Kai sat up abruptly. “Well. I’m glad that we’re not without you.”
He patted Zayden on the shoulder before helping him to his feet. They both walked back to the group on the picnic blanket while the others stared at them cautiously.
No one said anything, but the atmosphere between them all was lighter than it had been. Happier.
Everything was finally falling back into place. Zayden was ready to face tomorrow and complete their last sessions with Dr. Burdough. He was ready to go home with the entirety of his pack and follow through with healing from their wounds, bonding with Sonnet, and forging a better futuretogether.
Chapter 42
Sonnet drummed her fingers against the kitchen table, Goose curled at her feet, and her four alphas looked at her like schoolboys admitting to breaking the rules. But what they had admitted wasn’t bad. She just wasn’t expecting them to tell her that all those secretive meetings for work were therapy.
She didn’t judge them, and neither did her omega. Both had felt since the beginning that something was wrong within their pack, and she felt relieved that instead of pulling her into their mess, they were seeking professional help. Asking for help wasn’t easy. She knew that firsthand. The fact that they had gone through with it, making time for their sessions and being with her, was a true testament to their devotion to her, each other, and themselves.
I told you we have the best alphas!
Sonnet smiled. “I’m proud of you all! That sounds like a lot of work to be doing on vacation. How do you all feel?”
The four of them looked at each other, relief washing over them.
Jude came bounding over, lifting her into his arms and kissing her all over her face despite her protests. “So happy! The happiest!”
“Today is our last session,” Zayden said softly, his eyes filled with warmth. “We’ve all put in the work to become our best selves so that we can be the best pack for you. Dr. Burdough would like time after meeting with us to meet with you as well. Is that something you’d be up for, sweetheart?”
She felt honored to be asked to join and be a part of a vulnerable environment. They were letting her into their space because they trusted her, and it made her fall for them even more,but…did she trust them in return?
They knew part of her ugly past, but she hadn’t told them the full story yet. A story she was only now getting comfortable living with. Thanks to her omega, she hasn’t had to deal with her trauma in full length, but now being with her alphas, everything was coming forward. She couldn’t hide anymore. As much as she wanted to show them her full self, too, she couldn’t. Not yet. Not now.
Is that wrong of me?
No. I understand Sonnet.
I don’t want to build a wall for them like I did for you.
It’s not a wall. It’s just…timing. We’ll both know when it’s time.
“Are you sure?” she asked. “I don’t want to intrude.”
“You can’t intrude on something you’re invited to,” Kai teased. “Look, it’s going to be uncomfortable as hell for us all, but we want you there, and so does Dr. Burdough. You in?”
They want me to be there.
Warmth spread over her body. She nodded her head excitedly. “I’m in. Let’s do this!”
Chapter 43
We’re supposed to be figuring out what roles we want in our pack. Dr. Burdough’s useless homework assignment. But it got me thinking. What about my music role? If we’re all staying together as a pack, then are we staying together as a band, too? I don’t know if I want that. I think I still want to be a solo artist.
Kai was ready to get this session done and over with and maybe even receive a small reward for how awesome they all did.
Dr. Burdough deserved an award, too. Kai never considered therapy as an option for anything. Not even after his mother passed. And although he had some major beef with her methods, like the homework and how she challenged them, it worked. She did it. She managed to dig her fingers into their souls and tug out all the bad.
Well, notallthe bad.
That’s what the doctor was ranting about right now, how despite all their progress, the four of them still needed a lot more help. She even slid in a very professional threat that if they didn’t continue therapy back home, they could fall into the same problems, but this time, instead of hurting each other, they’d be hurting their omega.
Just knowing Sonnet was on the other side of the wall, waiting to be brought into the session, made Kai protective. The idea of him hurting her? That made him sick.
He turned his head sharply towards Zayden. “I think what she’s saying is don’t fuck anything up.”
