17. Ren
Chapter 17
Ren
H ailey’s hand grips mine tighter across the console, her fingers tensing with each passing minute. I don’t need to look at her to know the heat is rising again—I can smell it, sweet honey intensifying, vanilla notes sharpening with need. The scent fills the vehicle, making my cock harden despite the release we just shared.
That release. God. I still can’t believe it happened. Can’t believe she wanted me—chose me—even after everything.
I keep replaying the sensations: the taste of her on my tongue, impossibly sweet and addictive; the tight heat of her body gripping mine; the sound of my name on her lips as she came. Perfect. She was perfect.
But a nagging doubt persists. Was it really me she wanted? Will she want me afterward, when the madness of the heat clears?
“Ren?” Her voice pulls me from my thoughts. She’s looking at me, her cheeks flushed with renewed fever, eyes glassy but still somehow lucid. “Are we close?”
“Almost there,” I assure her, squeezing her hand gently. “Just around this bend.”
The narrow road winds through dense forest before opening to a small clearing. The cabin sits nestled among the trees, rustic and unassuming. She’s been here before, without me, and I don’t know if she knows that this place isn’t just a safe house. It’s my sanctuary. The place I come to when I need to escape. From the world. From myself.
And now she’s here. Being brought into the most private part of my life.
I park near the front door, eyes on the bonnet of the SUV. I’ll need to dispose of it later—wipe it down, abandon it somewhere far from here. But that’s a problem for tomorrow. Right now, all that matters is Hailey.
“We’re here,” I tell her, turning off the engine.
She nods, but makes no move to get out. The brief respite the roadside encounter gave her is already fading. Her breathing has quickened, her skin glistening once more with a fine sheen of sweat.
“I’ll carry you,” I say, exiting the driver’s side and circling to her door.
When I open it, the brief moment of fresh air does nothing to disguise her scent. It hits me full force—concentrated, intoxicating. I swallow hard, forcing myself to focus.
“Come here, sweetheart,” I murmur, gathering her into my arms.
She comes willingly, wrapping her arms around my neck, her face pressing into my shoulder. She still trusts me completely. The knowledge is humbling.
I carry her to the cabin door, fumbling one-handed with the keys before managing to push it open. The interior is cool and dim, smelling faintly of timber and the lingering scents of my packmates—Jax’s earthy cedar, Stone’s pine, Finn’s light sage.
Hailey whimpers at the familiar scents, her body squirming in my arms.
“Shh,” I soothe, kicking the door closed behind us. “I know, I know. Just a little longer.”
I head straight for the stairs, taking them two at a time despite her weight in my arms and the protests of my battered body. The adrenaline that’s been carrying me is ebbing, each injury making itself known. The injured shoulder is now throbbing, the cracked ribs stabbing with each breath, the swollen eye reducing my vision.
But none of it matters. Not with Hailey in my arms, needing me.
The master bedroom takes up most of the upper floor, dominated by an enormous bed. The scents are strongest here. It hits Hailey hard, her body arching in my arms, a moan escaping her lips.
“Alpha,” she gasps, but whether she means me or is responding to the residual pheromones, I’m not sure.
I place her gently on the bed, intending to step back, to give her space to adjust. But her hands clutch at my chest, keeping me close.
“Don’t go,” she whispers, eyes wide and desperate. “Please, Ren. Don’t leave me.”
I couldn’t if I tried. Not now. Never again.
Looking down at her, flushed and needy yet still so determined, I’m struck by a memory—Hailey chasing after me in the dark, barefoot and stubborn, just to make a deal. To convince me to attend the gala with the pack.
I’d thought her presence would tear us apart. Would remind me of everything I’d lost, everything I couldn’t have. But I was wrong. So wrong.
She’s not tearing us apart. She’s the thing that’s bringing us together again.
“I’m not going anywhere,” I promise, lowering myself to sit beside her on the bed.
She immediately crawls into my lap, straddling me, pressing her core against the renewed hardness in my pants. The thin barrier of my shirt on her body does nothing to conceal the heat of her, the wetness that’s already soaking through.
“Please,” she whimpers, rocking against me. “It’s starting again. Worse.”
