“Well, yeah. We share everything. Includingyounow, little mouse.” Zane’s grin widened at my stunned expression. “What, you thought this was just a temporary marriage like that damn contract says?”
My whole face was on fire now, and I glanced at Koa and Casimir, half expecting them to scold him for his teasing, but Koa only grinned, and Casimir’s lips twitched in what might have been the ghost of a smile.
The room suddenly felt too warm, too quiet. Too full of them, of me, of the mate bond wrapping around all four of us like a tangled web I didn’t know how to navigate.
I swallowed hard and finally forced the words out.
“Are you okay with this?” My voice barely rose above a whisper, but I knew they heard me.
Zane, sprawled across a chair with his long legs kicked out, sat up straighter.
“Uh, which part? The part where we found our beloved? Which, by the way, is the rarest and most insanely lucky thing that could’ve happened to us? Or the part where we get to share said beloved with our brothers, which we always kinda figured would happen?”
“But I—” I sucked in a shaky breath, my stomach twisting. “I thought you’d each have your own. Not share one.”
Casimir, who had been standing stiffly by the bookshelf, folded his arms and turned to look at me, his eyes unreadable.
“That would be more common, yes,” he said evenly. “But common does not meanbetter.”
“Don’t worry about us, Seri.” Koa’s voice was warm, reassuring. “I promise you, none of us feel like we’re missing out. This is just how we are. How we’ve always been. We’ve spent our whole lives sharing everything.”
“Okay, but not in a weird way,” Zane cut in. “Like, we weren’t fighting over the same prom date or anything.”
“We didn’t go to a prom,” Casimir scoffed.
“Point is, dhampirs don’t usually get beloveds. We knew if we ever got one, we’d be lucky enough to share.” Zane shot me a look. “And yeah, Idomean lucky. Not unfortunate, not unfair.Lucky.”
“You don’t feel like you got less?” My throat tightened.
Casimir moved first. In one smooth motion, he crossed the room, knelt in front of me, and took my trembling hands in his. His grip was firm, steady, grounding.
“Look at me, Serafina.” I lifted my eyes to find his expression serious, stern even, but not cold. “You areeverythingthe beloved bond promised us. Not less.Neverless.”
“We’re not worried about sharing you.” Koa came closer and placed a hand on my shoulder, as light as a butterfly landing. “We’re worried aboutyouhaving to put up with the three ofus.”
I let out a shaky laugh at that.
“Yeah, wearea lot, but don’t worry, honey bunny. You’ll get used to it.” Zane grinned, then paused, cocking his head like he’d just thought of something. “Actually, you might wanna start preparing now, because I call dibs on being your favorite.”
“Z,” Cas muttered as he stood, and I immediately missed the warmth of his hands on mine.
“What? I just think we should establish the rankings early.” He gave me a wink. “Go ahead, butterfly. Just say my name real quick. We’ll call it a contract.”
I smiled, small and fleeting, but real, and I let myself believe that maybe this could be okay. Maybe it could bemorethan okay. Maybe it could be home.
“Your shifter genes might also have contributed to the sharing thing,” Koa murmured as he went back to my closet. “Lots of shifter brothers share a mate.”
“Why did you three agree to an arranged marriage?” I asked.
“Our father offered us something we wanted in exchange for a year as married men.” Zane pushed out of the chair and sauntered over, his grin widening as he stared down at me, his gingerbread eyes glittering with amusement.
My heart leapt at the look on his face. I wasn’t sure, but Ithoughtit looked like he wanted to kiss me!
“What was that?” I asked quickly to distract him, and his smirk softened as he tapped the tip of my nose with his forefinger.
“This estate and a huge bank balance, but more importantly, freedom. Freedom from his orders, from the fang-rotted vampire court, from all of it.”
“And now we know it was more than just a political move.” Koa stepped out of the closet. “It was the best decision of our lives. The fates blessed us with you and used our father’s bargain as a way to bring us together.”
