CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO - BIRDIE #3
He looks at me like he’s just crawled out of the desert and I’m a bottomless glass of water, but he shakes his head.
“If they’ve weaponized your scent, then maybe they’ve done something even worse.
I don’t know what that might be, but I can’t take the chance of finding out.
” He meets his packmates’ stares, his gaze lingering on Hog’s bruised lip.
“I’d never forgive myself if I hurt any of you more than I already have. ”
I scowl, because I think he’s taking too much of the blame and not assigning enough to me.
It’s my scent, after all, that seems to have rewired his rut and sent him over the edge.
But Axel isn’t just a pack alpha, he’s a team leader, and responsibility seems to be drilled into him so deeply that I’m not sure he can be rational about this.
Not that I’m much better, another wave of heat scrambling my thoughts and bringing a cry to my lips. Axel surges against his ropes, and I want to go to him, but Colt gently steers me back over to the bed. I collapse on the edge, Hog already there on his knees to catch my trembling body.
“It’s okay, beautiful,” he murmurs, smoothing his hands down my arms. “We’re here for you.”
I nod, pressing my face into his neck. I gulp down his scent until the cramp retreats enough for me to speak. “Will you help me make my nest?”
“It’d be an honor, Omega.”
“Okay.” I take a deep breath. “Where do we start?”
He gets to his feet and grabs the mint green cushion he picked out before. “You like this one?”
I smile at the eager note in his voice and take the velvet cushion from his hands. “Is this your favorite color?”
He tweaks one of my damp locks. “Well, it was. But now I’m kinda partial to flamingo pink.”
“Pearl Blush,” I correct him, but return his grin as Colt brings me a fluffy blanket the color of warm sand. It’s a perfect fit for him, and I brush the silky corner over his abs, soaking up some of his sunshine scent. “This one is going in the sunroom after my heat.”
He beams at me, and both of the guys ply me with offerings until I’m surrounded by mounds of lush blankets and soft cushions. Hog warned me that some of them might not feel right, but just the scent of their hands on the fabrics means that I want to keep them close.
Or maybe the discerning part of my brain has already gone into hiatus.
When all of the new bedding is laid out in neat piles, I turn to examine them.
As far as aesthetics go, it could be a layout from a magazine, but something about it strikes me as wrong.
I think back to the article in Omega Allure about building the perfect nest. Unfortunately, I can’t remember any of the specifics.
Am I meant to tuck the blankets under the pillows, or the other way around?
I vaguely remember curved edges being a thing, but I can’t see how you do that on a regular bed.
And where are the alphas’ shirts supposed to go?
There was definitely something about weaving their clothing through the other materials, but damned if I know where you even start with something like that.
I rearrange a few cushions, smoothing out a blanket and rolling another one into a curved noodle shape.
I think about grabbing the guys’ clothes from the bathroom, but performance anxiety keeps me rooted to the spot.
What if I weave their shirts into a tangled mess and still don’t know where to put them in the nest.
I pause and run a trembling hand over my face.
God, why didn’t I start this process when I still had a functioning brain cell?
“From what I’ve read,” Hog says slowly, “there’s no right or wrong way to make a nest. It’s different for every omega.”
I bite my lip, studying the poor effort. “Are you just saying that to be nice?”
“He’s saying that because all this stuff is just there for your comfort,” Axel says quietly behind me. “You’re the centerpiece. Just invite them in and let your instincts do the rest.”
Instincts that have been so warped, they’ve already bloodied two members of this pack.
I grimace and flap a hand at the bed. “Well, make yourselves comfortable.”
Colt manages to hold back a snort, but Hog gives me another of those soft looks, like I’m encroaching on adorable territory.
Luckily for my pride, my heat is creeping back over me, melting my awkwardness.
I watch them crawl onto the bed, somehow looking like a pair of jungle cats as they arrange themselves in lounging positions.
I notice that Hog props his head on the pale green pillow, while Colt chooses the patch of the nest that’s draped in the sand-colored blanket.
Okay, that definitely looks better.
I join them, well aware of the view I’m giving Axel as I try my best jungle cat crawl. I feel a little silly until I reach the middle of the nest and their scents roll over me again, somehow even more potent than before.
“What do you need, Omega?” Hog asks, his body on shameless display. He looks totally relaxed in his skin, and why wouldn’t he be? He’s power personified, and my mouth waters as I run a hand over his furred chest. “I want to finish what we started in the tub.”
He smiles, his honey brown eyes full of masculine satisfaction. “You want my knot?”
I nod and look over at Colt, who’s watching us with hooded eyes. “I want you both.”