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“Sorry.”
Fox smirks, shifting his weight so he can lean down and press another kiss to my forehead. I shiver at his touch, the discordant rhythm of my pulse settling.
“I wanted to thank you,” says Thane. “I was angry about it at first, and harsh with you but… You stood up for me with my parents, even at your own risk. Even at the risk of upsetting me. You said things to them that I’ve dreamed about, but never had the courage to say. It means a lot to me.”
“You deserve it, Thane,” I murmur. “You’re a good man. A good Alpha.”
“One of the things we wanted to talk to you about though,” he continues, “is your ongoing treatment. We’ve decided to take full responsibility for your health going forward.” There’s a strange gleam in his eyes.
“Oh, no, you don’t have to do that,” I say, trying to sit up in bed and failing. My head falls back against the pillow. Fox is immediately there, fitting his huge body into the hospital bed with me, cuddling me into his side. “I’ll be fine once I get out of here, get some strength back. I can take care of myself.”
Fox purrs, and I can feel it vibrate where I press against him. Thane raises an eyebrow. “You know, Omegas with cervus have a better chance at a healthy, long life if they’ve been bonded to a pack.”
“You found me one?” I try to make my voice sound hopeful, but my heart is breaking inside. I don’t want to leave them. In my heart, I’m already part of the Woods pack.
Thane just blinks at me, his full lips set in a frown. Fox barks out a laugh. “A little slow on the uptake, sugar,” he teases, kissing me on the temple.
“Give her a break,” chastises Thane. “She’s been through a lot, plus the drugs might still be making her loopy.”
Am I being loopy? Is this all a drug-addled fantasy, or is Fox suggesting what I think he is suggesting?
“We want to bond you as part of our pack,” Thane lays it out as clearly as he can. “If you’ll have us.”
“Oh,” I breathe out, too overcome to say much more than that, my eyes already welling with the burn of tears.
They want me. They know everything and they want me. It’s too good to be true. “But I’m going to die.”
“Me too,” pipes up Fox.
“Me too,” agrees Thane, his lips curling up in a half-smile. “We’re all going to die at some point, Riley. Just because your health might make that happen sooner rather than later, that doesn’t mean we don’t want you to live a full life with a pack who loves you.”
Loves me? I shake my head because this has to be all a dream. There’s no way this is happening. “But you’ll have to take care of me. I’ll become weaker, too weak to be worth anything to you. I’ll lose my ability to walk, my hearing, my eyesight—”
“That doesn’t matter,” says Fox, interrupting me. “We’ve already ordered some textbooks on sign language and Braille. Miles and I have been practicing. You’ll still be Riley when all of that happens, we’ll just be communicating in a different way.”
I bury my face in his chest, inhaling deeply, trying to find comfort in his scent, and hide the tears rushing to spill over. My heart is going a million miles a minute, if the heart monitor has anything to say about it. Fox runs his fingers through my hair, hushing me as my body trembles against him. Thane joins, rubbing soothing circles in my back as my tears continue to soak into Fox’s shirt until I have no strength left to cry and my Alpha’s comforting words break through the overwhelm of a hundred different emotions.
I never thought this would happen.
Not ever.
I’d been so sure I was destined for a life alone, only able to imagine what it would be like to be loved and cherished by a pack.
Is this real?
If I wake up and this was all a really intense fever dream, I’m going to be shattered.
“You really want to do this?” I croak, pulling away from Fox only enough so I can see Thane, too. “You really want to take all this on?” I gesture at the hospital room, the machines, and at my frail body.
“Oh, sugar,” whispers Fox, his strong arms squeezing around my middle as he buries his face into the crook of my neck. “More than you could possibly know.”
For the first time, I believe him. Really believe him.
He wants me. They all do. Even… Thane.
His eyes bore into me, and I see the truth there. The depth of his conviction in this choice. It may have taken him a while to get here, but I can see that he’s sure. Not a single thing I or anyone else says can change his mind now.
“Then I agree,” I murmur. My eyes are growing heavy again. “I promise, I won’t let you regret it. I’ll take care of you, too. In every way I can.”
