“Huh,” I muse as the doors close us in. “Funny. I never thought about it. But you wouldn’t want to cart a super king bed up all those flights of stairs.”
“True,” he says. When the bell dings and the doors slide open again, he spins around and walks out backward. “Now—” He trips on the metal strip in front of the doors, and I lunge forward to catch him, stopping his fall just before his ass hits the ground.
“Shit, Ricky! You scared me.”
He shoots me a blank look, his brain still catching up with his adrenaline. “Scared myself, too,” he mutters.
I laugh and haul him upright. “Where are we?” I ask, looking around.
“Right. We’re actually on the roof above the apartment.” He orders me to close my eyes, and then a heavy door squeaks open. A gust of wind blows over me and warm sunlight bathes my face. My alpha returns to grab my hands and lead me forward into what feels like a big open space.
“You’ve got me on pins and needles,” I say, nerves trickling through me. What if I don’t like his surprise?
He chuckles. “Now, I just want to say I’ve got absolutely no expectations for this. Calli and I already agreed that if you don’t like it, we’ll tear it down.” Ricky turns my body, dropping his hands on my shoulders. “Open up.”
I blink and discover the rooftop, exposed to the sky with a railing around the edge, city panoramic on all sides, and a glass and timber building in the middle of it all.
Ricky skips forward and opens the door. “It was Callisto’s idea, but I did most of the plans. I know you hate nests, but we thought something like this might be all right.”
A nest? My heart hammers under my ribs as I step forward.
Despite the rising instinctual fear, curiosity tugs me inside. My breath catches as I stand under an expansive glass roof.
This is no nest. It’s a greenhouse, glass on all sides and above, with beautiful, exposed timber framing and a kitchenette to one side. Shutters, which seem to be inside the glass, filter some of the bright sun. Ahead of me rises a platform with a couple of big posts and half-height railings, like a gazebo. A vision of this place explodes in my mind: fully outfitted, warm and a little steamy, swimming with potted plants and comfortable lounge chairs in the open space at the back. The solar string lights from the tent draped along the exposed rafters.
My heart squeezes. For the first time, I want to have a heat.
Rickon watches me closely. “The toilet goes on the left, and the space here in the corner is for a Jacuzzi. If you like it.” Vulnerability throttles his voice, making him sound small and unsure.
Fuck, I love my alphas so much it hurts.
I swing around, backing my lover into the glass wall. “Your idea?”
“Callisto’s idea. He paid for the roof space.”
“But you designed it?”
He nods, eyes big and glistening. “You hate it, don’t you? I tried to make it bright and airy, but—”
“I fucking love it, alpha.”
He swallows hard, Adam’s apple bobbing. “You do?”
“Just like I fucking love you so much I might burst.” I grab his cheeks and squeeze them before sealing my lips to his. I’m a bit naïve about the world, but even I know it’s no joke to design an entire building and get it built in secret. And we’ve had so much shit going on, when did he even get the time? He must have pushed himself so much, all because he wants me to be comfortable.
Rickon sags in my grip, sighing with relief. “You really like it?”
“I love it!” I clap his cheeks lightly and laugh. “And I can’t believe you did all this!” I run into the space and twirl with my arms out, feeling the warm sunshine on my face. One could swing a cat in here and not bump into anything. It’s not a huge building, but it’s big enough to feel spacious. And all the natural light makes the brown timber glow.
“This is my hot house,” I declare. “I’m going to fill it with orchids and tropical greenery, and who knows, maybe I’ll even get twenty pillows.”
Rickon comes up behind me and slips his arms around my waist. “Maybe a hundred pillows,” he says near my ear. “Hot House is the perfect name.”
I chuckle. “Right? We’re going to get so filthy hot in here.”
“Are we?” He nuzzles my neck. “Honestly, I thought you might hate it.”
I slide around until we face each other. “I’m not gonna lie and say everything’s hunky-dory. But after all we’ve been through, my heat doesn’t seem so scary. I’ll have my alphas, and Zack understands my wildness perfectly. If anyone knows how to keep the horrors at bay, it’s him.”
