"Your instincts are good." Nolan's voice was soft, certain, his hand resuming its soothing strokes down my back, his chin resting on top of my head, his purr rumbling through both of us. "If you feel like something's wrong, something probably is."
We sat in silence for a moment, the weight of worry pressing down on both of us. I could feel his tension, his fear, his fierce determination to protect me from whatever was coming.
"Nolan." I tilted my head up to look at him, my hand coming up to cup his face, my voice soft with something important, my heart pounding against my ribs.
"Hmm?" He looked down at me, his green eyes soft and questioning, his brow slightly furrowed, his hand coming up to cover mine where it rested on his cheek, his thumb stroking across my knuckles.
"I love you." The words came out steady, certain, my eyes holding his, my heart pounding with the truth of it, my voice fierce with conviction. "I love you, Nolan."
His breath caught, his eyes going wide, his whole body stilling beneath me, his lips parting in shock, his hand trembling against mine.
"You..." His voice cracked, his eyes searching mine like he was looking for confirmation, his hand trembling against mine, his green eyes bright with sudden emotion. "You love me?"
"I love you." I said it again, firmer this time, my thumb stroking across his cheekbone, my voice fierce with conviction, my eyes never leaving his. "I love your gentle hands and your patient heart and the way you take care of everyone without ever asking for anything in return. I love how you look at me like I'm something precious. I love you, Nolan. All of you."
His face crumpled, tears spilling over, his arms crushing me against his chest, his whole body shaking with the force of his emotion, his purr stuttering and then intensifying.
"Aster." My name came out broken, muffled against my hair, his voice thick with tears, his hands clutching at me like I might disappear. "God, Aster. I love you too. I've loved you since the moment you let me hold your hand in this very room. Since you trusted me when you had no reason to trust anyone."
"I had every reason." I pulled back enough to look at him, cupping his face in both hands, wiping away his tears with my thumbs, my voice soft and certain, my eyes bright with emotion. "You gave me every reason. You and Reid and Kol and Sawyer. You showed me what it meant to be loved. What it meant to belong."
He kissed me then, soft and sweet and tasting of tears, his hands gentle on my face, his purr rumbling through both of us like a promise. When we finally pulled apart, his green eyes were still wet, but they were shining with a joy so bright it made my chest ache.
"Whatever's coming." His voice was soft but fierce, his hands tightening on my face, his gaze burning into mine, his jaw set with determination. "Whatever Easton's planning. We'll face it together. All of us. As a pack."
"As a pack." I agreed, leaning forward to press my forehead against his, breathing him in — eucalyptus and honey and home, my eyes closing in contentment.
Even as I said the words, I couldn't shake the feeling that the storm was coming.
We weren't ready.
That night, I lay in the nest surrounded by my Alphas, their bodies warm and solid around me, their scents mingling into something that smelled like safety and love and home. Reid at my front, his arms wrapped around me. Kol at my back, his facepressed into my hair. Nolan near my head, his fingers trailing through my hair. Sawyer at the edge, his hand resting on my hip, his purr a low rumble that vibrated through all of us.
I'd told them all I loved them now. I'd given them that piece of myself, that vulnerability I'd guarded so fiercely for so long. And they'd given it back, every single one of them, their love washing over me like a wave. Underneath the warmth, the contentment, the bone-deep satisfaction of being surrounded by my pack, I could feel something else.
Fear.
Because I knew, with the same instinct that had kept me alive all these years, that Easton wasn't done. That the cut fence and the slashed feed bags and the missing tools were just the beginning. He was coming for me…or maybe something else. I wasn’t sure….but I knew these men would be here the whole time.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
ASTER
Something was wrong with Reid. I'd noticed it building over the past few days — small things at first, easy to dismiss. The way his eyes tracked me across every room. The tension in his shoulders that never quite eased. The way he'd started positioning himself between me and the door whenever we were in a room together, like he was guarding me from threats only he could see.
But today was different. Today was worse.
It started at breakfast.
Kol was telling one of his ridiculous stories, something about a delivery gone wrong and a goat that had somehow ended up in the back of his truck, his hands gesturing wildly as he spoke, his golden eyes bright with laughter. I was laughing too, leaning into his warmth without thinking about it, my shoulder pressed against his.
That's when Reid growled.
Not a playful rumble or a warning sound. A real growl — low and dangerous, vibrating through the kitchen like thunder before a storm. His dark eyes were fixed on where Kol's arm hadcasually draped across the back of my chair, his jaw clenched so tight I could see the muscles jumping beneath his skin, his hands white-knuckled around his coffee mug.
The laughter died instantly.
"Whoa, boss." Kol's voice was careful, his body going still beside me, his arm slowly withdrawing from my chair, his golden eyes wide with something that looked like understanding rather than fear, his hands coming up in a gesture of surrender. "It's just me. It's Kol. I'm pack."
