Chapter 30 Bea
Bea
Iwake up surrounded by alphas and I'm pretty sure this is what heaven feels like.
The nest. Our nest. Where we sleep every night now because apparently my alphas are clingy territorial bastards who can't stand the thought of me being in a different room.
Not that I'm complaining.
Seth is pressed against my back, his arm draped over my waist, his breath warm against my shoulder. River is sprawled on my other side, one leg thrown over mine, snoring softly. And Grayson—I can feel him through the bond even though I can't see him—is awake, watching us from the edge of the nest.
"Morning," he says quietly when my eyes open.
"Creeper," I mutter, but there's no heat in it. Through our bond, I feel his amusement.
"Can't help it. You're all cute when you're sleeping."
"We are not cute."
"You drool."
"I do not—" But Seth's arm tightens around me and I feel his sleepy laughter through our bond.
"You do," he confirms, his voice rough with sleep. "Just a little."
"Traitor." But I'm smiling, sinking back into the warmth of the nest. Into them.
Three bonds hum contentedly in my chest. Seth's warm and steady. River's bright and playful. Grayson's deep and intense. All of them weaving together until I can't tell where I end and they begin.
This. This is what I was so terrified of letting myself want.
River stirs, makes a grumpy sound, and burrows closer. His arm slides around my stomach and he sighs, content.
"Five more minutes," he mumbles.
"You said that twenty minutes ago," Grayson points out.
"And I'll say it again in five minutes." River's voice is muffled against my neck. "Nest is warm. Omega is soft. Not moving."
"We have things to do today," Seth says, but he's not moving either. His hand is drawing lazy circles on my hip, and I can feel his contentment through the bond.
"What things?" I ask.
"Dinner at your parents' house," Grayson reminds me. "Your mom texted three times yesterday to confirm we're coming."
Right. Family dinner. Where my parents will inevitably interrogate my alphas about our intentions and Ben will glower protectively and I'll want to sink through the floor.
"Can't we just stay here forever?" I ask hopefully.
"No," all three of them say at once.
"Your mother will come get us herself," Seth adds. "And she scares me."
"Good. She should." I stretch, feeling pleasantly sore from last night. River woke me up at two in the morning with his mouth between my thighs and things escalated from there. "She raised me. She knows all my tricks."
"Speaking of tricks," River says, finally lifting his head to look at me. His blue eyes are still sleepy but filled with mischief. "Did you finish that proposal for the diner?"
"Sent it yesterday." I can't keep the satisfaction out of my voice. "Millie loved it. Wants to hire me to revamp their entire social media presence."
"That's the fifth client this month," Grayson observes. He's moved closer now, his hand finding my ankle, thumb stroking the bone there. "You're going to need help soon."
"I know." It's terrifying and thrilling in equal measure. "I'm actually thinking about hiring an assistant. Someone to handle the basic stuff so I can focus on strategy."
Through the bonds, I feel their pride. Their satisfaction that I'm succeeding.
"Told you," River says smugly. "Told you that you were brilliant at this."
"You told me I was going to take over the world," I correct.
"Same thing. Just starting with Honeyridge Falls." He grins, that easy smile that makes my stomach flip. "Soon you'll have clients from Pine Valley. Then Missoula. Then—"
"Then I'll need a bigger office," I finish. "And probably therapy for the stress."
"We'll help with the stress," Seth murmurs against my shoulder. His hand slides lower on my hip, and I feel exactly what kind of "help" he has in mind through the bond.
"We have to get up," I protest weakly.
"In a minute." Grayson's hand slides up my calf. "We have time."
We don't, really. But when Seth's mouth finds my throat and River's hand slides under my sleep shirt and Grayson's pulling me toward him with that intense look in his eyes—
Well. Dinner can wait.
"You're late," Ben says when we finally arrive at my parents' house three hours later.
"We're fifteen minutes late," I correct, trying to smooth down my hair. River keeps messing it up in the truck and I'm pretty sure I have beard burn on my neck.
"You're late and you smell like—" Ben makes a face. "Never mind. I don't want to know."
"Then don't comment," I say sweetly, pushing past him into the house.
The smell of roast chicken and fresh bread fills the air, mixing with Mom's vanilla-lavender scent. I hear Dad and Papa in the kitchen, arguing good-naturedly about seasoning.
My alphas file in behind me, and I feel their combined nervousness through the bonds. Even though they've been here before, family dinners still make them anxious. Wanting to prove they're good enough for me.
Idiots. They're more than good enough.
"There she is!" Mom appears from the kitchen, wiping her hands on her apron. Her eyes go straight to my throat—to the three claiming marks there—and her smile gets impossibly wider. "And looking so happy. Come here, sweetheart."
She pulls me into a hug that smells like vanilla and baking and love. Through the bonds, I feel my alphas' relief that she's not mad about us being late.
"Hi, Mom."
"Hi, baby." She pulls back, cups my face. "You're glowing."
"I'm not—"
"You are." Her eyes get a little misty. "It's good to see."
Dad and Papa emerge from the kitchen, both wearing matching aprons that say "Grill Master" and "Grill Commander." They're ridiculous and I love them.
"Bea-bee!" Dad pulls me into a bear hug. "There's our girl."
"Can't breathe, Dad."
"Good. That means my hug's working." But he releases me, then turns to my alphas with that look. The one that says "I'm a nice alpha but I'll destroy you if you hurt my daughter."
Papa just smiles serenely and offers them drinks.
