asked.
“I want you to tell me why you’ve reverted to your ice-cold persona. I thought we were past that.”
“This isn’t a persona. It’s who I am.”
Hazard shook his head. “Maybe with strangers. But you’d warmed up to me. I thought...” He didn’t want to sound desperate, but his Instinct was frantically urging him to find a way to close the distance that had sprung up between them. “I thought we were friends. And maybe...more.”
Moving stiffly, Ice turned to face him. His brown eyes were hard, just as they had been when Hazard had first joined the 448.
“You’ve got a crush,” he said dismissively. “It happens. People see the mask, hear about my rep, and want to try and get close. You’ll get over it and move on once the novelty wears off.”
Angry heat flamed to life on Hazard’s wind-chapped cheeks. “Get overmycrush? I wasn’t kissing myself in that fucking alley.”
“And that was a mistake. But like I said, it won’t happen again.”
The bottom dropped out of Hazard’s stomach at the note of finality in Ice’s voice. He really meant it. Ice didn’t want anythingmorewith him. It hurt, but there was nothing he could do but respect Ice’s wishes.
“Fine. But that doesn’t mean we can’t be friendly as pack mates.” Hazard didn’t want to completely lose the rapport they’d established.
Ice’s shoulders pulled back and he looked down at Hazard with disdain. “We’re not apack. We’re ateam. And it’s not necessary for us to be friends on a team. We work, we get shit done, and that’s it. If you need more than that, find it somewhere else. Understood, Corporal Mitchell?”
Hazard’s back went ramrod straight when Ice pulled rank. “Understood,” he answered tightly.
“Good. You’re dismissed.”
Ice turned and continued on his run.
Hazard stayed where he was. As he watched Ice disappear down the path, he wondered what the fuck had happened to make the alpha suddenly reject the bonds he’d been building with him and the rest of the 448. It wasn’t hard to guess that something had gone down during his lunch with the general. But he didn’t have a clue as to what that something could be. Regardless, Ice had made his wishes clear. Their friendship was over. And so was anything more that might have been between them.
Chapter 25
Hazard did as Ice ordered. Kept it business only. Didn’t speak to the man unless spoken to. Didn’t ask him to go for runs or to spar and he damn sure didn’t try to cozy up for more late-night sofa chats. If Ice only wanted to be field partners that was fine with him. He had Jax and the major, and they were more than willing to continue building pack bonds. Let that cold bastard be alone and friendless if that’s what he wanted.
Unfortunately, the end to his personal relationship with Ice was affecting their working relationship. Prior to Ice’s abrupt reversal of demeanor, they’d functioned like two synchronized cogs in a well-oiled machine. Now, that synergy was broken.