Page 46 of Knot Their Safe Haven (The Omega Rebellion Movement #3)

Later, when the temperature had dropped a few more degrees and Velvet started to shiver, we wrapped her in both our jackets and half-carried, half-dragged her back to the little bathroom in this space that’s equipped with everything we need.

We cleaned her up, bringing a new set of clothes to dress her in before we snuggled against her in the little blanket set up that we did the best to make like a nest.

Alexis had already told us about Velvet not experiencing a nest before, and we were already waiting for the final pieces for such now that we knew we were going to remain in the glass house as a permanent house for our pack until she was ready to expand.

I stayed awake, watching her breathe, thinking about what it meant to win at something like this, cause it really did feel like we won the lottery being able to finally meet our Omega at this age.

The stars above us burn cold and distant, nothing like the warmth radiating from Velvet's skin where she lies between us. My brother sleeps on her other side, one arm thrown possessively across her waist, breathing deep and even.

But I'm awake, watching constellations wheel overhead while processing what just happened.

Not the physical part—though that exceeded every fantasy I'd harbored since Alessandro first mentioned her name. But the trust of it. The way she let us worship her with silly props and serious intent, laughing and gasping in equal measure.

"You're thinking too loud," she murmurs against my chest.

"Didn't know you were awake."

"Hard to sleep when someone's radiating contemplation like a space heater." She shifts, tilting her face up to meet my eyes. She looks content with the cutest sleepy look on her face. "Regrets?"

"None. You?"

"Only that fate didn’t push us to find each other sooner so we could have experienced this hell faster.

Didn’t think I was into threesomes." Her fingers trace patterns on my chest through the cotton shirt I'd managed to keep mostly clean.

"I've felt more genuinely loved in the past hour than all the years with the wrong people. "

"Velvet—"

"I want to make it official." The words come out rushed, like she's afraid hesitation will steal courage. "The pack bonds. The claiming. Everything."

My heart stutters before finding rhythm again.

"When?"

"Is tomorrow too soon?"

A laugh escapes, surprised and delighted.

"If you wanted to do it tonight, we'd find a way. Tomorrow, next week, next year—whenever you're ready."

"Aren't you worried?" She props herself up on one elbow, careful not to wake Dante. "About being targets? Especially since no one's figured out the bombing?"

Here it is—the conversation Alessandro wanted to have after bonds were established, but our omega deserves truth over strategy.

"We know who did it."

Her entire body goes rigid.

"What?"

"Alessandro's been investigating since the moment you went into surgery. He'll tell you everything, but he wanted to secure your position in our pack first."

"Why?"

"Because when he reveals who's responsible, it's going to shatter some foundations in the world of Alphas and Omegas I guess. He wants you protected, legally and emotionally, before that storm hits."

She's quiet for long moments, processing implications with that brilliant mind that never stops working.

"It's someone I know."

Not a question, but I confirm anyway.

"Yes."

"Someone I trust?"

"Trusted, I guess. Not sure about how rooted the connection you guys carried but it’s not a light matter for you in the slightest, but we’re here with you now, and we’re ready to protect you in all aspects in your life, no matter the hills and valleys.”

More silence, then she settles back against my chest with a sigh that carries exhaustion beyond the physical.

"You're all so confident about loving me," she whispers. "About protecting me. Like it's easy."

"It is easy. The logistics might be complex, but the choice? Simple as breathing."

"I can actually envision a future now." Her voice carries wonder. "With your pack. With adventures and racing and apparently food fights with whipped cream. Twenty years of existing, and suddenly I want to live."

"We'll give you every adventure you can handle."

"Promise?"

"Vow."

She's quiet again, but I can feel her thinking, parsing through something difficult.

"Can I ask you something medical?" I end up asking her.

"Always."

"When did I last have a heat?" I wanted to know, well me and Dante wanted to know because there wasn’t really anything in her records emphasizing heats.

The question surprises me.

"According to Malcolm's records, you haven't had one in six years but I assume that’s just a decoy so eyes aren’t on you, right?."

She shakes her head, which encourages a pout from my lips.

"Suppressants," she confirms. "Been taking them religiously since thirty-three. Made life simpler when I couldn't afford to be vulnerable for a week."

"And now?"

"Now I have a pack who'd protect me during vulnerability.

" She traces those patterns again, nervous energy seeking outlet.

"Alexis encouraged me to stop them earlier. That you guys got me, so now that I had a bit to think about it during our date and us confronting it now, I think I’ll stop tonight and see what happens?

But I don't know if my body even remembers how.

If the suppressants have done permanent damage or anything. "

"They haven't." I capture her hand, stilling the anxious movement. "Your recent bloodwork shows everything functioning normally. Whenever you're ready to stop taking them, your body will remember what to do."

"And you'd... the pack would want that? A forty-year-old omega in heat isn't exactly?—"

"Stop." I tighten my arms around her. "You're our omega. Every part of you, every age you'll ever be. When you're ready, if you're ready,we'll help you through a heat like you've never experienced."

"Never experienced because I've only had them alone."

The pain in that admission makes me want to resurrect every Alpha who's failed her just to kill them properly.

"Never alone again," I promise. "We'll worship you through every wave, keep you satisfied and safe and so thoroughly claimed you forget other packs exist."

"Bold promises."

"Fact. We'll let you feel like the true omega you've always been but never got to explore. That's a vow I can confidently keep."

Dante stirs beside us, mumbling something about keeping it down, but his hand finds hers in sleep, completing our circuit.

Velvet laughs softly. "A heat with four Alphas. That sounds either amazing or fatal."

"Definitely amazing. Possibly fatal. Worth finding out?"

"Yeah," she breathes, and I hear the smile in it. "Worth finding out."

Above us, a meteor streaks across the sky—brief and brilliant and gone before we can point it out. But we all see it, even Dante who's supposedly sleeping, because his lips curve against Velvet's shoulder.

"Make a wish," he murmurs.

"Don't need to," she responds. "Already got it."

We lie there as the night deepens, our omega finally relaxed between us, and I think: this is what victory feels like.

Not the business deals or territory expansion or any of the thousand conquests that built our empire.

Just this—a woman who's learning to be loved, twins who've found their missing piece, and the promise of heats and adventures and a future that tastes like cinnamon and possibility.

Tomorrow, we'll make it official.

Tonight, we hold her under stars that witness our vows, and that's already everything.