The gesture is so tender it nearly breaks me. These scars, proof of every fight, every moment I thought I wasn't worth saving. She kisses them like they're precious.
"These are part of you," she whispers against my skin. "Part of what makes you who you are. I love all of you."
I press my face into her hair, breathing her in. Can't find words for what she does to me. How she makes the broken pieces feel whole. I start to purr and the sound is loud in the quiet room.
After a moment, she reaches out toward August with one hand, her voice soft with emotion. "Come here. I want both of you close."
August moves closer to the nest, taking her outstretched hand. He leans down to kiss her gently, and I watch the tender moment with my heart full.
When they break apart, she gets that look in her eye. That mischievous twinkle that's becoming familiar. She pushes August gently toward me with a small smile.
"Kiss him," she whispers.
August's eyes meet mine, and then he's leaning down to capture my lips. The kiss is soft at first, then deeper, and I can feel Daisy watching us. The desire she feels watching us floods down our new bond. All three of us groan at the intensity.
The wave of need makes me shift involuntarily, and Daisy moans, her walls clenching around me.
"Fuck," I breathe against August's mouth. "Daisy, what you do to us..."
Through our bonds, August's emotions wash over both of us. A year of love and patience and hope. His joy that his two favorite people are finally connected. He made me believe I was worthy of love like this. Made me whole. Now we're finally complete.
"He sees the real you," Daisy says, her hands stroking through my hair. "Just like I do. The gentle man who makes me feel safe."
I sink back into the soft nest, pulling her with me so she's still pressed against my chest. Her scent fills the air—honeysuckle and vanilla mixed with my own. August made me whole. Daisy completes our family.
"I love you," I whisper against her skin, the words still foreign on my tongue but absolutely true. "Never thought I could have this. Never thought I deserved it."
"You deserve everything," she says fiercely, holding me tight. "You deserve to be loved and chosen and cherished."
Through the bond, I feel her certainty. Her absolute faith in me. It's humbling and terrifying and the most beautiful thing I've ever experienced.
My knot starts to soften slowly, but I don't want to separate from her. Don't want to break this perfect moment. Around us, I can hear the others moving closer, but I barely register them. All my attention is on Daisy, on the omega who chose me despite everything.
"How do you feel?" I ask softly, stroking her hair.
"Perfect," she breathes. "Like I was missing a piece of myself and didn't even know it. You fill something in me, Cassian."
The words make my chest tight with emotion. That's exactly how I feel. August healed my broken pieces, but Daisy...
Made us whole.
Chapter 36
Daisy
The heat floods my system like fire in my veins.
One moment I'm dozing peacefully between Cassian and August, our bond humming warm and content in my chest, and the next I'm burning alive. Slick gushes between my thighs, soaking the sheets beneath me as another wave of desperate need crashes through my body.
I whimper, pressing my face into Cassian's chest. Through our bond, I feel his instant concern even in sleep, but he's too exhausted from our claiming to wake fully. His breathing stays deep and even, one arm still draped protectively over my waist.
"August," I whisper, my voice hoarse with need. The cramping in my lower belly is getting worse, sharper than before. My body is demanding something it's not getting.
August shifts beside me immediately, his hazel eyes going wide as he takes in my flushed skin, the way I'm trembling against Cassian.
"How bad?" he asks softly, not wanting to wake Cassian.
"Bad," I gasp as another wave hits. My skin feels too tight, too hot. The scent of my own arousal is overwhelming. I can only feel through the bond August and Cassian close. Gunner Ican feel him a little further away… I reach out to him and he is happy, warm.