Chapter 11
Elias
Dawn crept in through the narrow windows high on the concrete walls.
The room we’d taken over used to be a planning hall.
We’d set up cots in a loose circle and for the first time since the battle, we’d been able to sleep through the night.
The base was quieter than it had been in days.
There were still voices, quiet footsteps, the low murmur of pain and recovery, but the bitter edge of crisis had finally dulled.
I lay on my back on one of the cots, eyes open, listening.
Griff slept on his side across from me, one arm thrown over the edge of his cot like he might reach for something in his dreams. Bishop rested flat on his back, hands folded loosely on his stomach, breathing even and light.
Eamon had dozed sitting up against the wall, boots still on, chin tipped forward, a hand resting on the strap of his bag like he’d fallen asleep mid-thought.
Nox lay sprawled half on his cot, half off, one leg hooked over the frame.
Tamsin lay curled on her side on the cot nearest mine, hair loose and dark against the thin pillow, face relaxed in sleep in a way that still surprised me.
She’d pushed herself past exhaustion for days, bandaging, organizing, standing watch, and refusing rest until the last of the wounded had been settled.
She’d taken care of everyone.
Except herself.
Today, I was going to make sure to take care of her.
I didn’t even have to touch her to know her body was radiating with heat.
The scent of her need was ripe in the air.
It had been rising each day, but I knew she was pushing it aside in order to help everyone else.
As she was a marked wolf shifter now, I knew that she would need to be taken by her mates before long.
The more time that passed, the stronger her heat would become until it took over her every waking thought.
I was going to take care of that today.
I rose quietly from the cot and crossed the small distance to her side. She stirred as I approached, breath catching slightly, brows drawing together as if some part of her recognized me even in sleep.
Her eyes fluttered open. For a heartbeat, she looked disoriented. Then her eyes locked on me and her lips curved up in a bit of a smile.
“Morning,” she murmured, her voice a bit rough with sleep.
“Morning,” I replied softly.
She pushed herself up on one elbow, then winced faintly and stilled. I reached out without thinking, squeezing her shoulder.
“Easy,” I said. “You pushed yourself pretty hard these past few days.”
She flicked her gaze over my face, then past me to the others.
“Everyone okay?” she asked.
“Yes,” I said. “Because of you.”
Her expression softened, then tightened like she didn’t quite know how to accept that.
“You did more than you needed to, little mate,” I went on quietly. “And now,” I said gently, “we’re going to take care of you.”
Movement stirred around us.
Griff was awake now, eyes open, watching us with that familiar steady warmth. Bishop turned his head slightly, listening quietly on his cot. Eamon stirred against the wall, blinking himself awake, and Nox cracked one eye open, watching us in silence.
They exchanged looks.
Eamon stood, stretching stiffly. His gaze flicked to her face. “You’ve been carrying everyone else for days. Let us carry you for a bit.”
Tamsin sat up a little more, the blanket falling to her waist. The neckline of the borrowed shirt she wore slipped slightly, revealing the slope of her collarbone, and the faintest flush rising along her chest.
Her eyes moved from Eamon to Griff, to Bishop, to Nox, and finally, back to me.
“I’m fine,” she said too quickly. Her voice was still rough from sleep, but there was a certain strained tightness to it.
Eamon gave a quiet huff. “That’s not what your scent says.”
Griff sat up, rubbing a hand over his face. “You’re burning up, Tam. We can all sense it. I know you can too.”
She opened her mouth to argue, but stopped when she saw my eyes narrow.
I reached out again, brushing my knuckles lightly down her cheek. Her skin was warm—hot, actually—with that telltale flush that came with a wolf’s heat.
“You’ve been so strong,” I murmured. “But you don’t have to be alone in this. Not when you have us.”
The others moved closer now, slowly, giving her space but offering presence.
Griff sat beside her on the cot. Eamon moved to kneel beside it, eyes soft, careful.
Bishop came around to her other side. Nox stayed near the foot of the cot, lounging in that casual way of his, but even his eyes had lost their usual aloof glint.
Tamsin’s breathing had quickened.
She licked her lips, then looked up at me. “It’s… hard to think.”
“That’s your heat,” I explained, keeping my voice soft and soothing. “It’ll get stronger until we help you through it.”
Her cheeks flushed deeper. “I didn’t know it would feel like this.”
I leaned in, letting my hand settle at the curve of her jaw. “It’s okay. You’re safe. You’re with us.”
