Chapter 47 Mirabelle
Mirabelle
Idon’t know whether it’s the shower, the orgasm, or the pizza I’m currently eating, but I feel like I’m melting. Just oozing into a puddle into the armchair I’m sitting in like the gooey cheese on this pizza.
Rowan was right, there’s just something different about this pizza compared to the frozen ones he made me in the microwave back at his trailer.
“Careful, Shortcake,” Ash says wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. “I may have gotten my fill for the time being, but if you keep making noises like that, you’ll make the situation a lot harder.”
“Was that an actual joke?” Griffin gasps, clutching a hand to his chest. “Who knew a good shower was all you needed to actually grow a personality other than being a dick.”
“Oh I’ve still got plenty of dick left,” Ash bites back, rolling his eyes playfully.
“He used it on me too,” I giggle, taking another bite of the cheesy goodness.
Four sets of eyes lock on me.
I just shrug as I chew with my mouth full.
The room bursts out with laughter, the boisterous sounds of Ash and Griffin keeping themselves from choking on their pizza, and the sound of Rowan gasping for air. Even Rage lets out a little huff of laughter from where he’s sitting, back against the armchair I’m in.
“Oh my God, you can’t make me laugh like that,” Rowan says, his voice strained. “I swear I can feel it in my leg.”
“You can feel laughter in your leg?” Ash asks. “Remind me to never fucking get shot.”
“It’s not like I fucking asked to get shot!” Rowan huffs.
“I mean, I don’t think anyone asks to get shot,” Griffin adds.
The easy banter, despite everything, wraps itself around me. My throat actually gets tight, and I have to take a second to sip some water to wash down the last bite of pizza.
“Hey, Sweetheart, what’s wrong?” Griffin asks softly.
I clear my throat, shifting nervously when I feel all of their concerned gazes on me.
“Nothing’s wrong,” I say with a shake of my head.
Rage wipes his hand on a napkin before resting it against my ankle. His massive hands brush against the delicate pulse point there.
I flash him a tight smile. I appreciate the gesture.
“You don’t have to pretend for us, Sweetheart,” Griffin says.
“The rest of us don’t need a bond to tell something’s up,” Ash adds gruffly.
“I just—I’m just so glad,” I say, fighting back the burn of tears behind my eyes. “We’re free. I never thought—I was worried we wouldn’t be able to. Or that we wouldn’t be able to do it together.”
“We did it,” Rowan says, shifting and pushing himself higher on the bed. “We made it out, Sugar. In one piece.”
“Mostly,” Ash says through a cough.
“I was shot, I didn’t lose my leg,” Rowan huffs, rolling his eyes. “So I’d say that counts as one fucking piece.”
It’s my turn to burst out laughing. It’s uncontrollable, almost to the point of pain, with my shoulder still tender.
“What’s so funny?” Rowan asks.
“Yeah, what the hell’re you laughing at?” Ash huffs.
“Nothing,” I say, wiping the tears that’ve started spilling down my cheeks away with the back of my hand.
“Not nothing if you’re laughing like that, Sweetheart,” Griffin says.
“I’m just glad we’re all getting along. I was a little worried about that, you know? We feel...”
Rage taps my ankle and holds up his notepad.
Like a pack?
“Yes! Exactly!” I say, reaching down and shaking Rage’s shoulder in excitement. He doesn’t budge at all.
“When we get a little bit more cash, we’ll get you a phone, okay big guy?” Griffin says, reaching for another slice of pizza. “That way you can text us instead of writing.”
“Should... talk... too...” Rage says, making all of us fall silent. His voice is quiet, barely above a whisper, really, but it’s there.
“You’re talking!” I say, practically bouncing up and down in the armchair. I know he’s done it before, but every time he does, I can’t help but get excited. “That’s so awesome! Good job, I’m so proud of you!”
He stares up at me with wide eyes. The brow above his good eye draws down as he does so, almost like he’s trying to take in the sight of me and memorize it.
“Good job talking, man, but the new guy’s got a good idea. We should all get phones. It’ll cost a pretty penny though,” Ash says.
“When will I stop being the new guy?” Griffin huffs, rolling his eyes.
“Never. Get used to it.”
“What’re we going to do for money?” I ask softly, leaning my head on top of Rage’s. “Rowan’s money is probably going to run out, right?”
“Ash and I are going to fight,” Griffin says, holding up the phone he got back from his parents.
“Got all the old fight contacts my dad used to use, so we’ll just work my old circuit.
Should be easy enough with my reputation.
