Chapter 25
Waking up with my back pressed against the door, the wooden frame digging against my spine, I fight back a sigh. Living at Bea’s apartment is getting less manageable by the day. Her nest is too small for two medium-sized Alphas and Creed’s giant ass.
At first, we had taken turns sleeping in here with her.
Then the nightmares started, and she needed all of us within arm’s reach to sleep peacefully.
Now we’re crammed wall to wall, limbs stacked together to fit.
My beautiful mate sprawls across us. Her head is on Ridley’s shoulder, body resting across Creed’s torso, leaving her legs to twine with mine.
Slipping away from her, I roll into her bedroom and push to my feet. Whatever steps I have to take, I’ll have a solution for us by the end of the day.
As I’m making a simple breakfast quiche for everyone to share, someone knocks on her apartment door.
Opening it, I see an elderly woman at the end of the sidewalk.
She trots toward the next-door neighbors, so I assume she’s got the wrong house.
Something catches my eye as I turn to go back inside.
An envelope sticks out of Bea’s empty mailbox. Grabbing it, I head back inside.
“What’s this?” Bea asks, her voice thick with sleep as she slumps against me. Ridley doctors her a cup of coffee, humming happily. I’ll never understand how he can be so damn chipper after sleeping so fitfully.
“It was in your mailbox.”
She takes it from my hands, ripping it open and reading its contents. Her brows furrow, stress lines making themselves present the further she reads.
“Well, I knew this was coming, but it still sucks.”
I take the page from her hand when she passes it my way and scan through the contents. Her tenure at the apartment is ending now that she has bonded mates. The owner of the complex wants to keep the buildings Omega-only, meaning we have thirty days to find somewhere for all of us to live.
“We’ll figure it out, kitten,” Creed comments, reading over my shoulder.
Ridley and I murmur our agreement, and I shove the letter into my jacket pocket. I know just who to ask for help with this issue.
After a long day at the office, I hop into the elevator and head to the third floor. I’ve seen bits and pieces of my Omega throughout the day, mostly in passing, so I’m disappointed when I find the manager’s office empty.
Tapping my hand against the door frame, I continue down the hall until I arrive at Shiloh’s office. My hand is poised to knock when I hear Bea’s voice inside. A smile tilts my lips as I rap against the wood.
“Come in, Orion,” Shiloh replies, his voice muffled and gruff.
The sight that awaits me when I push the door open makes my grin grow. Bea is sitting on the buttery-soft couch on the far wall, her dark curls a mess around her. She peeks at me, not lifting her head from the back of the couch.
“You look cozy, butterfly.” I slip onto the seat beside her, eyes trailing down her body to where Shiloh holds her foot in his lap. His fingers dig into the skin of her ankle, massaging the strain of being on her feet away. “Is your Alpha taking good care of you?”
Bea’s eyes dart to Shiloh, waiting for him to object, but he remains silent.
“She’s pushing herself too much,” he complains as he kneads the bottom of her foot, earning a breathy groan from our mate.
“If this is my punishment, I’ll have to overwork myself more often.”
I bite my lip, fighting back a laugh when Shiloh glares at Bea.
Her sass lights a fire I can see shining in his umber eyes, but the thought of her hurting herself brings his protective instincts roaring to the surface.
The way my old friend reacts to her amazes me.
For years, he’s been cold and calculating.
Keeping his emotions locked down. It’s nice to see him really living again.
“Don’t tempt me, Omega. I’ll put you over my knee and turn your pretty ass red if you don’t take care of yourself.”
His threat has the opposite effect he was hoping for, if the heat blazing in our girl’s eyes is any indication. The faintest hint of perfume reaches my nose, and even that small hit is enough to make my cock harden to the point of pain.
Bea’s eyes slip closed, a tightness around the corner of her lips that belies how upset the lack of scent makes her. I lean over and rub my cheek against hers, scent-marking her. “Soon, butterfly. Your body is healing, scent glands regrowing as quickly as they are able.”
“I know. Doesn’t make it suck any less.”
