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“Sorry. I just...” I trail off, not sure how to finish the sentence.
We both knew exactly what my worry was. I was terrified that they, Ethan, had snuck in whilst I slept and stole my baby.
“Mate is clever,” Orion says, pressing kisses across my face and neck, his hands roaming and soothing me with the firmness of the touches. “She called for the strongest alpha to save her. I will always come and protect mate.”
“No protection was needed,” I remind him.
He lifts me up into his arms properly as he rises to his feet. I don’t protest, not because I enjoy being carried from room to room, but because they whine so much when I don’t allow it, and right now, his hold makes me feel so incredibly safe.
His chest seems to puff out, and his grip on me tightens. “I will crush all of your enemies, princess. Bleed them out, break them, and then destroy them. Nobody will ever cross you and live to tell the tale.”
I grin as he brings me into the kitchen with my other three mates. It’s quite easy for me to tell them apart this morning, even without their superior noses.
Seb’s back is to me as Orion gently lowers me to the floor, and I’m surprised that he doesn’t even turn. He’s got a pair of black joggers on and a white T-shirt. He’s the only one of the men wearing shoes, and I frown at the mud on them. Has he been out this morning?
Or did he maybe not return home at all?
Ben’s wearing only a pair of pale blue pyjama pants, and I refuse to even look at his beautiful, tanned chest because I cannot take the arousal this early in the morning.
Whilst my body is trying to trick me into thinking we’re ready to mount one—let’s not lie to ourselves, Maia, all four of them together—of them, my head is a mess from yesterday’s explosive discussions, and I want to make sure we’re on the same page before I beg one of them to help me expel this energy.
Alex, surprisingly, is holding Phoebe and is directly across from Sebastian. He’s wearing the same clothes he was yesterday, and I know that because he came straight home to my bed, and then clearly hasn’t gotten changed before kidnapping my infant.
“You terrified mate,” Orion says, advancing over to Alex. He gives him a sneer, and I hold in my giggles at how different he is to Topher. “Terrible male.”
“I wanted you to have a lie in,” Alex says, giving me a smile as he ignores his elder brother. “She stirred an hour or so ago but was content to spend some time in her wolf form with us, so we let you have a lie in.”
“Oh.” I don’t know why I’m so hurt about that, so I plaster a fake smile on my face. “Thank you. Next time… I want to say leave me a note, but I’d panic before I’d even have looked for one.”
“I’m sorry, little butterfly. Next time, I’ll wake you, no matter what,” he says. I move to sit down on the empty bar stool and look up at Seb, who is focused on my tiny infant. Phoebe’s eyes spot me, and she starts to whine. Alex grins. “She missed her mama.”
He gets up and brings her over to me, and I take the little bundle into my arms. She settles almost instantly but starts to root, nudging her head in at my chest. I smirk and unlatch the clasp on my vest top and guide the nipple into her mouth. Relief fills me at the instant relief to the engorgement, and I relax. It wasn’t a nice way to wake up, even if I am fully refreshed after the restlessness of last night, and my body is slowly losing the panic it had.
I wish the same could be said for the men in this room, though. There’s a deep-seated tension, and I can’t tell which of them it’s emanating from the hardest. None of them are happy, and I have no idea what went down last night.
“Are you okay, Seb?” I ask, and he gives one firm nod. I hate that I don’t have the bond with him because he’s the most closed off this morning, and his lack of reactions is extreme, even for him. “Are you lying to me? Because, usually, you’re begging to hold Phoebe, and if not Phoebe, me, and today you’ve not even rounded the counter to give me a good morning kiss.”
“Feeling needy, are we?” Ben asks almost eagerly. “I can hold you both so much better than he can. Come sit in my?—”
There’s two growls, and although one comes from Seb, I missed which of the men let the second one loose. Alex’s jaw is clenched, but Topher’s outwardly glaring at Ben, so it could’ve been either of them.
“I take it we’re still a little unsettled?” I ask, looking around at each of them.
“You did tell us that our cousin, someone we’ve spent the last decade mourning, is alive and living out a brand new life far away from us,” Ben says, reaching into the centre of the table to grab some grapes from the fruit bowl. The rest of the table is clear, not even a mug of tea or coffee in sight, which should be another indication that something is wrong.
They’re early birds, all of them, and I always come downstairs to breakfast either fully made or at least in the process of. And yet, today, I don’t think anyone has eaten.
“We’re in a very precarious position as a group right now,” Topher says, and I can hear the undercurrent of anger in his tone. “One of us wants to track her down and demand answers from her. One of us wants to watch her from afar, judge the truth, and just make sure she’s safe. Another wants to go pummel the alpha and luna of the Grey pack, and the final one of us wants to sort out things for the pack meeting this afternoon.”
I sigh and turn to Ben. “Tracking her down and demanding answers isn’t going to be the smartest way to handle things right now. She’d likely flee if I arrived with you all, but also... there’s a much more inconspicuous way to handle it.”
Ben sighs, muttering about how patience isn’t his strong suit, before shoving half a banana in his mouth.
I turn and look up at Seb after adjusting Phoebe so she’s more comfortable. “There’s a gala coming up on the thirtieth of May. It’s one of the annual events that the foundation holds that I attend, and I’ve already agreed to go with Phoebe. Emily is always there, despite not being a public figurehead for the foundation, and we’re meant to be meeting up.”
“Has she met Phoebe yet?” Alex asks, and I shake my head.
“No. She knows I’ve had her, and I’ve sent a few photos...” I trail off and sigh. “Emily and I aren’t extremely close. We used to have dinner at least once a month when I lived in the area, we’d chat on the phone, and keep up over text, but since I’ve moved here, we’ve not seen each other in person. She’s excited for me, of course, and she’s in love with Phoebe, but she’s not met her yet.”
