Page 11 of Night’s Bride (Ragoru Origins #3)

Vikt tried not to stare at Nash, but as the evening wore on, the more excited he grew. Although the male was a very large alpha who could have easily crushed them, he radiated a kindness and propensity for cheerfulness that eased Vikt’s heart. It gave him hope despite the fact that he had known far too many devastating disappointments from alphas in the past. Throughout their meal, Thral’s words kept returning to his mind that the alpha’s presence could be good for them. He did not think that the male was a seer and yet those words teased his consciousness.

Those words gave him further hope, but convincing Emily to accept a male she had been in a hurry to get rid of from the start could take a little more work. He knew that it was in part due to her sense of duty and affection that she wanted to protect them and preserve their feelings, but she did not understand how natural it was for Ragoru to wish for a triad in their family. If the male proved himself to be as good as an alpha as he showed himself to be, they could accept him easily among them and welcome his strength. But Emily had become comfortable, and he understood that it would need more coaxing for her to see the benefit of opening their family to him.

“You will stay with us, of course,” he pointed out, taking advantage of the moment the conversation turned to the snowstorm. “It will get even worse before it eases up at all. We usually have one or two days of passable weather before—” He snapped his mouth shut, cutting off the direction of his thoughts, and gave the male a nervous smile. “Well, before it grows heavy again. There is no reason for you to leave when we have plenty of room. We do not have a spare nest, however.”

Nash blinked at him, clearly startled by the offer, but the male’s expression quickly softened with gratitude that sent a swell of warmth through Vikt. “My thanks. And do not concern yourselves. I can sleep well enough in the main chamber?—”

“No, that will not work,” Vrel interrupted, startling the alpha anew. Vikt bit back a smile, grateful that he and his twin tended to think and plot in the same direction. “It takes a lot of extra wood to keep that chamber warm enough at night with the temperatures dropping as they have. Now that you are no longer unconscious, you can join us in our nest to share in the warmth rather than exhaust the wood supply.”

Emily and Nash wore matching expressions of surprise as they glanced between him and Vrel before looking at each other uncertainly.

Emily cleared her throat and smiled at Vikt. “Are you sure that would not be awkward for you and Vrel?”

“Not at all,” he replied earnestly. “Sharing body heat to keep warm is common with Ragoru. Is that not the case for humans?”

Her cheeks pinkened faintly but she nodded. “It is known to happen. I just did not realize that it was something that Ragoru were comfortable with considering how territorial you are.”

He chuffed at her comment. “We have adapted to life easily in the clan lands, which makes me wonder what our homeworld was like before it began to die and if we did not live in a similar fashion. We like our private space with our dens, but we know and trust each other. On the hunt or even function communally we will rest close together to warm each other.”

“You do not know me,” Nash pointed out, but Vikt shrugged.

“We know enough and will know you even better before there is a break in the storm,” he replied. “In any case, you are in our den, so we have already accepted you into our most private space anyway.”

“Vikt is right,” Vrel joined in. “It makes little difference at this point. We might as well be warm.”

Emily’s mouth opened and closed a few times in surprise, but in the end she assented with a tiny nod. He did not push, nor did Vrel. If she had truly insisted that the male not enter their nest they would have agreed. He suspected why she had not. The alpha was very likable. She might not be ready to accept Nash as alpha—nor had he offered to be the alpha of their triad—but it was a positive beginning, and Vikt was even more encouraged by the humble agreement of the male as he glanced toward their mate shyly.

Oh, Nash correctly read her reluctance and was putting no pressure on her, but he was definitely interested, and he did not disdain Vikt’s company nor Vrel’s. It was looking even more encouraging by the minute.