“That door has always been too small.”
“The door you’ve walked through daily for two years?”
“Shut up.”
“Make me.”
I leaned over our thoroughly exhausted omega to kiss him properly, feeling his smile against my lips.
Kenai groaned softly, settling more firmly against Sylvie’s back. Between us, she made a small, contented sound, her consciousness floating in that liminal space between sleep and waking. Through our bonds, her emotions radiated pure satisfaction—held, wanted, safe.
“We’re keeping her,” I declared unnecessarily.
“Obviously,” Kenai agreed. “Though technically, I think she’s keeping us.”
Chapter Fourteen
Kenai
Istumbled into the kitchen, my legs still shaky, and braced myself against the counter. My whole body hummed with the new bond—a silver thread connecting me to Sylvie that pulsed with her emotions: contentment, exhaustion, and, underneath it all, the heat still simmering. It would build again soon, so I needed to refuel.
Taimyr was already there, pulling food from the refrigerator—cheese, bread, some roasted vegetables. He glanced at me and grinned.
“You look thoroughly ravaged.”
“Feel it too.” I ran a hand through my hair, realizing it was damp with sweat. “Not sure if it’s more from you or her, though.”
Tai’s dark eyes went even darker. “Better get used to it, alpha. We’re a herd now, and something tells me our omega isn’t going to let up once her heat stops.”
“Ours,” I echoed, the word settling warm in my chest.
He started assembling sandwiches, his movements fluid while I was still trembling. “She alright in there?”
“She’s resting for now. But it’ll spike again soon.” I grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and downed half of it. “We bought fifteen minutes at most.”
“Then we eat fast.” He pushed a plate toward me. “You need your strength. Can’t have you passing out.”
I picked up the sandwich but didn’t bite into it yet. “Tai…thank you. For understanding. For waiting.”
Taimyr’s dark eyes met mine. “She needed you first—to feel safe, to trust. You’ve always been better at that. I would’ve scared her off.” A slight smile played at his lips. “Besides, I won’t say I completely hated being tortured through our bond. You’re very thorough.”
Heat crept up my neck. “Tai?—”
“What? I’m just saying our omega is very lucky to have such an attentive alpha.”
“Well, now she has two,” I said, and his smile softened. Then, from the other room, I heard the faint sound of Sylvie’s whimpers.
“Looks like our omega needs us.” I rested a hand on Tai’s shoulder. He grinned and handed me a glass of water before dumping in some electrolytes.
“Good thing we stocked up for the Christmas season. Need to stay hydrated with that greedy little omega of ours—especially you.”
I downed the drink in two gulps, then slammed the glass onto the counter, smirking at him. “Yes, sir.”
His pupils dilated, and he grabbed my chin, yanking me to the side and pinning me between the counter and his hips.
“Good boy.” He ran his thumb over my bottom lip, tugging until my cock was pulsing against him. “I don’t know what I want to knot first—our omega’s soft little pussy or your tight alpha ass.”
His lips crashed into mine, and the alpha in me responded to the aggression in it. My teeth clashed against his as I yanked on his antlers and pulled him even tighter against me. Tai was bigger than me, but I was still in rut, and I wasn’t about to let him win this.
