Chapter 38
I hurry up the stairs to the master suite, my heart pounding. Did I really just invite all four of those alphas to mate with me?
The heat must be frying my brain.
But the thought of being claimed and satisfied by their powerful bodies makes a fresh wave of bizarre desire I’m not used to at all crash over me. My thighs clench and quiver even as I make my way into the master suite. I need this, no matter how insane it might seem.
The bedroom is lavish, with plush rugs covering the hardwood floors and a massive bed piled high with pillows and blankets. Thane and the others must have gathered all these nesting materials for me in preparation while I was making my decision.
I bite my lip, suddenly feeling shy and uncertain. Back at the Refinement Center, the Nightingales would force me to attend nesting classes designed to turn me into a proper little breeder omega. At least, back when they thought there was still ‘hope’ for me.
But I always defied them and refused to pay attention. I never imagined I’d actually want to make a nest, let alone with the intention of willingly mating with not one, not two, but four alphas.
Still, the instincts are there, buried deep. I run my fingers over the silken throws and faux fur blankets, picturing how soft and comfortable they’ll feel against my feverish skin. For once, I decide to let myself give in to the urge, knowing this is all temporary. A fleeting moment of exciting comfort.
Piling the plushest materials in the middle of the bed, I fashion a cozy depression to cradle my body, large enough for them to fit in as well. Pillows go around the edges to create a border, and I arrange the more decorative pieces around the outside in alternating colors. It’s not as elaborate as some of the other nests I’ve seen, but it should do.
Stepping back, I survey my work with a critical eye. It looks… decent, I guess. At least it’s better than that sad little pile of scratchy wool I made back at the compound. I just hope it’s enough to please the alphas when they come for me.
Fresh heat flushes my cheeks at the thought. Four powerful male alphas all vying to rut me into oblivion and slake this maddening ache between my thighs. The idea should terrify and repulse me, but my body only grows hotter, wetter at the mere thought.
Mere hours ago, I was running from them. And I’m still planning on doing it again, eventually, when the opportunity presents itself. But I’d be lying if I said there wasn’t a part of me that wants this for more than just practical reasons.
More than just to sate the aching, relentless need of heat.
Maybe if I give in, just this once, I can purge this weakness from my mind and body. This dangerous impulse to give more than just my body to these alphas who seem so intent on proving they’re nothing like the other alphas who’ve used and abused me for most of my life.
Most frightening of all, there’s a part of me that’s actually starting to believe them. Part of me that wants to.
With a steadying breath, I call out, ‘I’m ready!’
There’s a beat of silence, then the sound of thunderous footsteps pounding up the stairs. Thane and Whiskey burst into the room without wasting a single moment, both gloriously shirtless and rippling with muscle.
Whiskey lets out a low whistle, raking his eyes over my makeshift nest with unabashed appreciation. ‘Well, well. Looks like our girl’s got some nesting instincts after all.’
‘Indeed,’ Thane rumbles, moving to circle the bed with a predatory grace. His obsidian eyes blaze as he drinks in every detail, missing nothing.
I swallow hard, fighting a sudden flare of nerves as they scrutinize my work. What if it’s not good enough? What if I’ve failed this simple task?
‘I like it,’ Thane murmurs, something warm flickering in those pitch black depths as he meets my stare, as if in response to my unspoken doubts.
Relief washes over me in a dizzying wave. ‘Thank you,’ I mumble, heat flooding my cheeks.
An awkward silence descends, thick with tension and unspoken need. I shift my weight from foot to foot, not sure what to do next. Should I disrobe? Lie back and spread my thighs in blatant invitation like they taught us at the Center?
Seeming to sense my discomfort, Whiskey lets out a dramatic groan and flops backward onto the bed, bouncing slightly on the mattress. ‘Well?’ he drawls, throwing one arm over his eyes as the other gestures grandly at the nest. ‘We’re not getting any younger over here, darlin’. Have your wicked way with us already.’
