Chapter 27
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Sierra
The highway stretches ahead of me, familiar and strange all at once.
My hands know this drive; the muscle memory of every curve is ingrained.
But the world outside the windshield feels like a movie playing on mute.
My car smells of stale air conditioning and forgotten coffee, a sterile, lonely scent after a week of being steeped in cinnamon and burned caramel, toasted marshmallow and vanilla.
The silence is the worst part. It’s a hollow ache where the low rumble of four different voices should be.
My hands are tight on the steering wheel, and I can’t stop checking my rearview mirror.
Their truck is right there. Has been for the past forty minutes of driving. Close enough that I can see them through the windshield. Dax driving, Malik in the passenger seat, Cole and Jalen visible in the back.
Following me.
Protecting me, even though the storm is long over and the roads are clear, and there’s no real reason for them to shadow me all the way back to the city.
Except maybe there is.
My phone rings through the car’s Bluetooth, and Mia’s name flashes on the screen. I’ve been expecting this call. Dreading it a little. Because Mia is going to have Opinions with a capital O, and I’m not sure I’m ready to articulate what just happened.
I answer anyway. “Hey.”
“HEY?” Mia’s voice explodes through the speakers. “HEY? That’s all you have to say after disappearing for a WEEK?”
“There was a storm—”
“I KNOW there was a storm! I lived through the storm too! Do you know how worried I was? You didn’t answer a single text!”
“My phone was on do not disturb, and I didn’t want to use it much since the beach house only had backup power,” I say, which is technically true. The power was out most of the week, and I was... otherwise occupied. “I’m sorry. I should have found a way to let you know I was okay.”
Mia’s quiet for a moment, and I can practically hear her processing. Then her voice comes back, softer but still concerned. “Are you okay, though? Really?”
The question makes my throat tight. “Yeah. I’m... I’m more than okay, actually.”
“More than okay? Sierra, what happened?”
I take a breath. Here goes nothing. “Remember how I told you the Knightley Pack was staying at the same beach house? Because of the booking error?”
“Yes...” Mia draws the word out suspiciously. “Please tell me they were gentlemen about the whole thing and didn’t make your heat worse.”
“They were gentlemen,” I confirm. “Very much, gentlemen. They, um. They helped me through it.”
Silence.
Then: “WHAT.”
“Mia—”
“They HELPED you? Like, helped helped? Sierra Smith, did you let the Knightley Pack help you through your heat?”
My face is burning even though she can’t see me. “Yes?”
“Oh my GOD.” I can hear her pacing now, her footsteps rapid on what sounds like hardwood. “I knew it! Okay, I need details. All the details. Start from the beginning and don’t leave anything out.”
“I can’t give you all the details right now,” I protest, checking my mirror again. Still there. Still following. “I’m driving.”
“Then give me the highlights. The SparkNotes version. Sierra, you’ve been dodging the Knightley Pack for two years, and suddenly you’re letting them help you through heat? This is huge!”
She’s not wrong. It is huge.
“The storm trapped us together, as you know,” I start, trying to figure out how to condense the past week into something coherent. “And my heat came on faster than expected. And they were... they were really good about it, Mia. Really respectful and careful and—”
“And?” she prompts when I trail off.
“And I think I’m in love with them.”
The words come out in a rush, unexpected even to me. But once they’re out there, I realize they’re true. Completely, terrifyingly true.
“All of them?” Mia asks, her voice gone soft with understanding.
“All of them,” I confirm, my voice barely above a whisper. “Is that crazy? It’s crazy, right? You can’t fall in love with four people in a week. That’s not how it works.”
“Sierra.” Mia’s tone is gentle now, the teasing edge gone. “You know better than anyone that designation bonds don’t follow normal timelines. Sometimes you just know.”
“But we barely know each other. Not really. We’ve been rivals for two years—”
“And apparently that rivalry was covering up something else entirely,” Mia interrupts.
“Look, I’ve seen you at those industry events.
I’ve watched you and the Knightley Pack circle each other like magnets, trying to decide if they’re going to attract or repel.
There’s been something there for a while, Sierra.
You just needed the right circumstances to figure out what it was. ”
I want to argue. Want to insist this is just heat hormones and forced proximity and biology playing tricks on my emotions.
Except it doesn’t feel like tricks.
It feels real.
“The beach house held up fine, by the way,” I say, changing the subject because I can’t handle thinking about my feelings anymore. “Some damage to the exterior, but nothing major. The window in my bedroom got stuck during the storm, but Dax and Malik fixed it.”
