Chapter 41
Chapter
Forty-One
SIMONA
“ T his feels so surreal,” I murmur quietly. There’s no need to talk loudly, the four of us have barely given each other an inch of space.
The newness of our bond is one thing, but the bigger part of our endless touching is we can. At least in their home.
After our bubble bath, in the most amazing and oversized tub I have ever seen, I got bundled up in a combination of their clothes. Pretty much every Omega’s dream.
Ryder’s socks and his sweatpants are way too big but after he rolled down the waist and folded the legs up, it worked. Similarly, Dominic’s shirt and Hendrix’s hoodie could have been worn as dresses. I probably look like a tramp and would be worried but the way the three of them keep growling and nipping my skin with love bites has me thinking I’m a goddess.
“Last room,” Hendrix says, walking backwards and pulling me out of the arms of the others.
Interestingly there’s a wicked giggle from Ryder and Dominic though, it gives me pause. I don’t let go of Hen’s hand, but I do twist around to face them. Dominic’s eyes are shut, and Ryder’s got a cheeky smile, whispering something at Dom only he can hear. Whatever he’s saying mustn’t be great, Dom grimaces, and behind me Hendrix laughs so loud it makes me jump.
His hands are on my hips, one tug and I’m back tucked under his arm and he’s filling me in on what I’ve missed. “Dominic needed a place where he could do conference calls or important meetings, and the interior designer ran with a couple of Dom’s off the cuff remarks. The result is…”
“An abomination.” Dominic groans, his voice completely devoid of any joy.
The other two start laughing louder.
I reach out for his hand, feeling bad for him if I’m honest, but before we can touch, Hendrix holds my arm down, not letting me comfort Dominic. “It’s his own fault. He could have told the designer he messed it up probably ten times or so during the install. Instead, he was feeling sorry for him. And we haven’t changed it because it’s a reminder to him to pay better attention. Isn’t that right, babe?”
“Watch your mouth, Innamorato,” Dom hisses. And I’d be getting worried except for the smallest tip of a smirk on his lips. He runs a hand down his newly trimmed beard, closing his eyes like he’s talking himself either into or out of something. “I felt sorry for our designer, okay. He was so proud of the finished room, I couldn’t very well say it gives me hives even thinking of setting foot in here.”
I go to say something but both Hen and Ryder start laughing. It’s obvious it’s a long-standing joke between them.
Dominic ignores them, his attention on me, “Anyway, now I have the perfect excuse.” He grins triumphantly at Hendrix.
“You are not hiding behind our Omega.” Hendrix steers me towards the room. “Get on the phone to the designer and admit to him you don’t like it.”
“He featured it on his design page,” Dominic argues, making the others chuckle.
Ryder rubs Dominic’s shoulders condescendingly and is obviously patronising when he speaks. “And you should have been honest from the start, and we wouldn’t be about to show our Omega the mess you made.”
Hendrix is on a mission which is to show me the room. He opens the door and gives me a gentle push inside it. The three of them stay in the hallway, and I’m left alone in the room. And straight away, I understand the joke firsthand because the room is horrid. Like really, really bad.
I can’t stop looking at it either. It’s almost like watching a car wreck happening in slow motion, impossible to look away from. My hand covers my mouth. “Dom, what were you thinking?”
I hear a groan, then his body is curling around me, his scent filling my nose. “My thoughts were consumed by a case. I wanted the same aesthetic and feel as Hen’s office at Noire…”
“But you got Bridgerton season three. I mean, on the television it looks great but in real life.” I walk further into the room, leaving them snickering, but I can’t stop giggling either. “Dom, it’s really awful. It doesn’t suit you at all.”
He groans, louder and longer this time. “I know that!”
I try to find something positive, and besides the structure of the room there’s not much. Even the carpet the designer installed is a pukey green colour, but I’ll give him credit where credit is due, it exactly matches the paint and the detailing on the walls.
“The view is pretty amazing,” I offer.
Dominic tips his head to the side, his thoughts taking him down a different path. But a few seconds later he physically shakes himself and almost immediately he’s got something brewing in his eyes.
