14. Cherry
Cherry
Skimming my hand along all my new clothes, a teal short-sleeved long dress catches my eye and I pull it out.
I’m not sure which one of my mates bought this for me, but the fabric is a soft cotton, and although it appears to be form-fitting from the waist up, below that, it hangs loosely and looks like it will be comfortable.
I step out of my closet and hold it up to Bain, who’s lounging on my bed where he’s been since I woke up.
“What about this one?”
I think he snuck out to shower when I was getting ready in the bathroom, but since I showered when I got home from my date with the twins yesterday, I didn't feel like I needed one again. Besides, I can smell all my mates on me now, since they’d all slept in here with me, and I don’t want to wash that away.
Especially when I’m about to leave the house.
I watch as Bain assesses the dress carefully before nodding in approval. “Yes.” I try not to smile at his short response, but since the first thing I’d suggested wearing, a short dress, had him growling and pointing me back in my closet to “pick something else,” I’m not surprised.
I’d worn a short dress out before, so I’m not sure why he doesn’t want me to wear it today, but I don’t mind. I like that he cares about how I dress, even if it’s because he doesn’t want me showing too much of my body to other people. It makes me feel protected and loved.
I pull it on over my black bra and thong, Bain’s eyes watching me the entire time. I’m not even sure he's blinked since I stepped out of the closet.
I pull my long braid over my shoulder and raise my arms at my sides as I ask, “What do you think?”
“Beautiful,” he replies instantly. Then he frowns. “Maybe you should add a sweater.”
I laugh as I grab a cross-body black purse. “I’m just going for coffee with my friends.” Then I glance back at him as I add, “Don’t even pretend like you won’t be there.”
I shove my phone into my purse, actually remembering it for once, as Bain gets off the bed and moves to stand in front of me.
“Of course I’ll be there. But it doesn’t mean I want other men looking at you.”
“You’re looking at it wrong,” Chase says as he enters my room and gives me a slow once-over, nodding in approval, clearly liking what he sees.
He stands shoulder to shoulder with Bain, staring down at me and instantly making my skin heat.
“You see, others may get to look at her, but only we get to touch her.” He smirks at me as he adds, “And only we can bring that red flush to her pretty little cheeks.”
I groan, placing my hands over my cheeks as I step around them and into the hall, grumbling, “I’m not blushing.”
Chase laughs as I hear the two of them follow me into the kitchen.
Maddox, Gage, and Hunter’s heads all snap up the moment I enter. “You look beautiful,” Maddox says, stepping over to give me a soft kiss. “Are you ready to go?”
My eyes move to Gage, who’s watching me from where he’s seated at the kitchen table with his laptop. He’s basically been glued to that thing since they brought me back. At least he was coming to sleep in my room with us at night. But I was missing him again.
But since I have other plans, I swallow my unease and nod. “Yes, I’m ready. Who’s coming?”
“Everyone,” Maddox says, surprising me. I smile as a burst of happiness expands in my chest.
Movement has me glancing at Hunter, who’s rubbing at his chest, looking confused for a moment before his eyes snap to mine. Then he smiles. “I can feel your happiness,” he says through the bond, almost sounding like he’s in awe of it.
I give him a small shrug, unsure what else to say as Maddox grabs my hand and leads me outside to the SUV.
It doesn’t take us long to find a parking spot on Main Street. Bain enters the Brewed Awakening first and we wait outside. “He’s just making sure it’s safe,” Maddox explains.
Then I hear Bain speak through the bond.
“All clear.” The twins settle on the benches outside, on either side of the coffee shop, and I realize they are standing guard for us.
When we move inside, I glance around, taking in the cute decor of the shop.
Most of the surfaces are wood with a mix of deep teal accents throughout.
The entire place smells of coffee and several different sweet scents.
The place isn’t huge, but it must have close to fifteen tables scattered throughout.
“Cherry! Over here!” I look in the direction my name is called and see Erica sitting at a table in the far corner, with another girl beside her. She has long blonde hair and a smile on her face as she gives me a little wave. This must be Lexi.
“Go join your friends,” Maddox says, placing his hand on my lower back and ushering me toward them. “Gage and I will be close by, and Bain will be by the door.”
I glance back, seeing Bain standing with his arms crossed right beside the door like some sort of bodyguard, making my mouth twitch in amusement.
I head toward the girls, waving hello. Erica stands and gives me a hug, then introduces her friend. “Lexi, Cherry. Cherry, Lexi.”
“It’s nice to finally meet you,” Lexi says with a warm smile.
“Same. Erica speaks highly of you, and your mates were so kind in helping me.”
Gage suddenly appears, placing a coffee cup in front of me. “Thanks,” I say, feeling shy for some reason. He nods, giving me a small smile before he walks across the coffee shop, taking a seat at a table filled with several familiar faces.
“Oh! Your mates are here too?” I ask them in surprise.
Lexi laughs. “Like they’d let me go out on my own.”
I frown, looking around the table Gage and Maddox are sitting at but— “I only see Erica’s mates over there.”
“Oh, that’s ‘cause Finn is sitting under the table.”
