AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Hell, I hadmorethan the essentials. The house they’d bought was incredible and more than I ever would have asked for—if I asked for anything at all.
Yeah, that was something else I struggled with. It was still hard for me to acknowledge what I needed out loud, but I was working on it. For now, though, I was content, if not swallowed by remorse for what I’d put them through.
“I’m not convinced that’s true,” Jamison rumbled, unsatisfied by my answer.
“Fine rarely means fine, Honey.” Leo shot me a knowing look.
I smiled, willing the expression all the way up to my eyes so they believed me. Because I wasn’t ready to bring this party down with my internal turmoil. I parted my lips, about to give them another platitude, when an unhappy rumble vibrated Jamison’s chest.
“Demi,” he scolded lightly. “You don’t need to hide your feelings from us. The last two weeks tested us all, and we haven’t even scratched the surface of everything we’ve survived. We want to know every detail of what you endured during our time apart. Parts of it will make us angry—”
“Fuck, let’s not sugarcoat it.” Hades shrugged, owning his feelings on the matter. “Most of it is going to make us angry.”
Jamison’s eyes narrowed intently. “Hades is right. Thinking about anyone else laying a hand on you, mistreating you—” he swallowed back the enraged grit that entered his voice. “The Alpha in me can’t stand the idea of you being hurt. Yes, I’m angry. On many levels, we all are, but it’s not at you.Neverat you.”
“Just at the situation,” Thane added. “But that doesn’t mean we don’t want to know, Darling. We can’t support you and provide what you need unless we understand what you went through.”
“I could say the same for you,” I murmured, eyeing their injuries and hating that I hadn’t been there to take care of them and help them heal.
From what I could tell, Hades and Knox both had broken ribs. I’d spotted the bandages wrapped tightly around their abdomens, and it explained Knox’s pained grunt when I’d hugged him earlier. A brace covered Knox’s left knee, half-hidden by his shorts. Cuts and scrapes covered Hades’ arms and legs, and I’d caught the shadows of discoloration under his white t-shirt, hinting at more wounds.
Similar bruising peeked out of the V of Eli’s button down, discoloring his collarbone before dipping out of sight. A shallow cut arching over one cheek and scabs across his knuckles were the only other outward signs of the accident I could see on him.
Red, healing burns marred Jamison’s face from the impact of the airbag and there was something wrong with his leg, too. I’d caught him wincing whenever he moved it, and, despite his best efforts, he couldn’t hide the pronounced limp when he walked.
Then there was Thane. The cut across his forehead continued to heal, and his bruises had yellowed. But the most blatant of his injuries were the deep gashes along his right forearm I hadn’t seen until he pushed his sleeves up while he cooked. There were long lines of stitches holding the wounds together, and I knew Eli had been the one to patch him up. Though Thane tried to downplay his pain, I’d noted the stiff way he held that arm, intentionally trying not to use it—much.
And Leo? Bruising ringed his eyes—having recently turned from mottled blues to unsightly yellows—and the more I studied him, the more I noticed the crooked tilt to his nose. Broken and reset, the asymmetry of it added a ruggedness to his boy-next-door features that hadn’t been there before, though it didn’t detract from his handsomeness in the slightest.
Eli watched me catalog their injuries with a knowing gaze, full of understanding and patience. He knew exactly what I was doing—blaming myself. Worrying over them. Wishing I could rewind time and fix everything.
“You can help me check on everyone and change bandages later, if it’ll make you feel better,” he offered with a small smile.
I didn’t try to hide the rush of relief that idea provided. A swift breath whooshed from my lungs, and I nodded earnestly. “Yes, please.” It wasn’t a solution, but it was a start.
“It’s a date.”
“What kind of date is that?” Thane teased, crossing his arms. He winced and readjusted, favoring his wounds.
Eli chuckled. “The kind you go on with adoctor?”
“I don’t know. Sounds like you’re trying to put her to work, to me. Where’s the romance?”
“You’d make her cook. That’s work.”
Thane scoffed. “That’sfun. There’s a difference.”
“Maybe for you, but it’s not romantic.”
“I’ll have you know cooking together can beveryromantic. It takes teamwork and timing. It’s an intricate dance that teaches trust and patience.” Thane paused, letting those sentiments sink in.
I opened my mouth to comment how sweet that sounded when Leo, who was holding back a laugh, shook his head. His sparkling eyes told me to wait.
Not even a beat later, Thane continued, “Besides, I can think of plenty of delicious foods and sauces I’d like to lick off of our Omega.” He grinned blindingly, sending a wink my way.
An immediate blush stained my cheeks, but a wide smile of my own blossomed.
“Like this?” Swiping my finger into the creamy broth at the bottom of my bowl, I smeared it across Thane’s cheek, then leaned over to lick him clean with one long swipe of my tongue.
