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“Tonight. Promise me! I won’t have you at risk. We can’t lose you again,” Thane growls.

“I promise. Tonight. Just let me settle in first,” I tell him. He nods his head as he pulls onto our long street. Thane doesn’t add anything else, but I can feel he is still in a weird mood, so I don’t press the matter. I trust he will tell us when he wants to talk about it.

I go to the nursery and settle Scarlett in, making use of it for the first time since she was born. My mates seem a little shocked when I head upstairs instead of to the Den, but I want our bed, and I want Scarlett in hers, knowing they need a decent night’s sleep. Once she’s settled, I sneak down to the kitchen to look for a snack. Finding a mud cake, I cut off a slice and head back upstairs. I hear the shower running and soft murmurs coming from the bathroom. Shaking my head, I finish the last bite of my cake, deciding to use the shower in Thane’s room. I don’t want them to fuss over every scratch, and I know they will.

My heart races as I step back into the bedroom with just a towel. All four of them are leaning against the headboard, staring at me. I blink at them. They have such serious expressions on their faces, it makes me wonder if something happened while I was showering.

“What? Is Scarlett alright?” I ask, panicked. I left her for 10 minutes, wanting to shave my damn legs.

I rarely get the chance because we often shower together, and there’s no way of getting it done in the main bathroom while we are jammed in there like sardines in a can. We need a bigger shower, preferably one with a bench, so I don’t have to stand while I shave my legs.

Rhen quirks a brow at me, and I look at Raidon, suddenly uncomfortable with the way they are watching me and not speaking. They’re looking at me as if I’m some piece of art on a pedestal they are examining to see if I’m symmetrical or abstract.

“Scarlett is fine. She is asleep in the nursery. I just checked on her,” Thane finally says. I nod, exhaling with relief as I move toward the walk-in closet. Raidon moves so quickly he makes my eyes hurt as he jumps in front of the door, blocking me.

A devious smile plays on his lips as his eyes flicker black, a deep thrumming purr emanating from his chest. “Are you forgetting something?” he asks, stalking toward me.

“Yeah, my damn pajamas,” I say, trying to sidestep him.

“Anything else?” he questions, making me step back. My brows furrow at his words, and he growls. The noise is extra loud with my newfound hearing, causing me to jump.

“You promised me,” Thane growls behind me, and I glance at him. I’m at a loss for what I promised.

I rack my brain. “The council thingy is not until tomorrow,” I tell him.

“It seems like someone has a case of baby brain,” Rhen chuckles.

“No, Thane said he wanted me to go to the hearing thing and—” I gasp, remembering I promised to mark them tonight. How could I have forgotten? I must have been too preoccupied with seeing the nursery for the first time and settling Scarlett. I also may have taken a nap with her in the rocking chair before taking some time to myself to shower alone.

“You’ll be keeping that promise, Low. Now remove the towel,” Thane orders.

I raise an eyebrow at him. “Your command won’t work on me,” I smirk. Thane’s eyes flicker dangerously, and Leon shakes his head.

“Hmm, and here I thought she knew better than to test her Alpha by now,” Leon snickers, nudging Thane. I glare at Leon as his eyes flicker red with bloodlust.

“I have other ways to make you compliant, Low. So, are you going to make me come over there?” he asks.

“No, you can remain where you are, and they can just line up. It’ll be like a drive-thru, take a bite, and scoot to the next,” I tell him with a chuckle. Yep, call me McDonalds.

“We plan on driving through you alright,” Thane warns. My stomach squeezes as lust burns in my belly, yet butterflies quickly dim the feeling.

“I can do it now. Quickly,” I tell him, hopping from one foot to the other. I want to get this over with. Thane’s right. It needs to be done, but I’m not looking forward to them biting me. I want their marks, and I want to remove Corbin’s, but the pain of Corbin’s pack marking me is still too fresh in my mind. It replays over and over in my head. I kept begging them to stop, only for the next one to take a bite of me.

Hands fall on my hips as Raidon presses his chest against my back. “That’s not what we had in mind,” he purrs, nipping at my shoulder.

My stomach sinks. I want to go to bed, maybe eat the rest of that mud cake. I certainly don’t want to strip naked and be on display for them.

There’s new scars and stretch marks lacing my body, and my skin still doesn’t feel right beneath my hands. I feel squishy and far from desirable. I may have shaved my legs, but that doesn’t mean I shaved anything else. Not that I’m sporting an Amazonian look, but still.

“We want you, not just your mark,” Raidon growls.

Chapter Fifty-One

Harlow

Standing in front of them, I hesitate. They are all eyeing me as if they are about to murder me if they don’t get what they want. I don’t even know why I'm so nervous, but perhaps it’s because this is the first time we’re doing it since I’ve had Scarlett.

“All of us,” Rhen growls.