Chapter 69
sixty-nine
brIAR
Three pathways burrow into my body, converging at the center of my being.
They’re all different, but instinct insists I float down the very darkest one to reach the others.
It’s strange, being so lucid, but also shrouded by my Omega’s haze. She nudges me, turning my head toward—
Cillian.
Remembering his name brings a cool gust of relief. It flows into the loose tether hanging between us, sparking a reaction on the other side that I can’t quite read. It’s warm, though. And strong.
The desperation that unfurls at my middle feels so natural. I have to know what he feels. I have to feel him.
Those wolf-blue eyes lock onto mine. “Bite me,” he growls, though his gaze burns, beseeching. Begging. “I need you.”
There is no thought or decision. Only the love that pours out of my soul, carrying me on its current.
I turn my head, gripping his left wrist and sliding his fingers into my mouth. He roughs out a deeper snarl, his cock and knot swelling inside me as I snap my teeth around his knuckles.
The smooth, warm metal of his wedding band brushes the flat of my tongue. I bite. Harder. Sucking his fingers, ensuring my mark brands him as deeply as possible.
His cock spurts, hot and thick. Matching, molten gold pours through the tether. Into every depth I possess. Gilding them all. Filling every sting and banishing every fear.
Cillian is unyielding. A force. Shining, flaring, fastening us together from the places where our very selves spring forth.
A lock that frees me. Protects me. Saves me.
The master of my heart. King of my soul.
And you’re my queen.
His voice echoes inside my mind, the delicious rasp pricking my nipples.
A fresh wave of delirious pleasure rocks my core, pulling the muscles tighter and tighter.
Until liquid bliss bursts over my alpha’s straining cock and into his lap.
He groans, head thrown back as his arms envelop me, his other hand wrapping around my throat and squeezing the air from my lungs as he comes again.
And—God—I can feel it. The sweet sting, snapping up his spine. His balls tingling as his cock twitches and squirts.
And his heart. Beating just for me.
Briar, he growls, where only I can hear. Fuck, I love you so goddamn much. Finding you was the luckiest day of my life. Marrying you was the smartest. And having you here—I feel a thump from his middle reverberate in mine—makes this the best.
My chest aches, a whine shivering in my vocal cords. Goosebumps break across my neck and back. The sensation tingles, along with two new half-moons carved into the front of my throat. Cillian’s eyes snap to his claim, his thumb rubbing it until I crest into another climax.
He holds me this time, his eyes steady and his hand firm around my neck. Watching. Letting me feel the pride and possession that explode behind his lungs.
My enigmatic alpha barely shows any of it on his face, but I don’t need him to, now. All of it is mine. Flowing directly into me.
For a second, my Omega pauses, worried her Alpha will be upset about that, but Cillian soothes her half-thought with a flood of pure devotion.
Never, love, he vows. I don’t ever want to hide from you again.
Adoration roars in my blood, as fierce as any rage. And I realize, it’s his. He loves me.
Of course I do, he whispers. And I’m not the only one, omega.
His memories—I can see them. I gasp as he flows through several in a row, showing me scenes from my heat. Dane carefully brushing out my hair and braiding it. Rhys reading to me while I slept in his lap.
Fresh need zips down my back, pooling between my hips. Cillian flashes his rare grin, nosing at my cheek. “Go get our pack, Mrs. Blackwood.”
I don’t have to think at all, flinging myself directly toward the alpha I know needs me most at this very moment.
Rhys.
Silver blond and full of fear. I can scent it, but I also feel the dull tremor of it through the half-bond hanging loose at my middle. The second I leap for him, the anxiety melts into something like anguish.
“Briar, baby, I know I could never fucking deserve you, but I swear to God—”
His words choke off as my teeth find his throat, opening over the place where I once sliced him open. I lick the pulse point above it, canting my hips until I find his throbbing hardness. Impaling myself on his cock and riding it as I stake my claim, biting harder than I need to.
“Oh fuck, oh God—” He comes instantly, pushing me into another explosive climax. Filling my pussy with a fresh wash of warmth while his release floods our bond with pure, shimmering awe.
It zings into me, burrowing into my soul.
Venom. He’s here, but he’s… beautiful.
Soft. So very gentle and complex. A million feelings, woven into thick braids. Tangled in knots. Stripped down to the studs and laid bare.
And there, among all the ruin and all the beauty, there’s pure, unfiltered devotion.
Rhys feels me absorbing it. Trying to understand. He whispers where no one else can hear. No one has ever belonged to another the way I belong to you. I’ve always been yours. And I’ve never wanted to be anything else.
I can feel his sincerity now. A solid swell of emotion that steels the tether between us. I burrow my face against his neck, letting tears fall as I lick the bite branded over his single scar. He chuckles internally before the sound interrupts his purr.
“Should have known you’d sink your fangs into me right there, viper.”
His knot releases and my Omega whines, wanting me to go to my third alpha. I pull back and look at my beautiful man one more time, though, lurching up to nip his lower lip quickly. Rhys smiles, shy gratitude and amazement tumbling into our bond.
