Bonds of Fate (Fated in the Stars #2)

Chapter Eighteen Jay

Jay

Nix reaches behind himself to open the door, and Jay nearly trips over the makeshift nest piled high in the hall outside. Rowan, Grayson, and Leo are curled together in various states of alertness—predictable. Just as predictable? The absence of Gideon and Finn.

Jay knows neither man would want to be caught loitering outside the door, no matter how obvious it is that they had been. But Luca’s absence? Now, that is a surprise. His sassy beta lives for moments like this—no way would he willingly miss the chance to catch them looking thoroughly debauched.

Seeing that his pack had been present—while still giving him and Nix this moment—sends a tingle of Pack Alpha pride down his spine. Sure, it harkens back to the oldest pack traditions, and while Jay considered himself anything but a traditional Pack Alpha, it reminds him that now, Nix is his— theirs .

He’s self-satisfied in a way that’s deeper than just the lingering pleasure—something more profound, more settled. He’s bonded to Nix now, truly and fully, after so much time, after waiting and holding back.

Nix slips out of his arms and throws himself into the pile, heedless of his knees and elbows. He lands on Rowan and has the alpha’s head in his hand for the deepest of kisses, and it’s voracious, all teeth and tongue.

“Ro, I missed your kisses.”

Jay isn’t even sure there had been any, what with the young alpha in rut most of the time Nix has been awake. Rowan isn’t missing a single opportunity and clutches Nix to his chest, one arm around his waist and the other hand on his ass.

“What about us? Did you miss our kisses, too?” Leo is wisely trying to claw them back from fucking in the hall.

Jay is glad because despite his omega being built for fucking, Jay is quite sure he’s not ready to take Rowan in the hallway so soon after him—and taking Rowan would most certainly require prep.

Rowan growls when Nix breaks away to kiss Leo. “Yes, gimme some of that cinnamon sugar.”

He just turns his fluffy blond head, puts a hand around Leo’s neck, and pulls him in, lips first. Their kisses are only slightly less rapacious, and the hallway is filled with slick, wet, sucking sounds and the spicy scents of…Christmas? Well, fuck, does this mean he is going to have a hard-on every December? Pavlov has nothing on his mates.

It’s not long before Nix has moved from kissing Leo and Rowan in turns to pushing them together so he can watch them up close, lip tucked between white teeth.

“Hey.” Jay can’t tear his eyes away from Rowan’s hand, which has crept under the back of that white tank top, or Leo, who has taken to licking Nix’s newest bond bite, sucking and adding to the bruises.

Good.

“Jay.”

“Hmm?” When Grayson doesn’t continue, he turns his head to see his smirk. “Hey, pretty. Morning.”

How Grayson can still look so beautiful, with bed—floor—hair, and creases on his cheek, is one of life’s greatest mysteries. It fills his bond with so much affection that he has to taste those lips.

Grayson gladly leans in, one hand in Jay’s damp hair and the other on his jaw. “Morning. You good?”

Jay knows he means the bite, Nix, and their first time. It occurs to him—belatedly—that he and Grayson should probably talk about soulmates, just to make sure they’re both okay because Jay is okay, better than okay, really.

He can feel Nix and Grayson in his chest now, and he’s surprised by how much that changes everything. Any lingering worry about being left out has vanished in the presence of his completed bond with Nix—the bright, white light wrapped around his heart. It’s incredibly strong, different from his bonds with the others. Not better, just intense.

Relief crashes over him, and he grins into their kiss. “The best. I wish it hadn’t taken so long, but it was perfect.”

“ Long in coming .”

Snort. Everyone has adapted Luca’s humor. Sigh.

“Not you, too.” He rolls his eyes. “Speaking of Luca…”

“Gideon made him go with him to the store to get Nixie some stuff. Said Luc needed the distraction, and we didn’t want him breaking down the door. He only stopped putting up a fight when Gideon promised a trip to Common Grounds for sweet treats.”

