“If she leaves, I don’t think I can control it anymore, guys. I was on the fucking edge before she came. She’s just started pulling me back to stable ground.” Everyone knew what Asher meant when he said, “it”. His need to set fires. His need to watch the world burn down.
Fallon began pacing, his measured steps tracing a path across the garage floor. Back and forth, six steps one way, turn, six steps back. His mind searched desperately for a fool-proof way to keep Lucy with them. Unfortunately, matters of the heart were one of the few things in life that shouldn’t be manipulated.
“The probationary period’s up soon,” Xander said out loud a fact they’d all been deliberately ignoring. “When it is, it won’t matter if we have or haven’t asked Lucy what she wants. Eros will come do it for us.”
The five men let that truth blanket over them.
The men exchanged weighted glances, a decision solidifying—one that they all hated, but one they also knew was necessary. Sure, they could keep talking here in the garage, going around and around, avoiding the central facts.
Fallon’s earlier words seemed to ring out again,“Waiting will only make it hurt more.”
Asher’s response echoed,“Hurts like a bitch already.”
“Asking a question isn’t that hard,” a new voice entered the fray.
Soft, sweet, fogged with sleep.
The five men turned slowly, as if caught in honey, not believing she’d woken up and found them here.
But there she was, standing just outside one of the carriage doors with no shoes on, wearing a blush camisole and matching shorts. Lucy.
She rubbed her arms briskly against the chill, goosebumps sprouting across her skin. She smiled at them—a beautiful, slight upward curve of lips. Lips that were already slightly lilac but were quickly deepening to a darker purple thanks to the cold air.
“It’s more comfortable in the house,” she spoke again, her eyes roving, gaze taking in the state of each man.
She shivered, then walked into the garage which was marginally warmer.
The moment she was inside the building, the men thawed. Kane bolted from the stool, sending it rolling back to clang against his workbench. He crossed the distance to her in four large strides. When he stood in front of her, he took off his jacket, expression unreadable, and wrapped it around her shoulders. Lucy smiled up at him with those eyes that seemed to contain the entire world within the irises.
The other four Alphas gravitated nearer, each of them wanting to be as near as possible to Lucy. Fear rolled off them in waves.Was she out here to put them out of their misery or bury them deeper?
“How long have you been listening?” Kane’s voice was a low thrum; each syllable felt heavy and difficult to utter.
“Long enough,” Lucy said, her own voice clear as a bell. “And—” she glanced around again, eyes landing on each of the men in turn— “I’m staying.”
The Alphas stood frozen, unable to believe what they'd just heard.
Lucy's two simple words hung in the air, lifelines thrown to drowning men.
I’m staying.
I’m staying.
She’s staying!
Kane's jacket engulfed Lucy’s small frame, the material still warm from his body heat. She pulled it tighter around herself, inhaling his stimulating Alpha cologne of motor oil, leather, and an underlying scent note that was uniquely Kane. It made her feel safe.
"You're... staying?" Fallon's voice cracked on the last word, his composure fracturing.
Lucy nodded, her silver-white hair catching the fluorescent light. "With you. All of you. If you'll have me."
The men exchanged glances, a silent conversation passing between them. Hope bloomed in their chests, but caution tempered it. They had treated her so poorly at first—had been cruel, dismissive, arrogant. The weight of their past behavior pressed down on each Alpha's shoulders.
"Lucy," Xander approached slowly, as if she might disappear if he moved too quickly. "You know what that means? Being our Omega, officially?"
She tilted her chin up, those gold-flecked green eyes flashing with determination. "I know exactly what it means.”
“And you’re sure? You’ve thought this through?” Fallon’s voice was steadier now.
