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She closed the distance between us and wrapped me in a quick hug, the scent of sex and Onyx rising around us. I breathed it in and tried to quell my cock’s interested twitch.

“Go,” I told her. “Bathe. Now. I might wander down and have a chat with Curran if he’s still up.”

“Okay,” she said, letting me go. “And if that’s a euphemism for having sex with him, I’ll make sure to be out of the bath by the time you get back.”

It wasn’t a euphemism. I ended up finding Curran and Onyx together, sharing a bottle of something amber and expensive looking in the kitchen.

They went quiet as I entered, but I was sure the previous conversation must have been about Emma. Onyx’s brows creased in concern as she met my gaze.

“Is everything all right?” A hint of worry threaded through the broad Australian accent.

“Emma’s fine,” I said. “Well, assuming she doesn’t get so relaxed in the bath that she drowns. Five out of five for stress relief, by the way.”

Curran snorted. “What can we do for you, Elijah? I’m guessing this isn’t purely a social call.” He lifted the bottle toward me, an unspoken question.

“You can definitely start with a glass of whatever that is,” I said.

Onyx reached a long arm toward the nearest cabinet and withdrew a tumbler, which Curran obligingly filled with two generous fingers of alcohol. I took it and sipped, letting the burn of it roll down my throat to warm my stomach. Crossing to the kitchen table, I slumped into a chair while the alphas remained leaning against the counter.

“I think Emma and I are both struggling to picture what the future would actually look like, if we stayed with you,” I began, jumping in without preamble. I was sure they’d been discussing the same thing when I walked in, after all.

Curran nodded slowly. “I hear you. Dunno if we can answer that right now. Not properly.”

Onyx swirled the contents of their glass. “I know he’s trying, but I just can’t picture the boss dropping everything when it comes to the Huntwell case. And without him on board, I’m not sure where that leaves the rest of us.”

“I don’t want to give up my career,” I blurted. “Emma doesn’t want to live in London. The logistics alone—”

Curran grunted. “Logistics don’t mean shit when you’re swimming in money like Gabriel is. And appearances aside, no one here wants to cage you two like a pair of fancy canaries. That’s not what being a pack means.”

I relaxed a bit, then swallowed another mouthful of the very nice scotch.

“No,” I said after a moment. “I know it’s not. It’s just... the feeling that everything’s a barrier, you know? Like there’s no clear way forward.”

“Sounds familiar.” Onyx’s tone was surprisingly glum. “I wish things were simpler.”

“Oh, stop moping, you great Aussie berk,” Curran said. “Bothof you. Maybe you haven’t noticed this, on account of you both being such infants—barely out of the cradle, you two. But things don’t stay the same. Just because there’s a ton of shit going on right now, that doesn’t mean it’ll always be like this.”

“We are notinfants,” Onyx said. “You’re just ancient, that’s all.”

“Infants,” Curran repeated, raising his glass to gesture at us. “Practically fetuses. Need an ultrasound machine to get a proper look at the pair of you.”

I scoffed. “Don’t mistake a good skincare routine for lack of experience,” I told him, hiding my amusement. “But, okay, I can see your point. It’s only that it’s frustrating, feeling like we’re stuck in limbo like this. Not knowing how long we’ll be here, or what will happen next.”

Curran thought about it for a moment and shrugged, acknowledging the point.

The following afternoon, the first unmarked manila envelope arrived in the post.