Page 29

INDY

FOUR MONTHS LATER

W hy is it so hot in here?

With a groan, I throw the four million blankets I’m buried under off of me, then spread eagle until I’m lying in the middle of my nest naked, and in the shape of a starfish.

I blow out a breath and stare up at my fairy lights with a frown.

Now I’m cold.

And super annoyed because I feel like I should be able to get comfortable, especially in my nest, after how grueling the last two months have been. I should be too exhausted to get hot or cold, way too tired to do anything other than sleep for one hundred years. Even while I’m in an almost constant state of panic, I should be comatose, good panic or not.

Last night was the first night I didn’t get home until sometime after midnight, and I walked in right as the boys did, so we were actually able to eat dinner together then talk about our days like normal people.

It was less normal when I fell asleep mid-sentence then woke up to Bramley putting me to bed, and while it was very sweet of him, my boys weren’t coming up yet, and I didn’t want to lay in that big, cold bed without them.

I’m still not used to that, sleeping in an actual bed, but I can do it if they’re with me. If they decide my bedtime isn’t their bedtime, none of us sleep, and I end up back down in my nest because there’s no point in being anywhere else.

Apparently, I’m a lot needier than I thought I was, and since they turned me into a spoiled brat —as Bramley so affectionately calls me—I have to occupy my time at all times, or I end up plastered to one of them while they’re trying to work.

They don’t mind that as much as they claim to, but it makes it really hard to slice meat, or tattoo an ankle, or change a horseshoe with an omega hanging off of them. Which is what led to why I’m so exhausted, and how I shouldn’t be tossing and turning in my nest, and unable to get comfortable.

It's like I joined the real world, and now I’m doing so much, I’m too tired to even sleep.

I’ve got a really busy day ahead of me, one that I can’t be annoyed or sleepy for, and I know it’s playing into everything I have going on right now, too.

But this is ridiculous.

I have too much to do, and if I want to go away with my pack this weekend for our first family hunting trip-vacation combination, then I have to get everything done by tonight .

And that means, no exhaustion, no restlessness, and no irritability.

Ugh.

But it’s just so damn hot.

Hot and sweaty, then ice cold the second I’m out from under my blankets. It makes no sense.

Covering my face with my hands, I let out a sigh that turns into a gasp when my mind starts to race.

If it’s been roughly two months since I went into heat for the second time… and I’m all hot and cold, restless but tired… I couldn’t be getting ready to do it again, could I? No. No, there’s no way. Those meds are long gone from my system by now, they can’t be screwing with me anymore and whether they are or not, that seems really quick to have my heat happen again . Three times in a little over four months isn’t only unheard of, it’s insane.

Granted, I have no idea what my body is going to be doing, or the frequency in which I’ll be doing it, but my mother told me natural heats are almost quarterly, and I choose to believe that even if I’ve proven it wrong so far.

My boys think it was because I was purging the meds I was given at the ranch my entire life. Something to suppress my heat, then something to force it. The cocktail that was supposed to force bonds along with it. All of that screwed with me in ways I didn’t know until I wasn’t taking any of them, and I essentially had my natural heat back-to-back because of it.

It’s been seven weeks, though, so there’s absolutely no way I could be going into heat again.

I won’t allow it.

No more meds or residual from them means I’m just like every other omega. Normal, natural, and on some kind of schedule.

By that logic, I should still have a fucking month or more, and if I don’t, I’m going to be the first omega to will myself out of heat so I can put it off a while longer.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not worried about it like the first time, and having all three of my mates every time it hits is definitely a reason to welcome it, but I’m not ready.

Which is probably so stupid, as an omega I should always be ready, but I’m not.

I feel like I’m just now really getting to enjoy my alphas and beta, to really live and establish myself as a human being and not some piece of meat, and now I’m contributing to society.

I don’t want to slow down or take multiple days off just to hole up with my mates while I’m in a knot-crazed state of mind. Again, not that it’s a terrible thing, I’d stay holed up with my alphas and beta any day, sex or not, but I’ll lose a week when I go into heat, and I can’t do that, not right now, anyway.

It feels like we’ve been nonstop for the last few months, and we have just a little while longer before we can take an actual break, so I can’t have anything slowing me down.

