Page 43 of Knot The Nanny We Planned

It makes my chest hurt.

After breakfast, I pull Knox and Deklan aside while Willow takes Lily to the living room.

"Tonight," I say.

They both look at me. Knox's eyebrows shoot up. Deklan's jaw tightens. "She asked for it?" Knox says.

"She asked for all of us."

Knox exhales. A long, controlled breath. His hands are trembling slightly. "About goddamn time."

"She needs to be sure," Deklan says. His voice is steady, but his pulse is hammering in his throat. "Not just willing. Sure. After last night, after what Serena said, she needs to be choosing this, not getting swept up in it."

"She is choosing." I hold his gaze. "She kissed me this morning. She said she wants all of us. She's sure."

Deklan nods slowly. His hand curls into a fist on the counter, then releases. "Then we do this right. The nest. The ritual. All of it."

"Agreed."

"What about Lily?" Knox asks. "I love that kid, but I do not want her walking in during, "

"My assistant is arranging a sitter," I say. "A vetted omega from the agency's childcare division. She'll arrive at 6 PM and stay overnight in the guest suite."

Knox stares at me. "You planned this."

"I've been planning this since 3 AM."

"You didn't sleep."

"No."

"JD."

"I'll sleep tonight." I glance toward the living room, where Willow is building a block tower with Lily. "After."

Knox follows my gaze. His expression softens. "You're in love with her."

The word lands like a bomb. Love. Not want. Not desire. Not the biological imperative of a scent-match. Love. But I don't deny it.

"Aren't you?" I ask instead.

He's quiet for a long moment. "Yeah. I am."

We both look at Deklan. The Beta stands at the island, arms crossed, glasses slightly askew. His face is unreadable, the mask firmly in place.

"Deklan," I say.

"I held her while she cried," he says. His voice is quiet. Controlled. But there's a crack underneath. "I put my mouth on her and told her she was home. And then she almost left anyway." He pauses. Swallows. "If she had left, if she had gotten on that bus, I would have followed her. To Millbrook. To the end of the earth. I would have found her and brought her back."

"That's love, brother," Knox says softly.

Deklan's jaw tightens. "I know what it is."

The silence stretches. Three men in a kitchen, each carrying the weight of a lifetime of loss, looking at a woman in the next room who might, impossibly, impossibly, be the one to make it lighter.

"Tonight," I say again. "We do this right. We claim her. Together."

Knox nods.