The statement hangs in the air between us. I'm thinking about my own family, the one that turned me over to Harmony House without a second thought. The parents who decided I was too much trouble, too difficult to manage, and too Omega to keep around. They weren't family, not really. They were just people who shared my blood.
But Stefan is Dustin's family, the person he called when he needed help without hesitation. That kind of bond matters more than biology and shared genetics.
Dustin's arm tightens around me, his lips pressing against the top of my head. I feel him take a shuddering breath, his chest expanding and contracting under my cheek. Some of the tension drains from his body, the comfort of the nest and our combined presence finally breaking through the panic. "Thank you," he whispers, the words barely audible.
I don't respond, just hold him tighter and let Kade do the same from the other side.
Chapter thirty-one
Stefan
The morning light streaming through the kitchen window feels too bright for the situation I've found myself in. I'm sitting at the kitchen table, my injured leg propped up on another chair and my sprained wrist wrapped in bandages. Everything hurts, a constant reminder of last night's chaos.
Ashton is still asleep in the guest room, exhausted from the pain and terror. The doctor Kade called came and went in the middle of the night, patching up my leg wound and confirming that nothing vital was hit. Lucky, he said. A few inches over and I would have bled out before making it to Dustin's ranch.
The part that gets me is how strangely domestic everything is. Coming here just a few days ago, it would have been Kade at the table and Dustin pouring us coffee. Now, it’s Solana, their gorgeous Omega who smells like a whole damn field of flowers.
She moves around the kitchen, her movements slightly uncoordinated as she tries to make breakfast. She's wearing one of Dustin's flannel shirts over a soft dress, the combination oddly endearing. There's a flush to her cheeks and a brightness to her eyes that speaks to her impending heat. I can smell it on her, that sweetness intensifying with each passing hour.
Dustin is practically glued to her side, his hands hovering near her waist like he can't decide if he should help or let her figure it out on her own. He looks better than he did last night, the panic and grief replaced by exhausted relief.
"You don't have to do this," Dustin tells Solana for what has to be the third time in as many minutes. "You should be resting."
Solana shoots him a look that's surprisingly stern for someone so new to this household. "I'm making breakfast. It's not exactly strenuous labor."
She cracks an egg into the pan with more force than necessary, the yolk breaking into the white. She frowns at it, clearly frustrated but she keeps going, determined to do this despite her obvious inexperience.
I feel like an intruder watching this domestic scene. Dustin and his Omega, building a life together in this house. I shouldn't be here disrupting their carefully constructed peace, especially not with Solana so close to her heat.But I had nowhere else to go.I’ll just keep telling myself that until I believe it.
"We need to talk about logistics," I say, breaking the comfortable silence between them. "About how long Ashton and I can stay before we become a problem."
Dustin opens his mouth to respond, but Kade walks in before he can. The Alpha is fresh from a shower, his skin still damp, and a towel draped around his neck. He looks at me with that assessing gaze, the one that misses nothing. "You’re not going anywhere," Kade says, his voice carrying the kind of authority that doesn't invite argument. "And neither is Ashton. Not until there's a plan."
I shift uncomfortably in my chair, my leg protesting the movement. "But Solana is..."
"I'm right here," Solana interrupts, turning from the stove to face us. There's steel in her voice despite the flush on her cheeks. "And I told them they're not allowed to throw you out. You're hurt. Your Omega is hurt. Where exactly are you supposed to go?"
The firmness in her tone surprises me. This is an Omega barely out of Harmony House, still learning how to exist in the world, and she's standing up to two Alphas on behalf of people she just met. Either she's incredibly brave or incredibly stupid. Maybe both.
Dustin manages a smile, some of the tension leaving his shoulders. "Yes, it's weird. Don't mention it."
Kade jerks his head toward the hallway. "Let's go talk."
I push myself up from the chair, gritting my teeth against the pain in my leg. The doctor said to stay off it as much as possible for the next few days, but apparently that's not an option. I follow Kade down the hall to his office, my limp pronounced enough that I have to grip the wall for support partway there.
The office is exactly what I'd expect from Kade. Neat, organized, and everything in its place. A large desk dominates the center of the room, covered in paperwork and a laptop. Security camera feeds play on one of the monitors, showing different angles of the property.
Kade closes the door behind us and gestures for me to sit. I lower myself into one of the chairs across from his desk, grateful to be off my leg again.
"Tell me everything," Kade says, settling into his own chair. "From the beginning."
I take a breath and walk him through last night. The meeting with Viktor Volkov, the revelation about Ashton holding all of Charles' assets, and the execution of the Volkov sons. Someone shooting me, probably Viktor, as I fled with Ashton, and then the desperate ride through the woods to get here.
Kade listens without interrupting, his expression growing darker with each detail. When I finish, he leans back in his own chair, quiet for a long moment.
"I called on the house phone to check in. Charles is alive but out of commission," I say, filling the silence. "I don't know what happened to Viktor or if Viktor survived at all. But since the only people who knew about them trying to mate Ashton to one of the Volkov sons are dead, Ashton is safe for now."
"For now," Kade repeats, his tone making it clear he doesn't find that particularly reassuring.