A startled laugh bursts from my lips before I can stop it. I clap a hand over my mouth, eyes going wide, but it’s too late. Whiskey is grinning like the cat that got the cream.
‘Ha! There it is,’ he crows in delight. ‘I finally got a laugh out of our little wildcat.’ He props himself up on his elbows, that roguish grin only widening. ‘Shit, I should frame this moment. Pretty sure that qualifies as an award or something after all this time.’
Thane snorts, rolling his eyes. ‘You’re a damn idiot, you know that?’
But there’s a hint of grudging fondness in his tone that surprises me. These two clearly share a bond.
‘Yeah, yeah. Mock all you want, tough guy,’ Whiskey shoots back with a wink. ‘At least I got our pretty little omega to smile. That’s gotta count for something in the romance department, right?’
I blink at him, the unexpected endearment and playful teasing warming something inside me I didn’t even realize had gone cold. How strange, to feel a connection with one of my captors, however faint.
Especially the one who gets under my skin the most.
Whiskey seems to sense the shift in my demeanor. He holds my stare steadily, that charming grin softening into something more gentle, more real.
‘Hey,’ he murmurs, patting the space beside him. ‘C’mere, little wildcat. We’ve got you, I promise.’
The words are simple, but they resonate deep within me, loosening some of the knots of tension coiled in my belly. Hesitantly, I move to join him on the bed.
Thane is there in an instant, his big hands settling on my hips to guide me forward. ‘There you are,’ he rumbles, that smoky rasp sending delicious shivers racing across my skin. ‘We’ll take this at whatever pace you need.’
I nod mutely, suddenly breathless as I drink in his sheer masculine beauty. The hard lines of his chest, the ropes of muscle in his arms, the sharp angles of that chiseled jaw…
Gathering my courage, I step into his embrace and lay my palms flat against the furnace of his chest. He’s all rippling muscle beneath that scarred, tan skin. My opposite in so many ways. He goes still, those dark eyes burning into mine with an intensity that steals the air from my lungs.
‘I don’t want to take it slow,’ I whisper, the words escaping in a trembling rush. ‘I want you. Both of you. Now.’
Thane’s brow furrows slightly, as if searching for any hint of uncertainty or fear. When he finds none, he simply nods and bends to scoop me into his arms with ease and lays me back in the center of the nest.
‘Just relax, pretty girl,’ he murmurs against the hollow of my throat, nipping at the delicate skin.
Then his mouth is on mine, those full lips slanting over my own in a blazing kiss that has me arching against him. I whimper into the heat of his mouth, fingers twisting in the sheets as he pillages my lips with wicked skill.
A low growl rumbles through the room. I tear my mouth from Thane’s with a gasp, dazed and panting, only to find Whiskey looming over us both.
His eyes are molten, that dark heat flaring to an inferno as he takes us in. ‘Enough teasing,’ he rasps, already reaching for the hem of my thin shift. ‘Let’s get this off her.’
In a dizzying flurry of movement, they have me naked, baring me to their smoldering stares. I flush beneath their heated appraisal, instinctively trying to cover myself. But Whiskey is there in an instant, gently prying my hands away.
‘Where’s the point in that?’ he chides softly, linking our fingers together as he pins my wrists over my head. ‘You’re fucking gorgeous, Ivy. Don’t you dare try to hide that sweet body from us.’
I suck in a sharp breath, caught in the snare of his heated stare. He holds me there for a beat, letting the weight of his words sink in. Then, with a devilish grin, he bends to trail a path of searing kisses down the column of my throat, pinning me beneath his strong body.
‘And that scent…,’ he groans against my racing pulse, tongue darting out to taste the salt of my skin. ‘Like sunshine and sin and every wet dream I’ve ever had.’
A desperate moan escapes me, hips arching upward in a silent plea. He chuckles darkly, nipping at the swell of my breast in playful reprimand.
