Page 2 of Claimed

“None of us know what the effects of having five mates could do to her body. You each felt it when you confirmed there was a fated mate bond with her, right?” Gage asks as he glances at each of us.

We all nod, and I rub at my chest, a small smile pulling at my lips from the memory.

“Fuck yeah,” Hunter says, stealing the words from my mind. “She’s definitely mine.”

“Imagine that power times five,” Gage explains, and I start to understand what he means. Feeling that bond was like a jolt of electricity running through me. If she felt the same thing with each of us, she felt that times five.

“But why the bright light? I thought she was dying,” Hunter asks.

Gage just shakes his head as he frowns at her. “I’m not sure.” He studies her like she’s a puzzle he’s trying to put together.

“Should we get her to shift?” I ask as I reach out and stroke her head, itching to touch her. “I want to see her again. I didn’t get nearly enough time.”

“She looks tired. Let's not make her shift again just yet,” Maddox says as he watches her. “Besides, she’s unconscious. Let’s save it for when she can give consent and actually talk to us.”

Bain starts to carry her back through the waterfall as we all follow closely, unwilling to let our mate out of our sight.

“How is this even possible?” I ask as we start to step out of the pond. “How can she have five mates?”

“I have no clue,” Gage says, staring at the ground in front of him, deep in thought.

“It’s a miracle,” Hunter says, and when I look at him, he’s smiling at her. “The five of us don’t have to worry about being separated anymore. We share a mate now, so we’re brothers for life.” He looks at each of us with a smile that tells me this had been something that’s been bothering him for some time.

I hadn’t realized he was worried about losing our pack. Before we met Red—Cherry—I assumed if any of us met our fated mate, she’d just move into the house with us. But I now realize that’s pretty unusual; normally, fated mates live on their own.

Sharing her with the four of them has so many added benefits, the biggest being what Hunter has already pointed out, that we get to stay together.

“Can I hold her?” I ask Bain as I hold out a towel to wrap around her wet body. He frowns at me, like he really doesn’t want to let her go, but silently concedes by passing her into my arms. I wrap the fluffy towel around her as I pull her close to my chest.

My wolf surges to the surface, filling me with his happiness at being closer to her, and his smugness at knowing he was right this whole time, that she’s our fated mate.

The best part? Even though she’s in wolf form, I can now picture her face. And what a fucking gorgeous face it is. Big, soulful blue eyes, a cute little nose with pouty lips, and beautiful, long, red hair that matches her wolf’s coat.

And now I have a name to go with that face.

Cherry.

I glance at Bain, who’s walking at my side, and grin. “Remember that bowl of cherries?”

A small frown pinches at his brow, then they rise in realization, and he smirks at her. “She was trying to tell us her name,” he says in amusement as he reaches over and strokes her head.

“Smart girl,” Maddox says from my other side.

“Smarter than us, apparently,” I say with a shake of my head.

I step up onto the back porch as Hunter pulls the back door open for us. He heads straight to the gas fireplace and starts it up as I move to sit down in front of it. Cherry loves this spot for some reason, and I want her to feel as safe and comfortable as possible when she wakes up.

“Do you think she’ll be out for a while?” I ask as I rub the towel along her body.

“Yes,” Gage says as he grabs his laptop and sits in the armchair. “Don’t forget, she’s still recovering from her regeneration yesterday. Last time she slept for several days. Not to mention, we have no idea what shifting and revealing the mate bonds did.”

After I towel-dry her as much as I can, I shift her so she’s closer to the fire and stare down at her tiny wolf form. “How tall do you think she is?”

“I was only looking at her face,” Hunter answers.

“I’m not sure. When her back was to me, I was distracted by her long, red hair,” Maddox tells us. “It covered her entire back.”

“She felt tiny,” Bain says, then frowns. “She’s too small.”