“Simona, what about if we turn this into your space? Until you finish at Unity you could use it as a study, and then once you graduate, we could have it turned into whatever you want. A place to write, paint or even just your own room where you watch television or have your friends over.”
We go from giving Dominic smack about his awful room to talking about our future.
“I kind of…”
He directs to the floor-to-ceiling windows, leaving me to take in the view while he grabs the cushions off the green velveteen lounges, as well as all the ghastly paisley printed pillows. Dominic gets busy, and then Hen and Ryder catch on. Together they make a safe place for us to talk.
He sits, and I crawl to the place he indicates between his legs. As I lean back against him, Hen and Ryder settle nearby, lying on pillows. Together, we start talking about how we each envision our pack life beginning.
“I’m not sure what comes first,” I admit, “but I would like the Certification from the government I receive upon graduation from Unity. I’m not sure if it’s really as valuable as they dangle in front of you, but it’s my safety net. Although, in light of Dominic’s assistance, I’ll probably get back and find out I’ve been expelled from Unity because my fees have not been paid.”
Ryder squeezes his hand around my ankle. “Sin, would you please consider letting us pay your tuition for the rest of the year. And being completely transparent, Dominic already outlined to us that Brody has been being a dick by controlling your finances. We don’t want to bulldoze into your life and just pay out the rest of your Unity fees, or anything else, without talking with you first. We would love nothing more than the opportunity of investing in you and your future. ”
“Or we can set up your own account completely separate from ours. Alternatively, we make you a signatory on our main account so you can make those decisions without asking. It’s something we’ve already set up for each of us. I mean we’d hope you’d talk with us about big decisions but it’s only because we’re interested in you, not because we’re cross checking or countering your motivation. And the final suggestion, we could help you find a part time job,” Hendrix says, adapting to the seriousness of the conversation and sounding like a successful businessman more so than a bossy Alpha.
A wave of gratitude crashes down. They’re not rushing in and simply assuming they can make decisions on my behalf. But it’s also how they’re giving me options. I knew the situation I was in wasn’t normal, and I also knew the three of them lived entirely different. They’re very honest and involved with each other. At the same time, their offer of assistance is very, very thoughtful.
I play with the small balls of fluff on Ryder’s socks while I talk. “I said before, emancipating is potentially and likely going to leave me with nothing. The founding families will band together, more so than usual, and I will become an example parents use to manipulate their daughters behaviour. I expect things to get vicious. I’m ready for it in a lot of ways. Especially now.”
I take my time to look at each of them, hoping they see how happy I am to be theirs in spite of what it’s cost me. I get a sweet acknowledgement and a blaze of their presence through our bond, reminding me I’m not alone.
“I won’t be surprised if I’m written out of my parents’ inheritance. I’ll be very sad, but like I said, I’m expecting things to become intentionally hostile in their retaliation. Although in hindsight, my parents probably amended their will and made Brody as a beneficiary of the Vanderling fortune as soon as confirmation of our packing was formalised. The Vanderling family come from generational wealth although it is hidden behind shelf companies, trusts and overseas accounts, all of which fall under ‘men’s’ business. On paper it was mine, but practically it never was.” I take a quick inhale, wanting everything out of my thoughts and into something we can talk about. “I’m really overwhelmed by your offer, and the options you’ve provided. And I’m probably going to shock you by making a quick decision without any angst, but we’re pack and I’m leaning into that. You’ve already given me so much as to who you are individually and you’ve never hidden how you work as a pack—which is open, honest, driven by your love and respect for each other. I want that, just like I wanted each of you.” Another steadying exhale before I keep going. “I’ve never had my own account that wasn’t managed by someone else, so I’d like my own, please. I’d also like to be added to the main pack account. And lastly, I’d love a part time job.”
I’ve barely finish speaking and they perfume for me. Pride fills the ugly Bridgerton room turning it into a happy place.
Hendrix pounces, covering me with his body before he kisses the absolute daylights out of me. Leaving me gasping for air, and deliciously happy. Before he gets up, he whispers in my ear. “You’re incredible, sweetheart. We’re the luckiest Alphas in the world, being able to call you ours.”
“I think I’m the lucky one.”
