Three marks, one mate

Twenty nine

Desiree POV

The shift in the atmosphere was immediate and suffocating.

One moment, the club had been alive with music and movement, and the next, it felt as though all eyes had turned toward us, the energy changing into something sharp and intrusive as whispers began to ripple through the crowd. Even the music seemed to fade into the background.

Before the situation could escalate further, one of the bouncers quickly approached us, his expression tense but controlled as he gestured for us to follow him. It was clear he wanted us out, to remove whatever disruption we had caused, but the moment his eyes landed on Ethan, his demeanor shifted instantly, his posture straightening with a hint of respect.

“Mr. Ethan,” the bouncer said politely, his tone now cautious, almost deferential, “you can make use of this room.”

Without waiting for a response, he led us away from the staring crowd and into a private room before quietly excusing himself, leaving the door shut behind him and the tension locked inside with us.

“I’m sorry, brother,” Avery said softly, her voice trembling slightly as she stepped forward, her hands clasped together as though trying to steady herself. “I just wanted to see him… and I asked your mate to come with me.”

Ethan’s head turned toward her immediately, confusion evident in his expression. “He is your brother?” he asked, clearly trying to piece everything together.

Avery nodded slowly.

“And your mate… is human?” Brandon asked, his voice low, controlled, but laced with disbelief as his gaze flicked between them.

Again, Avery nodded.

The silence that followed was even heavier than before, thick with unspoken questions, with uncertainty, with the weight of something none of us had truly prepared for.

I instinctively tried to move closer to Avery, wanting to comfort her, to let her know she wasn’t alone in this, but I barely took a step before I felt it—Grayson’s grip tightening around my arm, firm and unyielding.

“Stay here,” he said quietly, there was no room for argument in his tone. “We are not letting you out of our sight again.”

The possessiveness in his voice sent a small wave of guilt through me, but I didn’t fight him this time.

Avery turned back to Ethan, her composure finally cracking as the weight of the moment settled fully on her shoulders. “Ethan… I’m sorry,” she said, her voice breaking despite her effort to stay strong. “I understand if you don’t want anything to do with me anymore.”

The pain in her voice was impossible to ignore.

But Ethan didn’t hesitate, he stepped forward and pulled her into his arms, holding her tightly as though letting go was not even an option. “You are the best thing that has ever happened to me,” he said firmly, his voice filled with a sincerity that silenced every doubt in the room. “I don’t think I can live my life without you.”

The honesty in his words settled deeply within me, warming something in my chest even in the middle of all this chaos.

Daphne shifted beside me, her expression filled with guilt, her eyes downcast as though she blamed herself for everything that had happened, and I reached out slightly, giving her a reassuring look before turning back to Avery.

“Avery,” I said gently, trying to offer her some space, some control in a moment where everything felt out of her hands, “you can stay here with him while we leave.”

“No way,” Zachary snapped immediately, his voice sharp and protective. “I’m not leaving her alone with him.”

I turned to him then, my patience thinning as I met his gaze. “Do you want me to stay with her?” I asked, my tone firm now, leaving no room for dismissal. “Because she is with her mate, and either we respect that… or I stay here with her.”

The room went still.

The challenge in my words was clear.

Zachary’s jaw tightened, his gaze flickering between me and Avery before he exhaled sharply, clearly unhappy but unwilling to push further.

Still, he wasn’t done, he turned to Ethan, his expression dark with warning. “If you hurt her,” he said slowly, his voice low and dangerous, “you will find out exactly who I am.”

Ethan didn’t flinch.

Didn’t step back. Instead, he met Zachary’s gaze head-on, calm and unwavering in a way that surprised even me.

“He is not joking,” I added quietly, wanting Ethan to understand the weight behind those words.

But Ethan simply smiled faintly, his hand still firmly around Avery. “I would never hurt her,” he said softly. “I love her too much.”

“Stop smiling at her,” Grayson muttered under his breath, clearly irritated, “she’s not yours.”

The tension threatened to rise again, but this time, no one pushed it further.

Reluctantly, we turned to leave, stepping out of the room and away from the fragile moment we had just witnessed, returning to our world outside, though the weight of everything that had just happened followed us closely.

The journey back to the pack was quiet the moment we arrived, whatever restraint they had been holding onto shattered completely.

They didn’t acknowledge anyone, they took me straight to our room.

The door barely closed before Brandon turned on me, his control snapping.

“Desiree, how could you be so careless?” he demanded, his voice filled with anger, but beneath it, I could hear something else—fear.

“You know there is a rogue threat,” Zachary added, his voice rising as frustration took over, “and you still left without telling us? What if something had happened to you?”

Something inside me snapped at that.

“Do I have to tell you everything?” I shot back, my voice rising to match theirs, the emotions I had been holding in finally spilling over. “You didn’t think it was important to tell me you had a past with my rival either!”

Zachary blinked, clearly caught off guard. “What rival?”

“Celine,” I said sharply, my chest tightening as jealousy I hadn’t fully acknowledged surfaced. “You slept with her.”

Grayson let out a frustrated breath, dragging a hand through his hair. “She is not your rival,” he said, clearly trying to keep the situation from spiraling further. “There is only you.”

“That was before I knew you were my mate,” Zachary added quickly, his tone more serious now, more sincere. “I would never hurt you like that.”

But the tension didn’t ease.

Not completely.

“That’s not the point,” Brandon said, stepping forward again, his voice still firm but less explosive now. “The point is you put yourself in danger, and we weren’t there to protect you.”

“I don’t need your protection,” I replied immediately, lifting my chin slightly, refusing to back down. “I can protect myself.”

The room went still at my next words. “Besides… the rogue king won’t harm me.”

Zachary’s eyes narrowed slightly. “We can’t be sure of that. You heard him. He came for you.”

I held their gaze, my heart pounding, knowing there was no turning back now.

“He won’t harm me,” I said slowly, my voice steady despite everything inside me trembling.

And then, I dropped the truth. “I know……Because he is my fourth mate.”