‘Easy there, darlin’. We’ll get to that sweet little pussy soon enough,’ Whiskey purrs.
Thane’s weight settles over me, caging me between two hard planes of muscle and sinew. He leans in to capture my mouth in another devouring kiss, all heat and demand and liquid fire.
I melt beneath his onslaught, writhing helplessly as his free hand roams the slopes and valleys of my body. Every brush of those callused fingers against my feverish skin has pleasure flowing through me in dizzying waves.
‘Such a good girl,’ he rasps against my lips, sucking my lower one into the scorching heat of his mouth. ‘So responsive. Like you were made for us.’
I whimper into the kiss, arching against him as his fingers delve between my thighs. They’re already slick with arousal, my core aching for relief. Thane growls low in his chest, the rumbling vibration shuddering through me.
‘Fuck, Ivy,’ he groans, parting me with two thick fingers to stroke through my molten heat. ‘You’re drenched, baby. Is this what you need? You want one of us stuffed in that tight little cunt?’
A whine escapes me, my head thrashing against the pillows. Whiskey seizes the opportunity to claim my lips in another searing kiss, swallowing my desperate cries as Thane works me open with deft, merciless strokes. His fingers dip into the well of my pussy and easily find my spot, crooking into it relentlessly.
It’s exquisite torture, every nerve ending in my body alight and thrumming. I’m utterly lost in the storm, swept away by their combined onslaught.
Just when I think I can’t handle another moment, Thane shifts between my splayed thighs. The thick crown of his shaft nudges against my entrance, parting my folds in one long, delicious glide.
I expect him to just go in all at once, especially since he’s already gotten me worked up, and Plague prepared me earlier. But he doesn’t. He keeps his shaft in his hand, rubbing the crown across my slick folds in smooth, gentle circles that have me squirming in desperation.
When he finally starts to push his crown into my center, my body is shuddering with need. It hurts—he’s too huge for it not to, regardless of how gentle he is or how much I need it—but fuck, it feels good. Every inch his monster of a cock stretches me open is a delicious burn, only stoking the flames of my heat higher.
I moan into Whiskey’s mouth, back bowing as Thane stretches me wide around his impressive length. He stills once he’s fully sheathed—everything but the knot—inside my clutching heat.
‘Easy,’ he purrs, reaching up to brush a damp tendril from my brow. ‘Just breathe, little one. Let yourself adjust.’Belonging © NôvelDram/a.Org.
And then I realize he’s literally purring. I knew alphas could do that, too, even if they’re not as likely as omegas. But I’ve never actually heard it, and I’m not expecting the wash of warmth and relaxation it sends through my body.
That’s new.
I nod shakily, gulping down ragged breaths as my inner walls flutter around the thick invasion. It’s been so long since I’ve felt this full, this utterly claimed.
But there’s no more pain, no fear. Just the bone-deep satisfaction of being taken by alphas who don’t repulse me.
Enrage me, sure. Plenty of times.
Whiskey nuzzles against the side of my neck, raining soft kisses along the line of my jaw. ‘Look at you,’ he murmurs in hushed awe. ‘Taking him like a champ. You feel so fuckin’ good wrapped around him, don’t you?’
I nod again, a trembling moan spilling from my lips. My hips give an instinctive roll, grinding against Thane’s groin in search of friction. He hisses through gritted teeth, fingers biting into my hips.
‘That’s it, little rabbit,’ Thane growls, the first shallow thrusts sending sparks of pleasure ricocheting through me. ‘Fuck yourself on my cock. Take what you need.’
I whimper, hips surging upward to meet his languid strokes. My fingers tangle in the sheets, back arching as ecstasy builds in a dizzying crescendo. Each glide of his thick shaft inside me has me teetering on the edge, so close to that blissful oblivion.
Whiskey devours my lips in another ravenous kiss, swallowing my breathless moans. His hands roam freely, palming the soft weight of my breasts before pinching the taut peaks with wicked twists.
