"Good," Silas said simply, moving up from between my thighs. His lips were swollen, his chin wet, his pale eyes soft ina way I'd rarely seen. He positioned himself on my other side, his scarred hand finding mine and lacing our fingers together with infinite gentleness. He brought our joined hands to his lips and pressed a kiss to my knuckles—such a tender gesture after everything we'd just done. Such sweetness after all that intensity. My eyes stung with fresh tears, and I didn't even try to stop them this time.
He didn't say anything else. He didn't need to. The look in his eyes said everything—gratitude, wonder, a fierce and quiet devotion that made my chest ache.
They arranged themselves around me in the nest—Harper at my back like always, solid as a mountain, his chest rumbling with a constant, soothing sound that seemed to vibrate through my bones; Remy at my front, his forehead pressed to mine, his breath warm and sweet against my lips; Silas curled against my side, our joined hands resting over my heart where he could feel it beating.
The fever would climb again. By tomorrow, maybe the next day, I'd be fully in the grip of my heat, desperate and needing in ways that went beyond anything I'd felt tonight. But right now, in this moment, I felt... safe. Cherished. Cared for.
Loved, whispered a voice in the back of my mind, but I pushed it away. Too soon. Too fast. Even if it felt true.
"Thank you," I whispered into the dark of the nest, my voice barely audible. "For listening. For agreeing. For... this."
"Always." Harper's voice rumbled through my back, the word settling into my bones. "Whatever you need. Whenever you need it."
"We're not going anywhere, chere." Remy's breath was warm against my face, his lips brushing mine with every word. "Not unless you tell us to."
Silas just squeezed my hand and pressed his lips to my knuckles again, the gesture somehow more eloquent thanany words could be. Outside the nest, I could hear Gumbo repositioning himself at the door, his massive body settling with a thump that shook the floorboards. Guard duty, all night long. Those males had been warned.
The pre-heat would intensify. Tomorrow would be harder, the fever higher, the need more desperate. Then the heat would crash over me like a wave, and I'd need them in ways I could barely imagine.
But that was tomorrow.
Tonight, I was wrapped in the arms of my Alphas, my nest complete around us, my body sated and warm and safe. Tonight was enough.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Artemis
Iwoke to fire.
Not actual flames—though it felt close enough. My skin burned from the inside out, fever blazing through my veins like someone had replaced my blood with molten lava. The sheets beneath me were damp with sweat, clinging to my overheated flesh, and between my thighs... god, between my thighs was a mess. Slick had soaked through my underwear sometime in the night, pooling beneath me, the scent of it thick and sweet and undeniably desperate.
Friday morning. The heat was coming. Not in days anymore. Hours. Maybe less.
I tried to move and whimpered at the sensation—every brush of fabric against my skin sent sparks shooting through my nerve endings, pleasure and overstimulation blurring together until I couldn't tell if I wanted more or less. My nipples were so hard they ached, pressing against the thin cotton of my tank top like they were trying to escape. My clit throbbed with everyheartbeat, swollen and needy, demanding attention I couldn't give it.
Not yet. Not alone. I needed them.
"Easy." Harper's voice rumbled from behind me, and I realized with a start that I wasn't alone in the nest. His massive body was still curled around mine, radiating heat that should have been unbearable but somehow felt necessary. His arm tightened across my waist, pulling me back against his chest. "We're here. We've got you."
"Harper." His name came out broken, desperate. I pressed back against him instinctively, seeking comfort, seeking pressure, seeking anything. I could feel him hard against my lower back—thick and heavy even through his jeans—and my body clenched at the knowledge, empty and aching. "It's getting worse. It's—I can't?—"
"I know." His lips brushed my temple, soft and gentle despite the tension I could feel vibrating through every line of his body. "We can smell it. You smell like... fuck, Artemis. You smell like everything."
Movement at my front—Remy stirring, his amber eyes blinking open, immediately going dark as my scent hit him. His nostrils flared, a low groan escaping his throat, and I watched his pupils blow wide in real time.
"Merde," he breathed, his voice rough with sleep and want. "Chere, you're... that's..."
"Overwhelming," Silas finished quietly from my other side. He'd been awake already, I realized—those pale eyes watching me with an intensity that made my skin prickle. His scarred fingers found my hip, squeezing gently. "Your scent. It's everywhere. It's all I can smell. All I can think about."
I whined—a high, needy sound that I couldn't have stopped if I tried. All three of them growled in response, the soundrumbling through the nest like thunder, making my thighs clench together.
"I need—" I started, but I didn't even know how to finish the sentence. I needed everything. I needed nothing. I needed them inside me, all of them, filling every empty space until I couldn't remember what it felt like to be alone.
"Soon," Harper promised against my hair, his voice strained with the effort of holding back. "It's not quite—you're not fully in it yet. Close, but not quite. We need to talk first. While you can still think."
He was right. I hated that he was right. The fever was climbing, the need building, but I could still form coherent thoughts. Barely. In an hour, maybe two, even that would be gone.
"Okay." I forced myself to take a breath, then another. "Okay. Let me—I need to sit up. I need to see all of you." They helped me, three pairs of hands gentle and careful as they arranged me against the headboard. The movement made slick gush between my thighs, and I watched all three of them go rigid, their nostrils flaring, their eyes darkening.
