Behind her, Nate hovers. Not beside her—behindher. Close enough that his chest nearly brushes her shoulders. His hand rests on her lower back, and his eyes keep drifting to her face like he can’t quite believe she’s real.
Fresh bond behavior. I’ve read about it—the way newly bonded alphas get clingy, almost drunk on their omega’s presence. But watching Nate—stoic, controlled Nate—unable to stop touching her makes something warm settle in my gut.
“You’re bonded.” I’m staring at the mark. Can’t stop staring at it. “You actually bonded her.”
“We sent you totalk,” Lucas says, his voice cracking. “To work things out. Maybe hold hands. We didn’t expect?—”
“It wasn’t planned.” Cara’s hand drifts to her neck, touching the mark—not covering it, I realize. Touching it like she can’t quite believe it’s real. Like she’s proud of it. “But the best thingsnever are.” She looks up at Nate, and the smile on her face makes my chest ache. “There were letters. Unsent letters, going back ten years. And when Nate found them?—”
“Things escalated,” Nate finishes. His voice has dropped an octave. Gravelly. And he still hasn’t stopped touching her—his thumb is tracing small circles on her lower back, probably without him even realizing.
Cara shivers at the contact and leans back into his chest.
Nate starts purring.
The sound fills the entryway—low, resonant, vibrating through his chest and into her. His eyes half-close with satisfaction, his whole body going loose and content as she presses against him.
Lucas makes a choked noise beside me.
Nate doesn’t purr. In twenty years of friendship, I have never once heard Nate Thorn purr. He’s granite. He’s control. He’s the guy who didn’t flinch when he broke his arm in three places senior year.
And now he’s standing in our entryway, purring like a damn housecat because Cara leaned into him.
“Is he—” Lucas starts.
“Yeah,” I manage. “He is.”
Cara’s cheeks flush. “He’s been doing that since yesterday. Every time I get close.”
“I can hear you,” Nate says, but the purr doesn’t stop. If anything, it gets louder when she tilts her head back to look at him.
“This is the greatest day of my life,” Lucas says flatly.
“Shut up.”
“No, I’m serious. I need to document this. For posterity.” He pulls out his phone. “Say cheese.”
Nate’s glare could curdle milk, but he doesn’t move away from Cara. Can’t, probably. “Put that away or I’m arresting you.”
“On what charges?”
“I’ll think of something.”
I cross the room before this devolves further, wrapping my arms around Cara and pulling her away from Nate just long enough to crush her against my chest. She squeaks in surprise, then melts into me, her face pressing into my shoulder. She’s warm—warmer than she should be—and her scent shifts as I hold her, going sweeter, richer.
“You absolute maniac,” I say into her hair. “You bonded him in three days?”
“Two, technically.” Her voice is muffled against my shirt. “The first day we mostly fought.”
“Of course you did.” I pull back to look at her. Her pupils are blown wide, her cheeks flushed. She looks happy. Really, truly happy. “Are you okay? Is this what you wanted?”
“Yes.” No hesitation. “Theo, yes.”
Behind her, Nate’s hand finds my shoulder. Squeezes once. When I meet his eyes, there’s no jealousy there—just relief. Gratitude.She’s home. She’s really home.
I release Cara and Nate immediately pulls her back against his side, his hand finding her hip. The purr rumbles back to life.
“Oh my god,” Lucas says. “It’s like a car engine. Does it have different settings? Can you make it louder?”
