Page 24 of Nesting With My Three Alphas (Hollow Haven #1)

Kit

T he drive to the sheriff's office was quiet, Jonah's steady presence beside me the only thing keeping my nerves from completely taking over.

My hands were clasped tightly in my lap, and I could feel the subtle tremor that had started the moment I'd woken up thinking about facing Marcus's lies officially.

I hadn't told him about the package. About the way I'd stared at those photos for hours, willing myself not to panic. But Jonah's steady presence made the idea of speaking up feel... possible. Maybe not now. But soon.

"You okay?" Jonah asked gently, his eyes flicking from the road to my face.

"Just nervous," I admitted. "It feels so formal, giving an official statement. Like it makes everything more real somehow."

"It does make it more real," Jonah said. "But that's a good thing. Real means there are real consequences for what Marcus is trying to do."

As we drove through downtown Hollow Haven, I couldn't help but notice the way people looked at us.

Mrs. Carrington waved from her garden, calling out, "You tell the truth, dear.

We're all behind you." Mr. Peterson nodded seriously from his hardware store entrance.

Even Anna, the teenager from art class, gave me a thumbs up from across the street.

The whole town knew. And instead of feeling exposed or vulnerable, I felt supported in a way I'd never experienced before.

"This is what community looks like," Jonah said, apparently reading my thoughts. "People who care about each other's wellbeing."

The sheriff's office was a small, neat building that somehow managed to feel both official and welcoming. Sheriff Rowe greeted us at the front desk, his expression serious but kind.

"Kit, thank you for coming in. I know this isn't easy." He led us to a quiet office in the back. "I've reviewed the documents that were filed, and I have to say, they're some of the most obvious forgeries I've seen in twenty years of law enforcement."

Relief flooded through me. "So you can tell they're fake?"

"Oh, absolutely. Whoever created these did a poor job of it.

Wrong legal terminology, inconsistent formatting, and the signatures don't even slightly match any of the samples you sent through.

" Sheriff Rowe pulled out a folder. "But I need your official statement confirming you never signed anything binding with this Marcus individual. "

For the next hour, I walked Sheriff Rowe through my relationship with Marcus, carefully explaining the controlling nature of it without going into details that still felt too raw to share.

I confirmed that I'd never signed any legal documents binding me to him, never entered into any kind of pre-bonding contract, never agreed to any of the arrangements the fake papers claimed. Then Jonah helped me explain what had happened since I arrived. The black sedan, the text messages and finally I told them both about the package I’d received.

Jonah held my hand through the whole thing, squeezing it softly when I felt like I was about to break.

His steady presence holding me together when I didn’t feel like I had the strength to do it myself.

"This is very helpful," Sheriff Rowe said as he finished taking notes. "And more than a little concerning. We're initiating a restraining order against Marcus, and I’m going to recommend that we pursue charges for falsifying legal documents."

"What does that mean for Kit's safety?" Jonah asked.

"It means she's got the full protection of the law, and the full support of this community," Sheriff Rowe said firmly. "Marcus made a mistake coming here and trying to manipulate our legal system. We don't take kindly to that."

Our legal system. Like I was already part of this place, already someone worth protecting.

"Thank you," I said, my voice thick with emotion. "All of you. I never expected..."

"Expected what?" Sheriff Rowe asked gently.

"Expected people to believe me. To support me without question. To treat this as seriously as you are."

Sheriff Rowe's expression grew stern. "Kit, what this man is trying to do is harassment and intimidation. No one deserves that, especially not someone who's clearly trying to build a good life here."

As we left the sheriff's office, I felt lighter than I had in days. The legal threat that had been hanging over me was being handled by competent, caring people who had no agenda beyond keeping me safe.

"You were so brave in there," Jonah said as we walked back to his truck. "I'm proud of you."

When was the last time someone had said that and meant it?

"I couldn't have done it without you," I said honestly. "Having you there made all the difference."

"That's what..." Jonah paused, then seemed to make a decision. "That's what family does. We support each other."

