Kean was a little freaked out by what happened. When that massive wolf had trotted into the kitchen, his heart had stopped. Rationally, he’d known it had to be Lidon, but he’d still been scared. No, he corrected himself; it hadn’t been his brain that had recognized the wolf. It had been his beta, his soul. Just like everyone else, Kean had dropped to his knees and then flat on the floor, compelled by a deep desire to honor his pack alpha.

His ears still rang with the deafening roar of the three alphas in the kitchen, and Kean felt its power roll through him. Once Lidon had left, they had all scrambled to their feet, somewhat dazed. The blast of energy that had brought them all to their knees still hummed in Kean’s veins. He was restless, on edge, and undeniably aroused. Man, his cock was throbbing in his pants, and he had to restrain himself to keep his hands off. A quick glance at Bray, who stood right next to him, confirmed he wasn’t the only one.

Hell, Grayson’s two boys were already plastered against him, with Sven shamelessly rutting against his alpha. Grayson’s hand found Lars’s neck as Kean watched, dragging him close for a deep kiss that left little to the imagination of what they were about to do. He wasn’t surprised when seconds later, Grayson and his boys headed to their bedroom, dropping clothes in the hallway. Kean caught a glimpse of Grayson’s bare ass before he entered their room and suppressed a sigh of admiration. The man was built, there was no denying that. And his two boys weren’t a hardship to look at either. 

Their departure left Kean, his brother Rhene who looked hyper as fuck, Bray, Lucan, and a dazed and flushed Sando. Kean liked the shy, smart omega and had even hoped for more of a connection, but there was nothing more than friendship between the two of them. It was for the better, as he was a bit stubborn and strong for the soft-spoken omega.

Bray, however, was a different story. As much as his lazy arrogance infuriated Kean, he couldn’t deny his attraction to the alpha. Hell, he’d been fighting it since they’d met, when he and Rhene had visited Palani for the first time. When Kean’s eyes had caught sight of Bray, something had sparked, something he hadn’t been able to let go of since. Not even the discovery that Bray could be a massive ass had taken it away, sadly.

Bray noticed him too, he was sure of it. There had been lingering gazes, some definite checking out of his ass, which admittedly was one of his best features. That, and his cuddliness. For a beta, he was on the big side, his body toned and muscled from working outside without having the perfectly sculpted pecs or the drool-worthy six-pack Bray had. A friend he’d hooked up with multiple times had called Kean “a cuddly bear but without all the fuzz.” 

Apparently, that did not appeal enough to Bray to make a move. That was a damn shame, because he still harbored hope that if they hooked up once, Bray would realize their attraction as well and would want more. Kean had even thought they might be… No, he had to forget about that. If that were the case, Bray would’ve felt it as well, right?

He adjusted himself, resigned to the fact he’d have to make do with his right hand. “I’ll catch you guys later,” he said, hoping he’d come off casual.

He hoped Bray would come after him, but when he didn’t, Kean retreated to his room where he jacked himself off until his cock stopped throbbing so damn much and the muscles in his hand were screaming with fatigue. It worked, but it was a damn downgrade from what being taken by Bray would have been like, he guessed. A guy his size had to pack a big tool, and that would’ve been so much better.

No one got much work done that day, he noted, as they all walked around half dazed and still aroused. What the fuck had happened there to cause that massive blast of power?

The next day, Palani called a pack meeting in the new barn they had built. The living room had become too small considering the pack size, so Jawon and his men had built a large barn and painted it red. It could serve as a meeting room, party barn, and whatever else they needed it for. It was still sparsely decorated, but Palani had ordered a bunch of wooden picnic tables so they had a place to sit and eat if they wanted. 

Kean made sure to be there early, wanting to have prime access. He slid his frame into the table at the front, turning his body half around so he could watch the others come in. Everyone was expected to show up, Palani had stressed in his announcement. Kean hadn’t spoken to his brother since the day before, when Lidon had shown up as a wolf, so he had no idea what this was about. They certainly had something to talk about after what had happened. Even Rhene had hung around an extra day, too curious to go back to the city just yet. 

Kean studied Bray as he walked into the barn, dressed in his usual tight black shirt and cargo shorts. The man had calves that were as big as Kean’s thighs. He sighed inwardly. Hot damn, he was one sexy motherfucker. What would it be like to be the recipient of that strength? The man would undoubtedly fuck like an animal, and damn if that didn’t appeal to Kean. 

Much to his surprise, Bray dropped on the bench next to him. “Hi,” the alpha said after a short hesitation.

Kean suppressed a smile. He didn’t leave Bray as unaffected as the alpha would like to pretend, now did he? Did that mean he was finally getting through to him? Or maybe—he barely dared to hope—the alpha had sensed their bond as well?

“Hi,” he replied, then decided to poke the bear a little, if only because Bray was so fun to tease. Besides, he had nothing to lose. “How’s your right hand doing? Or did you find a willing omega to oblige you?”