She nodded, just a small, shaky motion.
Griff reached out, brushing her hair back. “We’ll go slow, sweetheart.”
Eamon added, “You lead. We follow.”
That flicker of tension in her spine eased enough for me to notice. Then she exhaled. Her voice, when it came, was smaller than usual, but steady. “Actually, I don’t want slow. Not right now.”
That stilled all of us.
She looked at each of us in turn, emotion burning behind her eyes now. I recognized her need, yes, but there was trust there too.
“I feel like I’m unraveling,” she admitted. “And I want… I need my mates.”
Fuck, I loved the sound of that.
My mates.
A primal urge zipped through me at her words, and I saw the same flicker move through the others.
I didn’t ask.
I kissed her.
Her hands came up, fisting the front of my shirt, pulling me closer, like her body already knew how this was supposed to go even if her thoughts hadn’t caught up yet.
When I pulled back, Griff was already leaning in, pressing a kiss to her neck, just under her ear.
Tamsin gasped, the sound high and breathless.
Eamon kissed her temple. Bishop took her hand and brought it to his lips.
Nox was behind her now, his hand brushing over her shoulder, his voice low near her ear.
“You’re ours, sweet mate,” he said. “It’s time we showed you what that means.”
Tamsin looked up at him, her eyes wide, pupils dilated with rising heat. She didn’t speak. She didn’t need to. Her body answered for her, shoulders easing, lips parting, hands curling in the fabric of my shirt as if she could anchor herself there and in all of us at once.
She turned to me, her gaze catching mine.
I cupped her cheek in my palm, fingers slipping into her hair. “We’ll take care of you,” I said gently. “Let us.”
She nodded, letting go of my shirt, breath catching, and leaned into my hand like she’d needed that touch more than she’d realized.
Griff shifted beside her, easing her fully into his lap. His arms wrapped around her waist, holding her carefully, reverently, as if she were something fragile and priceless. She melted against him, head tipping back onto his shoulder, exposing the smooth curve of her throat.
Bishop knelt beside them, taking one of her hands in both of his, pressing a kiss to her knuckles again, then turning it and kissing the inside of her wrist. His touch was soft, but his eyes were fierce and protective.
He said nothing, but he held her gaze with a quiet intensity that made her cheeks flush deeper.
Eamon hovered nearby, waiting for her to look at him before he moved. When she did, he stepped forward, brushing a few strands of hair from her face. “You’ve done so much for all of us,” he said. “Let us return that. Let us be what you need.”
Her breath shuddered out.
Nox was still behind her, one hand at her hip, the other sliding along her arm, mapping the shape of her with featherlight touches that made her eyes flutter shut.
And I leaned in again, letting my lips find hers in another kiss. This one was deeper. Longer.
Her hands came up, wrapping around my neck as she kissed me back, a low sound slipping from her throat that stirred every protective instinct I had.
She needed more.
Not just to be touched.
To be held.
Claimed. Loved. Taken care of.
And we would give her all of that.
“Lay back, sweet girl,” I whispered against her lips. “Let us show you what we mean.”
Griff helped guide her down gently, laying her back across the soft cot she’d slept in. She looked up at all of us, breath shallow, heat flushing across her cheeks and throat, but her eyes were clear.
She was ready.
The five of us surrounded her as one pack.
I leaned over her, placing a kiss just under her jaw, following the path Griff had started. She tipped her head for me, a soft sound slipping from her again. My lips brushed down the side of her neck, tasting the scent that had driven me to near madness all morning.
Griff’s large hands slid under her shirt slowly, revealing the soft skin of her belly, the curve of her waist. He pressed kisses to her ribs and at her waist, murmuring things I couldn’t quite hear but didn’t need to.
She was already trembling beneath him, eyes fluttering closed as his touch soothed and ignited her in equal measure.
Eamon came to her other side, fingers dancing lightly along her arm, brushing over the inside of her wrist, mapping her pulse with his mouth. “You don’t have to be strong for anyone right now,” he said. “Just let go.”
“I want to,” she breathed.
Bishop leaned down next, his kiss landing on her collarbone, then trailing lower. His touch was careful in the same way that he handled everything important, measured and thoughtful.
Nox worked lower still, slipping off her boots with a grin that made her smile even through the haze of heat. “Let us worship you, Tamsin,” he said. “Every inch. Every scar. Every part of you.”