They're about to leave again, but they're so close, and their smell is even more potent without their tops on… I'm reaching for them before I can think, my hands finding Silas's bare chest first.
I press my face against his neck, inhale, and my head spins faster than it already did. A sound that's half whimper, half purr escapes me, and I'm rubbing my cheek against his throat, scenting marking him.
"Naomi," he breathes, hands coming to my waist.
I pull his head down and kiss him. He makes a surprised sound that turns into a growl, and I'm drowning in his scent and his taste and the feel of his skin under my palms.
When we break apart, Liam is there. I press myself against his chest, nose dragging along his collarbone. My hands slidearound to his back, holding him while I rub my face against his shoulder.
"Fuck," Liam groans.
I kiss him too, and something in me whimpers at how right it feels.
Then Felix. I practically climb him, and rub my cheek against his neck, desperate and shameless, smearing my scent on him, claiming him. He makes this wrecked little sound, somewhere between a whine and a chuckle, and his fingers slide into my hair.
"Angel," he murmurs, hand cupping the back of my head.
I kiss him, soft and desperate, and for a moment I consider abandoning the nest and dragging them all to the floor right here.
But underneath the need to touch them, another instinct claws harder. Different. More urgent.
Nest. Build. Safe first.
I tear my mouth away from Felix’s with a gasp. “Out,” I blurt.
He blinks. “What?”
“You need to—” My hands flutter between us, useless. “I have to finish. Alone.”
“Got it,” Silas says immediately, already backing away, hands up.
"Now!"
They scatter, practically tripping over each other to give me space as they disappearing down the path that leads to the breezeway.
Silence drops over the living room, broken only by the crackle of the fire and my own ragged breathing.
I turn my attention back to the space in front of the fireplace.
Nest. Nest. Nest.
I shrug out of my sweater, tossing it somewhere behind me, and start with the nest boundaries.
The coffee table scrapes as I angle it closer to the hearth. One of the armchairs gets dragged in, giving me another solid edge. I nudge the couch a few inches inward until the space feels juuust right.
I know have walls on three sides. Fire on the fourth. Open enough to breathe. Closed enough to feel safe and cozy.
Now softness.
I pull the biggest blankets from the pile, one after another, spreading them on the floor to form the base. Thick comforter first, then quilts, then fleece. I smooth each layer compulsively, hunting down every wrinkle with my palms until it lies flat.
Everything smells like them.
I bring the gray blanket to my face, inhale, and my legs go out for a second. My knees hit the padding with a dull thump.
Home, my hindbrain purrs.Mine.
I lay it down carefully, smoothing the corners until they align just so.