A purr rattles to life in my chest as I pull her against me. We rest in the office for a while, comforting her and helping to ease the tension from her shoulders. Eventually, Ridley and Creed show up to steal her away, promising takeout and reality TV to unwind after a long day of work.
After they’re gone, I turn to Shiloh. “Did Bea mention anything about her apartment?” When his head shakes, I explain the situation with her lease and our lack of space. “Could you help me find a suitable space for all of us?”
Shiloh pushes to his feet and gathers his keys and phone from his desk. “Did you drive today?” When I tell him I rode with Bea, he nods. “Come with me.”
Arriving at his apartment a short while later, I eye him curiously.
He is quiet as we ride up to his floor. “I knew space would eventually become an issue. I knew safety would also become a problem, considering Bea’s apartment almost got broken into just a few months ago.
Solutions that fit the parameters of protecting our Omega without taking her out of the city weren’t as numerous as I had hoped, but I found one. ”
The elevator stops on the floor below him, and I’m surprised when he steps off. Following him, I see the piles of construction tools and materials that are spread throughout the hallway.
The apartment door on the right side of the hallway is gone, replaced by a smooth wall. On the left, the door is heavier, and a new lock has been installed. He swipes a keycard through the panel and pushes it open.
I’m in shock as we pass through unfinished room after unfinished room. Bedrooms, bathrooms, what appears to be a home gym and theater, all leading to a newly installed staircase to the upper floor.
“What is this?”
“Our future home. I bought the tenants on this floor and mine out of their leases, and am paying to have both floors renovated into a suitable home for Bea and all of her mates.”
His explanation stops me in my tracks, and I stare at him, dumbfounded. “You are going to have us all move in here?”
“Yes.”
“Outside of the day you took her to dinner, and this afternoon, you’ve barely spent any time with Bea. And I know that whatever happened between the two of you before this has left a rift in your relationship. Why now? What’s changed?”
He leads me up the stairs to his untouched apartment, stopping when he is standing near the floor-to-ceiling windows in his living room. “Everything changed. She was taken, stolen from us. My mind keeps running through the what-ifs. I almost lost her once. I won’t do so again.”
He turns to meet my eyes, looking as serious as ever. “While I do not wish to share her—my time with Bea will be exactly that, my time—I recognize she needs the four of you, too. If having her pack here will make her happy, keep her safe, then that is a sacrifice I am more than willing to make.”
“You could start with an apology, you know?” I chuckle at the confused tilt of his head and narrowed eyes. “Renovating your apartment building is nice, but I think it might be overkill to win our girl. Make sure you use your words, too, so she doesn’t doubt your reasons for wanting her here.”
I let him mull over my suggestion while I dig through his fridge, finding the pre-made dinners his housekeeper prepares for him each week.
I throw two in his oven and set out plates.
Living here with the others will be both chaotic and fun.
I can’t wait to watch my fellow packmates integrate themselves into Shiloh’s life. He’s going to lose his mind.
Walking into Bea’s apartment a few hours later, I feel a weird sense of peace settle into my bones. This might not be our forever home, but it feels close enough with her here.
“Orion!” The sound of my name falling from her lips, so joyous and full of love, has my heart pounding against my ribs. I lean over the back of the couch and press a soft kiss to her lips, reveling in the tiny groan that escapes her when I pull away.
“Hello, butterfly. Did you have a good evening?”
“Mhmm. Though neither of these two can cook nearly as good as you do.” A small pout pushes her bottom lip out, bringing a grin to my face.
“I’ll make you dinner tomorrow, promise. For now, I need a shower.”
Midnight blue eyes flicker with heat as she looks up at me. “Want some company?”
Darting my tongue across my lips, I offer her my hand. “Always.”
Her other mates playfully protest when she stands up, but there is no real complaint in their voices. Her ass sways as she walks toward the bathroom, entrancing us all. Fates, we are lucky fucking Alphas.
Bea is already stripping Ridley’s shirt from her body when I step in behind her, reaching over to start the shower so the water will heat.
Every tantalizing inch of her golden-bronze skin that gets exposed drives my need to a fevered pitch.
