"That's what we're here for," Jett says. He's at the table with me, his hand resting on my knee under the table. "To make sure you don't destroy yourself trying to do everything alone."
After breakfast, I take another shower. This one is for pleasure rather than necessity, and I take my time. The water is hot, and I stand under it for a long time, just thinking about what's about to happen. About the bonding. About becoming officially, legally, permanently part of their pack.
By the time I come out of the bathroom, they've set up the living room like a nest. There are pillows and blankets arranged carefully on the couch. There's a movie queued up, which is funny because they're acting like we have time for a movie when we're supposed to be bonding today. There're snacks and water and tea. There's every indication that they're planning to spend the day taking care of me.
"We have time," Pine says when he sees the question on my face. "The bonding can happen tonight. For now, we're going to let you rest and recover. We're going to make sure you're completely healed before we do something this important."
"You don't have to," I say. "I'm ready now."
"I know," Cassian says. He's pulling me onto the couch and settling me between him and Pine. "But this is too important to rush. We want you to be one hundred percent sure. We want you to be physically recovered. We want to do this right."
We spend the day watching movies. Romantic comedies, because Jett apparently has a secret love for them, and Pinedoesn't even pretend to judge him for it. Cassian makes fun of every plot point, but he's also clearly invested in whether the main characters end up together.
During one of the movies, I fall asleep against Pine's shoulder, and I don't wake up until evening. The heat is almost completely gone now, just a faint whisper of need in the back of my mind instead of the overwhelming demands it was before. My body has settled. The frantic urgency has been replaced with something calmer. Something more like contentment.
"You should eat," Cassian says as soon as I'm awake. "And then we should probably have a serious conversation before we do the bonding."
We eat dinner together that they successfully cooked without burning down the house or creating any disasters. There're no rice explosions. No burnt chicken. Just normal food that tastes incredible because I'm eating it with people who love me.
"After the bonding," Pine says carefully, setting down his fork, "what do you want? Like, long term. Do you want to move in with us permanently? Do you want to keep your hotel room as a backup?"
The question feels significant. Like the answer matters in ways that go beyond just logistics.
"I want to be where you are," I say quietly. "Coming home to you, falling asleep with you, waking up tangled in all of you… that feels right to me. The calm, the chaos, the everyday life we’d build together. Being yours. Being pack. That’s what I choose.”
"We can make that happen," Jett says. "We have three bedrooms. One could be yours. Or we could convert the master into one big bedroom if you want to share. We could set it up however you want."
"I want to fall asleep surrounded by you and wake up the same way."
"Then that's what we'll do," Cassian says like it's the simplest thing in the world. Like of course we'll all sleep in one bed together. Like of course we'll build a life together.
We spend the evening on the couch, talking about practical things. Money. Jobs. Whether I'm going to keep working with Savannah after the Tangle Peak wedding or do something else entirely. They're supportive about everything, which is both wonderful and slightly terrifying because I'm not used to people actually supporting my choices instead of judging them or trying to change my mind.
"After the bonding, do we tell people? Do we have a ceremony?" I ask.
“If you want a ceremony, we can do that," Jett says quickly, shooting Pine a look. "We can have whatever you want. A small or big one, whatever makes you happy."
"I think I want something small," I say. "After the Tangle Peak wedding. Something intimate with just people who matter. Savannah, Jessica, maybe the Brownbox pack. Nothing big. Nothing requiring months of planning."
“Your wish is our command,” Cassian says.
By the time we head to bed, the sun is setting and the heat is completely gone. My body feels like me again, just marked and loved and thoroughly appreciated. The bonding marks on my skin are evidence of what's about to happen tomorrow, but they're also evidence of what already exists between us. A connection that's real and present and permanent.
That night, we sleep in the master bedroom. All four of us in one bed. Pine is on one side of me, Jett on the other, Cassian at the foot of the bed with his hand on my ankle. We're all covered in each other's marks, all carrying each other's scents, all profoundly connected in ways that feel like they existed long before we actually met.
"I love you," I say to all of them.
"We love you too," they reply in unison.
Universe…you got it right.
Thank you for giving me a home.
24
SHARON
Iwake up first.