I capture her face between my hands, holding her still so I can look into her eyes. “I’ll take care of you,” I promise. “But first, let me make you comfortable. You need a proper nest.”
She nods, though her body continues to move against mine, seeking friction, relief.
Gently, I lift her and set her at the edge of the bed. Kneeling before her, I push up the shirt she’s wearing, exposing her to my gaze once more. She’s even more beautiful in the diffused light of the bedroom, her skin flushed pink, her core glistening with arousal.
“Let me help take the edge off,” I murmur, leaning forward to press a kiss to her inner thigh.
She spreads her legs wider, an invitation I can’t refuse. I dive in, my tongue finding her clit immediately. The taste of her explodes across my senses, even better than before. Fucking honey and vanilla. Like some dessert I could eat all day.
Her hands find my hair, gripping tightly as she grinds against my mouth. I work her with lips and tongue, savoring every gasp, every moan, every twitch of her thighs against my cheeks.
It doesn’t take long before she’s coming, her body shuddering, a cry tearing from her throat as pleasure washes over her. I work her through it, gentling my touches as the spasms subside.
When I pull back, her eyes are half-lidded, momentarily sated. But we both know it won’t last. She needs to be knotted. I’m just not sure I should be the one to knot her first.
“Better?” I ask, using my tongue to clean my lips.
She nods, then reaches for me. “More,” she pleads. “Need you inside.”
“Soon,” I promise, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “But first, let’s make you a proper nest.”
I move to the large chest at the side of the room, pulling out the extra blankets and pillows stored there. Normally, the omega would arrange them to their liking, but Hailey is too far gone in her heat to help much. I do my best, arranging the softest blankets in a circular pattern, piling pillows around the edges to create a comfortable hollow in the center.
It’s not as good as what Finn would make, but it’ll have to do.
I gather Hailey into my arms again, placing her in the center of the nest. She immediately burrows into the blankets, rubbing her scent into them, instinctively marking them as hers.
The sound of a car engine outside makes me stiffen. Voices filter up from below, followed by the slam of car doors. Moments later, the front door opens, and familiar footsteps pound up the stairs.
Finn appears in the doorway first, his face tight with worry. His eyes sweep the room, landing on Hailey in the nest before darting to me. The moment he truly sees me—takes in my battered face, the bruises—his expression crumples.
“Ren,” he gasps, crossing the room in three quick strides. “Oh my God.”
I catch him as he throws his arms around me, his smaller frame fitting against mine in a way that feels like coming home. Fuck, I’ve missed holding him like this.
He pulls back almost immediately, hands fluttering over my injuries.
“You look like shit,” he says, the words almost choked. “What did those bastards do to you?”
“It looks worse than it is,” I lie. In truth, now that the adrenaline is wearing off, I’m realizing just how badly I’m hurt. But that doesn’t matter now.
Finn doesn’t believe me for a second. “Bullshit,” he says, but his attention is diverted by a particularly needy whimper from Hailey.
He glances between us, understanding dawning. “Did you…?”
I nod, not sure what else to say. “She needed help. The heat is bad, Finn. Really bad.”
He nods, already kicking off his shoes. “I can smell it.” His hands move to his shirt, pulling it off quickly. “I’ll take care of her. You should get cleaned up.”
Before I can respond, heavy footsteps on the stairs announce the arrival of Jax and Stone. They appear in the doorway together, both freezing at the sight that greets them—Hailey in the nest, Finn half-undressed, me standing there bloodied and battered.
For a long moment, no one speaks. Then Hailey moans again, the sound cutting through the tension like a knife.
Finn is the first to move, stripping off his remaining clothes before climbing into the nest. Hailey’s response is immediate—she reaches for him, pulling him down to her, her lips finding his in a desperate kiss.
“It’s okay, sunshine,” Finn murmurs between kisses. “I’ve got you now. We’ve all got you.”
Their scents mingle, omega to omega, creating something rich and complex that fills the room. Hailey coos and whimpers as Finn showers her with kisses and soft words, his hands stroking her heated skin with tender expertise.
I step back from the bed, intending to slip out quietly, to give them space. But before I can, strong arms encircle me from behind, while another pair catches me from the front.
Jax and Stone. Holding me between them in a group embrace that breaks something loose inside me—some final wall I’d maintained even after reconnecting with the pack. I sag against them, allowing myself, for the first time in years, to be truly supported.