Leo moans deeply, and he and Grayson turn to watch as Nix brings his hand to his face, licking what appears to be Leo’s cinnamon-scented load off the palm of his hand in long licks.

He leans in, passing some to Rowan from his lips. It’s then that Rowan seizes up, too, and there’s even more mess between them. Nix is bending over to pull the head of his still-spurting dick into his mouth with a moan.

“Fuck. Me,” Grayson whispers in awe. “We are never leaving this house again. He’s fire.”

Jay cannot disagree.

“That he is. Hey, no, Nixie, you can’t take Ro like that.” Jay puts a hand on Nix’s back to stop his mate.

Nix has moved to straddle Rowan, his hand reaching underneath himself to hold the alpha’s cock erect—bent on riding Rowan’s still-hard dick. His soft, begging whines echoing in the hallway.

“Baby, you can’t take Rowan like that, he’s too big.” Jay’s much larger hand creates a tight squeeze around the young alpha’s girth. Rowan jerks at the addition of his alpha’s touch and all the scrutiny.

Nix turns, glowing eyes bright enough to light up the dim hallway. “No?”

Rowan is poised on the edge of a second orgasm, with tiny pulses of his hips into their combined grip—his eyes are squeezed shut, lips moving in some foreign language, counting or conjugating verbs, just to be sure he’s not going to hurt their omega. “M’hurting Ro?”

Grayson snorts, just for Jay’s ears, but is careful to not draw either mate’s attention.

“Nixie, he’s too big. You might get hurt,” Leo says from his front-row seat.

It’s Nix’s turn to snort. The voice that responds is weirdly layered, deep like Nix’s, but also deeper, more sibilant. “ Am built for this. ” He sits enough that he can take the head in with a groan. “Ro? Yes?”

Rowan’s eyes fly open, and Jay can tell he can’t believe he’s not being denied this final taste of heaven right there on the floor of the hallway in a pile of pack-scented blankets.

The young enigma can only give a jerky nod, and Nix is sliding The Cock? home in one smooth slide. Glowing blue eyes are rolling back in his head. Rowan can’t even hang on in order to thrust as his second orgasm shakes through him.

“Ro. So deep. So good.” He rides Rowan’s cock in an ever-deepening rolling motion, and it’s not long before Nix’s legs tire. The rhythm becomes a more deep-seated grind as he moans in frustration, muscles twitching. “Help.”

Grayson groans but is quick to grasp his omega’s tiny hips and lift him high enough before forcing him down with sheer brute strength.

Rowan’s arm flexes, tattooed fingers around Nix’s dick, and Jay is proud to see Rowan giving their mate pleasure, even as he shakes. “Nix…can I…?”

Tilting his head to the left, the omega growls, “Alpha, bite.”

Jay looks at Grayson; everyone knows the primary scent gland is on the left. It’s where throat bond bites go, where Jay’s bite sits, huge and purplish-black. His mate shrugs, not breaking his rhythm for Nix and Rowan.

“Alpha, now.”

Rowan does not need to be told twice and slides the trembling hand not on Nix’s dick into his sweaty hair. His long fangs are down, and Grayson shivers—bite-kink, activated. Grayson forces Nix down over Rowan’s mammoth knot, and both his mates moan.

Rowan strikes on the right side, and Nix comes with a shout, a burst of vanilla musk flooding the air. He shakes through his orgasm like he’s been electrocuted—then goes limp, passing out in Grayson’s hold.

Grayson eases him forward, settling him into Rowan’s arms so the alpha can lick and suck at his mate’s fresh bite. That small smirk is still visible.

“Holy fuck. He’s got two throat scent glands,” Grayson murmurs.

Well, that explains the depth and reach of his scent—to a certain extent.

Leo huffs in surprise. “The books don’t mention that.”

Rowan moves his hand around behind Nix to feel where his knot has stretched the skin thin. His eyes meet Jay’s in awe. Their omega is made to take him easily and with pleasure—he is a miracle.

