"Ben," I say. "He's eight months clean now. Still working as a janitor. Called to apologize again."
Pine settles onto the couch next to me and pulls me against his side. His warmth seeps into my skin. "How do you feel about that?"
"I don't know," I admit. "Glad he's doing better? Still processing everything he put us through? Both at the same time?"
"Both is allowed," Pine says, pressing a kiss to the top of my head. "You don't have to have it all figured out right now."
Later, when all three of my alphas are home and we're having dinner around the new dining table in the extension, I tell them about Ben's call. Grandpa is eating with us tonight, sitting at the head of the table like he belongs there. Because he does.
They're cautiously optimistic about Ben. Cassian says he's been talking to Ben's sponsor, and the reports are consistently good. Jett mentions that Ben calls every Thursday, same time, checking in with them. Pine says in four more months, if Ben's still clean, they'll talk about the will like they promised.
The trip to Montana changed something. Seeing Ben in that facility, hearing his apology, watching him take real steps toward recovery. It gave all of us hope that maybe this time is actually different.
"I'm glad he's getting better," I say, pushing food around my plate. The baby is pressing against my stomach and making eating difficult. "I really am."
As for Penelope, apparently she snuck into Tangle Peak's wedding reception, caught the eye of a rockstar performing as a surprise guest, and they're currently touring together. From what I've heard, she's much happier on stage with someone she actually loves than she ever was planning fraud schemes with Ben.
Life has a way of working out, even when it seems impossible.
"Are you happy?" Cassian asks later that night when we're all settled on the couch in the new living room area, watching a movie I'm definitely going to fall asleep during. Grandpa is already asleep in his room down the hall. The house is quiet except for the television and the sound of us breathing.
"Yes," I say without hesitation. "I'm exhausted and my feet are enormous and I can't see past my own belly, but yes. I'm happy."
"Good," Jett says, his hand finding mine in the dark. "That's all we want."
I fall asleep before the movie ends, surrounded by my pack, feeling the baby kick beneath my palm. One year ago, I was planning my ex's wedding and questioning everything about myself. Now I'm here. Home. Happy. Building a life I never thought I could have.
Cassian's hand is warm on my ankle, careful around the swelling. Jett's fingers are laced through mine. Pine's scent wraps around me like a blanket, cedar and smoke and safety.
My business is thriving. My best friend is discovering herself. My ex is genuinely getting clean this time. Grandpa is living with us in the extension we built just for him. Jett is home every day, working online and being present. And I'm about to become a mother to a little girl who's going to be loved by three incredible alphas and one very determined omega who still can't believe this is her life.
Life is weird and beautiful and chaotic and exactly what it should be.
And I can't forget who I must thank for all of this.
Thank you, universe, for making me late to that first meeting. For putting me in Pine Hollow when I needed it most. For giving me three alphas who see me for who I actually am instead of who I was trying to be. For taking what should have been the worst job of my life and turning it into the beginning of everything.