I cry out against his mouth, hurtling over that edge into shattering release. Rapture crashes over me in waves, my inner muscles rippling around Thane’s thick length as I shudder and shake through each exquisite pulse.
He rumbles deep in his chest, lips brushing my brow in a shocking display of tenderness. ‘Good girl,’ he murmurs, thrusts growing harder, more urgent. ‘So fuckin’ good for me, Ivy. Take it all.’
I cling to him, burying my face in the solid curve of his shoulder as he uses my body with deep, punishing strokes. Whiskey rains kisses along my jaw, my throat, his rough fingertips finding my aching clit to rub tight, merciless circles around the swollen bud.
It’s almost too much, but just when I think I can’t possibly take any more, I feel the swell of Thane’s knot.
But there’s no fucking way I can take it.
Not yet.
To my relief, he seems to sense that and doesn’t push it in. Even the alphas at the Center knew they’d get in trouble for knotting us, since that can form a mate bond. So I only have my terror-fueled imagination to tell me what that would be like.
That, and… curiosity. Which is something I’ve never experienced before in regard to any part of an alpha’s anatomy.
And there’s a part of me that wants to be knotted to sate this heat, even if I know I need more preparation.
Thane goes rigid above me, a guttural roar tearing from his throat. His hips stutter, that thick cock pulsing as he spills himself deep inside me. He collapses against me, forehead pressed to mine as we both pant for air. I cry out and shudder beneath him, trembling through the aftershocks as my body throbs around the thick shaft still buried inside me.
‘Fuck,’ Whiskey rasps, fingers stilling against my swollen clit. ‘That might be the hottest damn thing I’ve ever seen.’
Thane snorts, his breath ghosting over my cheek. He levers himself up on one elbow, trailing the backs of his fingers down my flushed cheek. ‘We’re not done with you yet, little rabbit. You still have to take a knot before you’re out of heat.’
My heart stutters at the promise in his words, fresh arousal wetting his cock, which is still stuffed into me.
This is only the beginning?
I don’t know if I’ll even survive.
I gulp audibly, glancing at Whiskey in mute appeal.
‘What can I say?’ he drawls, rolling his shoulders in a lazy stretch that has every rope of muscle flexing beneath his tanned skin. ‘The man speaks the truth. Now it’s my turn to have a go at that sweet little cunt.’
Thane chuckles darkly, withdrawing from my body with a slick, obscene sound that has me blushing furiously. He leans back against the pillows, an indolent sprawl of hard muscle and male beauty as he watches Whiskey move into position between my splayed thighs.
‘Be my guest,’ Thane rumbles, one big hand finding my breast to toy with the pebbled peak. ‘Let’s see if you can keep up, pup.’
Whiskey bares his teeth in a roguish grin, already lining up the thick crown of his shaft with my entrance. ‘You just sit back and take notes,’ he purrs, hips surging forward to bury himself inside me in one slick thrust.
My back bows, a shocked cry tearing from my lips. He’s as huge as Thane, that thick length stretching me so wide I feel ready to split in two. If it wasn’t for my heat, I wouldn’t stand a chance at all of taking him, either. He stills once he’s fully sheathed, giving me a moment to acclimate to the delicious impalement.
‘There we go,’ he croons, leaning down to swirl his tongue around one tight peak of my nipple. ‘Fuck, you feel incredible. Like you were made just for me.’
He captures my lips in another searing kiss before I can respond to that, swallowing my whimpers as he begins to move. His strokes are smooth and powerful, each roll of those hips driving him deeper until I can’t tell where I end and he begins.
I clutch uselessly at his massive arms and thick trunk of a torso, my nails scrabbling for purchase against his flexing muscles and the scars marking his tanned skin. His muscles may not be as defined as Thane’s, but he’s bigger, sturdier, heavier.
