Chapter 82
CHAPTER EIGHTY-TWO
The first sun kisses the horizon as I clamber out of Rask’s hiding place.
My nest.
After the last two days, I’ll never be able to think of it any other way. My Omega has firmly claimed this space—now that it smells so much like all my alphas, I doubt she’ll get over her obsession any time soon.
Bitch, I think affectionately.
Rask’s dark chuckle rises behind me. “You calling my Omega a bitch?”
My face splits into a grin, even as bittersweet flurries swirl into my stomach.
It’s the first time since the Presentation that I’ve woken up more as myself than my other half.
Part of me is worried they’ll miss the primal being they spent the last two days with…
and wonders if being bonded to plain old Sofi will be a let-down after a forty-eight-hour fuck-fest.
A fervent snarl interrupts my anxiety. I blink in surprise at the intense expression etched into Rask’s handsome features. He uses his wings to speed his steps, sweeping me into his arms as he lands on the flat aqua boulder beside his cave’s entrance.
I hear the others rouse in the nest, but it’s hard to focus on their groggy reactions when Rask clasps my jaw with his marked hand and kisses me senseless.
You made all my dreams come true, he thinks. And answered every prayer to Stelaris I ever uttered.
His sweet words quell some of the worry churning in my gut. It takes me a moment to realize—he didn’t speak out loud. I heard his thoughts, in his beloved raspy voice, pouring into a mysterious place buried behind my ribs.
Which means… I was right!
Rask smirks against my lips. We can hear each other, too. All four of us are in one bond. Feeling my swift bolt of alarm, he outright chuckles. Don’t worry—I’ve already found the off switch.
He shows me, using our bond to let me into his body as he slides an internal curtain closed. Then he immediately opens it back up so the others can hear him add, It was necessary for Cylus’s scientific rambling, and all Zolkan’s brooding. Gods.
Two warning rumbles echo from the cave as I giggle. Testing our new tethers for myself. H-how is this possible? I thought this didn’t happen on Khanos?
I show him the memory of his handsome, blush face, grinning with bemusement and calling my idea of bonding “a good story for pips.”
Rask cringes. “I was such a sap-skull. That was an omega instinct, korryna, trying to tell me how things would work. You knew this was possible before any of us. I should have been paying more attention.”
I brush my lips over his cheek, forgiving him instantly. “I think we all should have been. But seriously—do we have any idea how we did this?”
Rask opens his mouth to reply, but Cylus cuts him off, appearing at the entrance to the nest with wild bed-head covering his body.
He scowls at himself, muttering as he flattens the fur on his hips, explaining, “The best we can figure is that omegas with packs create stronger bonds than omegas with single mates.” Our eyes meet, his flaring white.
“Either that, or you’re just exceptionally special, human. ”
Cylus lets his emotions wind into me, displaying the depth of his gratitude and amazement. There’s so much, the strength of his feelings so perfectly matched to the tide of adoration rising within my chest…
My eyes start to fill while we look at one another. He approaches slowly, never breaking focus. As he finally steps within reach, my furry blue male bends to plant a human kiss on my crown, whispering internally.
I’ve always put my faith in science and facts, my heart, he says, somehow speaking only to me. It was all I had to believe in. Until you.
He shows me images from our bonding and my Presentation. The hordes of chanting Roktusians, their enthusiastic reactions to our pack. You may only have one heart, Sofi, but it was big enough for all three of us. And because of that, you’ve changed everything. And not just for me, but for Khanos.
Dazed, I try to grasp what we’ve started here. Now that our people know packs are possible, will it be easier for them to breed? Assuming Zolkan and I can…
Cylus excitedly begins running calculations, laying out the odds in an effort to comfort me. Rask hears him and tosses his packmate an exasperated look. Like he can’t quite believe anyone could still trust math over his goddess after all this.
You know what? I sort of agree with him.
Zolkan appears last. Laser-focused, his violet gaze arrows straight for me.
“Stryllas,” he murmurs, stalking over and going to his knees beside our perch. “What is wrong? You feel anxious?”
Ope. I was so fascinated by their feelings, I forgot they could read mine. Guilt and mortification swell under my uneasiness.
Idiot.
My mates don’t react very well to that insult. They each make an indignant sound, rushing to box me between their bodies.
When I blurt a nervous laugh, they pause. Cylus offers a grimace. “Sorry, human,” he says. “If all of us at once are too much, use the interior curtain Rask showed you. We’ve each practiced utilizing it over the last two days.”
Zolkan bends to scent-mark my forehead. “If you ever need time to yourself, you take it,” he orders softly. “We understand. And we’re grateful for whatever you want to give us, omega.”
Relief trickles into my chest, letting my lungs expand. Their scents warm my throat, and I purr before I can help myself. Cylus hums, dropping to the place beside Rask and winding his arm around my waist.
Of all my alphas, our grumpy healer is definitely the most obsessed with my purring. Hazy memories from my heat prove as much—though I remember how all of them burrowed as close to me as they could get whenever my chest rumbled. A fresh round of wistfulness whispers through me.
I look over at our nest, then at each of my alphas. We can come back, right?
They hear my hopeful, watery thought. Warm, soft emotions pour into our bond. Reassurance, concern, pride, and love. So damn much, it nearly pushes the sudden rush of tears from my eyes.
“Anytime,” Rask vows, rubbing our foreheads together.
Cylus nods, brows furrowed. “We’ll need to return for your heat every lapse, but I’m sure we can come more frequently, my heart.”
Zolkan watches each of us with an intensity I don’t understand, initially. When he finally lowers his internal curtain, I see a castle carved from the same shell-like stone that shimmers inside our cave.
I watch in awe as he pans his memory over the structure’s swirly flourishes and carved archways, marveling at its beauty. Our Sea Castle is smaller than the palace, he muses. But I believe you’d like it, stryllas. The property is only half a league from here, right on the beach.
Approval zips through my other alphas. Of course, Cylus thinks, relieved. We can take up residence there.
If Sofi likes it, Zolkan corrects, his Alpha dominance every bit as powerful inside our tether. To me, he adds, It’s much closer, my queen. We could come here every day.
That sounds perfect, until I realize how far it will put us from the zvorn. Rask offers me the kindest version of his crooked smile. “Good thing I have wings, little one.”
I see his point, but I still hate inconveniencing him. Zolkan cups his large hands over my knees and rubs them tenderly, capturing my attention.
“Zvorns were made to be moved, Sofi,” he husks. “If this is your nest, Rask will relocate his troops. I will move my advisors. And Cylus will move his research. As long as you are happy, the rest is just coordinates on a map.”
My heart swells—so full, I’d worry it might burst if I didn’t feel so good. Absolute rightness sings in my blood, flooding my veins with gently glimmering joy.
Their scents fill my lungs, warming every breath. I start to purr again, and the quiet sound somehow melds with the hum of the ocean. My alphas’ rumbles. The very frequency of the universe.
My universe.
It’s right here—not in another quadrant or on another planet.
And it’s sort of beautiful, in a funny way. I had to travel halfway across the galaxy to get here…
But I think I might finally be home.