Then again, we haven’t been able to catch a break since day one, and while Bramley was a big part of that first stretch, fate and injustice were definitely the rest of it.

I just want to be an omega who’s in love with her pack, who gets to have all the amazing sex I want to have, one who has started my very first ever, extremely fulfilling, job. Is that too much to ask?

Our enormous and beautiful cat, Lucy, wakes from her undisturbed sleep and lets out a mighty meow, as if she was answering my internal question.

“Right? It isn’t, is it, you pretty little fluffy baby?” I give her chin a good scratch as she rolls toward my hand. “I should be able to enjoy your daddies, and do my job, all while extremely rested, and not sweating my butt off. Right? That’s how it should be.”

Lucy takes that as a welcome invitation to get up and walk all thirty pounds of her across my chest, smashing my nipples, scratching my boobs then slipping up my sternum to crush my throat. Just so she can walk to the door of my nest, sit at it, and cry so I’ll let her out. Thus, confirming that is, in fact, too much to ask.

“Fine,” I grunt as I roll to my side and push myself up on all fours. “You win. Time to get up.”

Crawling on my hands and knees, I pause briefly, as something else occurs to me.

I could be getting sick.

Living at the ranch, that wasn’t really something I had to worry about.

Being isolated from the other omegas, having limited contact with the staff. We were given all kinds of vaccines and vitamins, and we had extremely regular checkups to make sure we were healthy. The alphas were the only ones coming into the stables who could have brought something to us, and since finding all the paperwork in the offices before they blew up, we know they weren’t allowed to come if they were sick.

It’s a very real possibility now, though.

Catching a cold, coming down with the flu, or something else that’s worse. I’m more susceptible because I’ve never experienced any of that, not really, and I’m sure all the pressure I’m under increases my chances as well. It’s all on the table now, but I suppose it’s a small price to pay for my freedom.

With a sigh, I go up on my knees and pull the door open to let Lucy out, then jump when I hear, “Why do you think you’re getting sick?”

I slowly look up, my eyes taking in corded thighs and an obvious bulge behind a pair of black basketball shorts. My stare moves up the bare abs and a dark happy trail that leads to huge pecs covered in a black and white tattoo and a smattering of chest hair. I swallow hard as my eyes trace defined collarbones and a thick throat, finally landing on the Romanesque features and scruffy cheeks of my scent match’s face.

I will never get used to that.

Finally sealing the deal and mating with all three of my men apparently means I’m going to get all hot and bothered, then come undone every single time I see them after any amount of time apart. Doesn’t matter if it’s been seconds, or hours, it happens every time, and they know it.

Which is exactly why Bramley smirks down at me and repeats himself. “Why do you think you’re getting sick, honey?”

“I don’t know,” I say with a sigh as I drop back so I’m sitting on my feet. “I’m just feeling a little off, I guess.”

“Mhm.” Bram arches a brow. “A little off meaning, what, exactly?”

“I keep getting hot, then cold, and I can’t get comfortable.”

“You didn’t sleep very well last night, either.”

My alpha crouches down in front of me and gently takes my chin between his thumb and forefinger while he presses the inside of his other wrist against my forehead.

I can’t fight my smile while he does it, either, because even though he’s still a shithead and we still argue, Bramley has been so much sweeter with me since getting his head out of his ass.

This man has shown me exactly why Nash and Clayton fell in love with him so many years ago, and how he’s managed to not only keep them but gain me, too, since then.

“I’m glad that you think I’m a sweet shithead.” Bram rolls his eyes and sighs. “But I’d love to know what it is that has you feeling like you’re coming down with something.”

“I told you.” My smile grows as he starts feeling around under my jaw, behind my ears, and down my throat. “There isn’t much more to it than that.”

“Mhm.”

“Yes, mhm. That’s all, Bramley. Don’t turn this into a thing.”

“A thing?” he grunts. “Don’t turn your health into a thing ?”

I nod and jut my chin out in defiance as I pull his hands away from my glands. “Exactly. I’m fine, just feeling a little off this morning. Besides, I can’t get sick right now, I have way too many things to do.”

I go back up on my knees, ready to push past him and storm through the bedroom but almost giggle and ruin making my point when my alpha scowls directly at my breasts.

