Chapter 39
Kara
Cole returns three minutes later, cradling the snow wolf plushie like it's made of glass.
It looks even more worn than I remembered—one ear slightly gray from being clutched too many times, the stitching on its paws coming loose. But it's clean. I wash it every week, my one indulgence.
"It's been waiting for you." Cole places it gently in my hands. "Ready to protect you again."
My throat closes up. I bury my face in synthetic fur that smells like cheap detergent and memories and home.
"Thank you." The words come out muffled. "Can I...can I change? Into real pajamas?"
Cole hands me my overnight bag. I clutch it along with my snow wolf and dart into Blake's bathroom.
When I emerge five minutes later in an actual sleep shirt and shorts, Blake is shirtless on the bed's right side, Asher on the left still wearing a black t-shirt. Both have left a Kara-sized space between them.
Cole sits on the couch in the corner, already looking miserable.
"Come here, Baby." Blake pats the space between them. "We don't bite. Not without permission."
My legs feel like water as I approach the bed. Every instinct screams this is a trap. That the moment I'm horizontal, they'll pin me down. Take what they want.
But my wolf is louder. Safe. Pack. Ours.
I climb onto the bed, my snow wolf clutched to my chest like a shield.
"On your side." Cole guides me from his spot on the couch. "Facing Blake. It'll be more comfortable."
I curl into a ball, my back to the empty space where Asher will be. Blake is right there, his chest bare and sculpted, his blue eyes soft in the dim light.
His arm comes around my waist. Carefully. Slowly enough that I could stop him.
I don't.
The heat of his skin against my back makes me shiver. My wolf practically melts.
Then Asher moves behind me, his chest pressing against my spine. He's still clothed, but I can feel every inch of him—his heartbeat, his controlled breathing, his warmth.
I'm sandwiched between them. Trapped. Surrounded.
And I've never felt safer in my entire life.
"Good night, Baby." Cole's voice drifts from across the room, resigned but tender. "Tomorrow's my turn."
Blake's hand rests on my waist, thumb brushing the strip of skin where my shirt rode up. "I'm sorry about the snow wolf." His lips are against my forehead. "About calling you childish. The wolf is perfect. Just like you."
Asher's breath stirs my hair. "We've got you now, Kara. You and your snow wolf both. Nothing's going to hurt you again. Not even us."
His hand covers mine where it clutches the plushie. The gesture is protective. Possessive.
He's taking over the job, I realize. From the wolf. From my memories. He wants to be the one who keeps me safe.
I should be terrified.
Instead, my eyes are already closing. Their combined scents—ebony and tobacco, gunpowder and leather, even Cole's distant mint—wrap around me like a blanket. The mate bond hums contentedly, finally satisfied that we're where we belong.
Blake presses a kiss to my temple. "Sleep, Princess."
"Can I..." The words stick in my throat. "Can I ask you something?"
"Anything." Asher's answer rumbles through his chest into my back.
"When did you start...wanting me?" The question makes me feel small and pathetic. "Really?"
Silence for a breath. Two.
"We remember everything about you." Asher's hand tightens on mine. "Every dress. Every expression. Every time you bit your lip when you were nervous. We've been cataloging you for years, Kara. Long before we understood why."
Tears burn behind my eyes. "You could have just told me."
"We were cowards." Blake's voice goes rough. "Scared little boys taught to think you were beneath us. So we hurt you instead of admitting the truth."
"What truth?"
"That you've been ours since we first saw you." Asher presses his lips to the back of my neck, right above my unmarked glands. Not biting. Just...breathing me in. "We just didn't deserve you yet."
My heart hammers so hard they must feel it.
"Do you deserve me now?" The question slips out before I can stop it.
"No." Blake's answer is immediate. Honest. "But we're going to spend the rest of our lives trying to."
The words settle over me like a promise. A vow.
"Blake." My voice is small. "Can you...kiss my neck? Not—not a mark. Just..."
I don't finish. Can't.
His breath catches. "You're asking me to—"
"Just a kiss." My face burns with embarrassment and something darker. "On my gland. I need...I need to know what it feels like."
"Fuck." Blake shifts, propping up on one elbow. His eyes search mine in the darkness. "You sure, Baby? Because if I put my mouth there—"
"I'm sure."
Blake moves slowly. Giving me time to change my mind. His lips brush my neck—just above where my gland pulses beneath the skin.
The contact makes me gasp. Electricity races down my spine, pools between my legs. My core clenches with sudden, shocking need.
Blake's tongue traces the spot. Once. Barely there.
I whimper.
"Jesus Christ." Blake breathes against my throat. "You taste like—like everything I've ever wanted. Like snow and sweetness and mine."
He pulls back before I can beg him not to. Before I can tilt my head and give him access to actually bite.
"My turn." Asher's voice is strained. "If you'll let me."
I nod. Can't speak past the need clogging my throat.
Asher's mouth finds the other side of my neck. His lips press against my gland—just resting there for five endless seconds. Five seconds where I feel the thin skin pulse under his mouth, where my body screams bite bite BITE.
When he pulls away, he leaves wetness behind. Saliva mixed with my scent.
"Next time you let us this close," Asher murmurs against my ear, "I won't pull away. Next time, I'll bite down and make you ours forever."
The promise—the threat—makes my core clench again.
But I don't tell him no. Don't tell him to stop.
I just clutch my snow wolf tighter and close my eyes.
Their scents surround me. Their bodies protect me. For the first time in ten years, I'm not alone.
And when sleep finally drags me under, I don't dream of being abandoned in the snow.
I dream of three massive black wolves standing guard around a small white wolf. Keeping her safe. Keeping her warm.