The word settled in my chest like a warm ember. Family. It perfectly described how I felt about my position with all of them.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about the photographs earlier. You shouldn’t have had to hear about it that way.”

Jonah frowned and then he reached for my hand pulling me to a stop. “Reed told me,” he said quietly. “But he only told us last night after we knew that Marcus had filed the papers. He felt that we needed the full picture to make sure that we were keeping you safe.”

The relief that swept through me was nearly overwhelming.

“Don’t be angry with him,” Jonah rushed out.

I smiled softly, and he looked confused for a moment. “I’m not angry. I’m… I’m kind of flattered that you were all that concerned about me.”

“Of course we were.” Jonah pulled me into his arms and I felt him lay his cheek against my hair. “Let’s get you home, Kit,” he whispered as his arms tightened just a fraction around me.

I reluctantly left the safety of his embrace and he opened the door to his truck for me to climb inside. As I watched him round the front of his truck to climb into the driver’s seat, I realized how important all of these people were to me and how Jonah was right. We were a family.

The drive home was more relaxed, my shoulders finally dropping from the defensive position they'd held all morning. But as we pulled into Jonah's driveway, I noticed Reed's truck was there, along with Micah's car.

"Everything okay?" I asked, suddenly worried.

"Actually, there's something we need to talk to you about," Jonah said carefully. "All of us."

My stomach clenched. "Is it about Marcus? Did something happen?"

"No, nothing like that." Jonah's voice was gentle but serious. "Just... we've been thinking about some things, and we want to discuss them with you."

Inside, Reed and Micah were waiting in the living room, their expressions a mix of concern and something else I couldn't quite identify. The air felt charged with unspoken tension.

"How did it go at the sheriff's office?" Micah asked immediately.

"Good. Really good, actually. Sheriff Rowe says the documents are obvious forgeries, and he's starting a restraining order against Marcus."

"Thank God," Reed said, his relief obvious. "That's exactly what we were hoping for."

"But that's not why we asked you here," Jonah said, settling into the chair across from where I'd taken a seat on the couch. "Kit, we need to talk to you about your safety."

"My safety?"

"Your duplex isn't secure enough," Reed said bluntly. "Not with Marcus escalating like this, and especially not with your heat approaching."

Embarrassment flooded my cheeks at the casual mention of my approaching cycle, but none of them seemed uncomfortable with the topic.

"We want you to move in here," Jonah continued. "Where we can make sure you're properly protected."

The offer hung in the air between us, loaded with implications I wasn't sure I was ready to examine.

"What about living arrangements?" I asked practically. "Are you all planning to live here?"

The three of them exchanged glances, and I caught the subtle communication that passed between them.

"My lease is month-to-month," Reed said. "I can move in permanently."

"I'll have to split time between here and my bakery apartment," Micah added. "I need to be there for early morning baking some days and it would make more sense to stay there those nights. But for the rest of the week I can spend nights here."

"We'll make it work," Jonah said simply. "All of us together."

All of us together. The phrase made something flutter in my chest.

"This isn't just about protection, is it?" I asked quietly, looking around at their faces.

Another exchange of glances, and then Jonah spoke.

"No," he said honestly. "It's not."

The silence that followed was loaded with unspoken truths. I could feel my heart racing, could smell the subtle changes in their scents that suggested heightened emotion.

"Kit," Micah said gently, "we've been calling you pack for a while now. Charlie, especially."

I smiled faintly. "She kind of claimed me early on."

"We all did," Reed admitted, rubbing the back of his neck. "But that was instinct. Habit. Want."

Jonah leaned forward, his voice quieter. "But this, this is us actually asking. Not assuming. We want to make it real. Official. With your full choice."

"We want to be your pack," Micah said softly. "Not just in feeling, but in truth. With everything that comes with that."

"And we want you to be our omega," Reed added. "Because we're already in love with you. Because we don't want to build a life that doesn't include you."

The way they looked at me, hopeful and nervous and steady, made it clear that this wasn't a continuation. It was a beginning.

