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“I know that, Dean,” I assured him. “You’re a great alpha. I’d never have let my best friend bond with you if you weren’t.”
“That was his response when I asked him,” Dean said with a fond smile. “He jumped up and down and then attacked me and kissed me until I couldn’t breathe and then promptly told me that he was a package deal.”
“Then the two of you showed up at my work and dragged me out of there to celebrate,” I said, remembering fondly.
“And you grilled me within an inch of my life about my intentions and promptly sent me a spreadsheet of all his likes, dislikes, and behaviors to watch out for,” Dean said. “That was the moment for me, you know?”
“The moment?”
“The moment I knew you were mine, too. My pack,” Dean said, sending a wave of warmth down our bond. “You care for us all so fiercely and I’m worried that everything that happened this past week might have been too much for you.”
Dean didn’t push feelings down our bond often, but when he did it was for a purpose. He respected that I didn’t want to feel every time he and my best friend were getting frisky. I had debated accepting his offer to bond, after all, we could have still been pack without it, but after some convincing arguments from none other than Bash, and my own research, I decided to do it.
After all, after my lack of sexual attraction for Bash, the person I had cared for more than anyone in the world and the other failed dating attempts I had made, I thought that a romantic relationship just wasn’t in the cards for me.
I didn’t settle for accepting Dean as my alpha, it wasn’t anything like that, if anything he took me in right along with Bash and gave me an even bigger support network and family with Miller and then Cole.
“This past week was a lot,” I conceded. “I was worried about Summer and a bit about Cole and Miller when they fell into a rut.”
“But what about you?” Dean pressed, stopping what he was doing and turning fully to me. “Being worried about others is a common thing for you, but how was the experience for you? It’s a big deal, Miles, taking that step and having sex for the first time.”
I blew out a breath, knowing that Dean was coming from a heartfelt place even if it was something I wanted to keep between Summer and I. It had been a perfect beautiful moment between us, and I was glad that we’d had our own time alone before her heat had fully set in.
“It was a big deal,” I acknowledged. “Everything with Summer is a big deal. But it felt just as right as everything has from the day I met her. This may be a change for me, but it’s been one of the best ones of my life.”
"Great," Dean said, washing the plate in his hands for the fourth time.
"Does that mean this conversation can be over? I love you and all, but I'm not going into further detail," I clarified as gently as possible. Dean let out a breath, and cracked his neck like that could alleviate the awkwardness this conversation brought on.
"Yes, thank god," he huffed out. As if Bash knew it was his cue, because I knew my best friend wasn't listening in, he danced into the room with his phone in hand. In a few moments music was playing and he dropped it on the table before hopping on the counter safely out of the splash zone.
"I felt you guys were done, so time to move onto less intense conversations," he said with an easy laugh. That was the thing about Bash, he could brighten any mood almost instantly. Dean snorted and flicked water at his mate, earning a round of curses and laughter.
"And what is it you had in mind?" I asked, leaning around our alpha to see him.
"I know we’ve all been in a heat haze, but Theo's party is tomorrow. We have to go pick up the gift, get the one here finished without her noticing, and then arrive early enough to set up proper at Beatty's tomorrow," Bash listed off, ticking each item off on his fingers as he went.
"We can go pick them up, did someone call and tell them that we wouldn’t be there today last week?" Miller asked as he walked in. The worry in his tone had me answering quickly. The alpha had enough on his newly-bonded plate.
"Yes, I called when she went into heat and told them. They obviously were understanding," I explained.
"I messaged this morning to let them know we'd swing by," Bash finished for me.
"Summer won't be back until after the party. Setup is pretty early and she wants time with Theo after being away so long," Cole said.
I narrowed my eyes at him and he gave me a smug grin, not even apologetic.
"You called her already?" I accused. There was no heat behind it, but I was a bit worried she would be overwhelmed. She asked for distance and already we were calling. Then again, she messaged Bash first.
"Now who is overthinking?" Cole asked bluntly. I couldn't even argue, instead I turned back to dry the last of the dishes as they laughed quietly.
We all knew we were goners. Summer had pulled us in and we were not the type to let her gravitate too far, not after a heat like that.
"We also have food to prepare," Bash added. "Beatty obviously didn't relent on much, but we've got veggies, fruit, chips, and I was thinking of a few dips for the chips."
"I'm shocked she allowed even that," Dean said. "She's a stubborn woman."
"Understatement," Miller agreed. "Well then get me a list, Cole and I can run to grab that after we get the present."