“All of which can be postponed if you aren’t feeling well enough to carry them out this afternoon.”

This man . “Not if we want to go away this weekend, which I desperately want to do. I can’t postpone anything, and I’m definitely not getting sick.”

“Indigo.”

“ Bramley ,” I say, mimicking his tone and throwing his warning back in his face. “I’m fine, and even if I wasn’t, I can’t take you seriously when you’re staring at my breasts like you didn’t just eat four plates of whatever I can smell coming from the kitchen and would like to make a meal out of me instead.”

I can see his eyes flare and pupils dilate even though he’s still not looking directly at me. “Steak and eggs.”

I frown. “For breakfast? That sounds like a confusing meal.”

He chuckles and glances up at me. “It’s not, honey, and I needed it after the workout Clay put us through.”

Ah.

So that’s where my boys were when I woke up alone. Working out in one of the pole barns, then stuffing their faces with food that makes no sense to eat together.

Oh, but that means all three of them are sweaty, and smelly, and I suddenly feel fabulous because I need that in my space right now.

“I’m not sure who’s worse,” Bram says as he grabs my hips, pulling me toward him as he leans forward. “You, or Clayton.”

I hum my response as he nuzzles my breast, then gasp as Bramley pulls my nipple between his lips, sucking hard before he gently drags his teeth over the puckered peak.

“You both have a one-track mind.”

“Thank god for that,” I moan, reaching up to hold the back of his head while my alpha bites my breast, and his hand moves to the other one.

I can feel Bramley smile against my skin, his scruff lightly brushing it as he starts kissing his way up my chest and neck, lingering over his bite mark long enough to have my slick dripping down my thighs.

My alpha licks up my throat then blazes a trail across my jaw, growling when I loop my arms around his neck and pull him flush against me. Bram’s hands slide to my ass, squeezing them hard as I roll my hips against him, whimpering the second he lifts his head and captures my lips in a searing kiss.

“Need my mouth on your pussy,” he grunts as I quickly slip my hand into the front of his shorts and give his cock a tight stroke. “Now, honey.”

I nod but don’t move. I keep kissing my alpha, sucking on his lower lip, then his tongue, all while working his erection until it’s like steel in my hand.

“Indigo,” he growls when I squeeze his knot. “We don’t have time for you to be a brat.”

Oh really.

Well, if that was the case, maybe he shouldn’t have said that, and gotten all bossy with me while I was doing something nice, like giving him a little bit of a hand job before I let him do whatever he wants to me.

He’s shit out of luck now, because that comment was enough for me to pull my hand out of his shorts, break our kiss, and put space between us.

“Well, if we don’t have time…” I back up further into my nest, heading toward the other wall and stopping just shy of it, which is doing the opposite of what would make sense considering what I’m saying. “Maybe I should just take care of myself and call it good then.”

Bramley watches me like a hawk, his ice blue eyes tracking my every move, and the second I lean back on my elbow, spread my legs wide and slip my hand between them, the blue is almost entirely taken over by his pupil.

I trace my lips slowly then dip my fingers inside and gather my slick, taking the thick cream and dragging it up to my clit. Bram grunts and grabs his cock through the mesh material as I circle the swollen bundle of nerves a few times, and when my hips buck from how good it feels, I swear I can see the second he snaps.

My alpha growls, the sound feral and primal as he crawls toward me, the most predatory look I have ever seen on the man’s face while his stare locks in on my pussy and what I’m doing to it. My heart starts hammering in my chest, my belly fluttering, my core throbbing, and before I can turn around and make Bram chase me, he has one of my thighs on either side of his head and his tongue is buried inside of me.

“Fuck,” I whimper as I throw my head back, Bramley pushing my hand out of the way so he can suck my clit so hard I feel myself gush against his face.

Out of nowhere, Bram rolls us, quickly getting to his back while keeping his mouth firmly in place, and the sound I let out would be embarrassing if I was coherent, but I’m not, so it isn’t. Not when my alpha spreads my legs so wide that I’m literally sitting on his face, his tongue alternating between fucking me and obviously lapping up my slick, to flattening and flicking my clit in a rhythm that has my back arching.