“Not sure I’d feel lucky if this was my room,” he teases, pressing his nose to mine. “I’ll go arrange your bank accounts. And also, keys and cards to our other house and Noire and Dominic’s office. Ryder will go through how security runs when he tours.”
“All that is happening today?”
“Of course, Simona. Our future started. Now, we’re just catching up with all the necessary administration side of our pack. I’m also going to arrange some food for us to be delivered, so let me know what you feel like. Once we’ve spent the afternoon talking, eating and hopefully fucking you again, we will beg you to stay but let you win the argument you want to return to Unity. All of us will drive you to the gate, Dominic will be speaking with the Omega Mothers, and I’ll slip my fingers inside your panties and kiss you goodbye. Only leaving us for a few short hours though, hopefully.”
Like always, he conjures up vivid imagery as well as bringing another wave of heat to my core. He sits up, staring deep into my eyes and must see what he was looking for because he rolls up, and walks out the room.
“I’m just going to grab your phone so you can start messaging people back properly.”
I twist to look at Hendrix but he’s already at the door.
“I had messages?” I ask Dom. I mean, I knew I would, but my phone hasn’t been a priority.
“Nothing huge. We would have gotten through to you if there was anything urgent. And you did actually respond to a couple not that you’d remember.”
“Oh my god, Dominic, you let me text while I was dick drunk?”
“We wouldn’t let you embarrass yourself,” he growls but it’s also like a filthy, dirty laugh rolled into one. And then he intentionally drops down so I can read the surge of protectiveness dancing in his deep brown eyes.
It’s such a different mindset and feeling, having an Alpha who’s driven by a need to care. Interestingly, I’m finding it takes nearly no effort on my behalf to accept it either. Scent matched mates are ideal partners for a reason, and besides that fact, I feel so goddamn safe with them on every conceivable level.
My fingers scratch his chin; the stubble is long enough to feel silky instead of spiky. So nice. Especially between my thighs.
I freeze up, my eyes must look like they’re going to pop out of my head. They definitely feel like it. But I’m so shocked by how easy, and good, it felt to associate him with being intimate. Then I wait for embarrassment to appear, and it doesn’t. What does appear is Dominic. He grabs my hand and presses it to his growing erection.
“Your eyes are full of things you want me to do to you. How am I ever going to be able to leave you to work?”
I hum against his lips, while my hand moves up and down him without his help. “Come work here then. It’s probably safer anyway, in case I need my Alpha to fill my mouth.”
He stills, while his designation becomes like a bulldozer pushing me down until I’m on my back under him. My heart races not from fear but in response to him on a primal level and the way he looks like he’s about to devour me.
“It’s true though, Dom. I’ve heard some Omegas regress in their heat,” I say after being his captive for a few seconds. “You’d hardly notice me. I promise I’d let you work, until I needed to remind my tongue of the taste of your big cock and tried to deep …”
He presses his hand to my mouth. Silencing me as best he can but I’m laughing against his hand while continuing being suggestive in our bond. Overly suggestive. I continue winding him up however I can, watching his eyes darken with his desire, his scent twisting under the influence of his obvious arousal.
Hendrix suddenly appears, looming above us. He doesn’t say anything, just curls one of his eyebrows up in silent question.
Dominic hisses, not removing his hand. “You know what she said to me, Hendrix? She said I should work here because who knows when our Omega would need her mouth filled with my come.”
Both Hendrix’s eyebrows rise, and he rocks back on his heels. “She said that?”
A sound like grinding rocks comes from Dom’s chest in answer. But I’m busy wiggling my eyebrows in answer.
Hendrix bends down so he’s eye level with Dominic. Once Dominic stops glaring at me and looks at Hendrix, Hen speaks. “What the fuck are you still doing here then? You could already have your laptop open, your case files next to you, your cock down her throat. Babe, look at me. Tell me, are you okay, or do you need to go have a nap?” Hendrix shakes Dominic.
Which is the point I lose it completely, giggling so bad that Dom has to take his hand off my mouth so I don’t die from lack of oxygen. I get another glare before he stands up and storms off. And after a wink from Hendrix, he also leaves.
