THE CHRISTMAS LUNA SATISFYING THE ENIGMAS

CHAPTER 4

ALESSIA

The flight was the quiet, suffocating kind. For three hours, I stared out the window at the blanket of clouds, trying to map out a future in a state I hadn't stepped foot in for years.

I didn't sleep a wink. Every time I closed my eyes, the highlights of the morning played on a loop. Ethan’s cold eyes. Lillian’s smug grin. My gown—the one I’d bled and sweated over—clinging to her body.

Three hours later, the wheels touched down at Shadowcrest International. The evening sun was a deep, molten gold, spilling across the tarmac in a warm welcome that felt far kinder than the home I’d just fled.

I cleared security, grabbed my lone suitcase, and walked out into the terminal. I knew this city; I’d spent enough summers here to navigate it in my sleep. I pulled out my phone, intending to call Logan and tell him I’d be at his place in thirty minutes, but my thumb hovered over his name. Something stopped me. Maybe I just wanted to see his face first.

I hailed a taxi and gave the address, my heart performing a nervous rhythm of anticipation and dread as we wove through the city.

When we pulled up, I gasped. The old estate had been transformed. It was a luxury glass penthouse now, sitting in the middle of a perfectly manicured green field dotted with flowers. The driveway was long and winding, leading to a massive glass entrance that looked like it belonged in a magazine.

I looked toward the garage as the taxi pulled away. Four cars. None of them belonged to my brother. Logan wasn't the type to splurge on a fleet; if he’d upgraded like this, he definitely would have mentioned it.

I pulled my phone out again. Now was the time to call. It rang and rang, echoing into a void. I tried again. Same result—straight to voicemail.

“f**k!” I hissed, dragging my suitcase toward the entrance.

I knew his apartment number: Room 38. I wasn't going to sit out here on the lawn like a stray. I’d just knock and wait.

My heart wouldn’t stop pounding as I climbed the stairs. Every step felt heavier than the last. When I reached the third floor and stood before his door, I took one jagged breath and knocked.

The door swung open.

My heart didn't just skip a beat; it stopped entirely.

It wasn’t Logan.

Aiden stood there, bare-chested and barefoot, wearing nothing but a pair of black shorts. His face lit up with a look of pure, unadulterated surprise. I felt my lungs seize. This had to be a dream—or a very specific kind of nightmare. Standing right in front of me was the man who had helped fund the dress that was currently being worn by my betrayer.

Aiden. The eldest of the quads. He looked like a god carved from granite in the evening light—composed, commanding, and dangerously handsome.

“Alessia,” he said softly. The way he said my name… it sounded like something he’d been practicing in his head for years. “We meet again. Are you here for that holiday visit you promised us three years ago?”

The memory hit me—the "Holiday Luna" joke—and a flush of heat crawled up my neck. I stood frozen, the handle of my suitcase slipping from my numb fingers.

“No,” I managed to choke out. It was the only word my brain could find.

Aiden’s jaw tightened. “Then… what are you doing here?” He stepped closer, his eyes scanning my face, settling on my red, swollen lids. “Did something happen? Did your man do something?”

I hadn't spoken to them in three years, yet he saw through me in three seconds.

“Who’s at the door, Aiden?”

The voice was deep, vibrating through the floorboards. Carter appeared behind him, a towel draped around his waist and another around his neck. Water droplets trekked down his rock-hard abs as he held a coffee mug. He was the quiet one, the observer.

His smirk vanished the moment he saw me.

“Well, I’ll be damned,” I muttered under my breath. This was getting out of hand.

Then Jasper appeared. Shirtless, hair a chaotic mess, clutching a half-tuned guitar.

“Ah…” I let out a low gasp. My head was spinning.

His amber eyes widened before softening into a look that was half-surprise, half-mischief.

And finally, there was Ryker. The youngest. The dominant, ruthless biker. He’d been my biggest crush when I was a kid, but looking at all four of them now, identical yet distinct, I couldn't even remember how to breathe. They were all gorgeous. Devastatingly so.

“Nice to see you today,” Jasper said, leaning against the doorframe. I instinctively took a step back, my legs wobbling. He flashed a sarcastic grin that told me he knew exactly how much of a mess I was. “I hope you didn't lose your way?”