“You okay, Gray?”

He’s Nix’s soulmate, and they’re still not fully bonded, so Jay watches for any sign that his mate is hurt or struggling to hold his control—but there’s only his usual calm.

Leo grabs Grayson’s hand, offering reassurance in case either of them is unsettled by this crazy turn of events.

Grayson’s jaw is a bit tense, his basil scent strong, and with the suppressants only having been out of his system for a day or two, Jay wouldn’t be surprised if this tested him. Grayson has always had unnatural control over his wolf, but even that has limits.

“I’m good. I’ve got my eye on a spot, don’t you worry. We’ll have our moment.”

Jay doesn’t doubt it. Grayson is a creative romantic, and whatever he plans will be something for the family’s storybooks. He trusts Grayson to always speak his truth, and there’s no reason to doubt him now.

Their young alpha is listing to the side, fingers in his mouth, sucking at the slick he’d found.

“Hey, Ro, careful now, are you still coming?” Rowan shivers again and nods.

“Th-third. Him, too.” Sure enough, Nix’s soft cock is pulsing out a tiny load of clear fluid onto Rowan’s toned belly.

Rowan’s knot must be wedged right up against his prostate.

“Fuck, they could get stuck in a loop. What do we do?” Leo asks, always two steps ahead.

Jay’s knot will sometimes trigger Luca like this if they have a nice long fuck; it’s not happened more than twice, but Gideon usually has to get mean to break the cycle.

“Uh. I don’t think we want to do what you and Luca have to do.” Leo shakes his head.

Jay can only agree. He doesn’t know why, but pissing off their omega sounds like a bad idea.

Meanwhile, Rowan is moaning steadily, another shiver—the fourth—rolling through him.

Jay checks his watch, does some mental math, and nods. “They’ve been joined for fifteen minutes. Not long by bond-bite-knot standards, but I can’t imagine it going on for thirty.”

“Help,” Rowan whines, starting to look a bit nervous.

Their omega is still unconscious, which means this is pure instinct and biology—insane sexual chemistry on a feedback loop.

“Get Finn, Gray. Go.”

Grayson is down the hall and into Finn’s space unannounced. There’s a second entrance to the library from the second floor. While he’s gone, both Rowan and Nix shudder through another orgasm—this time at the same time—Rowan with a pained gasp.

Are they synced up now? Jesus.

Finn is beside them ten seconds later, smelling of the meal he’s been cooking. “How long, now?”

He runs a soothing hand through Rowan’s hair in reassurance.

Checking his watch, Jay says, “Nineteen minutes, and five or six, for Rowan. Fewer for Nix at first, but now they are synced.”

Finn’s jaw drops open while eyebrows disappear into his hairline. “Synced? Not a feedback loop? Their bodies are anticipating each other’s orgasms? Holy fuck. Okay, we need to get that knot down.”

In doctor mode, Finn makes sure he has Rowan’s attention—as much as it’s possible to get the attention of someone experiencing rolling orgasms. “Ro, I am so sorry, but this is going to hurt. Try not to startle Nix, okay?”

Finn digs his claws into Rowan’s thigh, and while their mate flinches, he only groans. A second, even deeper-clawed grasp does absolutely nothing. “Fuck, Jay, you’re going to have to tell him to let go.”

Alpha-Voice.

Given Rowan’s enigma status, only Jay’s will do. Jay grimaces, wanting to protest something Pack Alphas should use only in the most dire circumstances, but as he debates, Rowan and Nix shake through their next synchronized orgasm.

Nix starts shifting his hips—whether in pleasure or discomfort, Jay can’t tell. He hates using his Alpha-Voice—it stimulates his wolf, and it’s hard to bring him to heel afterward, but he knows Finn wouldn’t ask if he knew of another way.

“ Rowan, knot down .” His Voice vibrates along Rowan’s nerve endings, and Nix falls to the side, with Grayson’s hands relaxing him into Leo’s heaving chest before the other alpha disappears down the stairs again.