“You’re alive,” Jax murmurs, his forehead pressing against mine in a gesture of acknowledgment I haven’t allowed since the accident. “You’re alive and you brought her back.”
Stone’s arms tighten around us both. “Never doubted you would,” he says, voice gruff with emotion.
We stand like that for a long moment, the three of us locked together while the sounds of Finn and Hailey form a backdrop of soft moans and whispered endearments.
Finally, I pull back slightly. “She needs you,” I say, nodding toward the bed. “All of you.”
I turn to leave, but Jax’s hand on my shoulder stops me. “Stay,” he says simply.
I stiffen, not sure I’ve heard correctly. “What?”
“Stay,” he repeats, more firmly this time. “With us. With her.”
Stone moves to stand beside Jax, united in this as they are in everything. “You can’t miss another of our omega’s heats,” he says. “Not now. Not after everything.”
Something breaks inside me at his words. A dam I’ve held in place for so long, keeping back emotions I couldn’t bear to face. The longing, the regret, the desperate need to belong again.
“I’ve been so afraid,” Jax says, his voice quieter now, meant only for me and Stone. “So afraid that the pack would fracture, would break apart. For the past two and a half years, I haven’t been doing what I should as pack leader.”
His eyes, usually so confident, show a vulnerability I’ve rarely seen. “That ends now. Because if what we just went through didn’t break us, nothing will. And I won’t let anything try.” He reaches out, gripping my arm. “Stay, Ren. You belong here. With us.”
I nod, unable to speak around the lump in my throat. But then I wince, looking down at myself—at the dried blood, the bruises blooming across my visible skin.
“I need…” I gesture vaguely at my appearance. “I should clean up first.”
Jax’s eyes narrow as he truly takes in my condition. “Can you manage that on your own?”
The old Ren would have said yes automatically. Would have pushed away help, insistent on handling his own pain. But that Ren nearly lost everything that mattered.
“Maybe not,” I admit. “But I’ll stay.” My gaze shifts to Hailey, who’s now grinding on Finn in the nest, her head thrown back in ecstasy as he guides her hips. “For her.” Then my eyes find Jax and Stone again, these men who’ve been my family, my home, through the darkest times. “And for you. For all of us.”
Something eases in Jax’s posture, a tension I hadn’t even realized he was carrying. “Good,” he says simply. Then, to Stone, “Help him get cleaned up. I’ll join Finn and Hailey.”
Stone nods, his hand settling at the small of my back as he guides me toward the en-suite bathroom. Behind us, I hear the rustle of clothing as Jax undresses, followed by Hailey’s delighted gasp as he joins them in the nest.
His hands find her—gentle, reverent, so different from the commanding presence he shows the world. “Sweet girl,” he murmurs against her temple, his voice breaking slightly. “I thought we’d lost you.”
The raw emotion in his words catches me off guard. This is a side of Jax I’ve rarely glimpsed—the alpha beneath the leader, the man beneath the alpha. His fingers trace Hailey’s cheekbone with such tenderness she leans into his touch.
“I’m here,” she whispers.
“Never again,” he vows. “I’ll tear the world apart before I let anyone take you from us again.”
From the way she whimpers, I can tell she believes him. Hailey melts against him, and in this moment, I remember what made this beautiful, broken pack follow him without question. His capacity to love fiercer than anyone I’ve ever known.
The moment Finn slides inside Hailey, all three of us groan in unison—me, Jax, and Stone. The sound seems to reverberate through the room, through our very bones. Hailey’s eyes flutter closed, her body arching as pleasure overtakes her again.
In the bathroom, Stone turns on the shower, adjusting the temperature before facing me. “Arms up,” he orders gently.
I comply, allowing him to pull my vest over my head. He winces at what’s revealed—the rainbow of bruises covering my torso, the unnatural swelling of my recently relocated shoulder.
“Jesus, Ren,” he breathes, fingers hovering over the worst of the injuries. “You need a hospital.”
“Later,” I say. “I’ll call Dr. Greene. After Hailey’s heat breaks.”
He looks like he wants to argue, but instead he shakes his head, moving to help me out of my pants. Once I’m naked, he guides me into the shower, the warm water a blessed relief against my aching muscles.
