Alpha Shield

Mace - Killian

"So... Blossom?"

"Fuck you, Malcolm."

Laughter sounded through the hotel room Killian had occupied for the last two weeks. When he stepped out from behind the wall hiding the vanity, he tugged and adjusted the holster that wrapped around both of his shoulders and crossed his back.

The black t-shirt and utilitarian black pants fit fine, but he fucking hated shoulder holsters. Never big enough for his seven-foot frame, the harness rubbed and itched, but it was one thing he could take out his frustration on. If it wasn't part of his new uniform, he'd chuck the damn thing and use a waist holster, but it had been made clear that he needed to toe the line or his temporary position on Sanctuary's security team would be short-lived.

He could follow orders. He wouldn't have become a commander in Alpha Corps with his own unit if he couldn't, but he hadn't been a low-level grunt for a very long time. Taking orders from an Alpha whose sole crisis experience came as a security guard grated on his nerves. Richard, the pompous asshole, who'd handed over the uniform along with the Guidelines for Proper Alpha Behavior manual and barked instructions to memorize the whole treatise, reminded him of base security on a power trip.

Richard wouldn't have lasted two minutes with Killian's squad. Two minutes was generous. Killian scented the other Alpha's anxiety the moment he'd squeezed his frame into the other male's office. While Richard possessed the stereotypical Alpha size, with a practiced eye, Killian could tell that the Alpha's bulk came more from weights than actual physical work. His biceps and chest were huge, but from his waist down, his legs were too skinny to match the top half. He'd obviously decided to skip his leg days and just bulked up on top.

Killian knew that to other Alphas he could be intimidating. At seven feet, Killian stood taller than many Alphas, but his years in the Corps had given him an aura of danger other Alphas shied away from. Malcolm was one of his few friends outside of the Corps, but while he'd never served in Alpha Corps, Malcolm had his own experience in the Omega Security Force. Since Selah's kidnapping, Malcolm had changed physically and mentally. Killian wasn't afraid of his friend, but he'd seen many others give the other male a wide berth.

The anxiety coming off his new "boss" when Killian squeezed into his closet-sized office already made him question his worthiness for protecting any of the Omegas at Sanctuary. When Richard spotted Malcolm lounging in the hallway, his scent spiked even higher. As a result of his anxiety, he'd turned on the bureaucratic paper-pusher attitude making Killian's teeth ache. Fighting a growl when Malcolm stifled a chuckle from outside the asshole's office just ratcheted the tension in the small office higher. The pheromones Richard pumped out in response nearly choked him.

Alpha turns a little feral protecting his mate, and he becomes a comedian, Killian thought to himself. He needed to get some time with Malcolm on the training mat. He had a lot of frustration to work out.

"You're going to have to tone down the scowl if you don't want to scare the Omegas into hiding."

He could hear the grin in Malcolm's tone, and he sent him a glare from under his heavy brows. Normally, his "I will fuck you up" stare had grunts and civilians running for cover. Malcolm lost the battle and finally laughed out loud.

"You do know you're going to fall hard, right?"

"Fall for what?"

"A little brunette Omega... stands about this high," Malcolm's hand hit himself about mid-chest, "honey brown eyes... smells like apples? Ring any bells?"

"I'm about to ring your bell. Keep it up."

More laughter but a hint of an Alpha growl added this time, "You're welcome to try. I think you might find some things have changed since the last time we sparred."