Their sweet-natured beta is sensitive to Alpha-Voice, and it’s one of the reasons Jay hates using his. Anything that can make someone sick to their stomach can’t be good.

“Th-thanks. Fuck. What the fuck w-was that?”

Jay knows Rowan means the synced-up orgasms on repeat. He groans when his softening dick flops onto his thigh—almost purple—and he reaches under to grab at his balls.

“Hurts, worse than the f-fucking chafing.”

Jay snorts because only Rowan would complain about the epic amounts of stellar ass he gets on the regular.

Grayson arrives with two juice boxes and his stash of Lindt chocolate. Popping the two straws off, he hands one of the juice boxes to Jay, who holds it for Leo to drink from—because sugar helps settle his tummy. The other, he puts to Rowan’s lips.

Finn is checking Nix’s vitals. He lifts the tail end of the white tank top out of the way and gently pries a butt cheek aside. There is a seemingly never-ending stream of come and slick oozing out, and every man there groans.

Even Rowan, who has taken to curling over his cock protectively.

“Nix seems no worse for wear, unlike our intrepidly youthful alpha,” Finn observes with a smirk.

“Fuck off, Finn. How can you kick a man when he’s down? Come here and kiss me better.”

Finn does, and they both do it with the tiniest smiles on their faces.

“Want me to look at it?” Finn is pointing at The Cock? in question, and the three other alphas want to cross their hands over their dicks in sympathy.

“No! No one is touching this dick for a year. Well, maybe a week, or at the very least today. Holy fuck, Finn—what was that?” He asks again.

Jay wants to know the same thing.

Grayson has taken his soulmate into his arms, holding him like an infant, urging him to come around in a whispering croon to no avail. Leo rests his head on Jay’s thigh, and Jay runs a soothing hand through his soft curls.

They’re quite a sight when Gideon comes bounding up the stairs at a run, Luca close behind, shopping bags dangling from his wrists. Jay wonders who texted him—or if he just has a sixth sense for when shit hits the fan—probably the latter.

“Start talking.” Hands on his hips, he’s a veritable storm of thunder scent and piercing gaze.

“Sugar! Did we miss Ro bonding with Nix? It smells so good.” He drops his bags, crawling over to sit on Leo’s belly and leaning into Grayson’s space to get a closer look at the purpling bite on Nix’s throat.

“Baby, watch out for Leo’s tummy—he’s not feeling well,” Jay warns.

The tummy in question groans, but still, Leo squeezes his mate to let him know he can stay.

“Is that a right-side bond bite? Finn, I left you in charge for two hours.”

“A right-side bite?” Finn nudges Luca off their omega’s neck, and sure enough, the deep red bite is fresh, smelling of spiced rum with vanilla topping. “Well, fuck. The books did not cover that.”

Grayson nods sagely. “That’s what I said.”

“I fucking hate half a story, Jay. Give it to me from the beginning.” Gideon sits beside Rowan and takes the alpha’s unresisting hand into his, squeezing—it’s enough comfort for the both of them.

Jay retells it from the beginning—from the horny kissing, right straight through their omega taking The Cock? in one fell swoop, to the right-side bite and straight onto the crazy, synced-up orgasms, and finally the forced separation using his Alpha Voice.

“Did I forget anything?” He checks in with Grayson, whose grip on Nix hasn’t let up one bit.

“I got to come, too,” Leo whispers as he accepts another piece of chocolate from Luca. By mouth. With tongue. “But no bite, not yet.”

“Dr. Merritt, why is our kitten still out? Did Ro blow his fuse?”

He skirts the wolf-pile to approach Grayson’s other side. Grayson’s scent shifts from fresh basil to burnt garden—his worry growing because Nix has been out too long.

“I don’t know, honestly. Maybe let’s clean him up and find him somewhere quiet. If he’s not awake in the next hour, I’ll take him to the hospital.”

