My pack.
My home.
My future.
"Tonight," I murmured, feeling contentment wash through me, warm and safe and utterly at peace. Tonight, I would become one of them. I would finally be free.
Chapter Twenty-Six
LILY
The hours passed in a haze of warmth and whispered words. We stayed in the nest, tangled together, talking about everything and nothing. They told me stories of centuries past—ships they'd watched sink, storms they'd weathered, the endless loneliness of existing without someone to share it with. I told them about my mother, about the lullabies she used to sing, about the way she'd brush my hair and tell me I was meant for something more than the life my father had planned.
"She was right," Kaelan said quietly, his fingers tracing idle patterns on my hip through the thin fabric of my dress, his dark eyes soft with something that looked like reverence. "You were meant for more. You were meant for us."
"I think she would have liked you before I turned into an omega," I admitted, surprising myself with the words, my voice catching slightly on the memory. "All of you. She always said the ocean was full of magic. She just didn't know how right she was. Though…she changed alot since
“I am sorry. You are precious and shouldn't have been treated that way." Vale said softly, his silver eyes warm as he looked up at me from his position at my feet, his thumb stroking gentle circles on my ankle. "She was special to you once…and she made you who you are now. I am proud of who you are now.”
The light in the cavern shifted as the hours passed—growing dimmer, then brighter, then dimmer again as the bioluminescent creatures below followed their own mysterious rhythms. I had no way of knowing what time it was, no way of tracking the sun's passage across a sky I couldn't see. I could feel it, though. Could feel the day slipping away, could feel tonight approaching with every beat of my heart.
"Are you hungry?" Thane asked eventually, his voice soft with concern, his golden-brown eyes searching my face as he propped himself up on one elbow beside me. "We have food. We can get you anything you want."
"I'm fine," I said, and I meant it, reaching out to brush a strand of honey-colored hair from his forehead. The nervous energy thrumming through my veins left no room for hunger. "I just want to stay here. With you. For as long as we have."
"You'll have us forever after tonight," Riven reminded me, a low growl of satisfaction rumbling through his chest, his golden eyes gleaming with fierce possessiveness. "Forever, little omega. You'll never be rid of us."
"Promise?" I asked, the word coming out softer than I intended, my heart clenching with desperate hope.
His golden eyes blazed, his scarred face fierce with conviction, another growl vibrating in his throat. "Promise."
The conversation drifted into comfortable silence, and I found myself studying each of them in turn. Memorizing the details I already knew by heart but wanted to hold onto anyway.
My pack. My mates. My future.
"I want—" I started, then stopped, heat rising to my cheeks, my words catching in my throat. Four pairs of eyes fixed on me instantly, alert and curious, their bodies shifting toward me with predatory focus.
"What do you want?" Kaelan asked, his voice low and intent, his hand stilling on my hip, his dark eyes boring into mine with fierce attention. "Tell us. Whatever it is, we'll give it to you."
"I want to feel you," I admitted, the words coming out barely above a whisper, my heart racing so hard I was sure they could hear it. "Before I transform. I want... I want to know what it feels like to be touched by you. Really touched. Not just held."
The air in the nest seemed to thicken. I felt their bodies go tense around me, felt the shift in their breathing, the sudden spike of heat that radiated from their skin. A low, rumbling growl started somewhere—from Riven, I thought—and spread through the others like a wave.
"Lily," Kaelan said carefully, his voice strained, his dark eyes searching my face with fierce intensity, a muscle ticking in his jaw from the effort of control. "The transformation needs to happen before your heat fully hits. If we claim you now, before you've changed?—"
"I'm not asking for that," I interrupted, reaching up to cup his face, feeling the sharp line of his jaw beneath my palm, the warmth of his skin. "I'm not asking you to claim me. I just... I want to feel close to you. All of you. I want to carry the memory of your hands on my skin into my new life." I swallowed hard, vulnerability cracking my voice. "Is that... is that okay?"
The sound that escaped Riven was a deep, possessive growl—hungry and barely controlled, his scarred chest heaving with restraint.
"More than okay," he rasped, his golden eyes blazing as he shifted closer, his scarred face inches from mine, his breath hotagainst my lips. "Tell us what you want. Tell us exactly what you want, and we'll give it to you."
"I want you to touch me," I said simply, my voice steadier now, my certainty growing with each word. "I want to feel your hands on my skin. I want to kiss you—all of you. I want to feel what it's like to be wanted."
"You are wanted," Vale breathed, his silver eyes dark with emotion as he moved up from my feet to kneel beside me, his silver hair falling around his face like moonlight. "You have no idea how wanted you are. We've been holding ourselves back for weeks, trying not to overwhelm you, trying not to scare you away." His hand came up to cup my cheek, his touch feather-light, reverent. "Do you have any idea what it's cost us? Watching you, wanting you, not being able to have you?"
"Show me," I whispered, my voice trembling with anticipation. "Show me what you've been holding back."
Kaelan moved first. His mouth found mine in a kiss that started gentle but quickly deepened into something more—something fierce and claiming and desperately tender all at once. His hand slid into my hair, tilting my head back, his fingers tangling in the strands as he angled my mouth to take the kiss deeper. A low growl rumbled from his chest, vibrating against my lips. I felt myself melt into him, my body going pliant and warm, a soft moan escaping my throat.
