“A pack,” she repeats, gesturing between the three of us and toward the den where Kai still sleeps. “You, Grayson, Kai. I thought that’s what was happening here.”
“We’re not a pack,” I say automatically, though even as the words leave my mouth, I’m not entirely sure why I’m so certain. “We’re just friends who...”
“Who live together, support each other and helped an omega through her heat without killing each other,” Holly finishes for me. “Where I come from, that’s the literal definition of a pack.”
“We should be a pack,” Grayson’s deep voice rumbling through the hallway. “Noah is the one who struck out on his own.”
I stare at them both, trying to process this shift in perspective. “I was giving Jamie what she wanted.”
Grayson sighs. If I could see his mouth, I know his lips would be twisted into a frown, even as his eyes remain gentle, clearly conveying he is about to tell me something I might not be ready to hear. “And how well did that turn out?”
I open my mouth to argue further, but the words die on my tongue as realization dawns. She’s right. The three of us—Grayson, Kai, and I—have functioned as a unit for months now, ever since I came back to town. We share resources, protect each other, bicker like an old married throuple.
We’re a pack. We’ve been a pack this entire time, and I just wasn’t paying enough attention to acknowledge it.
“Noah?” Holly’s voice pulls me from my thoughts. She’s watching me carefully, her expression softening. “I didn’t mean to upset you. I thought...I thought this was what you wanted, for me to put some distance between us.”
Nope, I realize. That’s the last fucking thing that I want.
Before I can respond, a sleepy voice calls from behind me. “What’s with all the serious talking in hallways?” Kai appears, hair sticking up in all directions, eyes still heavy with sleep. “Some of us are trying to recover from a Star Wars marathon here.”
“Apparently, we’re a pack,” I inform him, fully expecting a surprised reaction.
“Oh good, Noah’s finally figured out we’re a pack,” he says instead, as casually as if commenting on the weather. “Took youlong enough. You’re literally the only person in town who didn’t know.”
I turn to him, incredulous. “I’m sorry, what?”
Kai gives me a look of patient exasperation. “Dude. We live together. We eat together. We share food. Grayson literally growls at any other alphas who get too close. What did you think was happening?”
Put that way, it does seem obvious. I run a hand through my hair, trying to realign my understanding of the past several years in light of this revelation.
But that doesn’t mean some clarity isn’t still needed here.
“I need to know what you think us being a pack means
Her gaze settles on me, the question in her eyes unmistakable. The bond between us pulses, alive with aching possibility.
Holly takes a deep breath, her shoulders straightening as she gathers her thoughts. “I think it means I’m sorry for bonding you without your consent. And that I won’t take any more decisions away from you going forward. So it’s up to you, Noah. What do you want this to be?”
I feel the weight of three pairs of eyes on me, waiting. The silence goes on for long enough that I sense Holly’s anxiety spike through our bond.
Her expression falls. “Or maybe I should just go back to the cabin. The roads must be okay by now…”
“You don’t need to be sorry,” I interrupt, finally putting into words the feeling that has been pinging through my chest for days. “If you hadn’t bonded me during your heat, there’s an excellent chance I would have bonded you instead. I’ve been fighting the urge to do just that since your first day at the clinic.”
Her eyes widen, her cheeks turning a pretty pink. “Really?”
I nod, taking a step closer to her. “Really. But I need to know if you’re actually okay with a pack arrangement. Most of theomegas around here wouldn’t ever dream of bonding multiple alphas.”
“I never dreamed of bonding at all,” she admits. “I was too busy trying to pretend I wasn’t an omega. But now that it’s happened...” She looks around at the three of us, a small smile playing at her lips. “It’s hard to imagine changing any of this.”
“We can try to keep this under wraps for awhile, but I don’t need to remind you how small this town is. Are you sure we’re worth putting your career at risk?”
Her response is immediate. “Only one way to figure that out.”
I want to ask more questions, be more insistent so she recognizes the risk she’s taking. We haven’t even discussed what happens after her rotation is over in a month. Will she stay here? Will we try to follow her?
But those questions fade into the background of my mind as I stare down at her beautiful face. “I don’t want to see you get hurt. I might not be your direct supervisor anymore, but dating an attending is…”