“You were right.”

I awkwardly glance over my shoulder at the sound of Nash’s voice, smiling when I see him and Clayton both dropping their shorts the second they see us.

“I’m always right about this,” our beta says with a grin as he drops to the floor between Bramley’s legs and works his shorts off. “It’s a gift.”

Lurching forward, my hands slam against my thighs briefly, a whine escaping me as the first wave of bliss starts to creep up my spine.

“Bram,” I pant, trying to look over my shoulder again to see what my other alpha and beta are doing. “Bramley, baby, I?—”

Quicker than I can process, I’m spun around, all while my scent match still tongue fucks me, and what I see has me a whimpering mess.

Clay is already bouncing on Bramley’s cock, his legs splayed over his hips while he works his cock in his hand. Nash is standing next to us, watching, his eyes dark as they move between Clayton and I, then down behind me to take in Bram’s hard work. He’s slowly stroking himself, his fingers running along those barbells along his shaft before they gather his precum and drag it down to his knot.

It makes my mouth water.

All of it.

The way Bram is eating me out relentlessly, how Clayton is getting himself off on our alpha’s cock, the way Nash is so turned on he’s content in watching all of us. It has my mouth watering, my pussy throbbing, and my slick flowing like honey.

Just when I’m about to tell Nash to stick his dick down my throat, Bram slips his tongue into my asshole, circling it a few times before he pushes a finger inside.

“Oh, god,” I whine as I lurch forward, my eyes slamming shut briefly as my hands land on Bramley’s throat, squeezing to keep my balance, and I start riding his face and hand without putting any thought into it at all. It’s a primal reaction to so much pleasure my head is swimming.

His growl vibrates up into my pussy, the sound of satisfaction making it clench, and when I open my eyes to see Clayton deep throating Nash, the alpha gripping his shaggy blond hair while he fucks his mouth, another gush of slick brings the first wave of my orgasm crashing over me.

Which is when I have the best idea.

Before I climax and lose all of my faculties, I lean forward on my elbow, pushing Clay upright so I can slip my hand underneath him and squeeze Bramley’s swollen knot. He grunts then nips my clit, his finger slipping from my ass before he slaps it hard.

I smile as Clay releases Nash with a loud pop, a look of confusion on his face briefly before I take his cock between my lips and right down my throat. He groans above me, the way he’s riding Bram means he’s fucking my mouth in rhythm, and when that sound is muffled, I know Nash shoved his dick back between Clays lips.

I whimper as Bramley devours my pussy, his tongue and lips working in tandem to have my release teetering right on the edge. I quickly reach out and find Nash’s thigh, knowing I’m not going to be able to hold on much longer, then slide up to the base of his cock, push his hand out of the way and grip his knot so hard I hear him growl my name.

“Goddamnit, Indy,” he moans. “Fuck, if you all could see what I see.”

But that’s the exact second Bramley shoves all four fingers into my pussy, furiously sucking my clit as he finger fucks the life out of me, so whatever Nash sees is lost on me because I’m coming so fucking hard my entire body locks up.

Clay’s muffled moan is the last thing I hear as his cum fills my mouth, his cock pumping quickly between my lips as he empties himself. I can feel both of our alpha’s knots swell and thicken, trying to knot my hands as they both achieve a release that keeps my own going for what feels like days.

I sob around my beta’s dick as my orgasm races through every inch of my body, the heat licking at every nerve, shooting through every limb until I start to shake, and I gush and squirt all over Bramley’s face.

“Goddamn,” he grunts a million hours later as Nash and Clay move around enough to lay me out flat on top of Bram. “I’m fucking drenched.”

I giggle as I press my forehead against his hip. “Sorry, not sorry. With the things you three do to me, no one should expect any different.”

All three of them chuckle as Bramley slaps my ass then gently rolls me onto the mountains of pillows and blankets underneath us. “Wouldn’t have it any other way, honey.”

Panting like crazy, I sprawl out again, staring up at my fairy lights with a smile on my face but the second I hear them start to shuffle fabric and move around, my head swings toward my mates.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

All three of them pause, staring at me like they just got busted, and it’s everything I can do to keep a stern look on my face.

