Page 51 of Nesting With My Three Alphas
"Her heat's coming soon," I said, bringing up the practical reality we couldn't ignore. "I can smell the changes in her scent already. Two, maybe three more days. And with Marcus circling, she's going to be vulnerable in ways that go beyond the physical."
"Charlie needs to be somewhere safe during that time," Jonah said. "Emma has been wanting her to visit for longer anyway. I’ll give her a call this evening. This conversation stays between us though. Charlie doesn't need to know the details about any of this until we've talked to Kit."
"And Kit needs to be somewhere secure," Micah added. "That duplex isn't going to cut it, especially if she's in heat and there's a threat."
"She should be here," Jonah said firmly. "Where we can protect her properly."
"Think she'll agree to that?" I asked.
"I think she'll agree to whatever keeps her safe once she processes how serious this Marcus situation is," Jonah replied. "She's not the same woman who ran from Chicago. She's stronger now, more willing to accept help."
"And more willing to trust us," Micah said hopefully.
I gritted my teeth, feeling the promise I’d made to Kit crack inside me. I couldn’t keep this from them. Marcus had gone too far now. This was more than just I could handle and Jonah needed all the facts when he had Charlie to consider as well.
“There’s something else,” I said, the guilt of what I was about to say hitting me hard. “The day of the storm, Kit came home to a box on her doorstep. It was full of photographs of her. Someone’s been following her. Everywhere. Watching her when she’s been at home, out in the town. It’s why she was so shook up during the storm.”
When I looked up I couldn’t take the look on their faces. Jonah and Micah had gone deadly still. I could practically see thethoughts flashing through their minds, the betrayal, the worry, the anger. I’d fucked up.
“I know I should have…”
“No,” Micah said softly. “If you didn’t tell us before, it was because Kit asked you not to.”
I nodded slowly. “She was worried about you. I told her the only way I’d keep it between us was if she promised to come to me with absolutely anything else that happened, no matter how small.”
“You did the right thing,” Jonah said, reaching out and clasping my shoulder. “Kit’s safety is everything, but so is her trust. I’d have done exactly the same thing in your position.”
We spent the next hour working through logistics, security measures, Charlie's arrangements, work schedules that would ensure Kit was never alone. But underneath all the practical planning was the deeper truth we'd finally acknowledged.
We were in love with Kit. All of us. And instead of seeing that as a complication, we were beginning to recognize it as the solution.
I found myself thinking about how long I'd known this moment would come. Maybe not the specifics, but the certainty that when Kit finally let her guard down, when she finally trusted us enough to be vulnerable, we'd all be there to catch her. It felt like destiny finally catching up with reality.
"So what's the timeline?" Micah asked as we began to wrap up our planning session.
"Tomorrow, I go with Kit to give her statement," Jonah said. "Make sure she feels supported through the legal process."
"I'll start putting together a plan to upgrade the security here," I added. "And coordinate with Sheriff Rowe about the increased patrols."
"And I'll make sure she has comfort food waiting when she gets back," Micah said. "Today was hard on her. Tomorrow might be harder."
"When do we talk to her about moving, and how we feel?" I asked.
"Soon," Jonah said. "After the legal stuff is handled, we need to talk about living arrangements, even if it's just temporarily until the Marcus situation is resolved. After she's feeling more secure, butbeforeher heat hits, we all need to sit down and talk about everything, feelings included. She deserves to know where we stand so she can make an informed choice about what she wants while she has a clear head to do it."
"And if she wants all of us?" Micah asked.
"Then we show her what it means to be loved by a real pack," I said simply. "And if she doesn't want the pack, we make sure she still knows she's safe. Always."
The silence that followed was comfortable, settled. We'd finally said out loud what we'd all been feeling, and instead of creating awkwardness or competition, it had brought us closer together.
Three alphas united in purpose instead of divided by jealousy.
Chapter 17
Kit
The drive to the sheriff's office was quiet, Jonah's steady presence beside me the only thing keeping my nerves from completely taking over. My hands were clasped tightly in my lap, and I could feel the subtle tremor that had started the moment I'd woken up thinking about facing Marcus's lies officially.
