Page 142 of Daisy

"MINE," I bark, the alpha command echoing through the room with enough force to rattle the windows. I start dragging my omega backward across the nest, away from them, gripping her waist possessively.

The movement jolts my knot inside her and she cries out. Not in pleasure this time, but sharp discomfort.Pain. My omega is in pain. I freeze for a heartbeat, my hand gentling on her waist.

But the alphas are too close, too dangerous. The threat overrides everything else.

I need to get my omega away from them, even if it hurts her. Even if every protective instinct screams at me not to cause her pain. The alphas are the bigger danger.

I continue pulling us further away from the threats, my omega whimpering with each movement of my knot inside her sensitive walls.

The terror spikes higher through the bond. My omega is terrified and they're scaring her. But she's still not acting scared of them. "Mine."

Her small cry of discomfort as I move us again finally penetrates enough that I stop dragging her, though I keep us pressed into the corner. I freeze, looking down at her, suddenlyaware of the disconnect between what I'm feeling and what I'm seeing.

My hand immediately gentles, stroking her face as I pull a blanket around her trembling form. Safe. Keep her safe from the alphas.

I lean down and nuzzle into her throat again, breathing her in, letting my scent mix with hers. Mine. She needs to smell like me. Need everyone to know she's claimed, protected, loved.

My nose traces along her neck, up to her ear, then back down to her shoulder. Gentle, touches even as I keep my body positioned between her and the threats. She makes a soft sound and leans into my touch, and something settles in my chest.

A third alpha appears—this one massive, sandy-haired, built like a mountain. He shifts closer and I snap at him, showing all my teeth. Another threat. Another alpha wanting my omega.

"MINE." Another bark, harsh and threatening. The fear keeps washing over me through the bond in waves. My omega is afraid and it's their fault.

I turn back to my omega, nuzzling her cheek, pressing soft kisses to her temple. So beautiful. So perfect. Mine to protect, mine to care for.

"We know," a softer voice says. Not an alpha. Beta. Dark curls, smaller than the others. Small threat, barely registering. "We know she's yours. No one's going to take her."

But I can't hear them properly through the overwhelming need to protect. Three alphas surrounding us. Three threats trying to take what's mine. I wrap more blankets around us, creating a barrier. Mine.All mine.

"Hawk," the giant alpha tries, his voice deeper than the others but somehow gentler. Still an alpha though. Still a threat. "It's us. Your pack. We're not a threat."

Pack. The word tries to penetrate but there are too many alphas, too much fear flooding through the bond.

"MINE!" I roar, the alpha bark so loud it rattles the windows. My vision's going red around the edges. I pull my omega tighter into our makeshift cocoon, still stroking her hair gently even as I snarl at the alphas. My omega. My mate. Mine.

The alpha with buzz cut hair takes a small step forward and I snarl viciously, wrapping my body completely around my omega like a shield. He's the biggest threat. The one who smells like authority and dominance.

"Okay, okay," he says, backing off immediately. But then something strange happens. The massive auburn-haired alpha, the one built like a weapon, suddenly makes himself smaller. Sits on the floor. Lowers his head.

The action confuses me. Alphas don't make themselves small. But this one does, and it's familiar somehow. Safe somehow.

She makes another soft sound and I immediately check her face, nuzzling her gently before turning my snarl back on the alphas. She touches my arm, her fingers gentle, and the touch grounds me slightly.

Safe. Keep her safe and warm.

When she makes a small sound of contentment, something settles in me.

"You're such a good alpha," she whispers, so quietly only I can hear. "My protector. You're keeping me safe."

The praise makes me purr louder despite the tension, but I keep watching the alphas warily. Good alpha. Protecting my omega.

"Brother," the sandy-haired mountain of an alpha says quietly, his voice deep and steady. Something about his scent is familiar. Safe. But still an alpha. Still a threat to what's mine.

"He understands," my omega whispers softly, her voice barely audible. "He isn't hurting me."

I continue arranging the blankets around my omega while she leans into my touch. The fear keeps coming in waves through the bond, but what I see doesn't match. She's calm. Content. So why the terror?

Mine.