The Eve of Darkness

Chapter 6 - Jude

Jude sat at his desk in the office room, deliberating the idea of jamming a ball-point pen into Camden's jugular quite seriously. For the last two weeks, he had been buried up to his eyebrows in paperwork, pack disputes, diplomatic arrangements, and budget management while his best friend was off getting to know his soulmate.

On one hand, he was thrilled for Camden. Jude knew that Camden considered himself to be a permanent third wheel, destined to never have a partner that could accept him for who he was. Camden had probably thought that Helios had destined him to live the single life for their entire drawn-out lifetimes.

Knowing that Camden was just ecstatic to have a mate and get to know her, Jude loosened his grip on the pen in his hand and set it down. He cursed as he saw the ink stains on the palm of his hand and shook his head.

"Great, now I have to get a new pen," he muttered as he stood and made his way to the bathroom down the hall.

As he washed his hand vigorously, thoughts about his future soulmate ran through his mind like an annoying bumble bee that kept bumping into his head. Jude braced his hands on the bathroom sink and looked at himself in the mirror, wondering when he would get the chance to offload all of his paperwork onto Camden's shoulders.

That'll be the day, he thought mischievously.

As Jude walked back into the office, his heart jumped a little at the sound of his alpha's voice behind him.

"Hey Jude," Camden called.

"Jesus!" Jude flinched and spun around with his hand raised defensively. Camden stood with a soft smile on his face, looking bright and relentlessly happy.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."

Jude shook his head and patted Camden's shoulder before he moved to keep walking into the office.

"Nah," Jude started as he fell back into his desk chair with a heavy sigh. "You're fine, I was just caught up in my thoughts. What's up? Is your mate tired of you already?"

The teasing nature of Jude's voice was not missed as Camden cracked a side-smile and shook his head.

"Right," Camden agreed as he moved to sit down on his own desk that faced Jude's. Years ago, when they first took over the pack from Camden's parents, he and Jude decided to place both desks in the same large room, each one with its back to a wall on the right or left. The idea was that while Camden was acknowledged and respected as the alpha, Jude would also be respected as an authority by the pack members as Beta. While Jude had originally opposed the idea, Camden was adamant in showing that he did not consider himself to be any higher or more important than his best friend.

"I think she is filing magical divorce papers to Helios as we speak," Camden continued with a grin.

Jude chuckled. "Damn, I told you you should have practiced on a body pillow."

They both laughed, but the rosy hue on Camden's cheeks became a tell-all for the beta.

"Wait," Jude said as his laughter quieted. "You have slept with you mate at this point, right?"

Camden awkwardly laughed and rubbed his neck as he turned his head down sheepishly.

"Well..."

"Camden," Jude gasped, grabbing the closest piece of paper he could find, crumbling it into a ball, and tossing it at his friend. The alpha flinched at the sudden hit and glared in the direction the paper ball had come from.

"Hey, that's ableist."

"You know what's also ableist? The fact that you're still a virgin."

Camden's mouth dropped open as Jude guffawed, his eyes tearing up at the expense of his friend's apparent lack of game. The alpha stammered through his words as he tried to come up with a retort to his friend.