My eyes drop to their feet, but I still don’t see him. I shake my head, making Lexi laugh. “No, not their table. Ours.” She points down, and I dip my head to the side, seeing a cute little fox sitting under the table, leaning against her legs.
My eyes widen in surprise. “Oh!” He glances at me and I give him a little wave. “Hi Finn.” He dips his nose and I sit up straighter.
“Sorry,” she says with a wince. “I tried to convince him to sit over there. It’s not like he doesn’t have great hearing. But he refused.”
“It’s fine,” I reassure her. “It actually helps me to relax, knowing we have so many friends close by.”
“How are you doing with all that?” Erica asks as I take a sip of my drink, which turns out to be a mochachino. I glance at Gage, who’s watching me, telling him, “Thank you,” through the bond.
I feel the two girls watching me and realize Erica had asked me a question. “Oh, well, how much do you know?”
“Everything, I think?” she replies and I nod. I wasn’t sure if she knew about the phoenix thing, but she had known about my mates’ bonds being severed, so she probably did.
“I’m worried,” I admit quietly, even though I know all the shifters in here were likely to hear me. “Blaze is out there, and I doubt he’s done looking for me.”
“Have your mates figured out a way to kill him yet?” Lexi asks and I shake my head.
“No, but Gage hasn’t stopped looking.” I glance over at him and Maddox again, as a deep feeling of longing pulls at me.
I’m startled when Erica places her hand on my arm. “Hon, how are you feeling? Seriously?”
I frown down at my drink, unsure how to answer. Erica and Lexi are both omegas, like me, so if anyone understands having multiple mate bonds, it’s them. Although neither of them have experienced losing one.
“I sealed the bond with Chase and Hunter,” I tell them. “And I’m back in our pack bond now.”
“That’s good!” Lexi says happily before she sees my face and hers drops. “Isn’t it?”
“It is,” I tell her. “But I still feel the loss of the other three. It’s like a deep open wound inside me that won’t close.”
“You don’t think it will come back?” Erica asks gently.
I shrug. “I don’t know. I’ve never heard of a wolf getting a second bond.”
“But it’s different,” Lexi says, clearly trying to give me hope. “It’s not a second bond, it’s just reestablishing the first.”
“I suppose,” I say, trying to think of it that way.
“I think you should speak with my Grandmother,” Erica says, surprising me with the abrupt change of conversation.
“Uh, okay.”
“She’s a very gifted witch. And she’s a bit clairvoyant. She might be able to help. Plus, she’s an omega, like us,” she says a little quieter.
“Okay, I’d be happy for any help at this point,” I tell her as I take a sip of my drink and let my eyes bounce between my three guys, whom I’m desperate to reconnect with.
“So,” Lexi says, a grin pulling at her lips. “Have Hunter and Chase noticed the changes yet?”
I frown and shake my head. “What changes?”
Erica levels her with a small glare. “They don’t know about that.”
“About what?” I ask, worry filling me.
“Oh, shit, right,” Lexi says, looking a little guilty. “I may have been hoarding that particular book so it didn’t get in the wrong hands.”
“What book? What are you guys talking about?”
“I’ll give it to you to read.” When Lexi sees my frown still in place, she sighs before lowering her voice to the quietest of whispers as she adds, “When alphas bond to omegas, their powers increase.” Then, she places her finger over her lips and glances around, as if telling me not to speak about it here.
I sit up and take a sip of my drink as I consider what she said. I glance at Gage and ask through the bond, “Did you hear that?”
I watch him shake his head once so I tell him, “Lexi is going to give us a book on omegas.” Even here, I can see his eagerness to get his hands on more knowledge.
“Can I ask you something?” Erica says, reminding me of my current conversation.
“Sure.”
“If you’re a hybrid, does that mean you can shift into your other form.” She’s asking about my phoenix.
I shake my head. “No. At least I don’t think so. I don’t feel it the same way I feel my wolf. I think Gage described it as a latent gene. I have the ability of one, but I can’t actually shift.”
She nods as her eyes move to my ear. “Are those tattoos?” she asks, gesturing behind my ear to my heart marks.
I shift uncomfortably as I shake my head. “No, one appears each time I… You know…” She shakes her head and I frown. “Each time I die.”
Her eyes widen as they dart back to my neck. “How far down do they go?”
“Far.” I don’t want to get into those details, especially not here in public so I change the subject.
“So, Lexi. I’ve met Alaric and Finn, but you have another mate, right?”
“Yes, Soren.” She gestures over to where my mates are, and I notice another man sitting alone at the table behind them. His arms are crossed, and he’s just staring at Lexi with a lot of intensity. “He’s a panther shifter.”
“He looks intense.”
She laughs. “Oh, he’s just jealous cause Finn gets to sit so close.
” I look at him again and realize he does look like he’s pouting, which makes me smile.
My eyes move to Bain, who’s staring at me.
But unlike Soren who looks like he’s pouting, Bain is looking at me like he wants to come over here and cover me in bubble wrap to stop me from getting hurt.
I glance back at Lexi as my mouth pulls into a smirk. “Do you have problems going to the bathroom in peace too?”
She bursts out laughing as she nods, and in that moment, I know we’re going to be great friends.