I don’t think it’s been long enough for people to forget about me completely.
And then with Ash, we get to take home double the prize money. ”
A wave of uneasiness sits low in my belly.
“Are you guys sure you want to do this?” A wave of uneasiness sits low in my belly. “You don’t have to fight anymore, we’re not stuck at the farm anymore.”
“Sure, we don’t have to fight,” Ash shrugs. “But we do have to earn money, or else things are gonna get tough real fucking fast. And fighting’s something we’re good at.”
“So it’s not forever?”
“No, Sweetheart, it’s not forever,” Griffin says, sending a wave of reassurance through the bond. The warm feeling settles in my chest. “Just until we can get our feet underneath us and figure out what we want to do, you know?”
I nod slowly.
What do I want to do now?
I have no idea. At the facility, we never really thought about our futures because every day was the same. At the farm, the future was always so scary because I didn’t know whether the guys and I would ever escape.
“I don’t know what I want to do,” I say, curling in on myself.
Rage stands, moving faster than my brain can really process. Before I know it, I’m in his arms and he’s the one sitting in the armchair with me in his lap. He dwarfs a chair that looked big when I was sitting in it.
I rest my head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat and soaking in his thick leather scent.
“Thank you,” I whisper.
His answering kiss to the top of my head has me curling into his chest even more.
“I think it’s okay that you don’t know what you wanna do, Sugar,” Rowan says. “I honestly don’t know if any of us really know what we want to do. Plus, I think the last thing any of us expected was to be part of a pack and now that’s a huge part of our lives.”
“You’re learning about the real world for basically the first time, Sweetheart,” Griffin says, running a hand through his dark hair. “Give yourself some time. You’ve got plenty of it.”
I nod slowly, stifling a yawn.
“Looks like our omega’s tired, boys,” Ash says, standing from where he’s perched on the foot of the bed Rowan’s laying in.
“Sorry,” I mumble, rubbing my eyes. “I can stay up if you want.”
“No, Sweetheart. You need your rest. I think we all do. Hell of a day we’ve had.”
I push myself up with a hand on Rage’s bare chest, peering past his shoulder to see Ash grunting.
“What’re you doing?” Griffin says, a hint of amusement in his voice.
“Mirabelle doesn’t want us to fight. I know myself well enough to know I’d fucking fight about who gets to sleep with her so I’m making a giant bed,” He says with a huff, standing straight when he’s finished pushing the bedframes together.
They’re pretty sizable beds with large headboards. Based on the impressions of the frame left on the carpet, I don’t think they were meant to be moved.
Rowan seems to think the same thing.
“I don’t think we’re supposed to rearrange the furniture here,” Rowan huffs.
“Well then they shouldn’t have made it so fucking easy,” Ash says, flopping into the center of the now massive bed. “What do you think, Shortcake? Big enough for you?”
“It’s perfect,” I say, smiling brightly at him.
Rage seems to pick up on exactly what I need because he stands and makes his way to the bed.
“I call dibs,” Ash says, pulling down the covers next to himself.
“Is that allowed?” Griffin chuckles, starting to put away the leftovers from dinner away. Not that there is much at all. Alphas eat a ton.
“It’s allowed ‘cause I say it is.”
“Dibs...” Rage says, setting me down gently beside Ash before climbing into bed on my other side.
“Fine, fine, but I call dibs tomorrow night,” Griffins says.
“And I’m chopped liver,” Rowan chuckles, shifting himself down against the pillows so he can start to lay down.
“You got to fucking sleep with her every night, you can wait your turn,” Ash huffs.
“You’re turned away from me, but I can practically feel you rolling your eyes at me, god damn. I’ll have you know I was a respectful gentleman. Mira and I didn’t sleep in the same bed for a while there.”
“That just means you’re a fuckin’ idiot,” Ash grumbles.
I peek up past the wall of Ash’s body and offer Rowan a bright smile. “I like it when you call me Mira.”
“Come sleep, Mira,” Ash says, tugging me back down into his arms so I’m sandwiched between him and Rage again. “There, I said it too. You gonna smile at me like that?”
“Sure,” I say, reaching up and smoothing out the crease between his brows. “Are you going to stop being grumpy?”
“If I get a night with you in my arms? Maybe.”
“Turning off the lights now, everyone. Make some room for me,” Griffin says.
Rage’s chest starts vibrating with a purr as he presses closer to me to make room for Griffin. It has my body melting between him and Ash.
Wow, a girl could get used to this.
“Goodnight, everyone. Sweet dreams.”
