Page 3 of In Their Arms

“I’m gonna get you some water, okay?” I whisper, wanting to take care of him. Grayson and Maceo are watching Blake closely, having mentioned several times that at the first sign of distress, they’re taking him to the hospital. However, I think Blake is so much worse off than we know.

He’s holding back. I can’t feel him as strong as I usually do and the way his eyes seem to unfocus at times terrifies me. I pat his chest, slowly rising off of his lap to head for the kitchen when the temperature in the room seems to drop several degrees. Blake tenses beneath me, a flicker of fear running through his expression as he grabs for me, frantic fingers tugging me back down.

It’s seconds before I’m curled up in his lap, my head buried in his chest as Blake rocks me back and forth. His breath ghosts over my ear as he whispers, “They won’t take you from me.”

I’m not exactly sure when it started, maybe a day after Luther handed himself in, but Blake can’t be apart from me. He’s under the impression that I’ll be taken next, that someone is slowly ripping this new family from his grasp. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have the same fear—if I didn’t believe that without Luther in this room, we’re more susceptible to whatever Hudson is planning. But Blake’s reaction to the situation is something I’ve never seen before.

I’ve never been needed so fiercely and loved so hard that my entire body responds. “I’m not going anywhere,” I finally tell him.

Grayson and Maceo move toward the couch, sitting on either side of us, immediately catching onto Blake’s distress. It’s hard not to when his usually sweet scent is burnt with fear. The way Blake is curled in on himself. The way his breath stutters in his chest. The way I’m gripping him too tight, like I can physically hold him together if I just don’t let go. Tears gather in my eyes as I meet Grayson’s gray ones. “He’s hurting so much,” I whisper, my bottom lip trembling.

My Alpha leans in, pressing a tender kiss to Blake’s temple before resting his head there for just a moment. “I know, baby. But Quentin mentioned there isn’t much we can do other than monitor him, make sure he’s eating and sleeping.”

The problem is that he’s not really doing either of those. I’m about to make another comment about it but realize there’s no point. Because my worry is just making Blake struggle more. The stress he’s under is growing and I’m adding to it. A small whine falls from my lips as Gray removes me from Blake’s arms, Maceo stealing Blake into his. There’s a moment of panic in Blake’s expression before he settles, his eyes wide and focused on me as if I might just disappear.

Our Beta cradles Blake against his chest, unearthing a small napkin, a sandwich inside. Maceo holds the edge to Blake’s lips, hope swirling through his gaze. “Come on, Blake. You need to eat at least a little something.”

Blake’s body stiffens. I have no idea why he’s hesitating. A few days ago, I was in that spot, scared and terrified of the world and now Blake is suffering and other than sitting here, watching him fade, there’s nothing I can do. Until he twists his head toward me, searching for something—approval, acceptance? I have no clue.

I force a watery smile, wiping at my face, trying to hold it together, trying to keep it together for him. “Please just eat something,” I whisper. “Please.”

Blake swallows hard, glancing between us before his gaze finally drops as Maceo presses a sandwich to his lips again. For a second, I don’t think he’s going to do it. Then he does. Just a little bite but it’s enough.

I let out a slow breath, my body sinking back against the cushions as the tension in my chest finally loosens just enough for me to breathe. Grayson shifts beside me, pulling me against him, and I don’t resist. His arms come around me, his scent filling the space as I let my head rest against his chest.

The harsh thrum of the bond tells me that all of this is going to get worse before it gets better, Grayson’s arms tightening around me. “I thought we’d have more time,” he mumbles into my hair. “Thought that if we could figure something out, an explanation,something—that it wouldn’t be this chaotic.”

I frown as I start playing with the buttons on his shirt. “What are you talking about?” I twist around so that I can see Blake, suddenly needing to make sure he’s okay. He’s taking small bites of the sandwich, Maceo staring down at him like he’s the most precious thing in the entire world.

“Hudson’s claim to you still stands. Luther’s hasn’t been validated, which means that you only have one bonded Alpha that can put a claim to you at this moment.” Gray blows out a heavy breath, fanning the curls on top of my head.

I hate that it matters who I ‘belong’ to, hate that the bite in my neck dictates where I’m allowed to be and who can claim me. Why is me sayingnonot enough? I shudder, raising a hand up to the thin bandage on my neck covering Hudson’s multiple bites. It’s healing but not fast enough, a dull throb beneath my skin, a reminder that no matter where I go, no matter what I do, he’s still tethered to me.

I can feel his thoughts sometimes. His cravings. His absolute, unrelenting need to get to me. It’s why I can’t sleep. Why every time I close my eyes, he’s there. I swallow hard, dropping my hand back into my lap, curling my fingers into the hem of my shirt as I force the words out. “I’m not going back with him. He can’t make me.” A man like Hudson could so easily drag me back into that godforsaken apartment that I left.

I’m just hoping the men in this room will keep that from happening because I’m not sure I can survive that nightmare a second time.

Maceo doesn’t say anything at first, too focused on feeding Blake. He’s still holding him in his lap, offering him tiny bites, coaxing him through it. Blake’s cheeks have warmed just a little, his scent mellowed out again, soft and easy and safe. He’s leaning into his Omega instincts now, letting himself be cared for, and it’s good. It’s better.

I don’t realize I’m staring until Maceo’s gaze flicks over to me. His jaw is pulled tight, his nostrils flared in anger not directed at me. “We’re not giving you back.”

My chest tightens, relief and anxiety crashing together in a way that makes my head spin.

“But,” Maceo continues, “that only happens if there’s another Alpha to claim you.”

My brows furrow as I sit up straight, confused and worried. “But an Alpha just claimed me. Why do I need another claim?” Then it clicks. Without Luther’s protection, legally Hudson could demand that I come home. However, if there was another Alpha to assume his claim, I could choose who I wanted to stay with and since it would happen outside of a heat, it would be official.

There’s only one other Alpha in this room, though.

I twist around to look up at Grayson, a wild smile on his lips as he leans down to kiss me. It’s soft and slow, Grayson taking his time to devour me before leaning back. My lids flutter as arousal pools in my lower belly, my cock hardening until it’s pressing against the seam of my shorts. “Are you going to claim me?” The fantasies of being part of Grayson and Blake’s pack have long been in my head.

It was never a possibility at that time but it didn’t mean I hadn’t thought about it. And now, there’s a very real chance these men could be all mine.

Grayson’s breath stutters just a little, and then his whole body shifts toward me, like he’s making sure I see him, like he wants me to hear what he says next without a single doubt. “If you’d let me claim you,” he murmurs, “I’d be honored.” He kisses me again, a much shorter one this time before he continues. “This kind of claiming has to be signed off by another Alpha. It has to be official, has to be mutual, has to be free from coercion.”

I pout, my bottom lip jutting out at the idea of someone else in the room. “Why can’t Maceo just do it?”

I know my scent shifts, getting sweeter, thicker, wrapping around both of them, and then I feel it. The way Grayson’s cock thickens against my ass, the way his grip tightens for just a second before he groans, letting his purr rumble through his chest. Slick gathers around my hole, threatening to turn this moment into something else entirely.

---