“Mark me,” he urges, his voice edged with a raw, almost pleading note. His hands come up, guiding me closer, pressing me toward the curve of his neck. He tilts his head back, exposing his throat, the other two marks still visible on his skin.
A surge of need wells up in me, my teeth aching with the instinct to claim him, to add my own mark alongside the others.
My lips brush over his pulse, feeling it flutter beneath the skin as I trace a path, lingering in the moment. I let myself savor the scent of him, the heat radiating from him, and the way he shivers, each small movement telling me he’s ready. Slowly, I press my teeth against his skin, feeling him arch up toward me, then I sink in, deliberate, deep enough to make sure it’ll be felt.
The moment he’s marked, he shudders, a raw, gasping sound spilling from him, his head falling back, his body giving in completely. And I feel it too, this rush of connection between us, his emotions flooding me like a river overflowing its banks,pulling me under with him. I hear Lakelyn’s soft intake of breath and Mason’s subtle, grounding presence steady in the background, but my focus is on Chad, on his surrender and the way his body molds to mine.
The way it demands every bit of me in return for this connection.
It’s consuming—there’s no separation between us, no boundary between what’s his and what’s mine. The bond tightens, and I can feel his heart pounding in time with mine, his need pouring into me. It’s a dizzying, powerful sensation, one that makes me hold him tighter, as though by binding us together, I’ll hold on to this impossible moment forever.
In the haze, I glimpse Lakelyn in Mason’s arms, the look on her face mirroring something primal and vast. As if she feels every emotion flowing between us. It feels right.
My body arches into Chad, going even deeper, locking him even more to me as I explode inside of him. My knot loosens faster than normal with him in heat, and I slip out. It’s then I realize Mason knotted Lakelyn, that her perfume is screaming at me that she’s an omega and is in as much need as Chad. As if they are feeding off of each other.
An answering rut rages within me, primal and consuming, yet it’s softened by the sight of Chad and Lakelyn. And knowing it will be satisfied this time. As Mason shifts from between her legs, I pull Chad closer to her, unwilling to let him go, even if it's just a few feet apart. The moment their fingers intertwine, a warmth unfurls in my chest, a connection that radiates like sunlight breaking through clouds.
Lakelyn leans in, pressing a tender kiss to the back of Chad’s hand, her eyes filled with a sweetness that could melt the hardest of hearts. “I feel you,” she whispers, her voice soft yet resonant, as if she’s reaching out not just to him but to the bond between them.
Chad’s breath hitches, and he gazes at her with a vulnerability that takes my breath away. “I feel you too,” he replies, his voice barely above a whisper. “You presented. You’re omega.”
“Omega,” she repeats as if the word is unfamiliar.
“My omega,” he asserts, a newfound firmness in his voice. It’s as if he’s staking a claim, and the intensity in his gaze reveals just how serious he is. As if an omega can claim another omega for their own. Yet, as I watch them and feel Chad so fully through our link, I know anything is possible within our pack.
Chad’s fingers graze over the two marks on Lakelyn’s neck, a gentle reverence in his touch. Then he slowly turns his head to look at me, his eyes filled with an urgent need. “Make it real. Bind us together, Dean.”
I understand what he’s asking: to claim her, to add my mark to the ones already etched into her skin. If I could think beyond the primal urge coursing through me, I might resist, but that thought barely registers. All I can smell is their combined perfume, and all I can feel is this overwhelming desire to solidify the connection between us.
I move before I know I’m shifting between Lakelyn’s legs. She wets her lips and whimpers, and Chad presses a soft kiss to the side of her neck.
“It’s okay, Lakelyn,” Chad says, encouraging her. “Dean will help you through this flare.”
Mason watches us, his gaze heavy-lidded, intent, while Chad wraps his fingers around me, guiding me to Lakelyn’s soft, welcoming heat. The contrast between them makes me shudder—she’s warm and yielding, where Chad is unrelenting, soft in all the places he’s firm. She’s so tight I barely move forward without the risk of losing myself completely.
I’ve wanted her for months, always holding back, keeping a distance. She’s a customer at the club, Landon’s sister,everything that should make this impossible. But now, none of it matters. Because more than anything else, she’s pack—my omega, our omega. And even if she weren’t an omega, she’s mine.
A low growl slips from my throat as I press deeper. Every ounce of control I’ve practiced, every reason I had to hold back, crumbles. The ache, the need—it's all-consuming, a haze that drives me forward. My hands find their way to her hips as I settle in, feeling the heat of her and the undeniable pull of my rut demanding that I wring every bit of pleasure from her I can.
Lakelyn gasps, her fingers clutching at me. My teeth ache to make this permanent. I’m through holding back. She’s pack, she’s ours, and every instinct tells me that tonight, I’ll ensure none of us ever questions it again.
I lean down, pressing soft kisses along her collarbone and up her neck. Then back down to the place I know will seal her to me, to us, in every way. She silently arches into my mouth, adding pressure against her skin. The moment my teeth press into her throat, I feel the shift—the bond flaring to life like a match struck in the dark, raw and immediate. She cries out softly, and I feel it ripple through me, echoing from Chad, too, as if her reaction has woven all three of us together in a single pulse.
And then it clicks into place.
The bond is a flood, a surge of everything they feel coursing through me—Chad’s heady need, Lakelyn’s acceptance, her sweetness, and my own possessive urge to protect, to hold them close. It’s overwhelming. My senses drown in the connection, in the intensity building from both of them, and I feel myself slipping.
I’m lost in them, in us. The need is fierce, primal, impossible to contain any longer. My rhythm falters, and I grip her tighter, every last thread of control snapping, surrendered to the heat and the bond.
As I sink deeper into the bond with Lakelyn, the world narrows, every sense dominated by the connection pulsing between us.
But just as the need begins to crest, Mason leans forward. His hand lands firm on my shoulder, grounding me, yet also adding to the intensity building inside. He leans down, and I feel his warm breath graze my neck, the moment crackling with anticipation.
“Dean,” he growls, voice rough with intent, and before I can fully process it, his teeth press against my skin in a possessive, unyielding mark. The shock of it snaps through me, white-hot, binding me to him, to us, deepening every link until I can feel the pack bond sealing, tightening around us in a way I never thought possible. Mason’s mark is powerful, unmistakable, and it lights a need in me so intensely that I know what he’s asking before he even says it.
“Mark me back,” Mason whispers, his voice low, urging, as he tilts his head to bare his neck.
Driven by instinct, I don’t hesitate. My mouth finds his skin, and I let go, sinking my teeth in with the same intensity he gave to me. The bond snaps into place with a force that feels almost electric, as if sealing us together fully, intertwined in a way that’s unbreakable. The rush of sensation floods through every nerve, every thought, until I can feel all of them, their emotions and desires washing over me.