“It’s like peak hour traffic in here,” Ryder mumbles, jumping out of the way, narrowly avoiding both Dominic and Hendrix.
He comes with my bag in his hand, and places it next to me before he kneels down to my level. With a gentle smile, he brushes his hand through my hair, catching all the small flyaways.
“I love seeing your eyes, Sin. And your nose. Actually, your lips aren’t half bad either.” His voice is intimate, his scent sits heavy in the space we share. “I feel like you’ve always been in my life but at the same time I’m so impatient I don’t know everything about you yet.”
“I get that,” I say, pulling him down.
Ryder sits in front of me before shuffling up between my legs, grabbing one of my arms and holding it to his chest. “Is it okay if I sit here and do some work? ”
“Of course.”
He leans up, his honey-coloured eyes so warm today. “Can we run through your schedule? I’d like to see when you’re free so you could join me on the road for a couple of nights.”
“Really?”
“Hell, yes. I can’t wait for you to meet the team and sit up on stage with me. Honestly, Sin, there’s so much I want to share and do with you. I think starting with my music is a great place.”
“Won’t your agent hate me being around? Won’t I ruin your marketability with all the single ladies who want to date you?”
“Nah, my fans are going to adore you. If they don’t, I’ll find new ones,” he says sincerely.
I splutter a noisy laugh that he waves off. “Honestly, Sin, what other people think of us isn’t my concern. Falling in love with you, then watching the same happen between you and Dom, and you and Hen is all I want. The rest is incidental.”
“I’m not sure your team would be thrilled to hear you say that, Rye.”
He shrugs, completely unconcerned. “So, that’s a yes to coming on tour with me? We even get to share a bunk.” He waggles his eyebrows suggestively.
“Do we now?”
“Yeah, but you know I won’t let anyone else on the bus with us. Right? Then I get to keep my promise to use my tongue to write lyrics as we travel from town to town.” His voice drops lower, his scent thickens so much it tickles my skin. “And I’ve got lots of songs that need writing, Sin. I never get those damn lyrics right the first time either. Such a bummer.”
I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to stem off the sudden rush of fire burning through my blood. The thought alone of him buried face deep in me for hours is a good one.
I push him away. Gently. “Ryder, no offense, but I think you might need to go work somewhere else.”
I feel his laughter vibrating through his back and into my chest. “No chance, Sin. I’ll be good while you make your calls, and then I’m pretty sure I heard Hen’s idea of…”
Then it’s Ryder’s turn to get silenced by my hand on his mouth. I leave it there until his scent stops smelling like honey-dipped sex.
Reaching over with my spare hand, I drag the work he brought placing it on his lap before I hold my phone up in front of his face as I power it up.
The mood between us shifts when alert after alert hits.
My light-hearted happiness starts to dissolve the more sounds my phone makes. He scoops an arm around my leg, holding me tight. Without saying a word I know he’s letting me know he’s here for me.
I flick through the screen, somewhat relieved that the alerts aren’t as important as I initially thought. The most concerning is from the chat the girls and I are in; Heidi has been offline too long. I scroll back through the chat, catching up on what’s been happening while I was in heat, grimacing at the message I sent saying I was ‘indisposed’. The girls are going to give me so much grief for that comment, I mean it’s not great.
I barely finish reading another thread between Tristan and Raney, both of them also chatting about Heidi and not being able to get through, when my phone lights up. Tristan’s details flash on my screen.
“Far out, Rye, do I look okay?” I ask, suddenly worried about how I’m going to spin where I am, and what I’ve been doing. Indisposed is never going to cut it for the girls. Seriously, what the hell was I thinking?
Ryder moves so fast my head is spinning. But in a couple of experienced moves, he has my hair straightened out, my face looking fresh. My surprise must be written on my face. He smiles as he answers. “I’m a pro at this, don’t forget. Getting ready for promo in a few seconds is a necessity in my line of business. I had a stylist working with me because I had to also deal with the makeup and costume, but it’s easy when you know the basics. Hendrix likes to test I’m still at the top of my game getting ready in a flash, which gives Dominic heart palpitations, but…” He smirks as he keeps running his hand over my hair and face.
