Chapter 36
Mine
They're mine. I'm theirs.
I'm content.
My omega is content.
I don't want to move.
The lavender scent is trying to pull me back into sleep. But something is pulling me out of the soothing fog.
My groan seems to echo around the room.
The pillow I'm lying on is surprisingly comfortable. Warm, but not hot. Firm, but yielding. And… purring?
I open my eyes. I'm lying on a chest, surrounded by blankets and pillows. In a surprisingly unsticky nest. Actually, everything is confusingly clean—including me. True, my mouth feels like something crawled into it and died, but everything else is fresh. Even the oversized t-shirt I'm wearing.
My hair is damp.
I blink, waiting for my brain to reboot. My heart is fluttering. Something's different. I stare at the chest as it gently rises and falls.
The chest with a… bite mark?
Oh God. Oh no. Did I… did they want to? What have I done? Oh crap, did I—
The chest stirs. The head turns towards me. The eyes are closed, the face content.
I know the face.
Zeke.
Something cool and calm and content floods through me.
"None of that, darling. You only gave us what we asked for." His voice is thick with sleep, his eyes not even cracking open.
Oh.
Oh!
I run my hands around my throat and tug at the collar of my shirt, looking down at my chest. It's a stretch, but I can just see a hint of a scabbed over bite mark on my own shoulder.
… mine.
… yours.
I remember… wanting.
And it's surprising how right everything feels. I know I should be absolutely panicking right now. I know I should feel like I've done something monumentally impulsive and stupid. But in my chest, in my heart, all I can feel is satisfied and safe and content.
The heels of my hands rub into my eye sockets as I try to remember.
There are… flashes. Little pops and bursts of fulfilment. And a conversation. The shape of it's there, but none of the details.
"… We talked about this, didn't we? Before…?"
Zeke nods, peeling open one eye. "Yep, we did. Don't worry, darling." He stretches and yawns. "Preheat memories can take a little while to settle. Give it a bit of time." He pushes my hair away from my face, making me wince a little when his fingers snag on a knot.
"Sorry. Couldn't get all the tangles out." I turn my head towards James' deep grumble as he pads out of the bathroom, clad only in tight black boxers, rubbing a towel over his damp hair. His half smile seems apologetic.
I smile back. "It was really thoughtful of you to try."
There's a warmth in my chest. A satisfaction. More than just mine.
Another flash of memory. I stumble out of the nest, my head spinning, falling over as I try to stand. James lunges for me, catching me before I hit the ground. He eases me down onto my knees.
"Take it easy, lovely. You've hardly eaten anything for the last four days."
There's a scoff from the bathroom. "Not for lack of trying." Seb's voice echoes against the tiles.
"Four days? So it's… uh…" I look up at James. He crouches down next to me, his hand warm against my cheek. I feel myself leaning into his palm. My gaze falls on his collarbone.
Something calming, soothing and safe bursts into my chest.
"It's okay, lovely. It's Friday morning. Gotta give your brain time to catch back up. C'mon, let's get you a drink, hey?"
James scoops me up, making me squeak. I lean my head against his chest as he carries me into the kitchen. He sits me on the bench, and pulls a yellow sports drink from the fridge.
I wrinkle my nose. He chuckles, putting it back. "Shit. Sorry."
I hear Seb snort as he follows us in. "Good luck with that." There's a perfect half-moon of scabbed-over teeth marks behind his ear.
James pulls out a bottle of water and a high-protein yoghurt sachet. "Here you go. Try that."
I gulp the water down gratefully. My stomach is still a bit sensitive, but I manage a few swallows of yoghurt.
"So, um, just double checking. I… I didn't… Did I? Um. Did I do anything you didn't want?"
Crap. I hope I didn't cross a line.
My breath catches in my chest. But the second it does, a flood of gratitude and affection swamps me. It's so strong I almost fall off the bench.
I squeal.
Apparently my face is telling a story, because Seb takes one look at it and bursts out laughing. He strolls over and plants a kiss on the top of my head, then plants one hand on either side of my thighs, and leans forward.
"Balga, trust me when I say this on behalf of all of us, everything that happened in that nest was something we wanted."
Something in my chest releases. My head drops as I exhale. "Okay. That's… that's good. Um. My brain is still… catching up, I think? Um."
Another little flash of memory. A conversation. Words dropping into place.
"I… I asked for your bond, didn't I…?"
James nods. I can feel a flicker of worry in my chest, but it isn't mine. I close my eyes, probing the feeling. It's coming from that safe, protective place. James.
"Oh. Um. I… I haven't changed my mind, or anything. I mean, it might have been a good idea to, like, talk a few practicalities through first, but—"
The worry peters out. James' smile grows a little easier.
Seb leans his head on my shoulder. "Can we talk that stuff through later, Balga?
Yeah, there are things to work out, but d'you reckon they will keep for a day or so?
Right now, James' alpha just wants to get you fed and hydrated, and I know Zeke would really like some more snuggles.
And I could really use some, too, if you're game. "
A smile, unbidden, tugs at my lips. Something warm unfurls in my chest.
"That would be nice. Um—can you get Ralph and Allen? I think I might need all of you in the nest, if that's okay?"
A sense of smug satisfaction is strangely ticklish. It has to be Seb. His feelings seem… frothier, almost, yet also somehow sharper, than James' steady, protective glow or Zeke's clear, pain-flecked brightness.
Seb scoops me up as James grunts in protest. "Your presence is required, too, James," he calls over his shoulder. "Go get Ralph and Allen. And bring treats," he adds, kissing my hair. "Omegas love treats."
I don't know how many more hours have passed.
It must be late afternoon by now, but my brain seems to finally be starting to catch back up.
I'm snuggled in the nest on Allen's lap.
Ralph is curled up beside us, leaning his head against my hip, his legs splayed over Zeke.
James is on our other side, holding a half-empty box of suspiciously fancy looking chocolates and a bottle of water.
His smug expression and the contentment that glows steadily in our bond is probably due to the fact that, in my post-heat addled haze, I let slip my weakness for gianduja, and James now, as Seb gleefully put it as he lounged between my legs, has leverage.
It was less than half an hour between a silly throwaway comment and the soft rap at the door.
I have to make sure Charlie gets a really, really big tip. And Lance.
Lance. There was something… just before things kicked off… I'd sent him a message… he needed to go to the airport…
A stray thought darts across my mind, trailing worry behind it. I sit up, sharply.
"Did Loz say if Pack Zed got in okay?"
Seb looks up at me, his eyebrow quirked. "D'you really think we're gonna go and talk with another omega right now?"
I can feel exasperation mingled with amusement from his bond. My lips pinch together. "No—I mean, did she message? Or call? Or—"
Allen shifts gently beneath me. "Are you really thinking about work right now, little star?" His tone sounds more concerned than incredulous. The warmth from his bond is melting through me.
"No. Not like that—I just wanna make sure my friend is okay."
Ralph sighs. I feel his reluctant acceptance from his bond, each flash of feeling a shiny sparkle in my chest. "I'll go get your phone."
He rolls off Zeke and me. I stroke his hair. "Thank you." He disappears out of the nest, closing the door behind him.
Seb whacks Zeke in the chest. "Told ya she could do it. Less than a day. Pony up."
Allen glares at them. His bond is darkening. "Did you seriously make a bet on how long it would take Dellie to accept any kind of non-transactional care?"
Seb snorts. "Nah, 'course not."
James' nostrils are flaring. There's a heat to his bond that wasn't there earlier.
Zeke's chest is vibrating with suppressed laughter. "He bet me fifty bucks on how long before Dellie could get Ralph to do something for her without actually asking."