Then he falls apart too, groaning against my neck as he fills me. His arms tighten around my waist, holding me secure as his hips jerk slightly. His knot expands rapidly, locking us together as he pulses inside me. I can feel each pulse, each release of warmth flooding into me.
Panic immediately follows the pleasure. I start freaking out, my clarity turning into horror as I process what just happened. I fell apart to another man's scent. Not my Alpha's scent, not Kade or Dustin, but Ashton's. An Omega who doesn't belong to me, who I have no claim to, who shouldn't affect me at all.
Am I going to get in trouble? Is this wrong? Have I done something terrible? Are Kade and Dustin going to be angry with me for responding to someone else? Will they think I'm broken or wrong or that I don't want them enough?
My breathing becomes rapid and shallow, the panic spreading through my chest. Tears prick at my eyes, shame and confusion warring with the lingering pleasure in my system. This isn't how it's supposed to work. Omegas are supposed to only respond to their bonded Alphas during heat, not to random other people in the house.
A purr starts up in Dustin's chest, vibrating against my back. The sound is soothing, meant to calm me, but it doesn't quite penetrate the panic spiraling through my mind. My thoughts race in circles, catastrophizing and imagining worst-case scenarios.
"While all of this is very unconventional," Dustin purrs against my ear, "I'm not mad. Just fate playing a funny joke on us."
The words don't fully register at first, my brain too caught up in panic to process reassurance. But the tone does, that calm acceptance that tells me I'm not in trouble even if I don't understand why not.
I'm still terrified, my heart hammering against my ribs as I try to understand how he's so calm about this. This should be a betrayal, shouldn't it? Responding sexually to someone who isn't your mate? That's what Harmony House taught us, that loyalty meant only ever wanting your assigned Alpha.
Dustin holds me a little tighter, his arms wrapping more securely around my waist. He starts kissing along my neck, soft pecks mixed with longer, lingering ones. The affection in each kiss helps ground me, pulling me back from the edge of panic.
"You're amazing," he murmurs between kisses. "Perfect. Nothing could change my mind about that."
"I don't know how you're okay with this," I whisper, my voice shaking. The words come out small, completely at odds with the pleasure still humming through my system.
Dustin shifts slightly, adjusting our position in the water to make us both more comfortable despite his knot. The movement sends small aftershocks of pleasure through me, making me gasp softly.
"I tried to say something before but you didn't seem to understand," he explains patiently. "Omegas are highly territorial of their space and their mates. In no circumstance would you normally be okay with Stefan and Ashton in the house during your heat."
He pauses, letting that sink in. I think back over the past day and a half, trying to remember if I felt territorial or threatened. But I didn't. If anything, I felt comforted knowing they were here, safe under the same roof.
"Even if you never said it outright, you would have been angry," Dustin continues. "Agitated. Constantly on edge. You'd be growling at doors, demanding they leave, maybe even trying to physically drive them away. But over the last day and a half, you've been constantly looking at the door with a sort of longing. Asking me and Kade to make sure they're okay. That's not territorial behavior, sunshine. That's something else entirely."
"They're family," I try to explain, grasping for words that make sense. "I just... they needed help and you love Stefan and I couldn't just turn them away when they were hurt. That would be cruel."
The explanation sounds weak even to my own ears. Because Dustin's right; I haven't just been tolerating their presence. I've been actively concerned about their wellbeing, thinking about them even in the midst of heat spikes, wanting to make sure they're eating and healing and comfortable.
"I know you think that's what this is," Dustin interrupts gently. "But the way your body just reacted to the other Omega in this house? That's not how you respond to family. That's how you respond to pack."
The word hangs between us. Pack. Not family in the casual sense but pack in the biological, instinctual sense. The kind that's built on scent compatibility and biological imperative and bonds that go deeper than choice or logic.
Pack means shared Omegas and Alphas, complicated dynamics that I've only read about in books at Harmony House. The kind of arrangement they told us was primitive and outdated, that modern society had evolved beyond. But sitting here in Dustin's arms, my body still responding to Ashton's distant scent, I wonder if they lied about that too.
"You're not mad at me?" I ask, needing to hear it again. Needing the reassurance that I haven't ruined everything.
"I'm just as affected, sunshine," Dustin admits. "When Ashton's scent spiked earlier, I felt it too. Not as strongly as you did, but enough to know this isn't one-sided. My cock got hard just from catching his scent mixed with yours. That's not normal either."
The admission makes me feel less alone, less broken. If Dustin is experiencing this too, if it's not just me responding inappropriately, then maybe this really is something else. Something neither of us fully understands yet.
"We'll have to talk about it," Dustin continues. "All of us together. Figure out what this means and what we all want. But I kind of like the idea of a bigger family."
I hum softly, not quite agreeing but not disagreeing either. The fear is starting to recede, replaced by cautious curiosity about what this might mean. What would a pack with five people even look like? How would the dynamics work? Would it be sustainable or would it fall apart under the weight of competing needs and desires?
"Tell me what you're thinking," Dustin encourages, his voice softening.
I fiddle with his fingers where they rest along my waist, tracing patterns on his skin while I try to organize my thoughts into something coherent. The water has cooled slightly, no longer hot but still warm enough to be comfortable.
"They smell delicious," I finally admit, my words coming out soft. "And I hate that because I have you and Kade. And you're knotting me right now and I should be satisfied. But I just... the idea of them..."
I trail off, unable to finish the thought. It feels like a betrayal even thinking about Stefan and Ashton in any way beyond friendly concern. Like I'm being greedy, wanting more than I deserve when I already have two perfect Alphas who care about me.
Dustin laughs softly, the sound full of understanding rather than mockery. He sucks on my earlobe, the gentle pressure sending shivers down my spine. "Let me try and you tell me where I go wrong, okay?"