Tristan’s call nearly rings out, but I give us an extra few seconds by requesting a FaceTime call with her instead.
She accepts my call, and the way her phone jerks around, almost the same as mine does, doesn’t make me suspicious, it makes me feel relieved. We’ve all got secrets but that doesn’t stop us being there for each other. I definitely want to tell the girls I’m packed, because holy heck, plus I want them to meet Ryder, Dominic and Hendrix as soon as we can. But until the emancipation is done and Brody is dealt with, I’m not prepared to. Also, there’s no way I’m telling the girls something so momentous and amazing in our thread. It needs to happen face to face.
The call barely connects, and Tristan is talking. “Any news?”
Typical Tris. Which is a relief, and lets me know in a roundabout way, she’s safe and happy.
I smile, for her benefit but also to let Dominic and Hendrix know I’m on the phone so they don’t start talking as they walk back in. “Hello, I’m well, thanks for asking.”
Tristan might be okay but she’s certainly up to something. My suspicion increases when she keeps talking a mile a minute as she wiggles around, trying for subtlety but I’m pretty sure she’s never been subtle. She’s trying to undress, or hide something, and a flash of a snow jacket appears before it disappears. And then as a way to hide her slip up, Tristan starts somehow talking even faster. Typical Tristan avoidance strategy.
“Are you okay, Sim? I knew you would be which is why I’ve left you alone, not bothering you too much, but the other not exciting news is that I got caught in a storm! And… I may have just smoked, so go easy.”
Dominic walks across the room, his briefcase in hand. “Sounds like fun,” I answer Tristan belatedly. In my defence, I was getting lost in what Dom and I were talking about before. I have to shake myself to stay present, and my pack obviously see my struggle and they chuckle quietly, knowing I’m fighting a losing battle.
Before I get a chance to say anything either of them, I try adding Heidi to the chat. And it works.
“Wow! Hang on. I think I got through to her.” I juggle a few different conversations at the one time.
“Put her through!” Tristan demands.
I ignore her dramatics, focusing on patching Heidi into our chat without losing the connection.
All the while my mates are distracting me. Simply by breathing if I’m honest.
And because of them, and the stress of being the one to coordinate everything, I don’t notice Raney’s already in a call with Heidi, so when the connection works all we get is the reverberation of Raney’s screams. My phone nearly goes flying through the roof.
That stops Dom and Hendrix dead in their tracks. I laugh at my mates; the girls miss it. Interestingly, Tristan acts even weirder when Raney’s face appears in our four-way video chat. I’m the only one to notice it but that’s nothing new in our group dynamic where the girls are the energy. I watch their antics quietly and from a safer distance.
Tristan steals the attention. “Did you keep the kittens?”
Raney’s face twists into a grimace when Heidi lifts up a kitten, and it gives Tristan another chance to keep covering her tracks—diversion 101.
“Oh, Heidi, you did.” A wave of Heidi’s happiness surprises me and draws my attention back into the conversation.
Tristan starts talking about cat clothes until she stops mid-sentence and leans in to the screen to look at Raney. She then dissolves into instant hysterics. Her face goes bright red, and she’s got tears in her eyes. I mean I get it—Raney’s doing a terrible job hiding how she feels about the kitten Heidi is proudly holding up. But hairless animals aren’t for everyone.
Our call descends into chaos as the girls all start talking at once, adding crazy hand gestures, making it near impossible for anyone but us to understand what is going on or even keep up with what we’re talking about. A quick glance at Dominic and Ryder, both wide-eyed, proves my point.
The girls get caught up in some pretty funny banter, I stay quiet, keeping out of the firing line if I’m honest, until Heidi interrupts and stops us in our tracks. “I have news!”
The silence that hits is instant. You could hear a pin drop. We wait for an explanation, but Heidi takes too long to answer, and Raney pushes gently, tentatively, for an explanation. “Good news?”
Heidi makes a point of looking directly at each of us. And I’m shocked she lets us see she’s actually dreamy-eyed. Her voice is overflowing with happiness. “It’s getting better.”
Raney’s anxiety gets worse, making her sound like a bitch, but she’s not; she’s just having trouble expressing her shock, elation and worry. “Update then, I need to go get knotted then sleep for a year or two.”
