“Absolutely,” I said, and Andrew and Gabriel echoed me.
Bridget broke down in sobs on Gabriel’s chest. “Oh god, I promise I’m happy,” she said. “It’s just these stupid hormones.”
“Let’s get you into the nest,” Andrew said.
We helped Bridget crawl into the nest and Andrew disappeared for a minute. He came back with a box of string lights. “They were delivered after all.”
He limped around the makeshift canopy, refusing help as he hung the lights in the fabric. When he switched them on, they bathed the nest in a soft glow.
Bridget was crying again.
“Aw, baby,” Andrew said as he finally joined us. He brushed a tear from her cheek.
“I love them,” she whispered through her tears. “I just… I had some back at the Center, too. They were the first thing I bought with my own money to decorate my room. Sorry, these stupid hormones…”
We settled in together, with Bridget at our center. I curled around her back as she tucked herself into Gabriel’s arms, and Andrew wrapped around him. I purred for her, soothing the cramps that had started to intensify again until her breathing settled and she finally fell asleep.
“Are you awake?” I whispered into the darkness.
“Yes,” Andrew whispered back.
Why was this just as nerve-wracking as telling Bridget I loved her? “If I had to be in a pack, I’m glad it’s with you.”
Andrew’s hand found my forearm where it rested on Bridget’s hip, and squeezed. “It’s good to have you, man.”
As much as I was ready to build a life with Bridget, I was also eager to grow this connection with him and Gabriel. To be a family, even if it was not the family I expected.
Chapter 41 - Andrew
I woke to small noises of distress. First whimpers and then whines. Before my brain could fully process what I was hearing, my body pushed me into movement, rolling towards the sound.
By the time I recognized Bridget’s voice, I’d already clocked the overwhelming perfume that now filled the nest. It was like being surrounded by honey and nectar, syrupy sweet and thick enough to swim through. I switched on the string lights.
Gabriel and Nathan were somehow still asleep, though Nathan’s brow was furrowed and Gabriel stirred restlessly. But I could see the shine of Bridget’s eyes in the dim light.
“Baby? Are you alright?” I whispered.
She rolled her head on the pillow until her eyes met mine. They were glassy with pain. “Ithurts,” she panted, one hand clenched over her lower stomach. “It’s never hurt like this before.”
My heart broke for her. “Come here,” I said and helped her crawl around Gabriel’s sleeping form until she could lie in my arms.
She was burning up already. Her skin was hot and dry to the touch, alarmingly so. My mind and body warred, one urgingme to get her into a cool bath, the other encouraging me to help her in the way my instincts knew would be just as effective at cooling her down.
By the time Bridget kissed me, I’d settled on a compromise.
I’d never been with an Omega before, but my inner Alpha was assuring me the best way to help her was to make her come, preferably by knotting her until I locked inside her sweet pussy and pumped her completely full.
I sat up and drew her into my lap so her legs straddled my hips. My purr cranked up, instinctively trying to soothe her pain. There was a stash of water bottles beside the nest. I fished for one blindly as Bridget’s tongue darted between my lips and she rolled her hips against mine.
I broke the kiss and held a bottle to her lips. “Drink,” I said.
“I don’t want to,” she said impatiently, trying to push the water away. “I needyou.”
“And you’ll have me, baby, but you need to drink this first,” I insisted.
She wasn’t completely lost to the heat haze, yet. She rolled her eyes as she took the bottle and drank it down in one go. I watched her throat working as she swallowed, the delicate muscles shifting under her skin.
“There. Are you happy?” she asked.
