Hope unfurls in my chest. “It felt like she was exactly where she was supposed to be.”
Nik’s shoulders tense as he nods, and I turn him to face me as our pack bond flares a little. His blue eyes are shadowed, a sheen across them telling me how close to the surface his grief is.
My mind flashes to Emery. The agony tearing through our pack bond as Nikolai lost his soulmate, the bitemark on his chest turning black. His hand comes up to rest on his shirt, directly above the mark.
“Nik,” I breathe. “This doesn’t mean that you loved Emery any less. And we don’t need to move too quickly. Ava wouldn’t be ready for that level yet, anyway.”
There’s a reason that most packs only share one female. Having too many outside bonds – too many strands of bitemarks - can make things complicated. Unstable. But Nik has always been a part of us, bonded or not. And whilst it was never an option for Em to be a full pack member to all of us, Ava doesn’t have that restriction. There’s nothing stopping any of us, all of us, from giving her a bitemark. From creating a bond between us and her that ties us together forever.
But I won’t push Nikolai into more than he’s comfortable with.
“Just take your time.” The words come out roughly. “Take it slow, and don’t let the rest of us push it to more than you’re both comfortable with.”
Although I’ve seen the looks he gives her when he thinks no one is looking. This little shattered omega could be the one Nikolai needs to bring him back to life. A real life, not just a shell, only existing for the sake of his son and avoiding anything to do with truly living.
Shadows flit across his face. “I loved Emery, Luc,” he says hoarsely.
When he tries to look away, I grip his neck, pulling him back to me. “God, Nik, I know you did,” I insist, my throat tight. “We know Em was your everything. You gave her everything you possibly could, brother. To find another chance at happiness… don’t let this go, Nik. Grab onto it with both hands.”
Shaking his head, he looks away from me. “But why are my feelings so strong now? Why does this feel sointense? Do you feel it, too?”
I nod slowly. “I do. But it’s an intense situation.”
“What if she doesn’t want us?” he asks in a low voice. “What if Nash is too much? Or we’re too much?”
I shake my head. “I don’t think that will happen, Nik. You saw them together. Nash already idolizes her and he’s only met her once.”
Nikolai grunts. “I know the feeling.”
“We’ll take it at her pace. Whatever she’s comfortable with, whatever she asks for.”
“Should we talk to her as a pack?”
A hint of nervousness thrums through me. “No, not yet. I don’t want her to feel like we’re pushing her into something she’s not ready for.”
Nik nods, and we continue walking in silence, both of us contemplating the changes our pack is facing.
“Nik,” I ask gruffly. “The children—,”
“She’s a package deal, Luc,” Nik responds instantly. “That includes them, too.”
I blow out a breath of relief. I’m glad he sees it the same way I do.
“Yeah,” I agree. “I feel the same way.”
Truthfully, I feel like Ava and those kids were always meant to be ours. We just need to prove it to her.
ChapterForty
Ava
Bastien walks me to my bedroom door, retreating with a kiss to my forehead.
“Do you want me to stay?” he asks, concern pulling his face down. He glances towards my door and back to me. “You could go back to the nest.”
Shaking my head, I give him a soft smile. “I’ll be okay now, I think.”
It’s true. I feel… stronger. Like something’s shifted inside me. And I wanted to come back here and think.