“You never stopped being a brat,” I snapped, my old defensiveness kicking in.

Ryker didn’t say anything. He just looked at me. It was a scorching, heavy gaze that felt like it was peeling back my skin.

Four Alphas. Four men I’d tried my best to forget while I was playing house with Ethan. My brother’s best friends—the ones who had once sworn they’d make me theirs when I grew up.

“I’m looking for Logan,” I said, my voice trembling. “My brother.”

Aiden’s brow furrowed. “He’s not here, Alessia.”

“What?”

Carter sighed, leaning against the wall. “He’s at the academy. He teaches combat now, remember? Didn't you call him before you hopped on a plane?”

He looked puzzled, and I didn't know how to explain that my life had exploded four hours ago and I hadn't had time for a "heads up" call. I looked away, biting my lip.

Jasper rubbed the back of his neck, the sarcasm returning to his voice. “Unless your charming hubby finally showed his true colors and chased you out?”

My vision blurred as tears welled up again. The mention of Ethan felt like a physical slap. I let out a small, involuntary hiccup.

“Hey, come on… don’t do that,” Jasper murmured, his voice losing its edge. He made a fake pouting face, but Carter shoved him aside, stepping forward to rest a heavy, warm hand on my shoulder.

My breath hitched.

“You never know when to shut up,” Carter growled at his brother. Then he looked at me, his expression softening. “Come on, baby.”

“Huh?” I looked at Aiden, shocked by the sudden change in his tone. The strict, controlling Alpha I remembered was calling me baby.

Ryker pushed off the wall, crossing his arms over his chest. “You came all this way without a word? Whatever he did to you, Alessia… you should have told Logan. You should have told us.”

He sounded like he was ready to hunt Ethan down right then and there. I wasn't ready to talk about it—I knew if I started, I wouldn’t be able to stop crying.

I kept my eyes on my shoes. “Yes,” I whispered, answering his earlier question.

“Your mate messed up?” Jasper asked, and for the first time, he sounded completely serious.

“Yes,” I mumbled, wiping a stray tear with the back of my hand.

I’d come here because I had nowhere else to go. Because Logan and these four were the only people who had ever made me feel safe. Because I couldn’t stay in a place where I was being erased.

The hallway went silent, but their stares were heavy. I felt a mix of pity, sympathy, and something else—something darker and more hungry.

“Come inside. You’re shaking,” Aiden said. His voice was a command, but a gentle one. I hesitated for a split second, then stepped over the threshold.

The apartment was warm and smelled of spice, expensive leather, and something wild—like pine and woodsmoke. It was their scent. It wrapped around me, settling deep into my lungs.

I dropped my suitcase, my heart still racing.

Jasper disappeared into the kitchen and returned with a steaming mug of tea. When he handed it to me, his fingers brushed mine. It was a tiny contact, but a spark shot up my arm that made my skin tingle.

“Thank you,” I whispered, not meeting his eyes.

He gave a faint, knowing smile. “You still say that too much.”

Carter leaned against the kitchen counter, his eyes hooded. “You look different,” he remarked. “Older. More beautiful.”

I forced a tight smile. “It’s been a long time.”

“Three years,” he murmured. “I counted every day.”

My pulse spiked. He’d been counting? That was long before Ethan had ever entered the picture.

Ryker still hadn’t moved from his spot by the wall. “What happened, Alessia?”

It wasn't a suggestion. It was a demand. For a moment, the words almost spilled out—the stolen dress, the wedding from hell, the way I’d scrambled to pack my life into a single suitcase.

But I swallowed the lump in my throat. “I don’t want to talk about it. Not yet.”

He nodded slowly. “We’re patient. We’ll be here when you’re ready.” He reached out as he passed, his hand glancing off my arm. I flinched, not because I was afraid, but because the touch sent a jolt through me that I wasn't ready to handle.

Aiden looked toward the guest wing. “You’re staying here until Logan gets back. It’s almost the holidays. You’ll spend them with us.” He paused, his eyes locking onto mine with a predatory intensity. “And now that you’re single… we can take very good care of you.”

I caught the subtle wink he threw my way, and my heart plummeted into my stomach.

I knew exactly what kind of "care" he was talking about. And it wasn't the kind a brother gives a sister.