Page 96 of Mating With My Grumpy Alphas
“Thank you for letting us save you,” Wes replied. “For trusting us with your heart even when you had every reason not to.”
“Thank you for saving us too,” Rhett added. “For showing us what we were missing and then helping us build it together.”
“We saved each other,” I said, feeling the truth of it in every bond that connected us. “That’s what families do.”
As we drifted toward sleep, surrounded by the warmth and scent and absolute safety of pack, I realized that this was what happily ever after actually looked like. Not an ending, but a beginning. The foundation upon which we’d build years and decades of shared joy and love.
Chapter 35
Wes
Three days of domestic bliss had given me a new appreciation for ordinary mornings. The simple pleasure of waking up surrounded by pack, of sharing coffee and quiet conversation before the day demanded our attention, of knowing that I'd come home to the same warmth and love that had filled every moment since our bonding completed.
But this morning felt different. Charged with anticipation in a way that made my alpha instincts sit up and take notice.
"You're distracted," Willa observed from her spot at the kitchen table, where she was editing photos on her laptop while Rhett prepared her lunch for work.
"The environmental journalist called this morning," I said, unable to keep the excitement out of my voice. "The story breaks today. Front page of the Herald, with online coverage that should hit the major environmental news sites by noon."
"Cassian's story?" Elias asked, looking up from the herbal preparation he was working on.
"All of it," I confirmed. "The buried impact reports, the falsified assessments, the corporate malfeasance. Everything he provided, plus independent verification from three different environmental science firms."
"How do you think the town will react?" Willa asked, though I could sense through our bond that she was more concerned about Cassian's reception than the environmental implications.
"Once they understand what really happened?" I said. "Relief, probably. Gratitude. Maybe some guilt about how they've been treating him."
"And until they understand?" Rhett asked, his practical mind already thinking through potential complications.
"Probably confusion, anger, a lot of people demanding explanations," I admitted. "It's going to be a rough day for anyone connected to the development project."
"Good thing you're taking me to work then," Willa said, closing her laptop and standing to accept the lunch Rhett had prepared. "I'll get to witness the chaos firsthand."
The drive to Pine & Pages was quiet, both of us lost in our own thoughts about what the day might bring. Three days of pack bonding had created a bubble of contentment that felt almost too good to be true. Part of me was waiting for external reality to intrude and remind us that the world beyond our cabin was still complicated and messy.
"Whatever happens today," I said as we pulled up to the bookshop, "it doesn't change anything about us. About what we've built."
"I know," she said softly, leaning over to kiss me before getting out. "But it might change things for Cassian. And I find myself caring about that more than I expected to."
The protective warmth in her voice made my chest tight with affection. This was what bonding with good people did to you. It expanded your capacity for compassion, made you want toextend the safety and belonging you'd found to others who needed it.
"I'll pick you up after your shift," I promised. "We can swing by his place on the way home, check how he's handling everything."
"I'd like that," she said, and I could feel her gratitude through our bond.
I spent the morning at my office, fielding calls from colleagues and journalists who wanted my perspective on the environmental revelations. The story was even bigger than I'd hoped, with implications that reached far beyond Hollow Haven's local development dispute.
By lunch time, my phone was buzzing constantly with interview requests and invitations to comment on the broader issues of corporate environmental responsibility. It was gratifying to have my work validated so publicly, but what mattered most was that the woodland preserve was safe. The habitat I'd spent two years documenting and fighting to protect would remain untouched.
When I arrived at Pine & Pages to collect Willa, the entire downtown area was buzzing with activity. Clusters of people stood on street corners, reading newspapers and talking in animated voices. The kind of energy that came with major news that affected everyone.
Inside the bookshop, I found Willa behind the counter helping a customer, but she looked up when the bell announced my arrival. The smile that spread across her face was brilliant and warm and made every protective instinct I possessed purr with satisfaction.
"How's it been?" I asked once the customer left.
"Interesting," she said, coming around the counter to give me a quick kiss. "Everyone's talking about the development scandal. The reactions have been... mixed."
"Mixed how?"
