Prologue II.
I’ve already been living with them, so I don’t expect much to change after the bonding ceremony. The pack gives me my own permanent room in their home. We’d all been sleeping together in Cole or Liam’s bedroom each night prior, eager to drown myself in their scents.
The room alone is bigger than the entirety of my old shoebox apartment. The windows stretch from the floor to the ceiling, just like they do in the rest of the home. The furniture is polished dark wood and beautiful. Designer clothing and jewelry fill the walk-in closet to the brim.
“We wanted you to have everything you need,” Cole laughs at my slack jawed expression.
“It’s too much,” I protest weakly.
“Nothing’s too much for our omega.” Ian states dismissively.
“I picked them out myself,” Liam smiles.
“Thank you,” I look at the three alphas sitting on my bed, a surge of affection running through me.
“Come here and show us how thankful you are,” Liam flashes me his dazzling grin, laying back as I start to move forward.
We may have delayed our honeymoon, but that doesn’t mean its bliss is missing. I wake up every morning wrapped in someone’s embrace. We sit down together for breakfast and dinner everyday. Instead of asking me to cook, the pack orders from a meal service.
Cole teaches me how to knot his tie for him and it becomes a ritual. They line up for me, and I give them their ties and a kiss before they head off for work.
They’re a startup turned pack, united by their success. I offer my graphic design skills to help, but they just laugh me off. Ian does take me to meetings with investors sometimes. They talk about business, conversations I don’t follow.
I try to fill the rest of my time by freelancing, but it’s hard to focus at home alone all day. The bond aches while they’re gone, and when they’re not, my pack prefers for me to be concentrated on spending time together.
Sometimes I call my parents or friends, but most of them are too busy with school or work to talk.
I quit the coffee shop at their insistence when I moved in, not needing to work two jobs anymore.
Not being constantly exhausted is nice, but I find myself missing even the annoying customers.
At least they gave me someone to talk to.
Eventually, I become a creature of habit, passing the hours waiting to hear the elevator ding and announce the pack’s return.
It’s the best time of the day, without a doubt. Liam’s face always bursts into a smile when he sees me, pulling me into his arms. Ian plants a kiss on my cheek and Cole ruffles my hair to annoy me.
It’s the perfect life for any omega. A pack of older, handsome millionaires who have swept me off my feet and want nothing from me but my company? It doesn’t get much more fairytale than that.
So why do I feel so…restless?
* * *
It starts about six months in. I’m flipping through TV channels, cuddling with Cole on the couch. It’s supposed to be a weekend, but that doesn’t stop him from typing away into his laptop, coding something for work.
“Maybe I should take some classes. I can help you out with this sort of thing,” I cuddle into his shoulder, pointing at the words and numbers.
He lifts his hands off the keyboard, cracking his knuckles while his scent fills with amusement. “Yeah? That’d be fun. You could be my cute little assistant.”
I lift my head off his shoulder and rest both my palms on the couch, facing him. “I mean it! It doesn’t have to be computer science specifically, but I was thinking about enrolling in school or something.”
“What for?” he asks, confusion clearly etched across his features.
“I just want to. It’s what I moved here for originally, you know. It would make my parents real proud. Plus, it would give me something to do.”
Cole doesn’t respond right away, returning to typing. “I don’t know, Ariana. Don’t you have plenty to do at home? Why do you want to stress yourself out with schoolwork? Stress isn’t good for omegas.”
“Maybe you’re right,” I laugh it off, seeing the logic in his words. I can’t hide the tinge of disappointment I feel, though. Not when we’re bonded.
“Hey, listen. I’m not saying it’s a bad idea. I get where you’re coming from,” he nods, eyes still locked on his laptop. “I’m just saying maybe you should ask Ian before you sign up for anything.”
“Ask me what?” Ian walks into the living room, hair still damp from the shower.
Cole finally lifts his gaze off the screen in front of him to look at the other alpha. “Ariana wants to go back to school.”
“Absolutely not.” Ian’s reply is immediate.
I uncurl my legs from beneath me, getting up off the couch. “You didn’t even hear me out!”
“I don’t need to. You think I’m going to let my omega be around unmated alphas for hours a day? That’s insane. What do you need a degree for? We provide everything you could ever want.” Ian’s tone is stern but patient, like he’s explaining something to a child.
