I think for a moment, heat-haze making concentration difficult. Then: "Juniper."
The cat who's witnessed everything.
My scent spikes sharply, sudden and overwhelming. The shift from pre-heat to heat proper, unmistakable. Pheromones flood the suite with such intensity that all three alphas react viscerally, pupils dilating, breathing changing, bodies tensing with control that must cost them dearly.
My heat crashes through me like a tidal wave, a furnace raging somewhere deep inside me.
"We've got you."
The last words I hear clearly before heat consumes everything.
23
ELOWEN
I surfacefrom heat-fog in waves.
Consciousness fragments, moments of clarity swallowed by burning need, rational thought scattered like leaves in the wind. But right now, this moment, I can think.
The suite feels too warm despite Tyler adjusting the temperature. My skin is hypersensitive, every nerve ending alive and demanding. Scent overwhelming, mine spiking honey-green-desperate, theirs responding in concert.
"Nest." The word comes out hoarse. "Need to nest."
Biology screaming at me. Omega instinct demanding safe space, enclosed shelter, nest before heat fully takes over.
All three alphas respond immediately. Calder's already moving toward the bed, assessing. Tyler gathers pillows from the couch. Julian opens the linen closet with methodical efficiency.
"Tell us what you need," Calder says, voice rough but controlled.
Even through pre-heat haze, I can direct them. "Pillows… yes, those. Make walls. Higher on the sides."
Calder arranges structural elements with careful precision. Pillows stacked to create boundaries, blankets forming a cave-like enclosure. His hands shake, protective instinct demanding he do something, and nest-building satisfies that need in a healthy way.
"Soft things. The blue blanket. Your hoodie."
Tyler sheds his hoodie without hesitation, tucks it into the nest where I can bury my face in his scent. Adds the softest blankets, the ones that feel like comfort against overheated skin. His contribution is warmth, safety, and home.
"Water. Close. And those protein bars. Temperature control, can you adjust from here?"
Julian's practical additions. Water bottles within arm's reach. Snacks nearby for between waves. Shows me the temperature panel mounted on the wall beside the bed. Everything I'll need without having to leave the nest.
I crawl into the center, testing. Rearrange one pillow, adjust the blanket fold. The three of them stand back, watching with visible satisfaction as I settle.
"Perfect." My voice already thickening with heat. "It's perfect."
Pride radiates from all three. They built this for me. Created safe space exactly as I needed it. Alpha instinct satisfied, omega instinct appeased.
Calder's cedar-smoke scent wraps around me. Tyler's sunshine-warmth. Julian's crisp-clean. All of them layering together into something new.
"Now?" Calder asks, voice strained.
Heat spikes sharply. Flames consuming me from deep within my core.
"Now."
Heat swallows me whole.
I reach for Calder first, pull him down into the nest with hands that shake with need and nerves braided too tight to separate.
