My body reaches out to him and wraps him up in my arms. My brain didn't even register doing it.
My lips are resting on his neck. "Still mine. Always mine." His stubble is rough against my lips. I don't fucking care. I pull both of us down into the nest, sitting him between my legs.
His bond turns warmer. Slightly more melty. He leans back into me.
"Get your shirt on, Zeke. She's video calling Lauren and she doesn't want to get too obviously possessive with her friend." His voice is thick. There are little flicks of comfort dancing in his bond now, dispersing some of those shitty little pricks of doubt and longing. Not all of them, but some at least.
Better. Not fixed, not good. But less bad.
My alpha likes the idea of Dellie being possessive a lot, but I try not to smirk, and instead huff and shove on the proffered clothes. I settle down around Ralph, pulling him back against me.
James has that glare on his face that he makes when someone needs something and hasn't mentioned it to him. His bond is… untamed. Properly wild, like a jungle creature. The surface is all warmth and steadiness and protectiveness, but there is something… contained behind it. A fierceness that would lash out and take down anything that hurt his pack. A sense that if he isn't holding back, he will let go, and too fucking bad for anything or anyone in his way. But underneath that, there's something else. I can't make it out properly, but the little glimpse I caught of something quivering behind it all makes me think I need to figure this out. He's pacing around the room, looking for something, but I can't work out what.
Dellie's dressed, and settling back into Allen's lap. Allen's bond blends whatever emotion he seems to be feeling with a mixof curiosity and concern and… fuck. Guilt.Somuch guilt. And a sense of… heaviness. Like it's pressing down on him. Somehow everything is leaning on his shoulders and it's fucking crushing him. Fuck, I gotta figure out how to convince him that the world isn't his responsibility to hold up without crushing him even further under guilt.
But right now, beneath his threads of guilt and worry and curiosity, there's a smug satisfaction as Dellie settles contentedly against his chest.
I sidle up next to them, my shoulder pressing against Allen's.
Dellie's bond seems to constantly flicker like a candle. Everything in her bond is flecked with fluttering uncertainty. Her feelings jump half a dozen times every time she opens her mouth. God, that woman doesn't so much second-guess herself as sixth-guess—no wonder she found getting the words out so fucking difficult. Fuck, if my mind were jumping from feeling to feeling like that, I don't think my mouth would have time to open. And right now, there's a weight of responsibility in our bond that's being sustained through all the other flickers of feeling, along with concern and affection.
She clearly needs this call.
Seb's dressed, but I can feel amusement, along with smugness, bubbling in his bond. He's wriggling back between Dellie's legs and resting his head against her chest. Seb's bond reminds me of the ocean. All froth and bubbly humour on the surface, something fuckingdarkhiding below. It pops up for just a moment but gets pulled straight back. I'd thought I'd seen flashes of… something in his eyes before. Every time he jokes about disciplining his alpha with the rolled-up newspaper. I'm gonna sit on this one for a while, see if—when—it slips out again, but it seems like he's been fighting off a fucking kraken. Butat the moment, that darkness is obscured by a mischievousness that's threatening to bubble over.
"Behave." My growl is quiet, but still a growl. He looks at me and raises an eyebrow. "Would I do anything else?"
Dellie's absent-mindedly stroking his hair with one hand as she taps at her phone with the other.
Abandoning his search, James climbs back into the nest and scooches between her and Allen as the phone starts ringing. It only takes two rings before the sound is cut off and the screen flickers to life.
"Babes! You survived the fuck fest!"
Seb's already lost it. His face has gone bright red. His chest is shaking with laughter, his cheeks and lips puffed up with air. His bond is alight and frothy with humour.
Dellie isn't so restrained, bursting out in a bright peal of laughter. My own lips are pulling into a smile.
"Yep," she says, trying to catch her breath. "In one piece. I just wanted to check in and make sure everything went okay? Pack Zed got there as expected?"
She nods. "Pretty much fuckingflawless, babes. Camera crew didn't even take a day to set up and they made sure I knew where each and every fucking one was. They drew up a plan of the house showing where there's camera and mic coverage. I'll send it through in a tic. Oh, make sure Lancey-boy gets a big bonus for this week, will ya? He did a grocery run and two extra trips downtown to the fancy camera shop, 'cuz a couple of cameras got banged around by the airline."
I feel a pulse of worry in her bond. A twinge of guilt. Allen's shifting behind Dellie. I press closer to her side, a quiet purr rumbling from my chest.
"Shit, sorry, babes! Didn't mean to knock ya out of your post-coital glow! Nothing to worry about, nothing you did wrong. Just a heads up for when you're up for it."
Dellie nods. "And Pack Zed? Working out okay?"
"Sure. The boys are a damn sight better than the fucking Townsends, that's for sure. They'rereallyfucking attentive, even before they've got their dicks wet—"
Seb can't hold it any more. A barked laugh escapes his chest. He bites down on the laughter, but his grin is twitching.
"Geez, North Shore, let a girl talk!"
"Sure thing,Subi," he says, winking at her.
Loz positively explodes with laughter as the phone clatters. The picture blurs for a moment, then focuses on the recessed lights in the ceiling. "Hah! Fucking touché!" Her breathless laughter echoes through the room.
Dellie pats Seb's head affectionately. She's trying not to smile.