He lowers himself over me, bracing himself on those pillars he calls arms, and the weight of him crushing me into the bed makes me deliciously lightheaded.
Like a bear fucking me senseless.
And I love it.
Thane’s hand roams lower, his fingers delving between my thighs to stroke and tease my aching clit while Whiskey mounts me. Both of them doing that at once has me coming undone, utterly incoherent.
Groping, thrusting, licking, nipping, sucking. They’re all over me, their bodies, their hands, their mouths. It’s overwhelming in the best possible way, and I feel like I’m going to black out.
They work me higher and higher, driving me to dizzying peaks over and over until the world whites out. Then, I feel it.
Whiskey’s knot.
Dangerously close to breeching me.
‘What do you think, boss?’ he asks in a throaty, lust-filled snarl. ‘You think she’s ready to take a knot?’
‘Only one way to find out,’ Thane murmurs, his voice equally gravelly as he watches intently.
I suck in a sharp breath, equal parts fear and need. I glance down worriedly, and even though he’s still buried inside me and I can hardly see what’s going on, Whiskey’s knot is partially visible. Thick and swollen and utterly daunting, as red as the head of his cock.
My first instinct is to panic, some deeply ingrained survival reflex kicking in. Getting knotted will trap me with him, giving him the chance to bite me—to mark me in a way that would form an unbreakable mate bond—the ultimate claim of ownership over my body and my life. I’ve heard the horror stories from other omegas, tales of excruciating pain from alphas who took things too far.
But this is different, isn’t it?
These alphas aren’t complete savages, not really. There’s a strange thread of tenderness woven through their touches, a glimmer of restraint and care. They seem to see me as a person. They treat me as one, at least, and not just a receptacle to mindlessly rut into whenever they get the urge.
Whiskey seems to sense my hesitation. He stills his powerful thrusts, one calloused palm cradling my jaw as he holds my stare.
‘Easy there, little wildcat,’ he murmurs, his gaze surprisingly gentle. The low, steady purr in his chest intensifies, and I feel another wave of warmth that makes it easier to trust him. ‘We’re not gonna hurt you. Just wanna make you feel good and get you out of that heat, that’s all.’
I swallow hard, giving the smallest of nods.
He’s telling the truth. I can sense it.
Emboldened by the realization, I arch up to meet him. My walls flutter and clench around the thick base of his shaft. ‘Please,’ I whisper, breathless and aching. ‘I want to try.’
Thane rumbles low in his chest, too, and his lips brush the damp curls at my temple in a tender caress. ‘Such a good girl, so brave for us. Take a few deep breaths and relax that sweet body. Let Whiskey in nice and slow.’
I do as instructed, forcing my muscles to uncoil one by one. My hips rock and grind against Whiskey, working that engorged knot against my slick entrance. There’s a dull ache of stretching, a delicious burn as my body makes room for the thick intrusion.
The impossible swell of Whiskey’s knot presses insistently against my entrance, stretching me wider than I’ve ever been stretched before. A trembling whine escapes my lips as I fight to relax my body, to accept that incredible girth.
But I’m still too tight, too untried for something that massive.
Whiskey gives a low growl, the muscles in his arms tensing as he fights the urge to simply take what he wants. I can see the war raging behind his eyes. The primal alpha instinct to claim and take relentlessly battling against his restraint.
For a breathless moment, I’m sure he’s going to force the issue. That he’ll bear down and bully his knot past my straining muscles until he splits me open.
But then, to my utter shock, he gentles. The hard lines of his body soften as he exhales a shuddering breath.
‘Easy there,’ he murmurs, trailing the calloused pads of his fingers down my flushed cheek. ‘No need to push yourself too far just yet.’
My eyes flutter open, drinking in the tender expression flickering across his rugged features. There’s no impatience there, no frustration or displeasure. Only a raw sort of wonder, like he can hardly believe the gift he’s been given.
‘You did so good for us’,’ he croons, leaning in to brush his lips over my brow in a shocking display of tenderness.
