Chapter 24 #2
"Your knot," she moans, and there's something wild in her voice. Something desperate and primal. "Can feel it getting bigger. Stretching me every time you thrust. Want it, Seth. Want you to knot me. Want you to fill me up and lock inside me."
The words make my knot swell even more, and I can feel myself getting close. Too close. Way too close. I'm not going to last much longer and I don't know if that's normal or if I'm doing this wrong or—
"Want you to bite me too," she gasps, and something primal surges through me. The urge to mark her, to claim her, hits me like a physical force. No. Wait. That's—that's a bond. That's permanent. "Want your bite. Want your bond. Want you to claim me. Make me yours forever. Please, Seth."
"Seth, no—" Grayson's voice, sharp with warning. "Not yet. She's in heat. It's just the heat talking—"
"I know," I gasp out, fighting every instinct. But she sounds like she's in pain. Every sob, every desperate plea—I can hear how much she's hurting, and it's killing me.
But I'm too close. My knot swells, catching at her entrance, and with one more thrust it pops inside.
"Seth, please—" She's sobbing, her hands in my hair. "I love you. I love you so much. Please bite me. Need your bite. Need your mark—"
The pressure, the heat, the way she clenches around me—I'm coming, unable to stop it. My knot swells fully, locking us completely together as my release pulses into her.
"I love you," she's crying, pulling my face to her throat. Baring her neck. "Please, Seth, claim me. Bond me. I love you—please—"
Her words, the desperation, the love in her voice—it's too much. I can't think. Can't resist. My teeth find the junction of her neck and shoulder and I bite down, breaking skin.
The bond snaps into place instantly.
She screams, coming with me, her whole body convulsing. Her emotions flood into me—pleasure and relief and love and rightness—and I can feel through the bond that she meant it. She loves me. She really loves me.
We're locked together. Knotted. Bonded.
When awareness returns, I'm collapsed on top of her. Still knotted, still tied together, my teeth still in her neck. I can feel her through the bond—sated and satisfied and happy.
Slowly, carefully, I release my bite. Licking over the wound to help it heal faster. The claiming mark is already forming, my scent permanently embedded in her skin.
"Oh god." Reality crashes in. "Oh god, I bit you. I bonded you. Bea, I'm so sorry—"
I can feel everything she feels through the bond now—the satisfaction of being knotted and claimed and bonded. The love she has for me, overwhelming and certain. Real.
"Oh god." The words tumble out as reality crashes in. "Oh god, I bit you. I bonded you. Bea, I'm so sorry—you asked but you were in heat, you weren't thinking straight, and I should've said no, should've been stronger—"
"Seth." Her hand cups my face. Gentle but firm. "Look at me."
I force myself to meet her eyes. Bracing for anger. For regret.
But she's smiling. Tears streaming down her face, but she's smiling.
"I meant it," she says softly. "Every word. I wanted your bite. Wanted your bond. I love you, Seth Monroe. Heat didn't make me say it—it just made me brave enough to admit it."
"But—" I'm shaking now, overwhelmed. "What if you regret it later? What if when your heat breaks you wish—"
"I won't." She sounds so certain. "I won't regret you. Ever."
Through the bond, I can feel the truth of her words. The absolute conviction. The love radiating from her like sunlight.
"I love you too," I whisper. "So much. I'm sorry I bonded you without asking properly first. I'm sorry I didn't wait until—"
"Stop apologizing." She's still crying, but they're happy tears. "You gave me exactly what I needed."
River appears beside us with water, and Grayson has a cloth. Neither of them look angry—just understanding.
Thirty minutes tied to her. Thirty minutes to process that I just permanently bonded my omega while she was in heat. Thirty minutes to freak out about whether I've ruined everything.
But through the bond, I can feel her contentment. Her satisfaction. Her love.
"Stop panicking," she murmurs, nuzzling into my neck. "I can feel you freaking out. I'm okay. We're okay."
"You're sure?" I need to hear it again.
"I'm sure." She presses a kiss to my throat, right over my pulse point. "Best accidental bonding ever."
Despite everything—the fear, the shock, the overwhelming emotions—I laugh. "Accidental bonding?"
"Well, you didn't exactly plan it." She's grinning now. "But I'm not complaining. Now you're stuck with me forever."
"Good." I tighten my arms around her carefully. "That's exactly where I want to be."
Grayson settles on one side of us, River on the other. Their scents mixing with ours until the whole nest smells like pack. Like family.
"How are you feeling?" River asks Bea quietly.
"Good." She considers. "Actually, really good. The emptiness—it's not just better, it's gone. Like the bond filled something that knotting couldn't."
"That's normal," Grayson confirms. "Bonding satisfies something deeper than just heat."
"Is my heat breaking?" She sounds almost disappointed.
"Probably." River strokes her hair. "You'll likely sleep for several hours, and when you wake up, the desperate edge should be gone. You'll still be in heat for another day or so, but it'll be manageable."
"So I still get to sleep with all of you?" The hopeful note in her voice makes all three of us laugh.
"Yes," I assure her. "Heat or no heat, you're stuck with us now."
My knot starts to deflate, and the feeling of slipping free makes both of us wince. Immediately, Grayson's there with the warm cloth, cleaning her gently while River helps me shift to the side.
"How do you feel?" River asks me seriously. "First time is intense. First bonding is even more so."
He doesn't say "first time having sex ever" but we all know that's what he means.
"Overwhelmed," I admit. "Scared I messed up. But also—" I look at Bea, curled against me with my bite mark visible on her throat. "—happy. Really, really happy."
"Good." Grayson's hand on my shoulder, grounding. "Because you did great. She's satisfied, safe, and bonded. That's everything that matters."
"For your first time with anyone, ever." River adds quietly. "You were incredible, Seth. Instincts took over exactly like they were supposed to."
"She never would have known you were nervous," Grayson confirms. "You took care of her perfectly."
The praise makes my chest warm. They're not judging me. Not making me feel pathetic for being a twenty-seven-year-old now ex-virgin. They're just... supportive. Like pack should be.
Bea's already falling asleep, the combination of satisfaction and bonding and exhaustion pulling her under. I start purring automatically, the deep rumble designed to soothe and comfort.
"We should talk," River says quietly. "About the bonding."
"Later," Grayson decides. "Let them rest. We can figure out logistics when she's out of heat."
"I didn't mean to bond her without talking to you guys first," I say, guilt creeping in. "I know we're all supposed to decide together—"
"Seth." River's voice is firm but kind. "Stop. You bonded her because she asked you to. Because she needed it. We're not upset."
"We're happy for you," Grayson adds. "Both of you. Now get some sleep. You're going to need your energy when she wakes up."
Right. Heat might be breaking, but it's not over yet. She'll need us again before this is through.
But for now, she's safe and satisfied and mine. Ours. Our bonded omega, sleeping peacefully in our nest, surrounded by pack.
I press my face into her hair, breathing in her scent—cinnamon-apple mixed with my cedar and rain now, permanently altered by our bond.
"I love you," I whisper, knowing she can probably feel it through the bond even in sleep.
And through that connection, I feel her response. Her love.
Everything else—the fear, the uncertainty, the worry about whether I did it right—fades away. Because at the end of the day, this is what matters.
She's ours. We're hers. We're pack.
And that's everything.