Page 86 of Mating With My Grumpy Alphas
Soon, I'd need them. Soon, the heat would demand their attention. But for now, I was content to lie in Elias's arms, feeling the new bond pulse between us like a second heartbeat, and marvel at how safe it felt to be claimed by someone who loved me.
Chapter 31
Wes
The scent that drifted from the bedroom was intoxicating. Rich, complex, layered with the unmistakable markers of successful claiming. Elias's pine and healing herbs, now permanently blended with Willa's warm jasmine and summer rain. But underneath it all was something new: the deep, satisfied scent of a bonded pair.
I stood at the kitchen counter, gripping my coffee mug with enough force to crack ceramic, and tried to keep my alpha instincts under control. Every cell in my body was screaming at me to go to her, to check that she was safe and satisfied and ready for the next stage of bonding. But Elias had asked for time, and I respected that. This was Willa's first claiming. She deserved space to process what had just happened.
Beside me, Rhett was doing his own version of restless waiting. He'd reorganized the spice rack twice and was now methodically checking and rechecking the emergency supplies Elias had prepared for heat support. Keeping his hands busywhile his mind processed what we could all smell, all feel in the air.
"How long has it been?" he asked, though we both knew exactly how long it had been since the claiming scent had peaked and then settled into something deeper.
"Forty-three minutes," I said, not bothering to pretend I hadn't been tracking every second.
"Think they need anything?"
"I think they need us to stop hovering and trust them to ask if they do."
Rhett snorted. "Easy for you to say. You're not going stir-crazy from the waiting."
But I was. God, I was. The sound of Willa's climax, muffled by the bedroom walls but unmistakable in its intensity, had nearly driven me to my knees. The knowledge that she was in there bonding with Elias, establishing the first of the connections that would make us a true pack, was both thrilling and torture.
My phone buzzed with a text from my supervisor, something about the environmental impact report that was due next week. I stared at the screen, trying to remember why watershed protection had ever seemed important compared to the omega currently being claimed in my bedroom.
"You should answer that," Rhett said, noticing my distraction.
"It can wait."
"The whole world can wait," he agreed, understanding exactly what I meant.
The bedroom door opened, and both of us went still. Elias appeared, wearing only his jeans, his hair mussed and his scent carrying the deep satisfaction of an alpha who had successfully claimed his omega. But there was something else in his expression. Anticipation mixed with a protective concern that made my chest tight.
"How is she?" I asked immediately.
"Perfect," he said, and the warmth in his voice made my heart skip. "The bond took beautifully. It's everything and yet so much more."
"And now?" Rhett asked, though we both knew the answer.
"Now she needs you," Elias said, looking directly at me. "The claiming triggered the next stage of heat. Her body's already preparing for the second bond."
The words hit me like a physical blow. She needed me. After everything we'd built together, all the trust and connection and careful courtship, she was ready to let me claim her. To make our bond permanent and unbreakable.
"Is she asking for me specifically?" I asked, needing to be sure.
"She's asking for you," Elias said with a small smile. "Said she wants you for this part of her heat."
The trust implicit in her choice sent warmth through my chest. After everything we'd built together, all the careful courtship and growing connection, she was choosing me for this crucial moment in her heat cycle.
"Go," Rhett said, clapping me on the shoulder. "She's been waiting for you since this whole thing started."
I nodded, suddenly nervous in a way I hadn't expected. This wasn't just about sex or even about bonding. This was about proving to Willa that her trust in me was justified. That I could be the kind of alpha she deserved, the kind who put her needs before my own instincts.
The bedroom was warm and filled with the most incredible scent I'd ever experienced. Willa was curled on her side in the center of the bed, wearing nothing but an expression of drowsy satisfaction. But when she saw me, her eyes sharpened with renewed focus.
"Wes," she said, and my name sounded different coming from her now. Deeper, richer, carrying the weight of the bond she'd already established with Elias.
"How are you feeling?" I asked, settling carefully on the edge of the bed.