Clay has cum running down his chin and throat despite his clear efforts to lick it up, Nash has about the same amount of cum dripping from his softening cock, and almost all of Bramley’s face is covered in a mostly thin layer of my slick and release.

“Uhm…” Nash glances at Bram then Clay before he looks at me. “To clean up? So we can get into town?”

I arch a brow. “Oh, really?”

He nods slowly.

“I think not.” I roll to my side and wiggle around some then give the three men I love more than anything in the entire world the look. “No one is going anywhere until I get cuddled by my sweaty, smelly, cum-covered mates. Not happening. And if at least one of you doesn’t end up with your cock inside of me while we do it, then you’re going to have an even bigger problem on your hands.”

They blink, in unison, before Bramley looks to our alpha and beta, and grunts, “See. A spoiled fucking brat. That’s what we turned her into.”

Damn straight, they did, and they’re just going to have to deal with it.

With a sad smile, I lift the picture frame from the mantel and run my fingers over the glass.

When they stormed the offices at the ranch, Zeke and Walker were able to grab all the paper files they could find. They even managed to get a locked cabinet out before they torched the place, and I don’t think I’ve ever been more grateful in my life.

My mother’s file was in that cabinet, and finding it changed my life all over again.

I was able to find out who her parents were, how many generations of our family had been on the ranch and how we got there to begin with, and while all of that was helpful, it wasn’t the most important thing in that brown folder.

There were three photos in it.

One was of my mother, her inventory photo from when Violet was old enough to start breeding. It’s a horrible thing to photograph something like that, but it’s the only photo I have of just her, and despite the meaning behind it, my mom looks beautiful in the picture. Her deep blue eyes, a shade darker than mine, and her dark black hair. Fair skin and freckles, long lashes and perfect brows, and a touch of a smile on her lips. She was beautiful, and she was mine, and I’ll forever be grateful for that.

There was also a photo of my father.

Nathan Mayweather.

He was a red head with kind eyes and a nice smile, and he was very well to do from what was noted in the paperwork he filled out. It’s the first time I’ve ever seen what he looked like, or learned anything about him, including how he died.

My father was murdered by the alpha of another pack, one who wanted my mother for themselves, and figured killing him would make that happen.

It didn’t, though, because my parents had bonded, it was in both of their papers, and my mom wouldn’t conceive with anyone else ever again.

My parents may have found each other through forced and shitty circumstances, but they were in love, and for a brief time, they were happy.

Which is where the third photo comes in.

The day Violet and Nathan Mayweather got to take their brand new baby daughter home with them.

For some reason, it never clicked when my mother told me about her time at my father’s house, but I was with them. My mom got to leave because my dad successfully bred her, she carried me to term, and after I was born, they went to live at my father’s house in the real world.

I was there. For a short time, I was outside of the ranch, and I had a normal life. One with parents who loved each other, and who loved me, because the photo of them waiting for the car in front of the Harden mansion, it is full of that love.

And I could not be happier to have these pictures, even if I wish they weren't the only ones.

Setting the framed photo of my mom back on the shelf, I walk along the fireplace, looking at all of the others lined up there, different family photos and group shots, and grab another that makes my heart pinch.

It’s me and Mona.

Another that is one of a kind, the only one we ever took together, and Pap took it during one of his rants about aliens, shortly before they died. At the time, I didn’t understand it, and you can tell by my expression that I was happily confused, but Mona—Nan, as she made me start calling her—is hugging me so tightly, smiling away, and the love on her face is nearly blinding.

Her love is exactly why I’m here.

Not just because she took care of me, or because she helped me become an omega who had a scent match and mates, but because Mona Ambrose believed in taking care of her own, and protecting them with every bit of love she had in her big, beautiful heart.

“You ready, Indy?”

I set the frame back on the mantel and turn toward the door, smiling at an adorably pregnant Scarlett who’s smiling back at me. “I think so.”

She frowns as she walks in, coming right up to me and feeling my head and neck the way Bram did a while ago. “Are you sure you’re feeling okay? You look a little flushed.”

Deciding now is not the time, nor is it the place to divulge the details of why I was late to my own grand opening, I nod. “I’m fine, Scar. It’s all the stress, I think, but I’ll be good as new once we get through today.”

