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God... I loved them all so much. How could my colossal fuck-up have possibly resulted in this perfect, amazing family? I would spend the rest of my life making sure they knew how incredible they were. How incrediblewewere, together.
I was Luca, and I was finally home. How was I here, now, hovering on the brink of a crashing orgasm with Zalen inside me, and Mia’s throat vibrating around my cock as she moaned and whimpered? How was I here, safe, and free from the fear I’d lived with since I was too young to remember? My left hand pressed over Emiel’s mouth, stifling the small noises of ecstasy he was making. My right hand was tangled in thick hair the same texture as raw silk.
My body couldn’t be capable of this much pleasure... this much happiness. Could it?
I was myself. Finally filled to the brim, with all of the emptiness I’d tried to fill with awards and professionalachievements gone like it had never existed. For the first time in my life, I had a purpose outside of myself.
I could feel this heat drawing to its natural conclusion. After it was done, we would rest. And after we rested, we would go out in the world and do good for the people no one else cared about.
But for now, I was six people... and we were pleasure beyond imagination. No part of me was untouched, and I was unraveling. My orgasm started in my toes and rushed through me like a hurricane, leaving perfect devastation in its wake.
Beneath me, Emiel roared and pulsed his spend into my body. Above me, Nat cried out and did the same. Byron groaned, his own release flooding the bond alongside ours. I swallowed convulsively around Luca’s cock; he keened and arched, spurting bitter-salty fluid down my throat.
Zalen made a sound like relief after a long journey, the swell of his orgasm flowing across the bond like a slow tide.
It went on and on—notendingso much as softening. Our edges dissolved into a warm, overlapping blur.
Our bodies must have separated, except for Emiel’s knot trapped inside of me, Byron’s in Nat, and Zalen’s in Luca. But the thing was... it didn’t matter.
We were together now, in more ways than just the physical.
Omega and alpha hormones gradually eased, and rest became sleep.
Together, we dreamed of the future.
As it turned out, the recovery time for a mating heat was even longer than for a regular heat. I’d thought I might find it difficult to be waited on hand and foot while my body regained its strength. But somehow, being able to feel the pleasure the alphas took in it removed any sting of guilt at feeling selfish.
There was one thing still nagging at me, though.
This time, it had been Nat who’d come to help me into the bathroom for a warm bath. The water eased muscles that had been strained repeatedly over the last four-and-a-bit days, but rather than succumb to the temptation to nap in the tub, I reached out and grabbed Nat’s wrist to keep him from leaving.
“Are you okay?” I asked him, peering through the steam to gauge his expression.
Because Nat was gone from the bond. The omega hormones he’d been injecting for the past couple of weeks had faded after the heat, and without a mating gland, so had the psychic connection with the pack.
He snorted. “There’s a half-healed bite mark in the shape of Byron’s teeth on my butt cheek, and at some point yesterday, I decided it would be a good idea to let a guy who’s hung like a porn star knot my ass. You’re not the only one who’s going to need some recovery time.”
I tightened my hold on his wrist. “That’s not what I meant, Nat.”
Sobering, he perched on the edge of the bath and covered my hand with one of his.
“I know it’s not. Sorry.” He took a deep breath. “I think... maybe... betas aren’t wired for the mating bond. Don’t get me wrong—I am so, so glad you suggested the hormone treatments. And I’m open to doing that again in the future, if that’s something you and the others want. But... that bond. It’s a lot.”
I huffed out a breath of mild amusement. “Yeah, it is.”
He smiled ruefully. “I’m sure there are techniques for managing the connections and making it less overwhelming. But at the risk of insulting a grand alphomic biological tradition, I’m a bit relieved to be alone inside my own skull again. I hope that’s... okay?”
He sounded so tentative and worried that I tugged him down for a kiss.
“You honestly think I’d rather you were miserable because a beta can’t be part of the bond full-time?” I asked, once we’d parted.
He glanced down, shamefaced. “No, of course not. It’s just an unusual situation. I’m not sure either of us knows how to navigate it.”
“That’s true enough,” I allowed. “Okay. As long as you’re happy, I’m happy.”
A broad smile split his features. “Oh, I’m happy.” Then his brow knit. “Except, y’know, about Byron’s ass-biting.”
“Get him to do your inner thigh next time, maybe,” I teased.