He studies me for a long moment, his thumb brushing against the back of my hand in slow, deliberate circles. Themotion is soothing, grounding me when I feel like I might come undone.
“Jake will make sure we don’t cross any lines,” he says finally, his voice low and even, like he’s laying out a plan.
My heart thumps so loudly I can barely hear his next words.
“Butwewill be the ones to help you through your heat.”
The knot in my chest loosens, releasing the tight coil of fear I was holding. I nod, my fingers curling slightly under his hand, a small smile tugging at my lips.
“You’re not doing this alone,” he adds, his voice dipping, more careful, his eyes searching mine for something—confirmation, maybe, or trust.
“I know,” I whisper. And for the first time, I truly mean it.
Todd squeezes my hand before letting go, leaning back in his chair with a faint, boyish grin that makes something warm bloom in my chest. “Eat up, Ash,” he says, gesturing to the plate in front of me. “You’ll need your energy.”
I roll my eyes, but I pick up my fork again, twirling some spaghetti around the tines. The warmth of his words lingers, steady and reassuring, and as I take another bite, excitement settles inside of me.
CHAPTER 42
Jake
Todd standsin the middle of the small lounge in the hotel suite, his arms crossed and his expression harder than usual. Xayden is sprawled across one of the chairs, spinning a drumstick between his fingers, though his usual grin is nowhere to be seen. West sits stiffly on the couch, his gaze fixed on the floor like it holds all the answers. And me? I’m leaning against the wall, arms folded, trying to process everything Todd just laid out.
“So, let me get this straight,” Xayden says, breaking the tense silence. His voice is lighter than the mood warrants, but the tension underneath is unmistakable. “She’s decided to go into heat, with us around, and we’re all supposed to just… what? Knot her and not put our marks on her neck?”
“She’s trusting us,” Todd says firmly, his gaze flicking between the three of us. “She’s choosing to let us help her through this. And yeah, it’s going to be a lot, but we owe it to her not to screw this up.”
“And by ‘help,’ you mean what exactly?” West asks, his voice low, edged with tension but calm.
We all know what Todd means. The room feels thick with the unspoken reality of the situation. I can feel Xayden and West waiting for Todd to reply, their instincts probably flaring already at the thought of what’s coming.
My beta nose isn’t as good as theirs, but even I can smell the subtle changes in their musks—Xayden’s sharper with his signature spice, West’s quieter but unmistakable, grounding like whiskey smoke. And mine? Probably muted but still there, adding to the swirl of tension. Normally she’s the only one I can really smell, but when they are all high strung, they seep into my senses.
“Do whatever she needs to get through it. Buy her nice blankets…some candles, all of the things that she will need,” Todd says, his tone resolute, his hands gripping the back of the chair in front of him. “But we’re not biting her. Not yet. Not unless she wants that.”
The unspoken words hover in the air, and all eyes shift to me.
I straighten, feeling their expectations settle on my shoulders. Being the beta means I won’t lose my head when her scent spikes, but it also means I’m the one who has to make sure none of them lose control.
“You’re putting a lot of faith in me,” I say, my voice calm but firm. “You think I can keep all of you in line when she’s… like that?”
“You’re the only one who can,” Todd says simply, his gaze steady.
Xayden exhales harshly, the sound almost a growl as he taps his drumstick against the arm of the chair he’s slouched in. “Look, I can handle myself. I’m not some feral idiot who can’t control his instincts.”
Todd raises an eyebrow, his expression skeptical. “Can you?”
Xayden’s jaw tightens, his usual grin nowhere to be found. “Yeah, I can,” he says, but there’s a flicker of doubt behind his words that he tries to bury.
West finally speaks, his voice quieter than usual but carrying a gravity that pulls our attention. “She’s not just testing us. She’s trusting us. That means we have to trust each other, too.”
It’s a rare moment of vulnerability from him, and it shifts the tension in the room.
“She’s giving us a chance,” I say, pushing off the wall and meeting Todd’s gaze head-on. “We can’t screw it up. Not this time.”
“I don’t plan to,” Todd says, his voice lower now, steadier. “None of us do. But it’s going to be… intense. And Jake, you’ve got to be ready to step in if it gets to be too much.”
“I’ll handle it,” I say, leaving no room for doubt.
