Epilogue
“Are you crazy? That’s not happening. No fucking way am I getting on that stage,” I protest vehemently, my gaze flitting across the determined faces of my three Alphas. It feels like a conspiracy, some elaborate joke they’ve concocted, but the earnest looks in their eyes tell me they’re dead serious.
“Danica,” Seth begins, his voice gentle as he reaches for my hand, his touch grounding me in the middle of the swirling chaos backstage at The Fillmore in Philadelphia. “I believe in you. We’ve all heard you, you know, singing in the shower almost every day. Your talent is astronomical, and rather than hiding it, we want you to join us.”
“Wait, what? You have?” I freeze, my heart skipping a beat. “Why would you listen to me in the shower?” The words tumble past my lips, my inside ice cold from the dread of what they’re asking me to do.
Jasper steps closer. “Because you have a beautiful voice,” he says, his compliment sending a ripple of warmth through me.
“And the way you sing, your lyrics to our song—it’s jaw-dropping,” Reed adds, his eyes alight with his love for me.
“We all want you as our first song tonight.” Seth’s grip on my hand tightens, a silent reassurance. “It’s going to be okay. We’ve learned your lyrics, and we’ll be your backup singers.”
My mind reels, tears pricking at the corners of my eyes as their words sink in.
“Y-You learned my l-lyrics?” I stammer, barely aware of the bustling activity around us in the back corridors as the opening act makes their way off-stage.
Seth leans in. “The stars above have stories to tell, but none as bright as us.” His voice is a soothing melody as he sings a line from my song.
“And those whispered dreams are now dust.” Jasper picks up the next line, his voice melding perfectly with the tune.
“Because you’re not the man I thought you were. Hmm hmm hmm.” Reed completes the chorus, his voice resonant and stunning.
Hearing my own lyrics, created from the depths of my grief, echoed back to me in their voices floods me with a storm of emotions. I’m overwhelmed, tears streaming down my face, not just from fear but from a profound sense of being seen, of being understood and accepted by these incredible men.
“So, you’ll do it?” Seth asks again, his eyes searching mine for an answer.
The very thought of standing on that stage, of exposing my soul to a sea of strangers, paralyzes me.
“I-I can’t,” I whisper, the words barely audible over the roar of the crowd in the stadium not that far from us. The idea of sharing a piece of me so personal, so intertwined with the memory of my father, terrifies me to my core. As I stand there, caught in the supportive embrace of Seth, Jasper, and Reed, I’m torn.
“Danica, you won’t be alone,” Seth continues.
I pull from him, my chest hurting as I’m heaving for breath, remembering why I stopped singing, why it tears me up on the inside to contemplate it.
“It’s not that,” I manage to say as the three men in front of me wait for my response. The lump in my throat is nearly unbearable, and I fight against the tears that threaten to spill over. “You don’t get it.” I swallow hard, trying to gather the strength to continue.
“Then help us understand, little mouse,” Jasper urges me to continue, stroking my arm.
His tenderness, all of their kindness, makes me feel safe.
“I made a promise,” I whisper as they lean in, giving me just enough space to speak but close enough to make this feel concealed from the rest of the world. Taking a deep, shaky breath, the dam inside me begins to crack, emotions spilling forward.
“When I was sixteen, my father was taking me to The Song audition. It was during a horrendous storm. Mom told us not to go, but I insisted, desperate for the chance to sing. My father, he... he never said no to me, so he agreed to drive me through the storm.” Pausing my explosion of words, I struggle to breathe, the memory suffocating. “But then... we had an accident, and how I got my arm all scarred.” The words are a tremor, my chin quivering as the scene replays in my mind—the car spinning, my screams, my father lifeless beside me.
“It’s okay,” Seth murmurs, his hands comforting my sides.
“No, you have to know the truth,” I insist, the tears streaming down my face now. “We lost control, and... and he died that day, right next to me.” Lifting my tear-filled eyes to theirs, I see the shock, the pain mirrored in their expressions.