“Sure.” She arches a brow and folds her arms against her chest. “I want a blood sample.”

“What?” I snort then start to laugh but my friend stays so stoic she’d give my alphas a run for their money. “You can’t be serious.”

“As a heart attack. We can’t be too careful, Indy. Out here, me, you, Arrow, we all have to be super on top of things because our immune systems are still building defenses against everything. The slightest cold could turn to pneumonia, we could get something far worse, and?—”

“Okay!” I throw my hands up as I giggle. “Okay, doc, take my blood, put your mind at ease that there’s nothing wrong except a lot of stress and not enough sleep.”

With a very cute grin of victory, Scarlett produces a capped syringe, several vials, and a tourniquet out of somewhere in her super flowy dress. “Sit.”

I do as she says, planting in my chair and sticking out my arm. I feel sorry for her mates whenever she finds them. I love Scar to death, but she’s feisty as hell, and bossier still. My boys think I’m bad, but Scarlett is clearly worse.

“Knock, knock.”

I look up just as Scarlett slaps a band aid on me, smiling when I see my mates standing in the doorway. “Hi.”

“Is this a good time?” Nash asks, a look of worry on his face as they make room for my friend and her vials of my blood. “Is something wrong?”

“No,” I huff as I get to my feet, meeting them in front of my desk for obligatory kisses of greeting. “Scarlett is just being overly cautious with me. Kind of like the three of you.”

“Tough shit,” Bramley grunts as he sets a big box on the desk. “If we aren’t cautious, no one will be because you’re as reckless as they come.”

Rolling my eyes, I decide to shut my mouth and not argue, so I can keep the mood as happy as it can be. Today is too important for anything else.

“We got you something,” Clayton blurts, our beta practically vibrating with excitement. “To mark the occasion.”

“You didn’t have to do that. You’ve done so much already.” I look at my mates, meeting each of their eyes briefly as our bond is flooded with a mix of love and pride. “I wouldn’t have been able to do this if it wasn’t for the three of you.”

Nash blushes as he rubs the back of his neck. “This was important to us. Something for you, to show you how proud of you we are.”

Tears instantly well in my eyes but I smile like an idiot. “Really?”

“Of course, pretty girl.” Clay smiles softly. “We’re proud as fuck, and we love you just as much. This called for something special.”

“Open it,” Bramley grunts as he nods toward the box. “You have a town to face, and a ribbon to cut.”

Swiping at the few tears that manage to roll down my cheeks, I spin toward the ordinary brown box, grab the letter opener, and tear through the tape in record time.

I lift the beautiful wooden box out of the cardboard, noting the elaborate designs carved into the edges, and how they scream of my beta’s artistic talent. And that’s when it really clicks.

There are beautiful ivy and leaves from Clay, ornate metal filigrees along the seams holding things together clearly made by Nash, and when I set the beautiful gift I’m going to cry over on the desk, I see Bramley’s contribution and do just that.

Mounted on stainless steel stands behind a piece of glass, perfectly preserved with bloodstains and all the fallout from when they were used, are a dental float, and a Bowie knife.

I don’t even have to ask to know that the float is the one I used on Hall, and the knife is the one I killed Bryce Harden with and seeing them displayed like this has me instantly bawling.

“Indy?” Nash places a hand on my shoulder and starts to turn me toward them. “Sweetheart, we just?—"

“It’s perfect,” I blurt as I throw myself at them. “It’s beautiful, and it’s perfect, and I couldn’t love the three of you anymore than I do right now if I tried.”

I cry like a lunatic as my mates hold me, all three of them wrapped around me as I take turns sobbing into each of their chests. I’m not sure why I’m reacting so intensely but I am, and while a shadow box displaying murder weapons that are so meaningful to me is the best gift I’ve ever gotten, I’m not sure it warrants this.

“You good, honey?” Bram asks after a while once I start to calm down. “Feel like you can do this?”

I nod, straightening my spine and wiping my cheeks. “Abso-fucking-lutely. The Mona Ambrose Omega Sanctuary is opening today, and not even my mental breakdown is going to stop it.”

Which is the fucking truth.