I tremble beneath him, torn between disappointment and overwhelming relief. Some primal, needy part of me aches to be claimed in the most permanent way possible. To have my body reshaped and remade to fit my alphas like a glove.
But the wiser, more cautious part of me knows I’m not ready. Not yet.
So I nod shakily, offering Whiskey a tremulous smile of gratitude. He returns it with a wink, hips rolling in a slow, sensuous grind that has us both gasping from the exquisite friction.
‘That’s my good girl,’ he growls, thick cock sliding through my depths in a delicious glide. ‘Just lay back and let us take care of you, yeah?’
I keen softly, back arching as the pleasurable ache builds once more. My hands fist in the sheets, toes curling as that spiraling tension winds tighter and tighter with each powerful thrust.
Thane rumbles his approval from where he lounges beside us, one big palm splaying over the flat plane of my stomach. The grounding weight of it sends a fresh gush of slick coating Whiskey’s shaft, my inner muscles fluttering wildly.
‘Look at her,’ Thane marvels in that smoky rasp. ‘She’s fucking glowing.’
I flush beneath his heated appraisal, even as another desperate whimper spills free. My fingers seek purchase against the hard wall of Whiskey’s chest, body arching into the merciless rhythm he sets.
‘Please,’ I beg, the word torn from my very soul. ‘I need… I need…’
But I don’t have to finish the plea. Whiskey already knows what I crave, already has one calloused thumb finding that aching little bundle of nerves.
The first brush of friction against my swollen clit has me convulsing, a broken cry ripping free. He chuckles darkly, circling the throbbing bud with wicked strokes that border on too much.
It’s overwhelming in the most incredible way. Each roll of Whiskey’s hips steals what little breath remains in my lungs, each swirl of his thumb over that exquisitely sensitive flesh shattering me into stardust.
My release crashes over me in shattering waves, inner muscles rippling and fluttering around that thick, pulsing length. I shatter apart on a breathless cry, body seizing as rapture washes over me in relentless pulses.
It seems to go on and on, pleasure cresting higher with each powerful stroke until I’m left a boneless, trembling mess between them. Only then do I feel Whiskey’s rhythm falter, his hips snapping forward in short, sharp bursts.
I never would have imagined he was the kind of alpha who made sure his omega came first once, let alone multiple times.
He throws his head back on a guttural growl, that thick shaft pulsing as he empties himself in me. I cry out again, overstimulated and raw, my body greedily milking every last drop from him.
When he finally stills, it’s with a full-body shudder and a ragged groan. Whiskey collapses against me in a tangle of sweat-slicked limbs, his weight pinning me to the mattress.
I lie there dazed and panting, utterly wrung out as purrs tickle my throat. And this time, I don’t try to stop. My heartbeat thunders in my ears, the rush of blood near deafening. I feel deliciously sore in a thousand different places, the lingering ache a heady reminder of how thoroughly I’ve been claimed and used.
And I actually… enjoyed it?
I feel a curious combination of disbelief and guilt, as if I’ve somehow betrayed myself in allowing myself to be vulnerable, even for a moment. But for this moment, I just want to enjoy this.
Want to enjoy them.
I whimper softly, my body twitching from the sweet over-stimulation. Whiskey chuckles again and stills, lips finding mine in a surprisingly tender kiss.
‘Easy there,’ he murmurs against my mouth. ‘Just rest up. This heat ain’t over until you manage to take one of our knots in that vice grip of a pussy.’
My face flushes with embarrassment, but he’s right. As satisfied as I am right now, I can still feel the embers of my heat stirring, and know it’ll be back before long—demanding more.
I sigh contentedly, allowing my heavy lids to drift shut as I burrow deeper into the solid warmth of their embrace.
A small, secret part of me doesn’t want this reprieve to end. I want to stay just like this. Cocooned between these strange alphas with their musky, reassuring scents surrounding me.