“I’m so sorry.” Jasper’s voice is a soft caress in the heavy air.
“Don’t you see? He’s dead because of me. I pushed him to go out that night. If I hadn’t been so selfish, he’d still be here.” The confession wracks my body with sobs, the guilt a boulder on my chest. “And I promised myself, and him, that I’d never sing again in public. That I’d give up my stupid dream...”
Reed’s arms envelop me, his embrace a comfort from the darkness clawing through me. As I collapse against him, the floodgates open, years of suppressed sorrow pouring out.
Reed’s gentle strokes on my back and soft kisses on my brow end up drawing me back to the present. When I finally look up, my pack is there, a solid wall of support. Jasper’s thumb brushes away my tears, and Reed’s hands steady me by my hips.
Seth leans in closer, his words cutting through the remnants of my despair.
“It’s not your fault, Danica. The storm, the accident—it was a tragedy but not your doing. Your dad loved you. He wanted to support your dream. Do you really think he’d want you to give up on it now?”
His words, meant to console, only reignite the tears.
“If you’re trying to make me cry more, then you’re succeeding,” I say, a choked laugh mingling with my sobs.
Here we are, backstage at a major concert, and I’m baring my soul in what feels like the most public of confessions. Yet, in the arms of my Alphas, this conversation was bound to happen. With Fever by my side and music in my heart, it was only a matter of time.
Jasper’s hand, gentle on my cheek, turns my face toward him, and I meet his gaze. There’s something so raw, so sincere behind his eyes.
“Your dad’s love for you, his belief in your talent... that’s his legacy to you, not the guilt or the pain. Singing, sharing your gift, it honors him, Danica.”
“We’re not asking you to break a promise to your dad,” Reed’s voice breaks through. “We’re asking you to see that maybe, just maybe, that promise came from grief, not reason. Your music, your voice, it’s a part of who you are. Don’t you think he’d want you to live fully, to embrace every part of yourself?”
Their words chip away at the walls I’ve built around my heart, around my voice. The weight of the guilt I’ve carried for so long, the burden of the promise I’ve lived with, it all begins to feel less crushing. I’m still crying, but now it’s a mix of grief and something else—a glimmer of hope, a possibility of healing I’ve never considered.
“But going on stage... it’s terrifying,” I admit, my voice small.
“We’ll be right there with you,” Reed promises, his voice a rumble against my ear. “Every step of the way.”
“We’ve got your back, little mouse. Always,” Jasper adds.
And Seth, the rock in our pack, nods. “Together, Danica. We do this together.”
The idea of facing my fears, of perhaps finding a way to sing again, is daunting. Yet, with Reed, Jasper, and Seth by my side, it feels just a bit more possible.
“But it’s your decision to make, sweetheart. If you don’t want to, then we will respect that, and our love won’t waver, not for a moment.”
“I love you all so much,” I manage to say, my voice barely a whisper over the thunderous beat of my heart. Their love, their admiration, and their support are more than I ever dared to dream.
Seth’s smile broadens, with a hint of something mischievous crossing his face.
“We have something for you,” he says. The next thing I know, he’s reaching into his pocket, and all three men are kneeling before me. The backstage area, usually abuzz with activity, falls into stunned silence, all eyes on us.
“What are you doing?” I ask, my entire body trembling.
Seth produces a small box. As he opens it, his grandmother’s ring catches the light, sparkling with a brilliance that takes my breath away.
“We’re making everything official now,” Seth announces, his voice steady but brimming with emotion. “We’ve been talking about this moment between the three of us, and we want to know. Will you marry us?”
The question hangs in the air as I try to find my breath, my voice. I’m suddenly laughing and crying, a whirlwind of happiness and grief colliding in me. The floodgates open, tears streaming down my face, not from sorrow, but from an overwhelming sense of belonging, of coming home.
Before me, my three Alphas are offering me their hearts, their lives, their everything. At this moment, backstage at The Fillmore, with the world just beyond the stage, I realize that this is where I’m meant to be—with them, in the chaos, in the calm, in every note of our shared song.