I couldn’t, none of us could let what Nan and Pap did be in vain. We couldn’t let their deaths, or their lives be forgotten.

Mona loved her family, she loved this town, and she did so with a passion that we might never get to see again.

But I’m going to try like hell to honor her memory.

She was the first person since my mother died to take care of me, to love me, and to teach me. Mona was the first one to see value in me as something other than just a body, she saw that I was worth saving the same way Bramley did, and I will never forget that.

Nan sacrificed her life to protect me, and I’m dedicating mine to honoring her memory, and everything she stood for.

With the help of my amazing mates and newfound family, we turned Nan and Pap’s home into a safe house, a haven for omegas because our new mission is to find all of the ones that were moved from Harden Ranch.

We’re going to find them, we’re going to heal and protect them, and we’re going to love them while we help them start the lives they should have had to begin with.

This house will be their home until they’re ready to leave it, and all of Obsidian Falls will be the army ready to defend them and keep them safe every step of the way.

Something like this would have saved my mother, it did save Arrow and Scarlett, and now, we’re going to keep doing it until there isn’t another omega who needs saving.

What better way to encompass and immortalize all of that then have the weapons that started this battle displayed with the photos of people who were casualties to the war we intend to end.

Smiling like a crazy person, I tuck my hands into the pocket of my hoodie—Nash’s hoodie—and make my way toward the tattoo shop.

The grand opening of our omega sanctuary was perfect.

Everyone was there, both of Bram’s brothers and their dads, the entire town of Obsidian Falls turned out for this, and I was thrilled to see how supportive they are of everything we’re trying to do here.

I know it warmed my heart but to see how happy Scarlett and Arrow were, how excited they are to be a part of this, that silly little muscle is soaring right now.

Especially after Scar gave me a clean bill of health.

My smile grows as I clutch my lab results between my fingers inside my pocket.

The boys won’t have anything else to worry about when they see them, and hopefully it’ll mean we can go away this weekend without any trouble.

Pushing into the shop, I hear the sound of laughter from the back, Clayton cackling while Nash chuckles, followed by a string of cuss words from Bramley.

What the hell are they doing?

“Goddamnit, Clay, you did that on purpose!”

I quicken my steps as I round the counter and pull back the curtain, then almost run when I hear, “I did not make your dick hard, that was all you. You like the pain with your pleasure, so I didn’t have to do a damn thing.”

I burst into Clayton’s office, unsure if I should start taking my clothes off or call for help, then come to a screeching halt at what I see.

All three of my mates are seated on stools, sitting in a circle facing each other, and none of them have pants on.

Well, Clay doesn't have pants on, Nash and Bram seem to have theirs around their ankles.

“What are we doing, boys?”

My beta rolls back a little as all three of them lift their heads and turn toward me, and as soon as I walk around to the center of their circle and get a good view, I dissolve into a fit of giggles.

“What, you don’t like it?” Clay stands and swivels his hips, so his dick is swinging at me. “We did it for you, pretty girl.”

My eyes shift to Nash, who is holding his cock in his hand and staring down at it like a proud papa, and while it is something to be proud of, the expression makes me giggle harder.

Especially when I shift my gaze to Bramley, only to find his cock hard as stone and standing tall in his lap, and he’s wearing the most annoyed look I’ve ever seen from anyone with an erection.

“Don’t,” he grunts as I roll my lips over my teeth to hide my smile. “Don’t say a word, Indigo.”

I shrug my shoulders, my eyes fixed on his dick, and after making my rounds again, I can’t hold it in anymore.

“You got a boner from tattooing your dick?” I blurt the words in between laughter, shaking my head while I clutch my stomach. “Oh my god, I love you so much, but how did you not think this through?”

My scent match sends me the scowl to end all scowls, Nash now chuckling as he looks between us. “I guess we weren’t expecting Bram to like it so much.”

“I’m just real proud of us,” Clay chimes in as he sits back down and rolls toward me. “All three of us were able to fit your full name on our dongs.”

I look down and sure enough, my beta’s dick says Indigo Rae in his fancy, scrawling script, and when I turn to both of my alphas, one at half-mast while the other is still full, tears spring to my eyes despite how big I’m smiling.

“You tattooed my name on your cocks?” Bram sighs but he and Nash both nod. “You did it for me?”

