Page 57 of Bound By Song (Evie Quad Omegaverse #1)

EVIANA

T he first spike hits like a lightning strike, sudden and consuming.

One second, I’m sleeping in the middle of the makeshift nest we built in the lounge, surrounded by plush blankets and soft pillows and my delicious alphas, and the next, I’m gasping, my body overheating from the inside out. My vision blurs. My skin prickles.

No. No, no, no.

Panic claws up my throat. I was never supposed to have a heat. Grams basically forbade it. Forbade? Forbode? Forbidded it?

Fuck. Even that can’t distract me from the pain.

I crawl out of the nest, unable to drag myself to a standing position, ready to bolt – where, I don’t know. Away. Anywhere. But as soon as I move, a firm hand wraps around my ankle and pulls me backward.

I crash straight into a solid chest.

Toasted tonka bean. Cashmeran. Cardamom.

Xar.

His hands come up to steady me, warm and careful. “Easy,” he murmurs.

I flinch away, my breath coming too fast. “I–I need to be alone.”

“No, you don’t,” Dane says firmly from the doorway.

Huh? Why isn’t he in the nest? Where did he go? Why did he leave us?

A whimper slips out.

“You don’t have to do this alone, Evie. It will be worse in fact if you do,” Xar insists.

My body betrays me, drawn to their warmth even as my mind screams at me to run.

“Worse?” I press my hands to my temples, trying to block out the way my body aches, the way my head pounds.

Fuck. I’m so conflicted. What do I want right now?

“It hurts more, Evie.”

“I don’t know how to do this,” I whisper.

A beat of silence, then Xar speaks, voice steady and reassuring. “Let us help, little dew drop. We know what to do.”

Blaise chuckles, the sound light despite the tension. “You’re looking at a very experienced team, sweetheart. We’ve got you.”

My omega hates something about what he just said and I want to snap at him, but another wave of heat rolls through me, curling low in my stomach, making my legs shake. I grip the nearest blanket and roll onto my side, squeezing my eyes shut.

“I don’t—” My voice breaks. “I’ve always suppressed it. I don’t know what to do. Dane said…he said…”

Xar kneels beside me, his presence grounding. “You don’t have to know. You just have to listen to what you need. Your body and your omega are going to tell you.”

I open my eyes, blinking up at him. His expression is so patient, so certain, that something inside me cracks.

I don’t know how to do this. But maybe…maybe I don’t have to.

I swallow hard and nod. “Okay. I need…something to make the pain stop,” I gasp around strikes of lightning coursing through my body. “Painkillers?” I ask hopefully.

Blaise chuckles and I snarl at him, causing him to put his hands in the air placatingly and mumble a quick apology.

Xar smiles, a slow, reassuring thing. “Let’s start with getting you into your nest properly. Dane will have the real one done soon, sweetheart. He only needs another hour or so, sweetheart. Can you wait? We’ll get you a drink and some snacks. You’re going to need your strength.”

Xar helps me settle on the sofa, tucking pillows around me as my body shudders through another wave of heat. I’m so hot but I want to burrow under the blankets and bury myself. Is that normal? It can’t be normal. It’s insane .

I let them guide me, their hands careful, their voices steady. They make sure I feel safe, that I know I’m in control. And for the first time in my life, I let go. I trust them. I know they’ll take care of me.

The room smells like them – it makes my inner omega purr. It should be overwhelming, but it’s not. It’s comforting. Safe. And I can’t help but drift off.

I don’t know how long I stay curled up in the temporary nest before Dane finally speaks.

“Evie,” he says softly. “I have something for you, wildflower.”

I lift my head, bleary-eyed. “What?”

He stands, holding out a hand. “Come with me.”

I hesitate, but when he gently takes my wrist, a pulse of something warm and sure moves through me. I let him pull me up. Xar and Blaise exchange a look but don’t stop him.

I actually feel a little better after that nap. I’m steadier on my feet and much calmer now.

Dane leads me down the hallway, stopping in front of a door I haven’t opened in years. My breath catches.

“My grandmother’s room.”

He nods but doesn’t let me go. “It’s not hers anymore, wildflower. This space is all yours, beautiful.”

I stare at the door, my heart pounding. My entire life, that room has been cold and untouched, filled with stiff old furniture and the ghosts of things unspoken. The idea of stepping inside makes my chest go tight. But I trust Dane.