Stone strips down and joins me, soap in hand. “Let me,” he says, beginning to gently wash away the blood and grime of the past twenty-four hours.
We’ve done this before, countless times over the years. Taken care of each other after long days in the gym, and intense nights during Finn’s heats. But it’s been a long time since I’ve allowed this kind of intimacy, this vulnerability.
I close my eyes, surrendering to Stone’s ministrations, to the simple comfort of pack touching pack. Of being cared for after so long caring for myself.
“I thought we’d lost you,” Stone says quietly, his hands working shampoo through my hair, careful of the gash at my temple. “When Jax turned up at the hospital without you…without Hailey…I thought you were gone.”
The raw pain in his voice makes me open my eyes, meeting his gaze. “I’m sorry,” I say, meaning it more deeply than I can express. “I’m sorry for all of it. For pulling away after the accident. For making you all think you had to handle things alone.”
Stone’s hands still in my hair. “We all did what we thought was right,” he says after a moment. “You included. But maybe now we can try something different. Something better.” He sighs. “We have to make it up to those two omegas out there…and to ourselves.”
“Yeah,” I agree. “We do.”
He smiles, a rare, genuine smile that transforms his features.
By the time we finish in the shower, I’m clean but exhausted, my injuries making themselves known with vicious clarity. Stone helps me dry off, then disappears into the bedroom, returning moments later with a first-aid kit and some of my old clothes that I’d left at the cabin.
“Jax wants you patched up before you join them,” he explains, setting the supplies on the counter.
I nod, too tired to argue. Stone works efficiently, cleaning and bandaging the worst of my injuries, applying antibiotic ointment to the gash on my temple, wrapping my ribs tightly to support the cracked ones.
When he’s done, he helps me into a pair of loose sweatpants, leaving my torso bare due to the bandages. “Ready?” he asks.
I take a deep breath, steadying myself for what comes next. For rejoining the pack fully, completely, in the most intimate way possible. “Ready.”
We exit the bathroom to find the scene in the nest has evolved. Hailey is on her hands and knees, Jax behind her, his powerful body moving in a steady rhythm that has her crying out with each thrust. Finn lies beneath her, kissing her, swallowing her moans as his hands caress her breasts.
The sight is beautiful. Perfect. My body responds instantly, despite the pain, despite the exhaustion.
Jax looks up as we approach, his eyes dark with desire but also concern as he takes in my bandaged state. He nods once, an invitation.
“Stone,” Hailey whispers, her voice breaking between a moan and a whimper.
Stone crosses to her immediately, cupping her face as he presses a kiss to her lips. “We were so worried,” he murmurs against her hair, a hand smoothing down her spine toward where Jax steadies her by the hips. “I’m so glad you’re safe.”
Hailey clings to him, unwilling to let go, her fingers gripping his shirt with surprising strength. The reunion seems to momentarily give her some clarity.
“Don’t leave,” she pleads, looking up at him with eyes bright with unshed tears. “Please stay close.”
I don’t realize that during all this, I’ve moved closer. The moment I’m within reach, Hailey’s hand shoots out, grasping mine, pulling me closer.
“Ren,” she gasps, her eyes finding mine through the haze of pleasure. “You’re here.”
“I’m here,” I confirm, squeezing her hand. “I told you, baby. I’m not going anywhere.”
She smiles, the expression radiant even through the flush of heat and exertion. “Good,” she breathes, then gasps as Jax hits a particularly sensitive spot. “Because I need…I need you.”
Finn reaches for me too, his hand settling on my thigh. “We all do,” he says, his gaze intense with meaning. “Need you with us, Ren. Always have.”
Something warm unfurls in my chest at their words, at the physical connection of pack surrounding me, wanting me. Despite my flaws…despite my mistakes…despite my damage.
“I’m yours,” I tell them, the words feeling like coming home. “All of yours.”
Stone pulls me closer, his arm snaking me in. “And we’re yours,” he murmurs, pressing a kiss to my shoulder. “Always have been.”
Jax meets my eyes over Hailey’s arched back, his gaze steady and sure. “Pack,” he says simply.
The word echoes between us.
Home. Pack. Mine.