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#Chapter 32: Stood Up
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2024-03-25 21:38:13Related chapters
My Brother My Mate #Chapter 33: Rumors & Races
RowenaThe kitchen smelled like fresh coffee and pancakes as I sat at the counter, finishing up my breakfast. I yawned, scrolling through my phone as the latest news headlines popped up on the screen.Next to me, my father, a tall and elegant man with slightly graying hair and a neat beard, flipped through the newspaper, and beside him my mother sipped her coffee. It was a relaxing Saturday morning, especially with the sun streaming in through the window.“Hey, look at this,” I said, holding my phone up. “They released a list of potential suspects for that missing princess. I wonder who it could be.”“Likely someone not from around here,” my father said casually without looking up from his newspaper.As I scrolled through the list of names, though, my eyes widened upon seeing a familiar name. My name, to be exact. But it made no sense. “My name is on here.”My father slammed down his newspaper, and my mother nearly spilled her coffee. “What?” they both said in unison.“My name is on h
Last Updated : 2024-03-25My Brother My Mate #Chapter 34: Time To Breathe
RowenaI pushed through the crowd that had formed around my brother and another warrior. They were circling each other as though they were about to fight, although just a few minutes ago Eric had been standing by the poolside.“What’s going on?” I asked, tapping a nearby warrior on his shoulder.“This guy just challenged Eric Griffith, of all people, to a spar,” the warrior replied. “He’s about to get his ass kicked.”I furrowed my brow. The warrior who had challenged Eric seemed younger, and judging from his posture and muscle definition, he wasn’t nearly as experienced with fighting as Eric was. But it was already too late for me to step in; the fight had already begun, and now I could only hope that Eric would take it easy on him.As I watched the fight begin, I felt my blood pressure slowly rising. The other warrior’s footwork was all off; he was too green of a fighter for this. I tapped on the warrior’s shoulder beside me again and leaned over.“Who is this guy?” I asked.“Oh, I
Last Updated : 2024-03-25My Brother My Mate #Chapter 35: Pride
RowenaThe light from my desk lamp was all that illuminated the room as I hunched over my textbooks. Soft music was playing through my headphones, and I hummed to myself as I flipped to the next page.Ever since I was in high school, studying had strangely become a sort of comfort for me.When I couldn’t physically keep up with the other kids who had their wolves, I would instead turn to my studying. It initially started out as a way to try and improve myself and prove them all wrong, but now it was more of a habit than anything else.And truthfully, I already knew everything I needed to know in this chapter of my textbook; I just needed something, anything, to help calm my nerves after what had happened at that party earlier.However, my studying was abruptly brought to an end when I suddenly felt warm hands reach around my head and pull off my headphones.“Studying on a Saturday night?” Eric asked, smirking down at me.I spun around on my chair and grabbed my headphones from his han
Last Updated : 2024-03-25My Brother My Mate #Chapter 36: Same
Rowena & EricRowenaTaking a deep breath, I walked up to the bulletin board in the lobby, where the ballots were being counted. The afternoon sun was casting a warm golden glow across the room, a view that normally would have been peaceful and relaxing; but instead, I only felt my heart pounding in my chest.I leaned in, counting the tally marks beside my name. And I felt my breath catch in my throat.“Oh my god…”I clamped my hand over my mouth, too shocked to even breathe. I had done it; somehow, I had matched Heather’s votes. And now we were neck-and-neck.Our votes were tied.“That doesn’t mean anything, you know. The count is still weeks away.”I looked up abruptly at the sound of that all-too-familiar voice, and instantly felt my heart sink. Heather stood beside me, wearing her cheerleading uniform with one hand on her hip and the other twirling her blonde ponytail around her finger.Unsure of what to say, I swallowed and tried to pull my shoulders back, pushing my glasses up a
Last Updated : 2024-03-25My Brother My Mate #Chapter 37: Seven Minutes in Heaven
Rowena“I… I need help.”Emma staggered into my office, clutching her stomach, and immediately I knew that this was serious. Without hesitating for even a moment, I rushed forward and wrapped my arm around her, letting her rest her weight on me as I led her over to the exam table.“What happened?” I asked, helping her up onto the table.Emma swallowed hard. “I… It’s a long story,” she managed through grit teeth.I frowned as I looked at her. The way she was clutching her stomach could indicate many things: food poisoning, a stomach bug, maybe even appendicitis. But it was then, as I looked over her, that I saw the dark red color seeping through her jeans.“Emma,” I said, shooting her a worried look, “is it your period?”She gritted her teeth and shook her head, which confused me even more. “It can’t be,” she groaned.“Why?”“Because…” She drew in a sharp inhale. “I’m pregnant.”My eyes widened. If Emma was pregnant, then… this was even more sinister than I thought.Without waiting for
Last Updated : 2024-03-25My Brother My Mate #Chapter 38: Tipsy
