We all ended up back in Slade’s room—his bed was the largest so it made sense. No one argued with the sleeping arrangements, with Slade sliding in on my right, Talon beside him, and Finley on my left. Kellan took Finley’s other side, and Hunter hauled a mattress into the room to sleep at the foot of the bed.
I was cozy in the heart of my pack, and even though we hadn’t made it to the claiming yet, I knew it would come tomorrow.
I had never felt more protected or safe as I drifted off to sleep.
CHAPTER 50
EMME
While we might have taken the afternoon and evening to just exist with each other, none of us were willing to let another day go by without reforming our quintet.
The next morning we woke early, ate breakfast together, and all the time I had an alpha by my side. Hunter showered with me, Finley helped me pick out my nicest jeans, a blue shirt, and a black winter coat. Talon brushed my hair and then Slade braided it, while Kellan read to me from his latest obsession, which was a vampire fated mates story.
My heart was full of so many squishy feelings; it felt a lot like they were courting and loving on me before we bonded.
I was whisked downstairs soon after and deposited in the front seat of the G-Wagen. Hunter drove, with Finley and Kellan in the back, while Talon and Slade decided to fly. Their beasts needed to work off an overflow of energy.
When we left the street, I turned to take in Hunter’s gray suit and white button-down. He looked a lot like he did the very first day I met him, where his beast had driven him to almost claim me in that council chamber. His thick hair was nicely styled, and the shades of gray in his eyes were light and filtered with gold. “Your essences are stronger,” I noted, as his dominance filled the car. “How are you feeling after sharing your strength with me?”
“We’re recouping the energy already,” Hunter said as he took his eye from the road to watch me. Which no longer caused a panic attack. “There’s nothing to worry about, little omega. In a true scent match, essences can be shared without repercussions.”
Kellan and Finley leaned forward, and I welcomed their touch against the side of my neck and shoulder. “I want to return energy to you after we bond though. Even after taking out Jewels, I’m more powerful than I was.”
Kellan stroked up under my jaw with a gentle touch. “Keep it, Shortcake,” he said. “We want you to be so powerful that no one will ever think to hurt you. Our little witch killer.”
I snorted, hoping that nickname wasn’t about to stick around. “Do any of you think it’s weird how easily the council just accepted that I was strong enough to kill the witch? I mean, I’m glad, since we don’t want them to know about my hybrid nature, but still…”
Finley grumbled and his hand on my shoulder flexed. “They know they can’t take us on, and you also saved their asses from the wicked witch. They won’t question a good thing, at least not for a while.”
No doubt there’d come a day when someone put the pieces together to find they didn’t quite fit, but I wouldn’t worry about that until it happened. We were living for the now. Yesterday had shaken all of us in a way that was permanently imprinted on our psyches. Not just losing the bond, but the brief moments we’d thought we lost Hunter, Slade, and Talon.
As much as the alphas had been stuck to my ass since then, I would have freaked if they were far away as well.
“I do have to say, you all look incredible today.” I brushed my fingers over the cuff of Kellan’s dark blue suit. Finley wore a deep, rich burgundy, and I was legitimately surrounded by the hottest alphas I’d ever seen, dressed up to claim our bond back.
By the time Slade and Talon joined us, I might as well just send up the white flag and surrender. Maybe that was why my bra and panties were white today—the usual white flag of surrender in my world.
“I should have worn a nice dress,” I huffed, glancing down at my clothes. They were my best jeans, but still, far from fancy.
Kellan’s hold slipped down my arm until our fingers were interlocked. “Why bother when you’ll be naked soon enough? Clothes were optional for the entire bonding, but since we’d have to kill any shifters who saw you naked on the drive, it’s better for Golden Claw that you at least wear something.”
Their dirty mouths didn’t make me blush as much these days, butevery now and then they managed to bring a rise of heat to my cheeks. Mostly, it was desire that had me all flushed, and I remained in an overheated state all the way to the nature reserve and sacred grounds.
When Hunter opened my door, the winds felt particularly icy as they whooshed in. “When does it start to warm up here?” I whined a little, sick of the chill now.
We were well into February—Kellan’s birthday was soon.
“We’ll have false spring next month,” he offered as he helped me out. “Then it’ll get cold again for a while before the real spring sets in.” I generally loved snow and winter, as it was my wolf’s favorite, but I was ready for some sunshine and warmth.
“Can’t wait,” I murmured around chattering teeth, which eased when the alphas surrounded me with their bulk and natural heat.
Slade and Talon emerged from the edge of the tree line, also dressed nicely in black slacks and matching black button-downs. They were always beautiful and godlike, and when they dressed head to toe in black, they looked gigantic.
As they strode toward me, and I took in all their glory, a needy whimper slipped from between my pressed lips. Slade’s gaze snapped to mine, as if he’d heard that sound.
“You okay, Emme?” Hunter asked, and I huffed.
“You’re all hot as fuck, and I’m over here looking like?—”
