Rubbing my hands down the soft fall of the material, I enjoyed the wafts of his scent that came with each stroke. “Youmight have to take turns with the other alphas,” I warned him. “If the amount of their clothes in my wardrobe is any indication, you’re not the only one who wants to cover me in their scent.”
Kellan’s smile broadened. “But I was the first one to get you in my clothes, and no fucker can take that from me.”
Golden had been the first to throw himself all-in and not care about the consequences.
Which almost got him killed. More than once.
“I love you, mate,” I said, as he took my hand. “I don’t say this enough, but thank you for taking such good care of me from the first time I saw you in the forest. You changed my life, Golden.”
His grip tightened and he yanked me into his arms, his lips surprisingly gentle against mine. As we kissed, his hands cradled my face, holding on like I was precious.
“I love you too,” he said, pressing more kisses to my lips, and then up over my nose to my freckles. “You changed my whole damn existence, baby.”
Our kisses ended when we had to head downstairs to find the rest of our pack. Kellan held my hand all the way, only releasing it when we reached the living room. The alphas were all clean, and smelled like themselves and not battle.
When Talon approached me, I noticed he was dressed in Slade’s clothing—all black of course—looking younger and less violent than usual, as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders.
“No more containment room,” I said, staring into dark eyes with a lot more green intersecting them now. I sighed when he cupped the back of my head, pressing his lips to my cheek. “No more prison at all. You’re finally free, Talon.”
“When you were with me, sweetness, it never felt like prison. It felt like having a family for the first time in my life.”
My chest ached at that sad, fucked-up statement. “Always,” I repeated for him. “You will always have a family.” The otheralphas didn’t argue, and there was a real sense of pack in the room today.
When Talon released me, he took a seat beside Slade, and Hunter led me to the large sectional. He sat and pulled me down until my head was in his lap and I was horizontal. “You need to rest,” he said as way of explanation.
Kellan dove in under my feet, dragging them onto his thick thighs, and Finley shrugged and dropped right in front of me on the floor, leaning back and stretching out his long legs.
Even though Christmas was long passed by now, the tree and lights remained up, as Hunter had promised. With the fire roaring beside it, everything just felt peaceful.
Hunter played with my hair, tracing it through his fingers, while I watched the lights twinkle against the shadowy wall. Red, green, silver. Festive in a way I’d never understood until I’d been part of a real Christmas.
“We don’t usually decorate for Christmas,” Hunter said, digging his fingers a little harder into my scalp, which dragged a soft groan from me. “But we never want you to miss out on anything, baby girl. Whatever you want or need, we’re here.”
I laughed softly. “I haven’t missed out on one thing since you all dragged me into this world, and aptly demonstrated how stupid I’d been to run in the first place. It’s like Christmas every damn day.”
As if proving my point, Kellan started to rub my feet, and Finley leaned back so I could run my hands through his thick hair. With Slade and Talon watching over us like giant dragon sentinels, it was kind of perfect.
“Tell us what happened when you bonded,” Hunter said, staring at them.
My eyelids were drooping with exhaustion, but I really wanted to hear this story, so I forced them open.
Slade stared into the crackling fire, his expression pensive. “As I’ve said before, I’ve always felt like there was a part of me missing. There was a rift between me and my beast, and while I blamed my upbringing, I now know it was much more than that.”
My chest rumbled. “Fletcher still didn’t suffer enough,” I bit out.
Slade leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “He didn’t, but in the end, his death was justified, and the world is better off without him.”
“Abso-fucking-lutely,” Kellan hollered.
Ignoring him, Slade continued: “When I first saw Talon, there was a new surge of energy from my beast. It was strong, and made it harder for me to retain my usual control. Everything was off kilter, which resulted in me screwing up more than usual. Which was unacceptable when I needed to protect our pack. I kept missing information, getting taken by surprise, losing my edge.”
“You aren’t the sole one responsible for this pack,” Hunter reminded him, but there was no bite in his tone. He wasn’t pulling entitled alpha rank, just pointing out that we were a pack, and we protected each other.
Slade met Hunter’s gaze. “Yeah, I know that, Hunt. I know, but my instincts to protect are deeply ingrained.”
Talon rumbled his agreement, shifting forward on the chair. When they sat side by side like this, they were so similar. Beautiful shifters, carved by the gods themselves.
“With Talon, there’s a sense of peace,” Slade said. “Of completion.”