This time, Cillian adds his approval and a burst of pride for both of us. Feeling both of them at the same time makes me desperate to complete the bond—and I know exactly who I need.
Who I’ve always needed.
And trusted.
And wanted.
I dive into his open arms. They snap closed around me, his golden eyes full of pleading. “Don’t wait, omega, please. Fucking need you—”
He cuts himself off, hissing and then groaning as my mouth finds my mark. Opening wide against his sternum, in the place where his scars meet the unscathed flesh. Piercing him with my claim.
Dane.
Steady and deep as a river, he winds his way into my soul. Slower than the others, but not because he’s hesitant. Because he’s patient. And he loves me so much, he wants me to feel every single bit of it.
His body shudders under mine. Hot liquid spurts between us as I bite harder, lapping at the wound. Listening to his quiet strength and unrestrained adoration.
Memories flow smoothly through his mind. Wordless—but when have we ever needed words?
Instead, he shows me the moment he saw me for the first time. How his heart thumped and his hands shook. He pulls up images from the night I gave him my virginity—the way I gazed up at him, trusting him. How that meant more to him than anything else ever had.
The fear of taking his mask off and kissing me. The joy and confusion he felt when I touched his scars and called him strong.
Adoration. It was a brand-new feeling, for him. And he still couldn’t quite believe the way it made him whole. How it filled all the cracks in his spirit, where he thought his real scars may never heal.
A sob sticks in my throat as I burrow into his embrace. I love you, too, I tell him back, internally turning to each of them. I love all of you. So much. I—I’m sorry I didn’t say it before.
They watch me relive one of the worst moments in that other, horrible nest—when I realized I’d never even told them how much I cared about them. How I regretted my pride and stubbornness so much it was almost as painful as the fear of losing them.
They answer with such forceful, instant forgiveness, it makes me lightheaded. Three strong purrs reverberate through the sweetly scented air. My bones loosen as I melt between them.
Rhys kisses my fingers, playing his own regrets in his mind’s eye. So many times he felt the overwhelming desire to reach out to me—and took a swipe instead. I have my own collection of moments like that; and when I share those, his heart aches.
My perfect match, he thinks.
And mine, Dane adds, gruff as ever. Recalling my goofy, eye-rolling grin while I chewed a plate of French toast in his underwear. I should probably be embarrassed, but it’s clear this is one of his most cherished memories.
Cillian’s are a bit harder to handle. They’re…
sad. So full of yearning. Recollections of a hundred nights spent lying on his bed with my pointe shoes in his hands, staring at the initials inked into the soles.
Giving up and wandering into the suite he was having restored for me.
Standing in front of the balcony, feeling sick as the thorny vines climbed higher and higher.
He knew he couldn’t help himself. He had to have me—had to save me. Even though he feared it would make him the monster in my story.
So he watched the flowers grow. Laid his traps. Sealed my fate.
A rush of pure gratitude swells from my heart to his. For the first time ever, our pack leader’s chest stutters, his throat thickening when he feels my genuine appreciation.
Thank you, devil.
He huddles closer to my side, burying his face against my shoulder. I feel his mind racing, searching for some concrete action to offer me. A plan to execute. It’s so Cillian, I feel myself grin.
We’ll take those bushes down anytime you want, love.
But I don’t want to. Those tangled, woven vines… they feel perfect, now. Like us.
Cillian, like deep roots. Hidden from the world, but always doing the real work. Fighting to anchor us to our home. Give each of us the strength we need to thrive.
Dane, strong and sturdy as any branch. Flexible when the winds blow, but hardy enough to stay standing. Take the storms, the knicks and cuts. And once those scars heal? He can grow new branches.
They’ll be covered in thorns, of course, because that’s Rhys. Sharp and ruthless. Protective of his pack, his heart, our home. Of me.
Which makes you the roses, baby, he thinks. Because without you? We were a snarl of spikes.
All three alphas chuckle around their purrs, dry amusement filling our bond. Dane’s laughter, rumbling under my ear, lulls me closer to a real, deep sleep than I’ve felt in days. A quiet, joyful exhaustion creeps into my body.
I did it, I think, dizzy. They’re a pack. We’re bonded.
Yes, Cillian replies. He gently kisses my face, his ice-blue eyes searching mine. Funneling his satisfaction and pride directly into my chest.
This beautiful devil. Truly, every last thing he’s done was for me.
For us. His pack.
Your pack, Dane corrects.
Rhys’s voice whispers over our tether. You made us, Briar. And you’ve made us complete.
My husband’s mouth curves into the mysterious half-smile I adore. Only, the absolute devotion behind it isn’t a mystery anymore.
“You did it, love,” my husband murmurs. “Sleep now.”
I hardly have a choice. But as my mates pile around me, I manage one last look toward the darkened window. And the last thing I see before I close my eyes?
A wall of roses, in full bloom.