My ozone scent floods the room, settling on my shoulders and bringing me to my knees behind my mate.
I skim my palms up the back of her thighs and over her hips, teeth nipping at her delectable ass. “Orion,” she groans, hand finding my hair and tugging at the strands. The small bite of delicious pain has pre-cum leaking from my cock in thick drops.
“Lean forward,” I urge her, placing one hand on her back to guide her upper body to rest against the cold shower door. Her breath catches, the sound turning to a moan when I bury my face in her pussy. Sweet, honeyed pineapple coats my tongue, making me ravenous for more.
I lick up every drop of slick that has slid down her thighs before slipping my tongue into her entrance and fucking her with it. One finger circles her clit, teasing her as I feast.
“More,” Bea demands, grinding back against my face.
I hear the bathroom door click open before Ridley’s lime scent mingles with mine. “Such a beautiful sight,” he groans, stepping in to join us. His clothes hit the floor, and he’s at our side, hand tangling in Bea’s curls as he claims her mouth.
“Look at you, letting your Alpha eat his fill of your sweet little pussy. You need more, don’t you, baby? Need Orion’s knot to stretch you?”
“Yes!” Bea groans, head falling back as I pinch her clit, rapidly flicking my fingers over the sensitive nub. Her walls start to quiver around me, her body trembling as I bring her closer to release.
Fingers brush against mine, coating themselves in her slick before they disappear. When Bea jumps, then groans, I peek up to watch Ridley circle her back entrance, his tongue still tangled with hers. “You gonna be a good Omega and take both of your mates?”
Fucking Fates! My cock jerks, throbbing as I picture the scene he’s creating for her. Each filthy word from his mouth has her squeezing tighter around my tongue until a scream echoes through the room as she douses me in her release.
“Fuck, yes, Omega,” Ridley growls, sucking his mark on her throat and making her jerk with a smaller, secondary release.
“Come on, butterfly,” I grunt, dragging her into the shower with me. It’s too small for all three of us to fit comfortably, so I pull Bea into my arms. Her legs wrap around my waist, pussy grinding against my length. The sharp pleasure that her warmth brings has my knees shaking.
Ridley steadies us both when he plasters himself against her back. His hands grip her thighs, holding her up so I angle my tip to her entrance. Inch by agonizing inch, I slide inside her. “Fates, you feel so fucking good.”
Bea’s lips tease my throat, nipping and sucking as she kisses her way up to my jaw. I pull out slowly, savoring the clench of her walls as they try to pull me back in, then I slam forward. Panting moans fill the air as I take her, only slowing when Ridley’s cock joins mine.
Fuck. I thought he was going to take her ass, but as he positions his tip alongside my cock, I realize he has something else in mind. Our mate’s head falls back to rest against his shoulder, her nails digging into my back as he works himself inside of her.
“So full,” she whimpers, brows pinched and chest heaving.
I pull out until just my tip rests inside of her, pushing back in when Ridley withdraws. We slowly find a steady rhythm, picking up speed until Bea shatters around us, her walls clenching so tight my release barrels down my spine and I spill deep inside of her.
Bea’s lips smash to mine, kissing me with a feverish need as Ridley lifts her off my softening cock and pounds into her several more times. Her body tenses, jaw slack, when he slips his knot inside of her, locking them together.
“Holy Fates,” she chokes after she’s caught her breath. “That was amazing.”
“Hell yeah, it was, sunshine. Your pussy feels like fucking heaven.” Ridley grins over her shoulder, head tipping the rack of soaps and shampoos on the wall.
We’re quiet as I wash her body, covering every inch I can with his knot still locked inside her. Contented sighs fall from her lips as I massage the stress of the day from her body, leaving her limp and sleepy by the time Ridley’s cock slips from her center.
“No,” she protests when I gently clean her up, making my eyebrows raise. My girl isn’t usually comfortable with cum-covered thighs, especially if it dries to her skin. I meet Ridley’s eyes, and he presses his lips to her temple, then shrugs.
It’s a good thing Bea has a doctor’s appointment in the morning. I have a feeling she’ll be going into heat soon.