Because maybe I’m meant to be around music, to finally sing, too.
“Yes,” I whisper, the word a vow I’ll never break. “Yes, I will marry you.” I throw myself into their arms, and I’m suddenly off my feet. Seth’s up on his, and he’s spinning me, then all three of them surround me. Those around us are clapping.
As Seth slides the ring onto my finger, my heart swells with a love so profound, it threatens to spill over. Before I can catch my breath, Reed steps forward, a small box in his hand. He opens it to reveal a gold necklace, its pendant a delicately crafted raven.
“Now, you will have a piece of me with you always,” he says, his voice laced with emotion as he fastens the necklace around my neck. The pendant rests against my skin, it’s touch cool against my skin.
“I absolutely love it.”
Barely have I recovered from Reed’s heartfelt gesture when Jasper presents me with another box. Inside, I find gold stud earrings, exquisitely shaped like tiny mice, their eyes twinkling with diamond brilliance.
“Oh my God, these are adorable,” I breathe out, overwhelmed by them spoiling me. “I love all your gifts.” With trembling fingers, I slip the earrings into place, Jasper’s watchful eyes studying me, smiling widely.
Caught up in the whirlwind of love enveloping me, I surprise even myself.
“I’ll sing with you.”
The guys erupt in cheers, their excitement booming, their kisses and smiles leaving me giggling. I realize just how fortunate I am to have found not just my Alphas but, truly, my soulmates.
In a rush, they escort me to our changing room.
“You gotta get ready, little mouse,” Jasper urges. “We’re due on stage.”
The reality of what I’ve agreed to begins to sink in.
Fuck, what have I agreed to?
Transformed by stylists who curl and style my hair and a makeup artist who works her magic on my face, I’m no longer in my jeans and loose t-shirt. Instead, I’m wearing leather pants and a glimmering gold-pink, long-sleeve shirt that fits tightly and stops just below my bust.
“You had everything prearranged, huh?” I tease the guys, who watch my transformation in a transfixed state.
“It’s been in the making from the day we notified Nexus that you’re ours,” Seth says, a chuckle in his voice betraying his excitement.
Their sneaky planning warms my heart, and as I stand ready in heeled boots, we rush toward the stage. As we near it, where the noise of the crowd swells like a roaring ocean, my nerves mount.
The stadium lights dim, and Seth leans in, his voice a steady whisper. “We’re going to call you onto stage to join us, then you come on as your beautiful self, and you sing your song first.”
Nodding, I try to steel myself, my nerves frayed, yet oddly, I feel ready, more prepared than I ever thought possible. In truth, this moment has been in the making since I fell in love with singing… I just didn’t know it.
Fever strides confidently onto the stage—Jasper at the drums, Reed with his guitar, and Seth at the microphone. Reed strums his guitar, igniting the stadium as the lights flare to life. The floor seems to tremble with the power of the crowd’s cheers and voices. It’s explosive, the fever of the concert threading through my veins. Seth commands the stage effortlessly like nothing in the world worries him up there.
“Hello, Philadelphia!” His greeting is met with a frenzy of screams and excitement, the crowd hanging on his every word.
“Tonight, we have something special for you... something no one has seen or heard before, and you will be our first. I want to bring on stage our beautiful and talented Omega, Danica.”
Heart lodged firmly in my throat, I take a tentative step onto the stage. To my astonishment, the crowd’s enthusiasm doesn’t dim; if anything, it intensifies. I wave a reflexive gesture as I join Seth, the sea of faces before me a blur of lights and motion. I don’t know where to look first.
“Tonight, Danica will be leading our first song. It’s a tune you know, but there’s a unique twist on it. Trust me, you’re going to love it.” The audience’s response is a tidal wave of applause and excitement, their screams and shouts urging me on. My name, carried on the voices of thousands, surprises me, and I find myself drawing closer to Seth.
