Page 76 of Nesting With My Three Alphas
Jonah's smile was radiant, transforming his serious expression into something that took my breath away. "Now you're ready," he said with satisfaction. "Now we can do this properly."
He lifted me from the tub, beginning to dry me with infinite care. "You're mine, Kit," he said quietly, his voice carrying that familiar bedrock certainty. "And I'm going to show you what that means."
As he wrapped me in soft towels and carried me back toward our nest, I realized that this. This patience. This protection. Thisquiet, deliberate refusal to rush me. This was what real love looked like.
And I was finally ready to claim it completely.
Chapter 25
Kit
Jonah carried me back to our nest with the same careful attention he'd shown during my bath, his strong arms making me feel precious and protected. The bedroom felt different now. Quieter, more sacred, charged with the anticipation of completion rather than desperate need.
Reed and Micah had refreshed the space while we were gone, straightening blankets and adding fresh water glasses, but they maintained respectful distance as Jonah settled me gently into the center of our carefully constructed sanctuary.
"Better?" Jonah asked, studying my face with the focused attention of someone who'd learned to read my every expression.
"Perfect," I said honestly. My heat was still present, still humming under my skin, but it felt manageable now rather than overwhelming. "Thank you for taking care of me."
"Always," Jonah said simply, settling beside me with fluid grace. "That's what I'm here for."
The confidence in his voice, the absolute certainty that caring for me was his purpose and privilege, sent warmth spiraling through my chest that had nothing to do with heat hormones.
"I love you," I said, the words carrying weight they hadn't possessed an hour ago when my biology had been doing most of the talking. "I love how you see what I need before I do. How you protect me even from myself sometimes."
Jonah's smile was soft, transforming his serious features into something that made my heart race. "I love you too. I never thought I could love anyone again after Sarah."
The mention of his late wife should have created awkwardness, but instead it felt like a gift. He was telling me that what we had was real enough, deep enough, to honor the love he'd lost while building something new.
"Will you claim me now?" I asked, reaching for him with steady hands. "Will you complete our pack?"
"It would be my honor," Jonah said, his voice rough with emotion and barely contained desire.
When Jonah kissed me, it was with the confidence of a man who knew exactly what he wanted and had waited patiently for the right moment to take it. His mouth was warm and sure against mine, his hands framing my face with a reverence that made my omega purr with satisfaction.
This was what it felt like to be cherished by an alpha who understood the difference between taking and being given.
"I've been thinking about this moment since the day you moved in next door," Jonah murmured against my lips, his breath warm and scented with cedar and desire. "Thinking about how it would feel to claim you properly, completely."
"Show me," I whispered, my hands finding the buttons of his shirt with growing urgency, my fingers clumsy with need butreverent with intention. "Show me what you've been thinking about."
Jonah's approach was deliberate and thorough, each touch calculated to build pleasure slowly rather than rushing toward completion. When my fingers fumbled with his buttons, he covered my hands with his own, guiding them with patient instruction.
"Slow down, sweetheart," he said gently. "We have all the time in the world."
Because this wasn't just about satisfying my heat anymore. This was about building something that would last forever.
When I finally succeeded in pushing his shirt from his shoulders, when I could see the broad expanse of his chest marked with old scars that spoke of a life lived protecting others, I felt my mouth water with appreciation.
"You're beautiful," I said, running my hands over the warm skin and solid muscle. "So strong, so perfect."
"You make me feel perfect," Jonah replied, his own hands beginning to map my body with the focused attention of someone who intended to memorize every curve and sensitive spot. "You make me feel like the alpha I was meant to be."
His touch was different from Reed's demanding possession or Micah's gentle worship. Jonah touched me like he was claiming territory that already belonged to him, confident and sure and absolutely certain of his welcome.
When his mouth found my breast, when his tongue circled my nipple with maddening precision, I arched into his touch with a gasp of pleasure that came from somewhere deeper than physical sensation.
"That's it," Jonah encouraged, his voice warm with approval. "Take from your alpha, my beautiful omega. I want to know every single way to make you purr. Show me, let go and show me everything."