Bray’s head shot to the side and his eyes widened. Kean grinned. “You didn’t think you were the only one to walk out of there with a dick hard enough to pound nails, did you?” Bray’s mouth opened, then closed again, and Kean’s grin broadened. “Sorry, little too direct for you?”

“I’m not used to discussing my sex life with others,” Bray said.

“Huh, interesting.”

“What’s that supposed to mean, ‘interesting’?” Bray’s tone was sharp.

Kean shrugged. “Just a little surprised. Wasn’t expecting you to be a prude.”

Bray’s eyes narrowed, but before he could respond, Palani took his position and spoke. “Hey guys, thanks for joining us tonight for a pack meeting. It was an eventful day yesterday, I think it’s safe to say…”

Snickers and laughs rolled through the pack, and Palani grinned. “Eventful covers it nicely, I thought,” he joked, then turned more serious. “I’m sure you all have questions, as do we ourselves, so we’ll try to explain as much as we can and allow you to ask anything. But before we do that, we have something special to show you…or rather, someone special.”

The back door opened and Enar wheeled Vieno in, sitting in a wheelchair, holding his son. Kean’s “Aw…” joined a chorus of similar reactions from the others in the barn. Vieno beamed as he held his son close, who was swaddled in a light blue blanket, only his red little face peeping out. 

Lidon stepped forward, bending to kiss Vieno, then gently took the baby from him, holding him with his face turned toward the pack. “Meet our son and alpha heir, Hakon Hayes.”

Kean loved how Lidon said “our,” even though everyone knew damn well it was his biological son and not Palani’s or Enar’s. But these four were a united front as they stood there, beaming with pride. 

Then Grayson’s voice rang out. “In the days of old, the pack alpha’s heir was honored by the pack swearing allegiance to protect him. Please join me in renewing this tradition.”

Kean couldn’t get off the bench fast enough, and it was the same for everyone else. Once they stood, Grayson said, “Kneel for your alpha’s heir,” and as one man, they sank down to one knee.

“Hakon Hayes, as our alpha’s son, we swear allegiance to you. We swear to protect you at all costs, and we would lay down our lives to keep you safe. We bless you with a full moon, a loyal pack, and a long life. To Hakon!” Grayson shouted. 

Kean’s mouth opened without him realizing, and he joined the rest of the pack as they raised their voices in unison. “Hakon!”

When he rose again, he found his eyes tearing up, and he wiped them, a tad embarrassed until he saw others do the same. He couldn’t explain it, but it was like his soul recognized these traditions, like it knew what to do even though he’d never done this before. And what was even more amazing, was that he had meant every word of the vow that Grayson had spoken. He was willing to lay down his life for Hakon, and wasn’t that the strangest feeling ever? Sure, that tiny little baby was his nephew, but still. He’d never felt this deeply about anything in his life, and it would scare the hell out of him if it didn’t feel so right.

Bray’s head seemed to spin. Or maybe it was his heart, his soul. What the hell had happened? He’d always prided himself on being a rational person, but that moment had been fully emotional. He hadn’t even thought about it, had sunk to his knee and made that pledge without a second’s hesitation. What had motivated him to do that? He had no idea, but he stood by it. 

He took his seat again, noticing that Kean seemed just as thrown off-kilter as he was. A quick look around confirmed that everyone looked a bit out of it. This whole pack business was some seriously weird shit at times.

“Wow,” Palani said. “That was a moment so special I can’t even put it into words.”

“If you’re speechless, that’s saying a lot,” Kean called out, and a relieved laughter rolled through the room, breaking the tension. 

Palani gave him the finger, which caused more laughter. “You’d better be careful with that with a little one around,” Grayson warned him. “Before you know it, your son will copy that gesture…at one of his dads.”

Palani looked a little embarrassed as he laughed. Enar tapped his shoulder, and at that signal, Palani leaned in to kiss Vieno, who was holding Hakon again. Lidon did the same, and then Enar disappeared, taking Vieno with him. No wonder, the omega probably needed lots of rest the day after giving birth. 

Once they had left, Palani turned to face the pack again. “Okay, let’s talk about the shifting, because you all must be curious and have questions. Alpha, your turn.”

As always, Bray felt compelled by Lidon’s quiet power. It hung in the air, even now, when he hadn’t said a word. Over the next few minutes, Lidon explained how he’d felt changes in his body the last weeks of Vieno’s pregnancy, a premonition of the impending shift. This wasn’t news to Bray, as Palani had kept him apprised for obvious security reasons.

Then he talked about the birth of Hakon, discussing how the four of them had shared a power that had given Vieno the strength to get through the dangerous delivery. Bray hadn’t realized how close a call it had been, but Lidon’s quiet words brought that point home with a sobering shock. 

“I can’t explain how I shifted,” Lidon said. “I just did. I realize that must sound unsatisfactory to you all, but one second I was a man, and the next I was shifting. It was like my body knew how, or my soul, I don’t know. But it was the baby who brought forth the shift. As soon as I held Hakon, I felt it, that he and I were connected and that we shared power somehow. It was like he transferred power to me and then took it back, or the other way around. I’m not even sure what happened.”

