Claimed Under The Mistletoe: The Triplet Alphas' Destiny

Chapter 61

Gwen

The fire cracked softly in the hearth, and the air in the room shimmered with the residue of laughter and low music still humming in my blood. The moment had shifted again—but this time, not toward rest.

Not yet.

I sat on the bed, still wrapped in Cain’s coat, watching the three of them as they moved around the room. Something in me pulsed—steady, electric, ready. Maybe it was the wine, or the dancing, or the way I’d felt completely me tonight for the first time in what felt like forever. Or maybe it was simply the power of choosing this moment for myself.

Cash looked like he was trying not to meet my eyes, standing closest to the fire, jaw tense like he was holding something back. Cole lingered by the edge of the bed, and Cain leaned against the door like he was giving me space, but his golden eyes tracked every breath I took.

I pulled the coat from my shoulders and let it fall onto the bed.

Their gazes snapped to me.

“Gwen…” Cain’s voice was careful. “We don’t have to—”

“I know,” I said, standing slowly. “But I want to.”

Cole took a half-step forward, his hand twitching like he wanted to reach for me. “Are you sure?”

I nodded, letting them see the steel in me. “I’m tired of letting fear make my decisions. If I’m going to move forward, I have to move. I’m not broken. And even if I crack sometimes, I’m still whole.”

I stepped toward Cash. He looked startled, then guilty, then—something deeper. I straddled his lap where he sat on the couch, cupping his jaw, making him look me in the eye.

“I love you, Cash,” I whispered. “I know that what happened with Justin hurt you. Hurt us. But I need you to hear me—he didn’t break this. He didn’t break me. And you are mine, do you understand me?”

Cash’s hands slid up to my hips, gripping tightly, not enough to hurt but enough to make me gasp. His voice was rough when he answered, “Say it again.”

“You’re mine.” I kissed his cheek, then his jaw, then pressed my lips to his with something deep and certain and fierce. “And I’m yours. All of you. Always.”

He groaned and kissed me like he couldn’t hold back anymore, his hands running over the fabric of my dress, fingers trembling with restraint.

Cain was behind me suddenly, his lips brushing my shoulder. Cole was beside me, sliding his hands up my thighs, anchoring me.

They kissed me like I was something sacred and wild all at once—touches firm but not demanding, patient but burning. Their mouths met mine, trading turns, their hands moving over me like they were learning every part of me again.

Over clothing, through fabric, through sighs and gasps and heat, I let myself be seen. Be wanted. Be me.

And I felt powerful.

Cash’s lips crashed into mine again, all raw emotion and aching need, but there was pain behind it too. As though part of him still didn’t believe I was here, straddling him, grounding us both in this moment.

I threaded my fingers into his hair and deepened the kiss. Behind me, Cain’s hands slid down my arms, his chest brushing my back as he murmured something I couldn’t quite hear but felt like a promise. Cole’s hands, steady and grounding, rested on my thighs, thumbs stroking small circles against my skin.

Three heartbeats. Three pieces of me.

I broke the kiss with Cash and turned slightly so my lips could find Cain’s. He kissed me slowly—his hand rising to cradle my jaw. I felt Cole move, pressing gentle kisses along my knee, then higher to the outside of my thigh, soft and slow, as though he was reminding me with each brush of his mouth that I was cherished. He nipped at me every couple of kisses causing my hips to jerk on Cash's lap.

I pulled away just far enough to catch my breath, then looked between the three of them. “I want this. All of it. All of you. Don’t make me ask again.”

Cole’s gaze lifted to mine, full of reverence and heat. “We just don’t want to push.”

“You’re not,” I whispered. “This is me pushing back.”

I shifted in Cash’s lap and leaned toward him again. My hands slid under his shirt, feeling the warmth of his skin and the tremble in his muscles. He was holding back for me. They all were. But I didn’t want them to.

“Let me,” I said to him. “Let me remind you who I belong to.”

Cash sucked in a breath, and I watched the tension ease from his shoulders, replaced by something far deeper—trust.

I tugged at the hem of his shirt and he lifted his arms, letting me peel it off. I trailed kisses down his chest, each one soft but deliberate. Cain kissed the side of my neck, his teeth grazing my skin but not marking. I arched into him, into them.

