Chapter-Fifty
Rhea
T he library is gorgeous in a pretentious, I have generational wealth and an unsettling obsession with mahogany kind of way.
But I’m not here to ogle the floor-to-ceiling bookshelves or wonder whether that leather armchair costs more than my rent used to. No, I’m here because Theo called a meeting like he’s the world’s hottest school counselor, and apparently, when the gentle alpha summons, the rest fall in line.
Kai’s the last to arrive. Obviously.
He strolls in with a handful of grapes he definitely didn’t wash and flops onto a couch with all the dignity of a cat knocking something off a table.
“What’s the crisis?” he asks, grape in mouth. “Rhea stubbed her toe and now we’re legally married?”
Lucian exhales sharply through his nose. Not quite a laugh.
But then his gaze finds mine - sharp and hot - and holds.
The bond between us is a taut wire now, humming with everything we’re not saying.
Frustration. Want. Possession.
An ache I can feel like fingerprints against my skin.
I fight the urge to squirm in my seat and force my eyes back to Theo. He’s the only one standing, one hand buried in his hair, the other clutching a thick book that looks like it’s seen a few decades too many.
“I’ve been researching,” he starts. “On pack bonding.”
Ash shifts in his chair, already braced for something stressful. “Let me guess. The internet says it’s illegal, dangerous, and probably causes blindness.”
Theo doesn’t smile. “Actually, the internet is vague. Everything else is worse.”
He flips the book toward us like he’s presenting an ancient relic.
“Real pack bonding - full, mutual, multi-alpha packs - aren’t just rare, they’re practically undocumented. Most of them stay underground, completely unregistered, to avoid the OMB’s attention. The ones who do exist publicly? They either have serious political backing… or they’re loaded.”
Lucian’s mouth ticks up at that, dry as desert sand.
Kai pops another grape into his mouth. “Cool. So we’re secret, rich, or in danger.”
“We’re… option two and three,” Theo mutters, rubbing his temples. “And if we mark her, then the bond becomes permanent. Recognized. Even the OMB would have to acknowledge it.”
I blink. “Wait. Recognized as what? I’m unregistered.”
“Exactly,” Lucian says. “That’s the loophole. If you’re already bonded, already claimed, the OMB can’t interfere. They can’t reassign you, they can’t strip your autonomy, and they definitely can’t separate us.”
Kai hums. “So it’s like… if we put a ring on it, no one can snatch her off the street and send her to a government husband?”
“That’s… horrifyingly accurate,” Theo mutters.
Ash leans forward, elbows on his knees, voice low. “So what you’re saying is… we do this, we go all in. And once we do, there’s no going back.”
Theo nods. “ That's right. Fully . No half-measures. No delays.” He looks around at all of us, gaze steady. “We’ve already bonded Rhea, individually: but to solidify the pack, then all of us need to mark her. Make it official in every way that matters.”
The air shifts like someone opened a window that lets in consequences.
“So you’re saying one big, happy family?” Kai grins, lounging deeper into the couch. “Group vows? Matching jackets? Secret handshakes?”
Lucian doesn’t answer, but the eye twitch suggests Kai’s days might be numbered.
“You’re such a fucking child,” Ash mutters.
Kai grins wider. “Hey, if I’m gonna be bonded to you assholes for life, I want a little ceremony. Maybe a buffet.”
Lucian finally speaks. “You sure you’re ready for this, Reed?”
“Are you ?” Kai raises an eyebrow, lazy and unbothered. “You sure you can share ?”
Lucian’s eyes cut toward me again, and this time, it’s almost punishing. I feel the sharp spike of possessiveness crack through our bond - so sudden, so fierce, and I suck in a breath.
He catches it.
His hand clenches once at his side before he forces himself still again, mask snapping back into place.
The message is clear, though.
I see you. I feel you.
Theo clears his throat, breaking the tension.
“This is happening because we’re stronger together. Because it’s what Rhea needs. What she wants.”
They all look at me then, and suddenly the whole room feels tighter. Not in a bad way - just… charged.
I stare down at my mug. My tea’s gone cold. My brain’s a soup of panic and affection and the deep, existential horror of I might have to fill out actual paperwork for this.
But I take a breath.
“I’m tired of being half-something. Of waiting for the other shoe to drop. I don’t want to go back to pretending I’m not who I am.”
I meet each of their eyes in turn. Let them feel it.
Let them know it .
“I want to be a pack. With you. All of you.”
Theo's shoulders sag with something like relief.
Ash’s mouth twitches - not quite a smile, but something close.
Kai salutes me with a grape and smirks, but there’s something suspiciously bright in his eyes.
Lucian’s hand flexes again at his side, but he nods once, sharp and absolute.
A king surrendering to the only crown he’s ever wanted to wear.
“Then it’s decided,” Theo says. “We form a pack.”
I blink. “All at once?”
Kai immediately perks up. “Please say yes.”
“We’ll need to set a time. A place. Some rules,” Theo confirms.
“ Rules ?” Kai grins like a devil granted permission to make mischief. “Aw, golden boy. You’re gonna ruin the mood.”
Ash snorts. “He’s right, though. This isn’t something we want to screw up.”
“The bond is one thing, but marking?” Theo's gaze finds mine. “That’s permanent. Permanent in a way even a bond can’t fully undo.”
“We do this properly,” Lucian cuts in. “No mistakes. No hesitations.”
Kai stretches like a bored cat. “Well, if we’re doing the whole blood-oath vibe, we might as well pick a place with good lighting. I refuse to be marked in shitty fluorescent overheads.”
Theo rolls his eyes. “You’re a menace.”
“I’m the menace,” Kai corrects cheerfully. “Get it right.”
“This house is perfect for it,” Ash says, steering them back on track. “It’s protected. Isolated. No risk.”
Lucian hums low in agreement. “It’s secure.”
Kai whistles low. “God, you’re all so romantic. Maybe afterwards, Lucian can brand us like cattle, too.”
“We’ll do it in the solarium,” Lucian says, pointedly ignoring Kai, his voice final. “Tomorrow night.”
Theo nods, pragmatic. “Gives us time to prepare.”
Ash’s eyes cut to me. “You sure about this, sweetheart?”
The nickname hits somewhere deep in my chest - a place still tender from everything we’ve been through.
I sit up straighter, lifting my chin and meeting all their gazes without flinching.
“I’m sure,” I say. “I’m ready.”
Kai flashes a wolfish grin. “Hot.”
Theo shoots him a look, while Lucian just watches me - silent and burning, like he’s memorizing every breath, every shiver, every inch of me as I am now.
Because tomorrow, everything will change.
Tomorrow I’ll belong to them.
All of them.
Not as a possession. Not as a prize.
As a choice.
As their Omega.