He must sense my hesitation because he squeezes my hand. “It’s yours now, Evie.” Then he pushes the door open.

I step inside, and my breath leaves me in a rush.

The room isn’t cold anymore.

It’s warm. Soft. Safe.

Mine.

The walls are painted the most delicate shade of blush pink, not overwhelming, just a whisper of colour that makes the whole space glow. The lighting is low and golden, casting everything in a soft, welcoming haze.

Gauzy curtains hang from the ceiling, draping over a recessed mattress so big it looks like it could hold me and my sisters…or an entire pack, I realise with a blush.

The mattress is covered in the plushest blankets I’ve ever seen, layered in soft, fluffy textures – velvet, faux fur, cloudlike cotton.

A ridiculous amount of pillows, all different shapes and sizes, are scattered across it.

Not a single one is from the makeshift nest in the lounge.

They’re all new. Everything is done in the most delicate shades of pink and rose gold.

It’s so luxurious. So soft. So warm and welcoming.

I’ve never seen anything so beautiful. I swallow hard but the lump of emotion in my throat makes my eyes well up. I don’t know what to say.

This can’t be mine. I don’t deserve something this…this…amazing.

There’s a thick, heated fur rug under my feet, big enough to stretch out on, and a reading nook by the window with an oversized chair and a knitted throw draped over the armrest. I want to curl up in that seat and read for days.

There’s even a small table next to it, set up with snacks and drinks, with a mini fridge underneath it. It’s so…unnecessary. It’s metres to the kitchen, but the gesture is oddly touching.

A shelf lines one wall, already stocked with books and trinkets that I recognise from my bedroom and the attic; little things that make it feel like a home. A diffuser sits on the bedside table, misting out a gentle scent of peony and jasmine.

But it’s the ceiling that steals my breath.

A star projector casts soft constellations across the roof, shifting in a slow, hypnotic dance. Tiny fairy lights are woven between them, like fireflies trapped in a frozen moment.

I step forward on shaky legs, sinking to my knees, fingers brushing over the blankets, the pillows, the soft drapes. It’s so much. Too much.

Why would they do all this for me?

I turn to Dane, my vision blurring with tears. “You really did all of this?”

He nods, watching me carefully. “You deserve a real nest, Evie. One that’s yours. This is from all of us. Consider it your first courting gift.”

My throat locks up. No one has ever done anything like this for me.

“I—” My voice cracks. “I don’t know what to say.”

“You don’t have to say anything.” Dane steps closer, his warmth wrapping around me. “Just tell me…do you like it? It’s okay if you don’t. We can change anything you want.”

A broken sound escapes my lips. I don’t just like it. I love it. I don’t want to change anything.

For the first time in my life, I feel…home.

I nod, wiping at my face, and whisper, “It’s perfect. I…love it.” I love you, I almost say but that would be so ridiculous. I can’t just go falling for the first people to show me kindness.

“Almost perfect, love,” Blaise says with a grin. I blink up at him and frown. Almost perfect? How can it be almost perfect? It’s more than anything I could ever have dreamed of. My omega snarls at him, judging him for having no taste and being so clueless.

He raises a brow and smirks at me.

“You need our scents in the nest, honeybee. It won’t feel like home until we’re all in here.”

Oh. Oh . Now my omega is praising him. Clever alpha! He knows exactly what we need.

A shiver runs through me, heat curling low in my belly at the thought. He’s right. The nest is beautiful, comforting, everything I never dared imagine for myself – but it’s missing them .

Their warmth. Their scent. Their presence woven into the very fabric of it, making it something truly ours .

Dane watches me carefully, his dark eyes unreadable. Xar stands just behind him, arms folded, his gaze steady and patient. Blaise, the one who said it, grins at me like he already knows what I’m thinking, like he knew the suggestion would slip under my skin and root there.

“You want to do that now?” My voice is quieter than I expect, breathless with something I don’t quite understand.

“If you want us to.” Xar’s voice is deep and steady, grounding me. “Only if you’re ready.”

Am I? My heart is racing, my skin prickling with the first real waves of heat that I can’t ignore anymore.

The temporary nest in the living room had been fine when I was in denial, when I could still pretend I had control.

But here, in this space made just for me, with these alphas watching me so intently, I feel… different.

I swallow, then nod. “I want that. I want your scents in my nest. To complete it. And I need…I need my pink blanket. My first gift from you. Make it perfect…please.”

The moment the words are out, something shifts.