Cole stood now, kissing me from the front, his fingers tugging my hair, while Cain held me from behind, and Cash’s hands gripped my hips like I was the only thing anchoring him to this world.

Clothes remained, but barely. My dress bunched around my thighs, their shirts disappeared, and fingers traced over every inch of skin offered.

It was slow. Intimate. Powerful.

Someone's fingers trailed up my thighs until they brushed the aching spot between them. My eyes were closed, lost in the sensation of fingers and mouths. "Goddess Gwen," Cash hissed as I ground myself against him, desperate for friction. I felt my self being lifted off of his lap and being gently laid back on the couch. Cole settled himself between my thighs as Cash stood, his erection straining through his pants. I pouted at him and he shot me a wink "Sorry, gorgeous, I was going to lose control if you pressed your sweet body against me one more time." "Mmmm you should lose control, Cash," I said, my voice breathy and high. He pressed a kiss to my mouth and groaned as I reached out and stroked him over his pants. He pulled away, my bottom lip trapped between his teeth for a second before he released it. "There will be plenty of time for that later, I promise." My witty response died on my lips as I felt Cole stroke his tongue down my slit. I arched my back in surprise "Goddess, Cole" He looked up at me and winked, his tongue leisurely stroking me again. His hot mouth found my c**t as he slid two fingers inside me. I whimpered, tangling my fingers in his hair and pressing him closer to me. He continued his work, sucking and teasing, his fingers curling up to press the right spot. I could feel myself coming close to release. "Open your eyes, Gwen. I want to see you c*m" Cain growled. My eyes snapped open as I found him standing there, pleasuring himself. I glanced to Cash and found him stroking himself as he watched me come undone. I came hard, my body convulsing around Cole's gentle fingers. He moaned as my wetness filled his mouth, continuing to work me through the aftershocks of my orgasm. Cain and Cash grunted as they found their own release.

I was surrounded. Consumed. Whole.

And for the first time in so long, I felt like mine. Not broken. Not claimed. But deeply, fully loved—and finally strong enough to receive it.

Cain

I didn’t know if I’d ever catch my breath again.

Not because we’d done anything extreme—we’d held back, carefully navigating the edges of the moment like it was holy ground—but because of the way Gwen had taken control. The way she’d reclaimed the space around her, the way her voice didn’t shake when she said, “Let me remind you who I belong to.” Like she’d finally remembered her strength.

She wasn’t just ours anymore. She was hers, first. And watching her rediscover that lit something inside me I hadn’t realized was dimming.

I sat on the edge of the bed, my heart pounding in sync with Cole’s and Cash’s, still vibrating with the echo of her touch. Gwen lay stretched across the pillows now, her chest rising and falling steadily, a soft flush still painting her cheeks. She looked… content. Like herself. Like the girl who tackled rogue patrols before breakfast and made us all believe we were better men just by being near her.

Cole sat near her feet, his fingers gently stroking her ankle in slow, thoughtful circles. Cash was tucked against her side, their foreheads touching. I could tell he was still shaken—Gwen straddling him and saying she loved him had unraveled a knot in him none of us had been able to reach.

I reached out, brushing a stray curl away from her temple. Her skin was warm, her breath even. A moment ago, she’d trembled in my arms, not from fear, but from power.

“You okay?” Cole asked me softly.

I nodded once. “More than.”

“She’s different,” Cash murmured without opening his eyes. “But in a good way. Like she’s waking up again.”

“She is,” I said, my voice thick. “And we’re gonna protect that. Whatever it takes.”

Cole let out a breath like he’d been holding it all night. “She’s already stronger than she knows.”

“I think she’s finally starting to believe that,” I replied.

None of us said what we were all thinking: we almost lost her. Not physically—though that had been far too close—but emotionally, spiritually. Piece by piece, the world had tried to break Gwen down. And now she was building herself back up again, brick by brick, and letting us be part of it.

I would’ve fought for her no matter what. But this—this version of Gwen who chose us while also choosing herself? I’d burn kingdoms to the ground for her.

I laid back beside her, my arm sliding beneath her shoulders. “We’ve got you,” I whispered, even though she was already asleep.

She didn’t answer with words, but she curled into me instinctively, like she knew.

And that was enough.