No one wants that—if Nix never has to set foot in that place again, it will be too soon.

Rowan, who has kept his hand over his balls since separating from his mate, scrambles to sit up. “Did I break him?”

“Rowan, you didn’t fucking break him. If he can take you in one pass, he’s just recovering from the multiples you had.” Jay can tell that Finn isn’t as sure as he’s making out. “His vitals are great. He’s okay, Ro.”

Jay spots Grayson with a hand under his elbow as he rises to his feet, and although he’d love to have his mate recover in his bed, it’s still a disaster. A beautiful disaster.

Those sheets need to get into the wash as soon as possible—after the scent has fully permeated the walls of his room. Yup. Maybe then.

“Er…not in my room…it’s—Finn, is it okay in yours?”

Its door is right behind them, closer than anywhere else.

Jay suddenly realizes his baby boy doesn’t have his own space. The guilt slams into him. What kind of alpha forgets something like that? He adds it to his ever-growing list of failures he should feel guilty about and promises himself he’ll get on it as soon as the dust settles.

How many times has he said that?

Finn just leads the way into his private sanctum. The alpha rarely hosts anyone in this space, and Luca is blatantly gawking as if he’s not been in here ever. “Mouth closed, Luca. It’s not a zoo.” Jay taps him under his chin.

“It’s so nice and cozy in here.”

It certainly isn’t. It’s pristine and calm—but not exactly cozy.

Finn’s room occupies the space directly next to the second floor of the library; it’s narrower than the other rooms, save Gideon’s.

Where Gideon had made concessions for his fireplace, Finn had done so for the second floor of his library. While his library office holds tools of his trade and of his active mind, this space was designed for tranquility—it suits their calm, private mate.

Grayson places his mate on the neatly made bed, and indeed, there are hospital corners for his Finn. Gideon has taken Leo and Rowan in hand, so they haven’t followed, and when Luca goes to climb up beside their omega, Finn draws the line.

“No! Ugh. Not in your outside clothes, Luca.”

“Sorry, Finn, I forgot.” It takes him 10.8 seconds to pull his sweater and knee-length skirt off and let the tiny panties fall to the floor. “Now?”

With an imperceptible shudder at the thought of Luca—fresh from the mall and the cafe—climbing into his pristine bed, he shakes his head. “No. Let’s clean Nix up, and then you can. Come on.”

Jay feels a bit superfluous, but he can’t bring himself to leave his newly bonded mate, so he finds Finn’s reading chair and plops down with a sigh.

Cursing and quiet laughter are coming from the bathroom, followed by the sound of the tub running. When there’s a scuffle and Luca’s whine, he almost gets up to make sure there aren’t any of those broken bones he was worried about before.

His phone plays Beautiful Day for the second time in two days, and he startles, a sinking feeling settling in his gut. Fucking Pavlov again.

“Riordan. How are you?”

“Jay, good. We want to come and see Nix this afternoon.”

Jay tenses. “Dan, I don’t think that’s a good idea.” He isn’t even sure what excuse he’s going to give—he isn’t a good liar, and Riordan isn’t good at being stupid.

“I’m not really asking.”

What?

“Dan?” Jay asks, thrown. Riordan is always polite. Always solicitous. In that moment, he forces himself to remember—he’s a damn fine friend. If he’s being pushy, if he’s demanding an audience, it’s completely out of character, and it must be big.

Jay exhales sharply. What the hell hasn’t been out of character this week? That familiar vortex of chaos is swirling around him again, and Jay has never been good at ignoring the obvious.

“Who’s ‘we?’” Jay doesn’t think Nix took to Ewan at all during their last visit, and his mate is still unconscious. It is bad timing. It says something that he truly can’t say it is the worst timing , though.

Riordan knows he has him. “You’ll see when we get there. Sorry, but…” Riordan hesitates but doesn’t clarify despite being regretful. “See you in an hour. Bye, Jay.”

The line goes dead.