Page 140 of The Rust in Her Hair

Nico's hand closes around the back of Crispin's neck.

And then my pack alpha is dragging him, hauling all that dead weight toward the door while Crispin stumbles and grabs at nothing, too surprised to fight it. Adrian turns and pulls me in against his chest. He angles us both away, one big hand cradling the back of my head, tucking my face into his shoulder so I don't have to watch.

I hear the scuffle. I hear Crispin's snarl, cut short. Then a door slams, hard enough to shake the wall, and a lock clicks in place.

For a second, the only sound is my own ragged breathing.

"I'm sorry." Adrian's voice is rough above me, aimed at Nico. "I lost it. I should have handled that better, I shouldn't have let it get that far⁠—"

"Stop." Nico's hand settles on the back of Adrian's head, fingers threading into his hair. "You did the right thing. You kept yourself between her and all of them the entire time. You were perfect."

Then Nico turns to me.

And I fall into him.

I let go of Adrian's shirt and reach for Nico, wrapping my arms tight around his middle. The pack alpha catches me, folding me in, and then the two of them close around me from both sides. Adrian at my back, Nico at my front, my face pressed into the warm curve of my pack alpha’s pecs where his amber and leather scent is thickest.

Crispin is pounding on the door behind us. I can hear it, the heavy thud of his fists, muffled through the wood.

Then Nico starts to purr.

Adrian joins him a second later, the two sounds layering low and deep and steady, rumbling through both their chests and into mine. It swallows the pounding whole.

It swallows everything.

The fear that's had its claws in me since the second Crispin walked through that door finally loosens its grip, draining out of me one breath at a time, until all that's left is the two of them holding me up and the sound of them keeping me safe.

Reclaiming the Room

Lyra

The purring winds down slowly, and when I finally lift my head off Nico's chest my breathing has evened out.

"Nico." My voice comes out hoarse. "Is there really a fire?"

"There is." The corner of his mouth lifts. "I heard your parents yelling and texted Mack, asking him to create a distraction." He smooths a hand down my back. “Something small and loud.”

I stare up at the pack alpha, impressed. "Mack set the drapes on fire."

"He was more than happy to help." Nico's dark eyes are warm. "He's out there right now making sure every guest gets a good look at it. I could hear him all the way down the hall, pointing it out and asking loudly where your father was." A dry note enters his voice. "Your parents are going to spend the next hour putting out flames in front of everyone they've ever wanted to impress."

Something loosens in my chest, and I almost laugh.

Because it means I don't have to immediately rush out of here. I don't have to see Crispin waiting on the other side of that door, or smell that clove or feel his eyes crawl over me ever again.

"We've got a minute or two," Nico says, reading me. "You don't have to go anywhere until you're ready."

"But we should go soon." Adrian's still wound tight beside us, his eyes on the door. "The sooner she's out of this house, the better."

"Soon," Nico agrees. "But our girl needs a minute to collect herself."

I nod and step back out of their arms, scrubbing the heels of my hands under my eyes. My mascara's probably ruined, but I can't bring myself to care.

"Who was he?" Nico asks. His voice is careful. "That alpha I had to drag out of here."

I pull in a breath, trying to keep my stomach from knotting all over again.

"Crispin Maleth." His name tastes like poison and bile. "My father arranged for me to mate him. That's why I ran. They signed the contract, and he—" I stop. I don't have the strength to say the rest. "He's the reason I ran."