I feel…peaceful. My body is perfectly comfortable with this arrangement.
Slowly, I rotate myself in Luc’s arms, trying my best not to wake him. I’m sotired. As though I’ve spent too long with my muscles tense, and now I’m paying for it. I wince as I turn, and inhale sharply when a pair of gray eyes meet mine and widen.
Wetting my lips, I croak out his name. “Bastien?”
“You’re awake.” His face creases into a deep smile, and something inside me perks up.
“What happened?” Why is my throat so dry?
“Let me get you some water.” He climbs over to a shelf and brings me back a glass. I drink it quickly and make pleading eyes for another one. Bastien laughs quietly, and once I’ve downed four full glasses, I feel a little more human.
“Bastien,” I whisper. “What happened?”
Why can’t I remember anything?
His face shutters, and he looks towards his sleeping brother hesitantly.
“Tell me.” It’s a demand, my eyes searching his face.
“You went into a type of shock,” he murmurs quietly, settling next to me. “We couldn’t wake you, couldn’t get you to speak, eat, drink…”
He swallows, watching my face closely. “We thought you were dying,” he whispers. “You wereempty, Ava. Like the lights were on, but nobody was home.”
Nausea twists in my stomach. “How long was I like that?”
“This is day four,” he admits, and my throat closes.
Four days?
“I…” without thinking, my hand drops to my stomach. Bastien follows my movement and immediately shakes his head. “They’re fine,” he reassures me quickly. “Max checked.”
Swallowing, I nod and look down, pushing back the relief that fills me at his words.
I realize he’s not wearing a top just as he flushes a deep red. “Oh! I…um… Ezra said—”
“You needed us.” Nikolai’s deep voice rumbles in the small space, and I whip around to see him kneeling at the edge of the blankets they’ve set up. His small smile is full of relief.
“Welcome back, little bird,”he says quietly. “I’m glad you’re awake.”
I’m in a small space with two alphas and a beta, two of whom are shirtless. Everywhere I try to look, there’s naked male flesh on display. With a squeak, I stare up at the ceiling, just as Max walks in and drops the plate he’s carrying.
“Ava!”
The clatter wakes Luc, and now there’s four damned alphas – well, three and a beta - crammed into this space and trying to talk to me. I don’t know where to look.
And a small –verysmall – part of me can admit that it’s all very nicely defined.
Wait. Glancing down, I’m relieved to see that I’m in a nightgown. My eyes move from the gown to the soft floor, covered with dozens of cushions and soft blankets. My hand trails over a particularly pretty silver one before I snatch it back.
They’re all silently watching me. “You can touch it,” Nikolai says, his voice a little rough.
My hand sneaks out to stroke the soft silkiness again. Just once.
Okay, maybe twice.
“I’m not allowed to have a nest.” I squeeze my eyes shut.
A good omega does as she’s told.