“Plenty of omegas go to school now,” I point out. “They’re perfectly fine.”
“Omegas whose alphas can’t afford to keep them comfortable,” Ian counters sternly. “Is that how you want people to think of us?”
“We just want the best for you, Ariana. And that means keeping you safe from others,” Cole rubs my back with one hand, scrolling through his code with the other.
“Even if you don’t like it,” Ian’s voice makes it clear he’s done with the discussion.
Maybe they’re right. I don’t need a degree. I can’t get mad at them for being protective, that’s what alphas do. They’re concerned because they care.
* * *
“You don’t understand because you’re still young,” Liam’s voice is half muffled by his pillow.
“I guess,” I say, halfheartedly. Is that it? I’ve always liked older actors on TV shows, so I never thought our age gap was all that odd. Cole’s eight years older than me at twenty six, and then Liam’s two years older than him. Ian’s eleven years older than me at twenty nine.
“Over here,” the alpha rubs his lower back with one hand. He’s laying face down on my bed, shirt discarded somewhere across the room. My legs split to either side as I sit on top of him, rubbing his muscles just how he likes after a long day of work followed by the gym.
“My mom agrees with me though,” I continue as I oblige him, lowering my hands.
“Of course your mom agrees with you, babe. She’s biased.” He turns his head to look at me, rolling his eyes as he points out the obvious.
“I just don’t see why I can’t go,” I frown.
It’s been a month since I wanted to enroll in university. The restlessness has quieted down, but I miss my family. I asked the pack to go for a visit back home over dinner tonight, only to be quickly shut down. Well, it wasn’t actually a no.
“No one’s saying you can’t go, babe. You can go. With us.”
“How do you guys think I got to the city? On the bus by myself. I was perfectly fine,” I counter. I don’t want to whine and prove his point that I’m young, but I’m getting frustrated. I took the subway all the time before I met the pack. That’s a lot shadier than the bus ride to my parents’ place.
Liam turns over so his back’s on the bed, resting his hands on each of my thighs. “And we’re grateful for that. But you never know, babe. Besides, don’t you want to go with us?” He opens his green eyes wide, looking less like an alpha and more like a puppy.
“But what if I went by myself now, and then again with you later?” I trace circles along his skin absent mindedly, doing my best marketing pitch. “That’s double the fun.”
He rolls his eyes again, voice gaining a sharp edge. “The answer was no then, and the answer is no now, Ariana. We’re not letting you get on a bus or train home by yourself. We’ll go with you once work slows down.” He hooks his hands into my shorts, signaling he’s ready to move on.
The thing about their work is it never seems to slow down. My parents are understanding, but my friends at home are less so. Eventually, I lose touch with my friends from high school.
I know it’s natural to do as you age, so it was bound to happen at some point. But I come from a small town, the kind where everyone knows everyone. I’ve been friends with many of these girls since I was in kindergarten.
I don’t remember the exact month they stop calling. I can’t recall Ian telling me not to contact them either. I’m not sure he ever outright did. I can remember the clear disapproval in his scent every time my phone rang, though. It was enough discouragement to make the bond throb.
That’s not saying something’s wrong with my pack. I’m grateful for everything they’ve given me. They just want me to be focused on them instead of other people, I can’t fault them for that. The bond still hums in my chest, and my omega still wants nothing more than to please them.
I’m just not used to how their instincts as alphas work yet.
Besides, it’s not like it’s all going wrong. If the pack gets the smallest sense they’ve hurt my feelings, they always double their efforts to treat me well to make up for it. And that’s what love is, isn’t it? We work through things together.
And it’s not like I’m perfect.
It shows a few weeks later, while I’m tying Cole’s tie for the day. I just have to put my foot in my mouth. “You know, I’ve been thinking about your logo. I could really help refresh the design.”
Cole smiles indulgently. “That’s sweet Ari, but we have a whole team for that.”
“I know, but I’m good at it. I did my school’s yearbook and was top of our media class.” I catch Liam’s eye, who affectionately grins at me as if I’ve said something cute. I get it, I must sound juvenile talking about my old high school classes to them.
“We’ll think about it,” he promises, pressing a kiss to my forehead.
I become a woman possessed, reinvigorated by giving myself something to do. I draft ideas while they’re gone during the day, passing the hours by making mockups in my ample spare time. I even catch Ian in his office one evening and suggest I could help with their marketing materials.