“You also took power from us alphas, alpha,” Grayson said.

Lidon’s eyebrows rose. “I did?”

“Yes. I was in the kitchen with the others, waiting for news, and there was a moment when my alpha powers were sucked right out of me. I almost fainted. You felt that too, right, Bray?”

Bray saw no reason to deny it now that his father had admitted to it. “Yeah, I did. I felt like Jell-O.”

“Huh,” Lidon said. “I didn’t realize that, I’m sorry.”

Bray debated if he should mention the release of power. Maybe that was something better mentioned in private, as it could lead to embarrassing discussions about sex. But once again, his father had no such qualms. 

“Once you shifted, alpha, there was a release of energy,” he said, his voice more matter-of-fact than Bray could have ever pulled off. “And it had quite the impact on everyone, not only alphas.”

Lidon pulled up one eyebrow. “Impact how?”

Bray’s stomach twisted at the fat grin on his father’s face, like a cat who’d cornered a mouse and was about to eat it. “Let’s just say everyone’s libido got a massive boost.”

Lidon seemed to be embarrassed while Palani held his hand in front of his mouth, doing his best to not laugh at Lidon, but seconds later, he lost that fight and snickered. Even a slightly peeved side-eye from the pack alpha didn’t bring down his mirth, and there were quite a few who laughed along with him.

“Oh my god, imagine that every time you shift, you make them horny as fuck,” Palani said to Lidon, wiping tears of laughter out of his eyes. 

“Imagine that,” Lidon responded dryly, but the corners of his mouth twitched enough that Bray knew the man wasn’t upset. 

“Well, truth be told, you were horny as fuck as well afterward,” Palani then said, and Bray almost choked on his breath. 

Lidon’s hand shot out and grabbed Palani’s wrist, pulling him first toward him, then on his knees. The beta went willingly, Bray saw, his eyes still dancing with laughter. 

“Do I need to put your mouth to use to get you to shut up?” Lidon asked, and everyone laughed when Palani shrugged with a smile. The alpha bent toward his mate and kissed him in front of everyone, and not a subtle peck on the lips either. 

Bray snuck his hand under the table to adjust himself and promptly bumped into Kean, who was doing the same thing. Kean’s mouth split open in a grin that made him the spitting image of his brother, and suddenly Bray had no trouble imagining how and why the pack alpha wanted to put that mouth to use. Judging by Kean’s wink, the beta knew where Bray’s thoughts had gone.

“Okay,” Palani said when Lidon let him go. “I think you’ve made your point, alpha.” More laughter ensued. 

“Now, let’s get more serious,” Lidon said as Palani got back to his feet, then took position next to his alpha. “Grayson, is this a known effect of shifting? Do we know if this has been reported before?”

“Not this specifically,” his father answered. “But many of the legends and stories of old are from times when shifting was normal and when they didn't discuss sex openly, at least not in stories. After this happened yesterday, I did a little digging…” Someone snickered. “Yes, that kind of digging as well, as both my boys were more than accommodating,” he continued, and Bray’s mouth pulled tight. Why did his dad always have to rub his relationship in everyone’s face? Why couldn’t he keep shit private?

“I tried to find any similar tales. I didn’t find this specific thing, but I did come across several mentions of new pack recruits experiencing an increased sex drive the first months after joining. They worded it differently, but the picture that emerged was clear. I thought this might be because they weren’t yet used to the pack’s energy or the pack alpha’s energy, so kind of what happened yesterday, alpha.” 

“You’re saying this may occur more often in the beginning until we’re all more used to it,” Palani said.

“That’s my assumption based on what I’ve read, but it’s not conclusive.”

“Thanks, Grayson,” Lidon said. “That’s good to know. Apparently, I have to apologize in advance for boosting all of your sex drives. Or not, depending on how much of a success yesterday was for all of you.”

Bray mentally cursed. If this happened more often, he’d need to find a better outlet. He’d jerked off till his dick had become too sensitive to touch—and he’d still been hard. And it wasn’t like he could head out to the club that easily, not with how far the ranch was from the city. Now, he’d have to find someone on the ranch, someone like…

He stole a careful glance to his side. Maybe he should act on the chemistry he and Kean had, because there was no denying they sparked. Surely the beta would be up for a little casual fun between the sheets, especially if he shared this problem, right? All they’d do was work off a little steam, get rid of that pent-up sexual energy. They’d both benefit from that, since it wasn’t easy to find another partner. 

Bray’s options were limited, since he didn’t want to ask Palani for permission to approach an omega—plus, with omegas there was always the risk of unwanted entanglements caused by pregnancy—and the number of betas was limited. 

No, Kean would do. Now all Bray had to do was convince him to bend over for him, but that shouldn’t be too much of a problem, right?