I had to keep my disappointment to a minimum or they’d feel it through the bond. We could go at any pace they felt most comfortable with.
Holding a pillow to my chest, I scooted to the edge of the bed and looked around the small room. It was only Vandle and Phantom right now. My real nest with my real pack, and my real alphas. It was all too much to process, and my hormones were all over the place, as if they’d infused me with feral instincts with their cuddles while we’d all slept.
Phantom yesterday—he’d even dark-bond-commended me tobea nuisance. I stuffed down a giggle, thinking of what Sister Matilda would say about that! But the elation quickly crashed.
This was too much of a dream. What would go wrong?
Therehadto be something—it couldn’t be this perfect.
I stared around the quiet, stone room, shrinking a little. It was cool in here, though the baggy white top was keeping the goosebumps away. It always felt a little damp, and beyond the intermittent howls of mad alphas, I could hear the low rumble of thunder.
Sin had left a while ago and Karma went with him. Yesterday when they were updating me and Vandle on Anarchy politics, they’d said it was safer to stay in a group, but I found myself wishing they would take me with them so we could all be safe together…
Two wasn’t abiggroup, after all.
Would they be safe?
A chirp of panic escaped my chest as I thought of it, and I almost buried myself back in my pillows.
Icouldn’tlose them now.
They were so sweet, and cuddled me, and took care of me in a way I’d never been able to dream of. And Vandle was a seer so it was all legal, even by the Sisterhood’s standards.
Phantom was in the shower while Vandle lounged on the bottom bunk opposite my nest. It was a miracle he fit, his frame almost taller than the bed was long. He had a book open on his lap, but I hadn’t seen him turning many pages. He was either a slow reader, or the book was just for show.
“Um, Vandle?” I cleared my throat, avoiding eye contact with the massive alpha. “Can we…”
I trailed off.
He’s going to say no, and it’s a stupid idea anyway.
You can just be good and stay quiet.
“Never mind,” I mumbled, bailing out of even asking for the book.
I’d almost scooted back into the comfort of the blanket cave when his hand caught my ankle, bare skin on bare skin. I gasped, nails digging into the pillow as I met his eyes.
They stared back at me, one white and one red, seeing so much more than my panicked expression. It felt like he could see inside my soul, and it should be unnerving… but I liked it.
“What did you want, Princess?” he asked.
He sounded so sincere, like he would give me anything. I couldn’t be selfish enough to ask for him to take me for a walk—not when me leaving this room was so dangerous for all of them.
His touch on me had made the tight feeling in my core so much more intense, though. I needed to walk it off now more than ever, so the request ended up just spilling out.
“Can you take me out of here? Just for a little while?” I asked.
Vandle knelt down on the floor beside the bed, dragging me by the ankle back to the edge. He settled between my legs, my knees spread on either side of his chest as I sat back upright. Hewas hot, fighting off the pervasive chill that always seemed to hover in the air here.
My body heated to match his warmth, starting at the apex of my thighs and ending in my reddened cheeks.
He wouldn’t let me shy away, bringing his hands up to hold my thighs. The heat of his touch seared me and I let out a whine.
“Are we not keeping you entertained enough?” Vandle’s voice was deep and rough.
I shot a helpless look at the bathroom door. The water was still running—Phantom wasn’t about to come out and save me from myself.
It wasn’t that I was afraid, but these alphas kept doing things the Sisters hadn’t taught me about. I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to be doing.