Chapter 61
chapter
sixty-one
If I caught a fallen star in my arms, it wouldn’t be this precious.
If I learned every secret of the universe in one blink, I couldn’t feel as complete.
If someone saved my very life, I’m not sure I would be more grateful than I am right this moment.
Holding Bridget is elation and vindication. The clang of victory. All-consuming joy . Wrapped around the deepest roots of truth .
This woman is mine .
The love of my life.
The center of our pack.
Our mate .
Part of me always knew. When I saw her picture in the press, scrolled through her Instagram. Learned her face and body. Saw her mind and heart, stitched prominently onto her sleeve.
She was the reason I chose this pack.
The best damn decision I’ve ever made .
Her round blue eyes blink up at me, filling with tears. “Alpha— Adrian ,” she murmurs, letting me hold her. “W-what’s happening?”
If the glassy sheen hazing her gaze is any indication, I’d say her heat is setting in early. Probably due to all this excitement—or perhaps her Omega knowing we’ve finally seen her.
I’m not sure if our away game has anything to do with this chain of events. Did we have to get some space to realize how perfect her scent is? Were we desensitized to it before?
I think it’s more than that. We’ve all noticed the gradual change over the last couple of months. Brightening, sweetening. Always, ever closer to the exact sensation I just experienced.
Absolute rightness . Perfection.
I can tell she forgot to put de-scenter on. That, coupled with her pre-heat perfume… I must have caught her scent the second she got out of her limo.
An irrational burst of pride warms my chest at the thought. Being able to sense a mate in a crowded room is one thing—but feeling one when they aren’t even in the building yet? Our match must be strong.
Which all makes perfect sense, given the way I’ve felt about this woman since the day we met. Of course she’s my mate. Of course there could never be anyone else as right for me as Bridget.
But the confusion on my little one’s pert, pretty features also makes sense. Because, no matter how any of us felt , the final piece didn’t completely snap into place until right now. Today.
Why?
Her perfume has already shifted, nudging closer to the version I’m accustomed to. It doesn’t matter, though. The one faint trail of her absolute perfection was enough. My Alpha is convinced.
In fact, knowing his mate has been in there all along, hurting for him… he’s obsessed with her .
Hell, we both are.
We need to make sure our omega never hurts again. Which, given my rutting packmate trying to fight his way to her, might not be simple.
I have to grit my teeth to ignore Jesse’s pained roars, focusing on Bridget’s dismayed face. “We were in the ballroom, waiting for you,” I explain, cupping my palms around her arms and chasing her chills. Noting how warm her skin feels.
“Your scent hit me like a freight train,” I go on, growling low for privacy. “I’ve never—It was different than your perfume has been, but still so clearly you , little blue. By the second or third breath, my Alpha finally knew what I’ve always known.”
Bridget blinks, hope rising in her azure irises. “B-but what about…?”
An involuntary grin spreads over my face. “Your other alphas? Yeah, sweetheart, them too. We all panicked for a moment, trying to process. But they know it’s you. Even Jesse. Look.”
I direct her attention to the rest of our pack. Showing her the raging intensity in Colt’s eyes and the way Dante’s body strains toward her, even as he does everything he can to hold Jesse back.
“B-but,” Bridget whispers. “Someone said Jesse scented his mate and got upset. Then snapped into a?—”
I shake my head before she’s even done, not wanting that thought to germinate in her mind.
“No, Bridget. He scented you and immediately went into rut. There wasn’t enough time for him to think about it.
None of us could confer until we had Jesse reined in.
But the second we got to focus on the scent, we knew. ”
I lean closer, kissing her forehead. Allowing my lips to curve up in a rueful smile as I share one detail I know she’ll love. “Colt figured it out first.”
Her little gasp and the accompanying burst of creamy lemon decadence pump my knot fuller. All too aware of our audience, I pet her hair softly and add in a murmur, “Jesse might not be able to understand what’s happening yet, but I think he was heartbroken that it might not be you.”
The poor kid. He’s out of his mind now, but I know his last conscious thought was the same panicked, painful one we all experienced before the full strength of her silky, lemon meringue scent sank in.
Bridget’s posture straightens. I watch her mind spin behind her clear blue eyes, weaving itself around my words. Her manicured fingers curl into my sleeves.
“Let him come to me,” she begs breathlessly, crumpling her face into a pleading look.
My protective instincts lurch upright, lodging a swift no in my gullet. But I hold the word back, moving my focus over each tiny tremble in her expression. Debating as my thumb gently strokes her cheekbone.
Everyone will watch them.
But, then again, everyone will watch them .
Meaning nobody will ever question our undeniable connection to this woman again.
Bridget’s heat must be closer than I thought, because a whine rips up her throat, and she doesn’t even attempt to block it. “Please, alpha? I need to help him .”
Being with Bridget has truly made me into a better man. A better leader. Because two months ago, I might have refused. Taken the safest course. Tried to manage everyone’s feelings instead of hearing them.
Instead, I let her instincts speak to mine. Absorbing her absolute entreaty. The intent focus sharpening her blue gaze despite her clear pre-heat haze.
I’m here to protect her—and she’s our omega . If she needs to care for one of us, I want to support her.
Besides, if anyone can handle whatever is thrown at them, it’s my mate .
I project my full confidence, along with a burst of alpha approval. “Of course you can, sweetheart. You were so perfect during my rut. But he’s fighting the guys pretty hard, and you feel very warm?—”
She’s shaking all over, too. Of course, that doesn’t stop our perfect little mate from tossing her fiery hair and insisting, “I can do it.”
Her scent is already returning to the absolute glory we experienced in the ballroom, but when I nod and step behind her, the brilliant lemon sweetness practically glows .
I pull her into my chest, letting her feel the rumbling purr layered under my clothes.
Bending to skim my lips along her shoulder, imagining how it will feel to sink my teeth into the thin, unmarked skin.
I angle a look at the other alphas. “Let him go.”
There are gasps and titters from the onlookers. Several people in the audience jostle farther back. But I know it’s safe—the only person Jesse’s Alpha has eyes for is wrapped in my arms.
The tattooed Thorne Pack alpha drops his hold, swooping over to practically tackle his own omega. As I expected, Jesse doesn’t even turn his head. The second Dante and Colt let go, he’s a blur.
Aimed right at Bridget.