Mated To My Supposed Brother

Claim Me

The evening air inside the cottage was thick with a heavy, suffocating silence that seemed to press against Aria’s chest with every breath she took.

She stood at the small wooden table, her fingers tracing the grain of the wood over and over until her skin felt raw.

She had prepared a simple dinner of roasted meat and root vegetables, but the food had long since grown cold, just like the fire in the hearth.

She kept her back to the door, her ears straining for the sound of boots on the gravel path, her heart thumping a frantic, irregular rhythm that she couldn't slow down.

When the latch finally clicked and the door swung open, the air in the room shifted instantly. It became charged, electric, and heavy with a scent that made Aria’s stomach drop.

It wasn't just the familiar pine and rain that belonged to Liam; it was layered with something else.

It was the smell of sweat from the pits, the musk of other warriors, and the sharp, cloying sweetness of jasmine and rose.

It was the perfume of the women who had been circling him all day. It was the scent of Cassie.

Liam didn't say a word.

He closed the door behind him and leaned against it for a long moment, his dark silhouette filling the small space.

Even without looking at him, Aria could feel his gaze on her back, calm and devastatingly intense.

She didn't turn around. She couldn't. She was afraid that if she looked at him, she would either scream or burst into tears.

You’re late, she said, her voice coming out much thinner than she had intended.

Liam pushed off the door and walked toward the kitchen, his movements slow and deliberate. He didn't offer an excuse.

He didn't apologize. He simply pulled out a chair and sat down, the wood creaking under his weight.

He looked exhausted, his bronze skin smudged with dirt and his sapphire eyes hooded, but he still carried that quiet, dangerous power that made the very walls of the house seem too small.

I stayed to finish the drills with Marcus, he said, his voice a low vibration that seemed to settle in Aria’s bones.

And to talk to Cassie? she snapped, finally spinning around to face him.

The jealousy she had been trying to bury all day erupted with a sudden, violent force.

You seemed to have plenty of time for her at the well. You had plenty of time for every girl in the pack who wanted a taste of the great warrior.

Liam looked up at her, his face a mask of unreadable stillness.

He picked up his fork and began to eat the cold meat, his movements precise.

You were the one who told me to act like your brother, Aria.

You were the one who demanded we go back to the lie and i am just playing the part you assigned me.

Is that what you call it? she laughed, a sharp, bitter sound that echoed off the low ceiling.

Letting her put your hand on her chest? Letting that other girl hug you while the whole pack watched?

You looked like you were enjoying the part quite a bit, Liam.

You looked like you couldn't wait to be rid of the sister you find so inconvenient.

Liam stopped eating and set his fork down with a quiet clink that sounded like a gunshot in the silent room.

He stood up slowly, his tall frame towering over the table, and walked around it until he was standing directly in front of her.

Aria tried to back away, but her hips hit the edge of the kitchen counter, trapping her.

Liam didn't stop. He stepped into her space, his heat radiating off him in waves that made her dizzy.

He placed his hands on the counter on either side of her, effectively caging her in.

He didn't touch her, but he was so close she could see the golden flecks in his blue eyes and the dark stubble on his jaw.

The scent of Cassie’s perfume was even stronger now, a physical brand of his day spent away from her.

You are shaking, Aria, he noted, his voice dropping to a jagged whisper.

I am not, she lied, though her hands were trembling so hard she had to grip the edge of the counter to stay upright.

You are, he countered, his gaze dropping to her lips before returning to her eyes.

You are shaking because you are furious.

You are shaking because the bond is screaming at you that I belong to you, and yet you are too afraid to say the words out loud.

You want to mark me. You want to tear the skin off any woman who touches me. So why are you still pretending?

Aria tried to push him away, but it was like trying to move a mountain.

I am pretending because I have to! I am pretending because I don't want to see you executed! I don't want to be the reason our family name is erased from the pack records.

We are siblings, Liam.

No matter what the moon says, that is what we are.

Liam leaned in closer, his forehead almost touching hers.

The intensity in his eyes was terrifying, a raw and honest hunger that made her heart ache.

If you want them to stop touching me, Aria, you have to tell me I'm yours.

One word, and I will never let another soul near me. I will ignore the Alpha. I will ignore the girls. I will be your shadow and nothing else. But you have to claim me.

Aria looked at him, her eyes brimming with unshed tears. She wanted to say it.

The word was right there, burning in the back of her throat, ready to set the world on fire.

She wanted to tell him that he was hers, that she loved him with a ferocity that scared her, and that she would kill anyone who tried to take him.

But then she thought of the Alpha’s cold eyes. She thought of the whispers in the village. She thought of the life they would lose.

I can't, she whispered, her voice breaking.

Liam didn't move for a long moment.

He just stayed there, his breath warm on her face, his gaze searching hers for a flicker of the courage she didn't have.

Then, he slowly pulled away, his hands dropping from the counter.

The heat he had brought into her space vanished, replaced by a coldness that felt like death.

I see, he said, his voice flat and devoid of emotion.

He didn't return to his meal. He didn't look at her again. He simply turned and walked toward the small hallway that led to their bedrooms.

His footsteps were heavy on the wooden floor, each one sounding like a finality she wasn't ready for.

Liam, wait, she called out, her voice small and desperate.

He stopped but didn't turn around. His back was a broad, unyielding wall of muscle and shadow.

I made your favorite dessert, she said, her hands twisting in the fabric of her apron.

I thought maybe we could... we could talk. Like we used to.

I’m tired, Aria, he said, his voice sounding hollow and distant. And talk is cheap when the moon is watching. I’m going to sleep.

I suggest you do the same.

He disappeared into his room, and the click of the latch sounded like a final judgment.

Aria stood alone in the kitchen, the cold dinner and the silent house closing in on her.

The distance between them, which had always been a narrow crack they could easily jump over, had suddenly become a vast, jagged canyon.