He gives me an encouraging nod, and someone off-stage rushes over to hand him a guitar. He steps back near a standing microphone, Reed on the other side of me with one as well, and I note Jasper has one near his drums, leaving me with mine and staring at an ocean of people.
As the first tunes of music swirl around me, fueling the air with a frenzy vibe, I scan the crowd when my gaze lands on a familiar face—Ruby, my sister. She’s jumping, her energy infectious, and next to her is my mom, her face alight with pride, with joy. They’re close to the stage, in their own section, giving them lots of room. And there with them is Seth’s mom too. While Seth’s dad is absent, the support from those who matter most fills me with beaming warmth.
With the rhythm pulsating behind me, I grasp the microphone off the stand, its weight comforting in my hand. As I bring it to my lips, a sense of calm washes over me, a clarity that I’ve never known before. In my mind’s eye, I see my dad, not as a shadow from my past, but his presence in the crowd with his encouragement is a nod to the journey I’ve taken to get where I am today.
Then I sing.
The words come naturally, flowing from me with a force and clarity I’ve never dared to express. My lyrics, once confined only to myself, now blend seamlessly with Fever’s melody. As I belt out the chorus, the energy of the crowd crescendos, their voices joining mine. The stage, once a distant dream, now feels like home, where I’m meant to be, where I’m truly alive.
Glancing around me, I watch my three men singing alongside me, our voices melding together, as though we’re made for this.
Now, as I stand here, my voice soaring, my heart alight with my dream coming true, I understand the true meaning of belonging.
I’m Danica, the Omega who, against all odds, found her place, her purpose, and her pack. And at this moment, under the blaze of the spotlight, I know one thing for certain—I’ve undoubtedly caught Pack Fever.
As the last note fades into the roar of the crowd, a serene contentment settles over me, a silent whisper in my heart confirming that with my Alphas by my side, I’ve found a piece of heaven in my life, and there’s nowhere else I’d rather be.
Weeks Later
Emerging from the stage, still riding the high of another electric performance, the last notes of our song still echoing in my ears, I’m greeted by a flurry of activity. The backstage area is a controlled chaos of technicians, stylists, and organizers all moving about. Amid it all, a staff member approaches me, a slight frown on their face.
“You’ve got a call,” he says, handing me a phone.
Puzzled, I take the phone, wondering who could be calling me now. I press it to my ear, my heart still racing from the performance.
“Hello?”
“Danica, it’s me, Casey.”
Hearing her voice after so long sends a jolt of excitement through me, and I can’t help but squeal.
“Oh my God, Casey, how are you? Where are you? I haven’t heard from you in so long. It feels like I’ve been separated from all of you for an eternity. We have so much to catch up on.” I still remember seeing her at the trafficker’s house, getting onto the back of a bike with some biker.
Her laughter filters through the line, a sound I’ve missed desperately.
“I swear, since that bus trip, my life has spun out of control, and everything went sideways.” I can hear the grin in her voice. “But girl, I’ve been seeing your face all over the media. Shit, you hooked up with Fever! And now you’re singing. You have no idea how proud I am of you.”
“You have no idea how lucky I am.” My smile is so wide, it hurts my cheeks. “But what about you? You’re safe?”
“Yeah, for now... but I’m calling about seeing you. Are you free over the next week or two?” Casey’s voice is steady, but there’s an underlying urgency that sends a ripple of worry through me.
“Of course, anytime. Is everything okay?” My concern is evident, the joy from the performance momentarily vanishing at the seriousness in her tone.
“We’ll chat about it when we catch up,” she says, a hint of evasion in her voice, which only deepens my concern. “Anyway, I gotta run, but you’ve got my number on the phone, so message me yours, and I’ll send you the catch-up details. Love you, Danica.” And then, just like that, the line goes dead.
Left holding the silent phone, the bustling energy of the backstage suddenly feels distant, as if I’ve been plunged into a different world entirely. The weight of Casey’s words settles heavily on my shoulders.
Whatever this urgent matter is, I’m ready to face it, armed with my Alphas.
Jump into Casey’s story in Pack Obsession…