Heidi locks up, but her eyes keep sparkling and filling with obvious happiness. I think it might be the first time I’ve ever seen her tongue tied. My heart thuds hard and worry darkens Raney’s and Tristan’s expressions. Heidi’s mouth moves but still nothing comes out, and then Kai, the Alpha she had a weekend away with not that long ago, pops into the camera view. “Hey, ladies, looking good as always. I promise I’m treating her like a queen.”
I look at Tristan, making sure I’m seeing what I’m seeing. And she is. Of course she beats me to speaking. “Fuck me, Kai is your news?”
“He’s working on his make good,” Heidi says, looking directly at each of us. Almost as if she’s daring us to challenge her decision to reconnect with him. We never would. We would make sure she’s safe though. And we do.
“Is he with you at Verdune Estate?” I ask. If he is there, it’s a sign of her trust. Heidi’s home is her sanctuary, and she’s very, very selective as to who she lets visit her there.
“Yes.” She holds my gaze. And in one word my anxiety for her welfare halves.
Tristan goes to say something, but Heidi interrupts and starts talking fast, giving us a lot of the detail and no time to absorb any of it. She unloads. Not defensively, she’s just really, really excited. And heart happy.
It’s like taking the cork out of a shaken champagne bottle. Heidi explodes into a ball of excitement and keeps talking and talking. Her entire plans have changed. She’s being courted by Pack Alastor, Kai’s pack, even after he did the dirty on her. Heidi even admits Pack Alastor have been relentless in their grovelling since they messed up.
“He and his pack are aware of how badly they messed up. They understand there are no second chances, they do me wrong ever and we’re history. Like history, history. But as of now, we’re working on finding our way. We’ve got things we need to sort out, but sorting out those issues is something we can do together. ”
I’m so damn proud of her for taking a risk with love. I knew what she felt towards Kai and his pack was much more than she was letting on. I saw the well of pain in her eyes after she broke things off with them. They must be very important to Heidi if she is admitting her true feelings to us.
Raney has tears in her eyes. “Ho, do we need to talk about travel arrangements to see you being packed?”
Heidi looks off screen. And it’s an easy assumption she’s looking at Kai, because her features soften. She’s quiet, lost in thought but eventually she answers with a nod. And it’s enough, but she also confirms it in a handful of words. “Yeah, you should probably expect a call with times and dates sometimes soon. Okay, bye, I love you bitches like I’ve never loved anyone. I have to run.”
And then her screen goes blank, and she disappears from our chat.
I’ve got tears in my eyes. Raney’s speechless, and Tristan is squealing, “Did she just say what I think she said?”
But before we can say anything, Heidi is back in the call. Her voice sounds like she’s far away but impossible to ignore. “Make me come?”
Raney and Tristan mirror me, our mouths drop open, and we stare at each other.
A soft moan floats through our chat.
No one says a word or moves an inch. I mean, I can’t do either. I’m drowning in second-hand embarrassment. Clearly Heidi thinks she’s hung up on us, but she hasn’t. We can hear her and Kai getting down and dirty.
Then I realise I need to sever our connection for her sake, but also mine. Before I can find a way to end our four-way call Tristan starts talking and moaning like a porn star. “Ho! Put a bit of emotion in it… Kai, baby, please use your fat tongue and lick me clean. ”
It’s mortifying. And hilarious. I’m not sure what to do—laugh or cry.
My eyes fly to Hendrix and Dominic, but before I can do or say anything, Kai’s back. “Already been doing that, ladies. She’s so close I can taste it.”
The man has no shame! Which is as shocking as hearing our bestie making sex noises.
Tristan and Raney are laughing in between bouts of offering more coaching, our call spiralling back into chaos until Heidi finally manages to disconnect— properly this time.
I’m gobsmacked, staring at the blank screen on my phone, unable to speak. For so many reasons.
“Well.” Hendrix interrupts my shock. “That was somehow interesting and terrifying at the same time.”