“Dax and Malik fixed your window,” Mia repeats slowly. “And then what, helped you build a nest? Brought you food? Made sure you were comfortable and safe?”
“All of the above,” I admit.
“And you’re in love with them.”
“And the others.”
“Right. The others.” I can hear the smile in her voice now. “Sierra, this is amazing. Terrifying, sure, but amazing. You’ve been alone for so long, convinced you wouldn’t find a pack—”
“I didn’t say I wouldn’t find a pack,” I interrupt.
“But you found one anyway. Or they found you. However it works.” She pauses. “So, what happens now? Are you going to see them again? Try to make something work?”
This is the question I’ve been avoiding all morning.
“I don’t know,” I say honestly. “They’re following me right now, but after this... I have no idea what comes next.”
“Wait, they’re FOLLOWING you?”
“In their truck. Right behind me. Have been since we left the beach house.”
Mia makes a sound that’s part squeal, part sigh. “That’s so romantic! They’re making sure you get home safe!”
“Or they’re just heading to the same city and happen to be going in the same direction.”
“Sierra.”
“What?”
“Stop trying to logic your way out of this. They’re following you because they care. Because they’re already acting like pack, even if you haven’t made it official.”
The word ‘official’ makes my stomach flip.
“I can hear you overthinking from here,” Mia says. “Whatever you’re spiraling about, stop it. Just... see what happens when you get home. Let them say whatever they came to say. And then trust your gut about what you want.”
“My gut is terrified,” I admit.
“Your gut is also apparently in love with four alphas. So maybe listen to that part instead of the terrified part.”
The city skyline appears on the horizon, familiar buildings rising against the afternoon sky. I see Sterling Tower and some other notable landmarks. My exit is coming up in five miles. Soon I’ll be back in my apartment, back in my normal life, and this entire week will feel like a fever dream.
Except it’s not a dream.
It’s real, and I have proof following in my rearview mirror.
“I should go,” I tell Mia. “I’m almost home.”
“Call me later,” she demands. “And Sierra? Whatever happens, I’m here. Okay? Whether you end up with a pack or stay solo, I’m here.”
“I know. Thank you.”
“Love you, babe.”
“Love you, too.”
I hang up and take the exit toward my neighborhood. The familiar streets feel strange after a week away. Like I’m seeing them through different eyes.
My apartment complex comes into view. I’ve lived here for three years, built my business from this one-bedroom unit, created a life that’s entirely mine.
And suddenly, the thought of going back to that solitary existence makes my stomach plummet.
I pull into my assigned parking spot and kill the engine. Sit there for a moment, hands still on the wheel, trying to center myself.
The truck pulls in behind me.
I watch in my side mirror as all four doors open. As Dax, Malik, Cole, and Jalen climb out and stand there, looking at my building, then at my car.
Waiting.
I take a breath. Another one. Then I get out.
The afternoon air is crisp and cool, nothing like the ocean breeze from the beach house. The city is alive around us. Traffic, distant sirens, someone’s bass thumping from a few buildings over. Normal sounds. Real-world sounds.
We stand there in the parking lot, all five of us, and it’s suddenly awkward in a way it hasn’t been all week.
“This is me,” I say, gesturing toward my building. “Third floor, east side.”
They look at the building, taking it in. I try to see it through their eyes. Modest. Functional. Very different from the luxury rental we just left.
“Nice neighborhood,” Malik says. “Close to downtown.”
“Good for business,” I agree. “Most of my clients are in this area.”
More silence.
This is excruciating.
“So,” I start, at the same time Dax says, “Sierra—”
We both stop.
“You first,” I say.
Dax looks at his pack brothers, and something passes between them. Some silent communication that ends with Cole nodding and Jalen making a gesture that looks like ‘go ahead.’
“Aren’t you coming home with us?” Dax asks.
The question stops my heart.
“Home?” I repeat, sure I misheard.
“Our place,” Cole clarifies, stepping forward. “We thought—we hoped—”
“We want you to come home with us, Sierra,” Malik finishes. His vanilla ice-cream scent spikes with something that smells like nervousness, which is startling. I’ve never seen Malik nervous. “If you want to.”
Jalen moves closer too, and now they’re surrounding me in the parking lot. Like they’re creating a bubble around us even in this public space.
“If I want to,” I echo, trying to process what they’re saying. “You want me to just... come home with you? After everything?”