Page 22 of For All My Effort

Chapter Seven

I had no idea how I got out of Zeke’s grip, or how I managed to get around Han, but suddenly I was lunging for the female, soaking in the scent of her fear as it overpowered her very obvious arousal toward my mates.

It was Sebastian who managed to catch me before I did any real damage to the female. His arms were tight around my stomach, my attention not willing to part from my retreating prey for long enough to figure out how to get out of his hold.

When the door slammed shut, blocking out my view from the retreating beta, I still hadn’t calmed down.

Claim them. Remind them they’re yours. Remind everyone.

I listened to my instincts, turning around in my mate’s arms and climbing him until I was close enough to press my mouth to his. He needed to be aroused. I wanted him to be hard for me and only me.

My mouth was desperate on his and he let me explore. I felt him adjust his grip around my ass, squeezing each cheek as he held me against him. I ran my hands up to his hair, feeling the short blond strands between my fingers.

I felt a dull pain in my lower stomach which reminded me just how empty I was.

Kissing wasn’t enough.

I started pulling at the fabric over his body, ripping where I could, yanking at other spots, unbothered by the burn on my thighs as I worked to get my mate naked. When his chest was finally bare, I leaned forward and licked the space between his pecs, humming at his taste on my tongue.

Behind me, voices were nothing more than noise, no more indistinguishable than a bunch of motionless vibrations.

Limbs seemed to be getting in my way, I couldn’t figure out why I wasn’t moving down to reach my alpha’s cock. Every time I reached for his hardness, it was like my arm found its way back to my mate’s shoulder.

My annoyance bubbled out of me with a growl as I tried, again, to reach my alpha’s knot.

When I was denied, my temper flared. Already the dark haze in my mind was blocking most of my conscious thought, but my anger made me close to feral.

I felt my arms being pulled tight behind my back, my front pressed against the delicious hard scent of a tropical fruit. Beating hard against his chest, his heart was a strong steady presence.

At some point, I’d closed my eyes. Another pain in my core had me groaning, trying to bring my arms back around to curl against my stomach except I couldn’t break whatever hold kept them locked behind me.

Cool tears ran down my cheeks, letting me know how hot my body was. I didn’t want space though, no, I needed my alphas closer. They could take away this pain. I needed them, all of them, and more importantly, their knots.

Once this cramp seemed to pass, I took a deep breath, realizing we’d changed locations. I could smell my nest. The sense of safety it invoked meant I could instinctually recognize it with my eyes closed.

The room was dark, the lights even dimmer than the rest of the house. I squirmed out of my mate’s grasp, landing on the floor to my nest just past the door’s threshold.

I knew the others were nearby, but right now, my focus was on my nest. Of course my mates hadn’t satisfied me yet, I hadn’t made a nest. This was our safe place. No one could give over to their instincts until I’d prepared it properly.

First, the pillows. I started with the back walls, yanking all the pillows away and fluffing them before setting them back. The stuffing inside a particular pillow refused to even out, and that one got tossed from the bunch.

Then, onto the next wall. Working through the heat cramps that bowed me over, each one getting stronger and longer. And the next wall. Around the entrance to the nest, it was a little more difficult, but I prepped the pillows near the door for when it was finally closed.

Once the outer layers of the nest were set up how I liked, I made my way into the middle. Before I fixed the blankets onto the ground in the perfect half wall, I made the final adjustments to the pillows.

A square nest was not ideal. Round. Not circular, ovular. Corners needed to be shaped properly. The whole thing should be wide enough for my mates to sit in comfortably while waiting to knot me.

I was sweating by the time I finished all the pillows.

For the blankets, I folded them longways, wrapping one on top of another on top of another, until they were halfway up the pillow’s height, bordering in the perfect shape of the nest.

“This is a very nice nest, omega. Can we come in?”

The voice belonged to my first alpha. He liked my nest.

“Yes, yes, in.”

Apples, green ones, juicy and fresh that had water dripping down your chin with each bite.

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