I hold my hand up, needing more time to process everything that happened in our phone call. Because it was mortifying but also a lot happened. Heidi is back with Kai and Pack Alastor and they’re apparently claiming her as their Omega. On top of that, equally important, Tristan is hiding something pretty massive, albeit poorly. While Raney wasn’t her usual self. Raney is normally the most stable out of all of us, and her being bitchy has me worried.
On top of all that, my pack are going to think, rightly too, that my girls are absolutely stark raving lunatics.
“I guess the good news is I’m the quiet one?” I say although it most certainly comes out like a question, drawing amusement from Hendrix.
Dom still looks a little thrown.
“All okay?” I ask, suddenly nervous.
“Obviously, I knew you were going away to see Siderno getting packed because you know his Omega. Strangely, that fact is just sinking in now.”
I search Dominic’s face for a hint of where his thoughts are headed before asking, “How so?”
“Raney Grady is Siderno’s Omega, and she is also one of your girlfriends. I’ve met her, helped her with an ex who was giving her issues.”
“And that’s the guy that took her on her packing day.”
“But that woman I heard just now was not the same person I had sitting next to me in a meeting, Simona. Her voice was the same but she… she…”
I don’t mean to laugh at Dominic’s obvious struggle, and I crawl to him, climbing on his lap. To comfort him, but also because if I have a choice of sitting on nothing or curling up on one of my mates, clearly, I’ll always go for the second option.
“She is one and the same.” I cup my hands around his face, trying to get rid of his mood.
When he opens his eyes, Dominic throws me for a spin, exactly like Raney just did to him. His mood has flipped upside down. There’s feral rage in his eyes now and it looks like it’s threatening to derail him. “What? What’s happened, Dominic?”
His scent becomes bitter. And he doesn’t try to hide his mood, or the reason for it.
“I just got a very visual reminder of the power some people hold over others. I saw Raney, spoke with her and I knew she was stressed by the situation, as expected. But she was subdued in our interaction. Nothing compared to the vivacious and confident woman I saw now. And then I feel you in our bond. I look at you and I realise I would raze the world if someone did that to you. But someone did hurt you very badly, Amore Mio, and now I’m thinking emancipation isn’t enough. I want to make every person pay with blood and anything else I deem suitable payment for what you had to endure.”
I wrap my arms around his shoulders, so his skin is on mine and our breath is mingling as one. Letting him feel the reality that I am in his arms. “I’m okay, Dominic. I hate seeing you angry like this.”
“They fucking hurt you.” His confession is heavy and hard, I feel the pain of his words and his anguish.
“They’ll never get another chance, Dominic. Because of you, Hendrix, and Ryder will always be with me.”
He makes such an awful sound. Like a rabid wolf growl, half in agony, half in unfathomable fury.
I pump our bond full of sweet reminders of where I am—with him. I don’t rush what I say either. “I finally get the chance of finding happiness and falling in love. But it won’t happen if you’re consumed by anger or a need for revenge on my behalf that it steals you away from me. I want to be the one who makes you so angry you can’t think straight, not them. Please, Dom, from this second on, don’t let my past play such a big part in our future. In your office, if it’s legal crap we’re dealing with, then sure, but in our home, they shouldn’t be here.”
Perhaps because it really is a day of revelations, I realise what we need to do next. My stomach plummets and my scent dips, making him pull my face up to stare into my eyes.
“What, Simona?”
I take a steadying inhale, tugging on our bond to draw Hendrix and Ryder to me. Safely cocooned between them—in the middle of a three-way cuddle, wrapped in the intoxicating blend of my Alphas’ scents—I speak aloud, more as an admission to myself than anything else, what they’ve likely already realised.
“You have to override Brody’s bark with yours. Each of you. You have to barkme submissive. I can’t have him being able to influence me anymore. Ever.”
“Oh, sweetheart,” Hendrix says, his mouth pressed against that spot under my ear he loves so much .
Ryder’s head sits heavy on my shoulder, and I swear I hear him in my mind whispering promises, and praises.
Dominic wraps his hands around my face and holds my attention. “Jesus, Simona, your trust is such a sight to see. If that is what you need, of course we will, but Amore Mio, we own you. A bark will not alter the bonds that bind us. Our claims on your body, and soul, are louder, more influential than anything else in the world.”