Dinner is chaotic in the best way. Dad interrogates Seth about his latest case. Papa and Grayson get into a heated discussion about Renaissance art. River helps Mom in the kitchen and comes back with stories that make her laugh so hard she cries.
And Ben—
Ben is quiet. Watching me with an expression I can't quite read.
"What?" I ask when I catch him staring for the third time.
"Nothing." He shakes his head. "You just seem... happy."
"I am happy."
"Good." His jaw works. "That's good. You deserve it."
Coming from Ben, that's practically a declaration of love.
"What about you?" I lean closer, lowering my voice. "When are you going to find your omega?"
His whole body tenses. "I'm not looking."
"You should be. You're not getting any younger."
"I'm twenty-six."
"Ancient. Practically decrepit." I grin at his glare. "What about Tessa Lang?"
He chokes on his beer. "What?"
"Tessa. You know. Tiny event planner. Always yelling at you about decorations."
"Absolutely not."
"Why not? She's cute. She's fierce. She can definitely handle you—"
"She's planning the Valentine's Winter Festival," Ben interrupts. "And she's already texted me seventeen times about helping with the setup. Seventeen, Bea. The event is next month."
"So you're thinking about her." I raise my eyebrows. "Interesting."
"I'm thinking about blocking her number."
"Liar." I can see the flush creeping up his neck. "You like her."
"I don't—" He stops when Papa calls us for dessert. "This conversation is over."
"Sure it is." But I'm grinning as I follow him to the table.
Through the bonds, I feel my alphas' amusement. They've been listening to the whole thing, and they're absolutely going to tease Ben about this later.
Pack. This is what pack feels like.
We get home late, stuffed with Mom's chocolate cake and Papa's stories about the "good old days" that may or may not be true.
The nest is exactly how we left it this morning—soft blankets still tangled from our activities, fairy lights casting warm shadows on the walls.
"Home," River sighs, immediately stripping off his shirt and flopping into the blankets.
"You're going to mess up the whole nest," Seth protests, but he's smiling as he carefully arranges the pillows River just disturbed.
"It's a nest, not a museum." River grins up at him. "Besides, Bea likes it messy."
"I do not—"
"You absolutely do," Grayson says, his hand finding mine as we climb in. "You complained last week when Seth made it 'too perfect.'"
"That's different," I mutter, but I'm smiling.
I settle between them—River immediately pulling me against his chest, Seth's hand finding my hip, Grayson's arm coming around all of us. Pack. Safe. Home.
"You okay?" Grayson asks quietly.
"Yeah." I lean into him, breathing in ink and leather and home. "Just thinking."
"About?"
"How scared I was. When I kissed Seth at the festival. When you asked me to dinner. When River offered me the job. When all of you decided you wanted to be a pack." I turn to look at him. "I was so scared of wanting this."
"And now?"
"Now I can't imagine not having it." I touch his chest, right over his heart. "Not having you. All of you."
Through the bonds, I feel Seth and River's attention. Their love washing over me in waves.
"Come here," Grayson says, pulling me into the nest. Into them.
I settle between River and Seth, Grayson's arm coming around all of us, and let myself feel it. The bonds. The love. The absolute certainty that this is where I belong.
"Did you really tell Ben he should date Tessa?" Seth asks, and I feel his amusement through the bond.
"Someone has to. He's been avoiding her for months."
"He's terrified of her," River adds cheerfully. "It's adorable."
"We should help," I say, an idea forming. "The Snow Din is coming up. Maybe we could—"
"No," all three of them say firmly.
"You're not meddling in your brother's love life," Grayson says, his hand splaying possessively over my stomach. "You have enough to worry about with your business."
Right. My business. My incredibly successful, rapidly growing business that I built from nothing.
"I hired someone," I blurt out. "An assistant. Maya from the library—she's looking for extra work and she's great with social media."
Through the bonds, I feel their pride surge.
"That's amazing," Seth says, pulling me closer.
"Told you," River adds. "World domination, one assistant at a time."
"It's terrifying," I admit. "What if I can't keep this going? What if I fail?"
"You won't," Grayson says with absolute certainty. "You're too stubborn to fail."
"And too talented," Seth adds.
"And too brilliant," River finishes. "Plus you have three alphas who will support you no matter what. Even if you decide to quit marketing and become a professional nest builder."
I laugh, the sound turning into a contented sigh as I sink deeper into the blankets. Into them.
Six months ago, I was terrified of this. Of wanting a pack. Of being vulnerable. Of letting anyone see the messy, complicated parts of me that I kept hidden.
Six months ago, I kissed a deputy in a panic and accidentally changed my entire life.
And now—
Now I'm lying in a nest with three alphas who love every messy, complicated part of me. Who see my sharp edges and don't try to smooth them down. Who support my dreams even when I'm terrified to chase them.
Now I'm home.
"I love you," I say into the comfortable silence. "All of you. Just in case that wasn't clear."
"It was clear," Seth says through the bond, warm and steady. "But we like hearing it anyway."
"Love you too, baby," River murmurs against my hair. "Even when you meddle in your brother's love life."
"Especially then," Grayson adds, his hand tightening on my hip. "It's cute when you think you're subtle."
"I am subtle."
"You're as subtle as a brick through a window," River says cheerfully. "And we love you for it."
I flip him off, which just makes him laugh. Seth's disapproval comes through the bond but I can feel his amusement underneath it. Grayson just pulls me closer, his chest rumbling with a satisfied sound.
This. This is everything I was too scared to want.
And I'm so glad I was brave enough to take it anyway.