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The space was a large circle, easily forty feet in diameter, with the biggest bed I’d ever seen staged in the middle of it like a throne. It was easily the size of two king-size beds put together. It was big enough to hold…
A pack, I realized with a jolt of awareness.
There were two open doors, one to an empty walk-in closet and the other to a private bathroom. I could make out the sleek, curved line of a standalone bathtub in the darkness of the space.
Crew cleared his throat. “Mom and Calla went to a local store and did some quick shopping. Blankets, pillows, sheets… It’s just temporary until your heat passes and you can shop for yourself. But it should be enough to get you through your heat.”
“And you don’t have to use it all,” Rhett added. “We can return or donate anything you’d rather not have in your nest.”
“This is mine?” I whispered in hushed awe as I turned to the four men gathered at the landing. To go from a barren little shack to this was overwhelming. My omega senses were glitching out, my fingers twitching with the need to touch everything.
Jude nodded, leaning against Rhett. “Yeah.”
Excitement thrummed in my veins, and I knew I was seconds away from a full-on omega emotional outburst. A sob built in my throat, and I was barely able to swallow around the lump as I tried not to dissolve into tears.
And it all ground to a halt when I took a second glance around the space, noting the white walls and the way it was almost clinically sterile.
Or like it had been wiped clean from the last occupant.
Uncontrollable rage swelled in my chest, a tsunami of raw fear and loathing nearly knocking me backward. “Who else has been here?”
All four guys exchanged confused looks, but it was Crew who spoke for them. “We hired a cleaning crew to come in this morning, but?—”
“Who was she?” I demanded, whirling to face them as all pretense of rationality flew out of my head. I balled my hands into fists at my sides.
“Who was who?” Kellan’s head tilted, looking genuinely confused. “The cleaning person? It was a team of three?—”
“The other omega,” I ground out, my words practically a feral snarl. “The one who was here first.” I inhaled the scent of synthetic lemons and cotton. “This room was obviously just cleaned. Trying to hide her scent from me?”
“There hasn’t been another omega,” Rhett said slowly, shooting the others a baffled look. “We hired the cleaning crew because this space has been empty since we built the house.”
“So you planned for an omega?” My voice jumped an octave, and I knew I sounded like a lunatic, but my feelings were a runaway train that couldn’t be stopped.
Understanding dawned on Crew’s face and he moved toward me.
I skittered away, my back hitting the wall. “Don’t.”
He stopped instantly, holding up innocent hands. “When we had the place designed two years ago, the architect insisted we add a nest for resale value. There’s never been another omega in here, Hazel. Just you. This room will only ever belong to you. I even told my mom and Calla to leave the boxes downstairs so they didn’t come into your nest.”
“Sugar,” Kellan murmured, shaking his head and looking heartbroken. “This is all yours. We’re yours.”
It was all too much. First the shock of my own nest, and then the idea that it wasn’t mine, combined with a maelstrom of unbridled omega emotions… I cracked.
I promptly burst into tears. Burying my face in my hands, I let my knees give out. I should’ve hit the floor, but Crew caught me and cradled me to his chest, slowly lowering us both down together.
“I’m. So. Stupid,” I choked out between sobs. “I’m sorry. So sorry.”
“No one is upset with you, sweetheart,” Rhett assured me as he and the others gathered around.
“I’m a freaking mess,” I argued, shaking my head. “Why the hell am I like this?”
“It’s your omega side,” Kellan rationalized, pressing against my other side. “Everything is so new and fresh, of course you’re going to have questions.”
“Plus you went through enough trauma for ten lifetimes,” Jude added, stroking my hair. “You need to rest and heal, pretty girl. Give yourself a break.”
“Part of this could be hormones, too,” Crew murmured against my hair. “I’ve seen my mom and sister have some pretty crazy mood swings around their heats, and this is your first heat.”
“Aren’t the first heats supposed to be a little more hellish?” Kellan asked. I knew he was trying to find a way to justify my crazy, but it honestly just reminded me of how much I didn’t know about my own body.
