Page 133 of Bound By Alphas 1: Bound

The three brothers exchanged another of those silent looks, a whole conversation happening without a single word being spoken.

“Tomorrow,” Cade finally said, his arms tightening around me protectively. “Tomorrow we’ll tell you everything—about your parents, your heritage, the darkness that’s searching for you. But tonight…”

“Tonight is just for us,” Keir finished, his hand squeezing mine. “For reconnecting. For healing.”

“For making up for four years apart,” Logan added, his voice dropping to a growl that sent shivers down my spine despite my exhaustion.

I should have insisted on answers now, should have demanded to know what was so dangerous that they felt justified in kidnapping me. But the warmth of their bodies surroundingmine, the contentment humming through our bond, and the bone-deep exhaustion from our activities made it easy to agree.

“Tomorrow,” I conceded, settling more comfortably against Cade’s chest. “But I’m holding you to that. No more secrets.”

“No more secrets,” they promised in unison, and I believed them.

As we lay there, tangled together in a mess of limbs and satisfaction, I felt my fox features begin to recede—ears melting back into my hair, tail disappearing. The partial shift had never been so easy to control, so natural to maintain and release.

As I drifted toward sleep, safely ensconced between my mates, I realized that for all my fears about losing my independence, I had never felt more free than I did in this moment. Free to be exactly who I was—fox and human, artist and mate, individual and part of something greater.

This wasn’t a prison, as I’d initially feared. It was a sanctuary. A home. A place where I could be my true self, fox ears and all, without fear or shame or the constant need to hide.

And as the three men I loved held me close, their heartbeats synchronizing with mine in the quiet darkness, I knew with absolute certainty that I had finally found where I belonged.

Not in Seattle, living half a life while pretending to be something I wasn’t.

Not in the memories of what might have been, trapped by misunderstandings and fear.

But here. With them. My alphas. My mates. My home.

Forever.

Chapter 26

SINCLAIR BROTHERS

Cade woke before dawn, his wolf senses alert to the slightest changes in his environment. The first rays of morning light filtered through the curtains, casting a golden glow across the massive bed where his brothers and their mate lay tangled in a knot of limbs and sheets.

His eyes immediately found Finn, nestled between Keir and Logan, his hair tousled from sleep and their activities the night before. In repose, with his face relaxed and his defenses down, Finn looked younger, more vulnerable—a stark contrast to the fiercely independent young man who had fought them so hard just yesterday.

Four years. Four years of separation, of watching from afar, of respecting Finn’s need for independence while every instinct screamed to reclaim him. Now, finally, he was back where he belonged.

Cade drank in the sight of him, cataloging every detail with possessive thoroughness. Finn had changed during their time apart—his body leaner, more defined, the softness of youth replaced by the subtle muscle of adulthood. His shoulders wereslightly broader, his jawline sharper, but he remained delicately built compared to the three alphas who surrounded him.

Even in sleep, Finn’s beauty was striking—long lashes casting shadows on his cheeks, full lips slightly parted, the curve of his throat where their claiming marks had begun to form. His chest rose and fell with each breath, the sheets tangled around his waist revealing the contrast between his paler skin and their sun-kissed tones.

Logan stirred first, his arm tightening around Finn’s waist as he opened his eyes to meet Cade’s gaze over their mate’s sleeping form. Through their pack bond, Cade felt his brother’s contentment, his fierce protectiveness, his lingering hunger for their mate despite the night’s activities.

He’s even more beautiful in the morning light,Logan observed silently, careful not to wake Finn.

He always has been,Cade agreed, watching as Keir began to stir as well, his hand unconsciously seeking Finn’s, fingers intertwining even in sleep.

The sight of their mate surrounded by them, marked by them, filled Cade with a primal satisfaction that went beyond mere possession. This was right. This was how it should always have been.

As if sensing their attention, Finn’s eyelids fluttered, then opened. For a moment, disorientation clouded his amber-gold gaze before recognition dawned. His eyes narrowed immediately, a familiar look of annoyance replacing the peaceful vulnerability of sleep.

“Do you always watch people while they sleep?” he muttered, voice rough with slumber and last night’s activities. “Because I’ve got to tell you, it’s creepy as hell.”

Cade’s lips curved into a smile. There was the sass he’d missed, the sharp tongue that had always amused him evenwhen it was directed at him. “Only the ones who tried to run from us for four years.”

Finn groaned, attempting to burrow back under the covers, but Logan’s arm around his waist prevented his escape. “It’s too early for this conversation. Come back in about three years.”

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