Her eyes move from Thane to me, and fuck me if my heart doesn't actually skip a beat when those beautiful ocean eyes meet mine. "Whiskey," she says, and hearing my name in her voice does something weird to my insides. "Sorry about the hockey stick to the head."
I can't help the grin that spreads across my face. "No hard feelings, sweetheart. I shouldn't have busted in there like that."
Her gaze shifts to Plague, who stands perfectly still under her scrutiny. "And Plague," she says. "Sorry about the cologne in your eyes."
"It was deserved," Plague replies, his voice carefully neutral despite the way his knuckles have gone white around the handle of the spatula.
Ivy takes a deep breath, squaring her shoulders. "I think we should talk. All of us. About... whatever this is." She gestures vaguely between herself and the four of us. "But first, um… coffee?"
The question is so normal, so unexpected after the tension of the moment, that I actually laugh. "Yeah, it's probably the only thing I can make without burning the house down."
"Debatable," Plague mutters.
Ivy smiles—a small, tentative smile that transforms her face—and steps further into the kitchen, Wraith moving with her like a massive shadow. "I'd kill for a cup. Haven't had decent coffee in weeks," she says to me.
She's talking to me.
Ivy, the omega of my dreams—my literal dreams—is talkingto me.
And all I can do is stare at her like a lovestruck puppy.
Chapter
Thirty-Four
IVY
I'm painfully aware of four alpha gazes fixed on me.
The kitchen suddenly feels too small, too hot, too... everything. Whiskey's staring at me like he's seeing a ghost, his honey-brown eyes wide and his mouth slightly open. Plague's expression is more controlled, but I can see the slight tension in his jaw, the way his knuckles have gone white around the spatula. Thane's dark eyes watch me with an intensity that would be unnerving if I hadn't spent the night with his significantly more intense brother.
And then there's Wraith, moving to stand beside me, his massive frame radiating heat and safety. I lean toward him instinctively, his protective presence keeping me from bolting back to the loft.
The silent communication between the alphas of this pack isn't lost on me. There's a whole conversation happening with just glances and subtle shifts in posture.
They're all ridiculously attractive up close, I'll give them that. And not in the fuckboy way I'm used to, either.
"Um, coffee?" Whiskey finally says, shaking himself from whatever trance he was in. "Yeah. Right. Coffee. I can do that."
He practically lunges for the coffee maker, his cinnamon scent spiking with anxiety that seems out of place in such a big alpha. The other scents are all blending together, difficult to tell apart when they're all around me at once. He fumbles with filters and grounds while stealing glances at me over his shoulder. It would be almost comical if the whole situation didn't feel so precarious.
"You can sit down," Thane says, gesturing to the kitchen table. His voice sounds controlled but strained, like he's working hard to keep it level. "If you want to, obviously."
I nod, moving toward the table with Wraith still shadowing me. He pulls out a chair for me, and I sit, trying not to look as nervous as I feel. Wraith settles beside me, his large body making the chair look comically small. Under the table, his outer thigh presses against mine in silent reassurance.
Plague transfers perfectly cooked eggs to a serving plate and brings it to the table along with French toast. Despite my hunger, my stomach knots with anxiety. I watch as Thane and Plague take seats across from us. Whiskey joins a moment later, setting a steaming mug of coffee in front of me.
"Wasn't sure how you take it," he says, pushing a small container of sugar and three cartons of milk—cow's milk, almond milk, and oat milk—toward me. "So I brought options."
"Black is fine," I say, wrapping my hands around the mug for warmth. "Thank you."
The simple domesticity of the moment—sitting at a kitchen table with coffee and breakfast—feels surreal after months of hiding, eating cold food in abandoned rooms, and drinking lukewarmcoffee from vending machines. It's been so long since I've had a normal moment like this.
Strange that I'm surrounded by alphas when it finally happens. Really didn't seethatcoming.
I take a sip of coffee, letting the warmth calm me down. When I look up, all four alphas are watching me with varying degrees of intensity.
"This is weird," I finally say to break the tension. "A week ago I was living in maintenance tunnels, and now I'm sitting at a kitchen table with four alphas who are supposedly my scent matches." I let out a small, disbelieving laugh. "If someone had told me this would happen, I would've thought they were crazy."
