Page 49 of Follow the Rhythm (Fairview City Omegaverse #2)

T he bonds with Ellis and Charlie felt like threads of light in my chest. Charlie was buttery sunshine, steady and strong, while Ellis was a bolt of lightning. They were tethers, but I felt lighter than air.

They lavished me with kisses and praise, and I was so happy because I knew it was what they wanted, too. I was so happy it felt precious, like it could slip away at any moment, but it didn’t. It just stayed there, a glowing sun, the knowledge that I was loved making me giddy.

Ellis and Charlie had knotted me at the same time, which I didn’t even know was possible, but would be something I asked for in future heats.

As we came down from the high together, and their knots released, I knew my heat had finally broken. I was fully lucid and so, so tired.

But there was still something I needed. Even in my deliriously happy state, I knew there was a missing piece.

Kieran pulled me into his arms. He was warm against my cooling skin.

“Hi,” I said softly after a tender kiss. Every part of my body felt oversensitive, including my swollen lips.

“Hi,” he answered, those pretty hazel eyes shining.

I placed his hand over my heart. “There’s room for one more,” I whispered, still a little unsure, but then he kissed me again and I knew I had nothing to worry about.

Kieran’s lips traveled from my lips, across my jaw, to my ear. “You’re mine, love,” he murmured.

“Yes,” I breathed. “And you’re mine.”

He kissed down the side of my neck, to my collarbone, and then arched my back in his hands. I let my head fall, and he cradled it in his huge palm. His teeth scraped once, twice over the skin of my chest before he bit, right above where my heart was pounding.

It hurt, just as it had with Charlie and Ellis, until it didn’t anymore.

Kieran’s bond was faint at first, almost hidden beneath the intensity of the others, but then it flared to life.

It was hope, the beam of light that pierces through to illuminate the darkness of a cave, or shines down into the depths of the ocean.

I knew that, no matter what, his light would guide me home.

Kieran pulled me closer. “Oh, love. I can feel you.” I clutched him tightly, letting the new tether settle inside me. I was crying or laughing or both.

Why had I been so scared of this? I’d spent so long fighting my inner Omega, resenting a huge part of who I was, when this wonderful gift of love and connection had been there all along. But I couldn’t regret anything, not when it had led me here.

Maybe all the shitty parts of being an Omega were worth it for this, the feeling of my pack surrounding me, filling me from within. Wasn’t that true of anything worth having? You had to go through the darkness to find the light.

As my Alphas curled around me, I felt our hearts pulsing in time, a new rhythm we would all build together, until I sank into a deep and dreamless sleep.