"I've loved before, but never like this," Micah added softly. "Never like building something from scratch with people who see all of me."

"I'm completely gone for you," Reed said, his voice low and steady. "That night in your nest... it changed something in me. I knew I wanted this. All of it. You."

"Charlie already thinks of you as her mom," Jonah said, his voice quiet but certain. "And I think of you as... everything."

"You've all treated me like I belonged from the start," I said. "But this… this feels different."

"It is," Jonah said. "This is us choosing you out loud. And hoping you'll choose us back."

I stared at them, trying to process what they were saying. "All of you?"

"All of us," Jonah confirmed. "We're not asking you to choose between us, Kit. We're asking you to choose all of us. To be our omega, our pack."

The words sent a shiver through me that had nothing to do with fear and everything to do with longing.

"What if I'm too broken for this?" I asked, voicing the fear that had been gnawing at me since Marcus's first threatening text. "What if he was right about me being too much, too needy, too damaged?"

"Stop," Reed said firmly. "Marcus was a manipulative asshole who confused control with love. Nothing he said about you was true."

"You're not broken," Micah added gently. "You're healing. There's a difference."

"And even if you were broken," Jonah said quietly, "we'd love those pieces too. That's what pack means."

The certainty in their voices, the complete absence of doubt about my worth, was almost overwhelming.

"I've never been with more than one alpha," I admitted. "I don't know how this works."

"Neither do we," Micah said honestly. "But we'll figure it out together."

"We've been functioning as a pack already," Reed pointed out. "For weeks. We just didn't have our omega."

The possessive satisfaction in his voice sent heat spiraling through me.

"And Charlie?" I asked. "How do we explain this to her?"

"Charlie's been planning this outcome since you moved in next door," Jonah said with a soft smile. "She's probably going to want to throw a celebration."

Despite everything, I found myself laughing. "She really has been orchestrating this, hasn't she?"

"Kid's got good instincts," Reed said with a grin.

"So," Micah said carefully, "what do you think? What do you want?"

What did I want?

I looked around at their faces. Jonah with his quiet strength and patient love. Micah with his gentle warmth and healing touch. Reed with his fierce protectiveness and unwavering loyalty. Three men who'd been carefully, patiently showing me what love was supposed to feel like.

"I want to try," I said, surprising myself with how certain I sounded. "I want to be brave enough to let you love me."

The relief that crossed their faces was immediate and profound.

"All of us?" Reed asked.

"All of you," I confirmed. "I choose all of you."

"And when your heat comes?" Micah asked carefully. "Because it's going to be soon."

My cheeks flushed again, but I didn't look away. "When my heat comes, I want it to be with you. All of you. I want us to be a real pack."

The air in the room shifted, charged with the weight of what we'd just committed to. Forever. Family. A future built on choice instead of circumstance.

"So what happens now?" I asked.

"Now," Reed said, standing up, "we get you moved in properly. Tonight."

"Tonight?"

"Your heat could start any time in the next day or two," Jonah explained. "We want you settled and safe before that happens."

"What about Charlie?"

"She's going to her Aunt Emma's tomorrow morning," Jonah said. "She's been looking forward to it for weeks. We've just moved up the timeline a little. It'll give us privacy for your heat."

The casual way he said it, like my cycle was something they were all invested in rather than something to be managed or endured, made my omega purr with satisfaction.

"I can't believe this is really happening," I said softly.

"Believe it," Micah said, reaching over to squeeze my hand. "You're stuck with us now."

"Good," I said, squeezing back.

As we began planning the logistics of my move, I felt something settle in my chest that I hadn't realized had been tense for months.

These three men weren't just offering me protection or convenience.

They were offering me belonging. Love. A future where I could be exactly who I was without apology or shame.

For the first time since fleeing Chicago, I wasn't just surviving.

I was choosing to thrive.

This time, I wasn't waiting to be chosen. I was choosing.

And I was going to do it with a pack who saw all of me and wanted to stay anyway.