Page 82 of Mating With My Grumpy Alphas
"Pretty much," Wes admitted. "I keep thinking about how this changes everything. Not just with Willa, but between all of us."
"Good changes though," Rhett said. "Right?"
"The best changes," I said firmly. "But still big ones. A year ago, none of us could have imagined this."
"A year ago, I thought I was fine living alone," Wes said. "Now I can't imagine life without any of you."
"Even us?" Rhett asked with a grin, gesturing between himself and me.
"Especially you," Wes said seriously. "I never thought I'd have brothers. Didn't think I needed them."
"And now?" I asked, touched by his honesty.
"Now it feels like you were always supposed to be part of my life," he said simply. "Like we were always supposed to be family."
The words hung in the air between us, carrying the weight of truth and transformation. Pack wasn't just about romantic bonds. It was about chosen family, about men who would have each other's backs through everything life could throw at them.
"I feel the same way," I said quietly. "Like the three of us were meant to find each other."
"We just needed Willa," Rhett added. "To bring us together."
"She gave us permission to love each other," I corrected. "All of us, in all the ways that matter. To be brothers."
"So we're ready?" Wes asked. "For tomorrow, for pack bonding, for whatever comes after?"
"We're ready," Rhett said with conviction. "We're ready to be the family she deserves. The family we all deserve."
"Questions?" I asked, looking between both of them.
"Just one," Rhett said. "Are you sure we can do this? Be everything she needs?"
I looked at both of them, seeing the combination of anticipation and determination that came with approaching such an important milestone. These weren't just two alphas getting ready to help an omega through heat. These were my brothers, preparing to officially become the family we'd been building.
"I'm sure," I said firmly. "She's ready. We're ready. This is going to be beautiful."
As we finalized the last details and prepared to rejoin Willa for dinner, I found myself thinking about transformation. How sometimes the most important changes happened slowly, through careful relationship building and conscious choice, rather than dramatic revelation.
"One more thing," I said as we prepared to leave the nest room. "Remember that this isn't just about bonding with Willa. This is about proving to ourselves that we can be the pack we've always felt like we were."
"No pressure," Wes said with a smile.
"All the pressure," I corrected. "The best kind. The kind that makes you become who you were always meant to be."
As we rejoined Willa in the kitchen, where she was helping prepare dinner with the kind of restless energy that confirmed tomorrow would be the day, I felt the deep satisfaction of knowing we were ready. Not just for heat support or bonding, but for everything that came with being family.
Love wasn't just wanting someone. It was doing the work to make sure they were safe enough to want you back.
Chapter 30
Willa
Iwoke with fire in my veins.
The transition from sleep to awareness was jarring, like surfacing from deep water into blazing sunlight. Every nerve ending felt exposed, hypersensitive. The soft cotton of Wes's sheets against my skin was almost overwhelming, and the combined scents of three alphas in the bed made my omega instincts sing with desperate need.
Heat. Full, undeniable heat.
I must have made a sound because suddenly there were gentle hands on my shoulders, a soothing voice in my ear.
