He laughed again, bright and sweet. “If that’s how every promise is going to end, I’ll promise you a thousand things before breakfast.”
Oh, my heart was definitely in trouble with him. Even though I was scared, I’d already taken a leap of faith. What was a fewmore, if it meant I could have alphas like my scent matches in my life?
Iwas trying not to feel guilty about having been so intimate with some of the pack and not others. Snuggling between Nathan and Jude on the couch while everyone watched a movie in the living room made the longing on the faces of Leo and Alve that much more noticeable. Every time one of them looked at me, I felt the weight of it brush over my skin.
Pepper occupied my lap so I wasn’t moving, and Poppy had taken a shine to Alve, lovingly trapping him on one of the love seats.
“Hey,” Nathan whispered in my ear, sending a shiver through me. “You look like you’ve got a million thoughts tumbling around. Everything okay?”
“I don’t want anyone to feel bad about the uneven progression,” I whispered back.
“I can trade spots with someone and give them some extra time,” he offered.
“But I don’t want to lose time with you for someone else to gain it.”
Nathan slid off the couch and to the floor, hooking one of my knees over his shoulder, his hands cradling my calf on his chest. “Free spot next to our omega for whoever is faster.”
Leo popped up and Alve looked torn between disturbing Poppy and trying for the spot.
Jude kissed my cheek and slid down next to Nathan, claiming my other leg. “Two free spots now.”
The relief on Alve’s face was so prominent, it was almost comical. They each took up a seat next to me, Alve cradling Poppy like a baby. She made a few circles on his lap when he sat before curling up again.
“Successful cat transplant,” I said with a smile, reaching to stroke Poppy’s fur.
The sensation of being completely surrounded by the pack was akin to giddiness. Apparently, it did wonders for my nervous system to be cocooned in warmth with all of their scents filling my nose. I leaned on Leo and twined one of my hands with Alve’s so we each had one free for a cat. Leo very tentatively angled toward me and draped an arm over the back of the couch so I could nestle in better.
My purr was louder than both of my cats combined. We spent the rest of the movie like that, and as the credits rolled, Leo cleared his throat.
“I might have arranged something for you tomorrow,” he told me.
“What kind of something?”
“Charlotte is staying at the hospital until she has the babies and I figured she would appreciate some company besides her pack.”
I’d kept everything from Charlotte to spare her the stress of my situation, but now that things were better, I needed to update her. “I’d love that. We could make a girl’s day of it.”
“If you’re doing a girl’s day,” said Nathan, “then I’m going to insist we have a pack boys day. Everyone call in sick.”
“I could spare most of the day,” Leo replied. “I have a show tomorrow night, though.”
“We’ll be sure to pack in all of the fun before dinner, then.” Nathan tipped his head back to see us. “Sound good?”
“As long as the fun doesn’t include more crimes,” Leo said with a laugh.
“Well, there goes my idea for a museum heist.”
He said it so deadpan I couldn’t help but laugh.
Nathan patted my calf. “I’m glad you think I’m hilarious because otherwise, this would be a long life.”
If I had a different sense of humor, maybe Nathan would’ve been more annoying than funny, but at least fate knew what it was doing by matching us in that sense.
“What are you guys actually going to do?” I asked.
“I’ll think of something.” Nathan shrugged. “It’ll be a surprise, though.”
We cuddled our way through another movie. I was so utterly content it had me yawning.