The guys respond with a chorus of goodnights of their own and I close my eyes.
Instead of being woken up by sunshine and soft bird noises, I’m jolted awake when I feel Ash twitching against me.
I glance at the clock with bleary eyes.
5:32AM.
It hasn’t even been that long since we fell asleep. He’s having a nightmare.
Rage’s arm is heavy around my waist, but I turn around, facing Ash. Rowan is still knocked out on the other side of him, probably from the pain medication he’s taken.
I’m surprised the others haven’t woken up yet, but maybe it’s because Ash’s nightmare just started.
I know he didn’t like it when I woke him up last time, but I think I’d rather sleep on a bed of nails than try and sleep beside him when I know he’s in pain.
I take a deep breath, trying to control my emotions. The last thing I want is to overwhelm him with my perfume.
Instead of trying to shake him awake, I reach up and gently rest my hand against his forearm. His skin is clammy.
I scoot up in the bed, trying to keep from waking up the others and lean Ash’s head into the crook of my neck. Maybe my scent will help him.
Rage shifts behind me. When I glance over my shoulder, I have to stifle my gasp.
“Oh no! I’m so sorry for waking you up,” I whisper.
His one good amber eye glows in the dim light from the digital clock.
“Ash is just having a nightmare, I’m trying to wake him up without freaking him out.”
Rage offers me a single nod, his arm lifting so only his hand rests against my waist.
“Thank you,” I say, before returning my attention to Ash.
There’s that all too familiar crease between his brows. Even in sleep, he’s plagued by stress. The muscles in his body tense up again, and a soft but strangled noise leaves his throat.
“Hi Ash,” I whisper into his ear. “It’s me, Mira, you’re safe. It’s just a dream.”
The muscles in his body tense even further and his legs kick about, tangled in the sheets.
“You’re in bed. With me and the guys. You’re okay,” I repeat, gently brushing my fingers against his forearm.
Rage sits up from behind me, tugging the blankets down and freeing Ash’s legs.
Ash’s eyes blink open.
“Huh?” He groans, shaking his head.
“You were having a dream. You’re okay, though. You’re with me and the guys, remember?”
He buries his face in the crook of my neck inhaling a deep breath of my sweet perfume. His breath tickles against my skin.
“Fuck,” he breathes out. “Thank you.”
“Of course. Thank Rage too, he helped.”
Ash lifts his head and offers Rage a two-finger salute. “Thanks, man. ‘preciate it.”
“Had a stupid fucking dream about that dead bastard actually doing it,” Ash mumbles, tugging me into his chest.
“Doing what?”
“Killing you.” His voice is barely above a whisper as he clutches me to his chest.
I bury my face in the crook of his neck, soaking in his charred Sage scent.
“Well, I’m alive. In one piece, too,” I say as I run my hands through his spiky hair.
“Sorry for waking you up. Don’t mean to cause a big fucking deal.”
“You always say not to apologize when you don’t need to.”
“Well, I need to. I—“
“I don’t think you do,” I say, cutting him off. “You can’t control your nightmares. And you’re not causing trouble. This is a lot better than last time, remember?”
“Yeah,” he sighs. “I guess so.”
“What’s going on?” Griffin mumbles, pushing himself up.
“Oh, nothing, it’s okay, you can go back to bed,” I say, glancing at him over my shoulder.
Griffin pauses. He’s smart. I’m sure he can probably connect the dots that Ash wasn’t sleeping very well based on the way he’s clinging to me like I’m a life raft.
“Dunno ‘bout you guys, but I swear, the withdrawals from the fucking drugs they gave us are making me itchy,” Griffin says.
Rage lets out a grunt of affirmation.
“Yeah... It’s annoying as fuck,” Ash says, loosening his grip on me.
“Withdrawals?” Rowan mumbles, shifting from his side of the bed. “They fucking suck ass.”
“Looks like we’re all awake,” Griffin chuckles.
“We shouldn’t be!” I huff as I push myself up. “You guys need your rest.”
“So do you, Shortcake,” Ash says, tugging me back down into bed. “I’m good now. Let’s just pass the fuck out.”
“Okay,” I sigh. I lift a hand to Rage and pat the bed beside me. “You don’t need to hover at the foot of the bed like that, Rage.”
He’s quick to slide into bed beside me. Despite what feels like his best attempts at being careful, I’m still bounced about by the movement.
A content sigh leaves me when Rage presses his warm, bare chest against my back.
“Goodnight for real again this time, guys,” I say.
Another chorus of goodnights reaches my ears, except this time, we do get good sleep.