“We belong to you, sweetheart.” Nash gives me that rare, beautiful smile as his cheeks go pink. “Seemed appropriate.”

“I love it.” Which I prove by the fact that I immediately then consistently perfume, but it doesn’t stop me from kissing each of my mates repeatedly while thanking them for such an oddly sweet gesture.

“This is a perfect way to celebrate,” I say as I roll Clay then Bram closer to Nash, lining them up in front of me the best I can. “But it’s really hard for me to give you the good news with your dicks hanging out like this.”

“Well, we could always stick them somewhere else,” Clay says with a grin.

One that falls as soon as I burst his bubble. “Uh, you know we can’t have sex until those heal, right?”

My beta’s jaw drops, Nash’s head snaps toward Clay, and Bramley growls as he gets to his feet and starts towards him. “You forgot to tell us that, beta.”

For fear of losing one of them over rage fueled by the lack of sex for a couple weeks, I pull the paper from my pocket, get between my alphas and beta, and blurt, “I’m pregnant!”

And it’s as if time stands still.

Not one of them moves, they don’t speak, and if it wasn’t silent enough to hear them breathing, I wouldn’t think they were.

Which makes my anxiety spike for the first time since Scarlett gave me my results.

It didn’t occur to me that they wouldn’t be happy about this. Not for one second. We haven’t talked about babies, not really, but I just assumed my mates were open to it the same way I am, and they understood after two heats, it was a possibility, just like I do.

But now… Now I’m not so sure.

Their reaction, or lack thereof, has me questioning everything and if they don’t give me something, I’m going to explode into a mess of all kinds of things.

I start chewing my cheek and begin to pace, putting distance between myself and my mates.

What do I do if they don’t want this baby? What do I do if they don’t want me because of this baby? They might kill people, but it doesn’t define any of them, not when they love me and each other so fiercely and unconditionally, so it’s not like being a murderer would hold some sort of weight over their ability to be good fathers. I know all three of them would be amazing fathers. I don’t need to have one of my own in order to see that. But what if they didn’t want kids? What if they never wanted to start a family with me? What if?—

“Indigo,” Bramley barks seconds before I have a full-blown panic attack. “Honey, did you hear any of us?”

I shake my head because I didn’t even know they had moved let alone were talking to me. How was I supposed to know I should have been listening?

My scent match gives me a beautiful smile, one I’m not sure I’ve ever seen on his face before, as he cups my cheeks and forces me to look him in the eye. Eyes that are glassy with tears. “You’re pregnant?”

I nod, lifting the paper in my hand. “Yes.”

“And you’re healthy?”

I nod again, my eyes pining back and forth between his.

“And you didn’t hear a damn thing any of us said?”

“No.” I shake my head as my eyes flick toward Nash and Clay. “I was panicking.”

“We know.” Bram smiles wider. “And we are fucking thrilled that you’re having our baby.”

“Yeah?” I barely choke out as I start to sob. “Really? You’re excited we’re having a baby?”

“Thrilled, excited, ready to burst at the fucking seams,” Clay says as he hugs me from behind. “There aren’t enough words to describe how we feel.”

Nash kisses my temple as I’m surrounded by all three of them. “There isn’t anything in the world we want more than for our mate, our perfect fucking omega, to have our baby.”

“See,” Bram says as he presses his forehead to mine. “If you’d just quit being such a brat and actually listen to us.” I snort as a tear slips down his cheek. “We love you, Indigo Rae, more than anything, and we are going to love our baby just as much.”

Burrowing between them, I smile and cry, so happy that these men are mine, and we’re having a baby because of it.

Then I pull back enough to look between my alphas and say, “Too bad all three of you have fresh ink on your dicks. This would be a great opportunity to have some celebratory sex, especially since we only have so long before I’m too big to do some of the things you like to do to me.”

In unison, all three of them groan, and despite the way they start bitching at each other, they don’t let go of me. No, my mates give each other shit, call each other names, and take turns making threats, but not once does their grip loosen, and that’s the exact moment I feel all of my stress and tension leave me, because they are my peace, and my calm.

These men are my home, and I’m going to keep them forever.

Crabby attitudes and all.