RowenaThe cold beer bottle in my hands was a bit of a comfort as I wandered the party, trying to spot Eric. But each time I got a glimpse of his blond hair, it quickly disappeared again before I could talk to him.With a sigh, I finished off the last of my beer and tossed it into the trash can and looked around one last time.The party continued to rage around me, the music pumping heavily through the air. Across the room, I saw Adrian playing a game of beer pong with some other warriors and I couldn’t help but smile a bit.His dark hair seemed to glisten in the low lights of the party, and the way he interacted so confidently with the others made him even more attractive. And then, when he turned to me and shot me a wink, I felt my heart skip.This was our signal.Blushing, I walked through the thick throng of people and made my way into the closet in the hallway, where Adrian and I were supposed to meet. With one last furtive glance over my shoulder, I slipped inside and melted int
Last Updated : 2024-03-25My Brother My Mate #Chapter 39: Always You
RowenaThe cool night air blew across my face as I stepped out into the backyard. As I made my way toward the lone figure sitting by the pond, the sounds of the party began to fade and were soon replaced by the chirping crickets and the wind rustling through the trees.As I approached, the figure didn’t look up. But I knew it was Eric, not just from his familiar head of blond hair, but from his broad shoulders in the darkness.He was sitting in the grass by the edge of the pond that was situated at the center of all of the warrior cottages. It was a serene place here, with the sounds of the bullfrogs croaking just offshore.Without saying anything, I walked up to Eric and stood beside him. We both stayed like that for a while, neither of us speaking, just enjoying the view.Across the pond, the golden lights of the other cottages twinkled and mingled with the light of the moon rippling on the surface of the calm water. With each passing breeze, another ripple would blow across the sur
Last Updated : 2024-03-25My Brother My Mate #Chapter 40: Untrue
RowenaI ran.I ran so fast that the cold wind hitting my cheeks caused my tears to blow back across my face, into my hair. I ran so fast that I lost all of the breath from my lungs. I ran so fast that my knees felt weak and my feet stung from slapping against the pavement.And it still didn’t feel fast enough.Eric’s calls after me had long since faded, and I still hadn’t stopped. Even as the warriors’ village faded into the distance and all that was around me were the towering trees and the sounds of the night time creatures, I refused to stop.No, I had to keep running. Because maybe, if I ran fast and far enough, it wouldn’t be true.Eric was my mate.Or at least, that was what he had said. I could still hear his voice in my ears when he had uttered those words.“You are my mate!” he had said.We had both stood there in stunned silence after he had said those words, and at first, I couldn’t help but laugh. In fact, I laughed so hard that I doubled over, clutching my stomach as sti
Last Updated : 2024-03-25
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My Brother My Mate #Chapter 105: Epilogue - Part II
RowenaThe sun cast golden rays on the carpet as I stood in the middle of my bedroom, surveying the half-packed bag on my bed with a frown. Would this be enough for three months of training?Finally, after deciding that I wasn’t quite ready yet and stuffing in a few more shirts, I zipped it closed and slung the strap over my shoulder. A soft sniffle made me turn toward the doorway, and I felt my face drop slightly when I saw the sad faces staring back at me.My parents lingered there, my mom’s eyes red-rimmed and glistening with tears. She attempted a watery smile when she saw me looking, but I could see right through it. She didn’t want me to leave.“You’re really going, huh?” she murmured.Crossing the room with a sigh, I pulled my mom into a tight hug and shot my dad an apologetic look over her slender shoulder. “It’s only for a few months, Mom,” I reassured her. “I’ll be back before you know it.”“I know, I know.” She squeezed me tighter, her fingers digging into my back. “It’s ju
My Brother My Mate #Chapter 104: Epilogue - Part I
RowenaI stood in the hallway just outside the parlor, my heart pounding in my ears. The voices behind the door were hushed, but I could still make out every word through the thick wood.“Your Majesty, we can’t thank you enough for making this journey,” my father’s voice echoed softly. “I can assure you that, had circumstances been different, we would have liked to have met you much sooner.”There was a pause, and then a deeper, richer voice responded—one I didn’t recognize yet. “Please, call me Stefan. And the honor is all mine—you protected my daughter despite everything. Although a part of me still can’t believe my little girl is actually alive after all these years.”My heart leapt into my throat. My father—King Stefan from the Northern kingdom. I knew he was coming to visit, but to finally hear his voice… It was unreal.A trembling hand came up to rest against the door as I tried to conjure up any memory of my father, of my past life. But there was nothing, of course; I had been
My Brother My Mate #Chapter 103: Crowning Glory
RowenaMy heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest as I watched Eric mouth those two simple words to me.“Kiss me.”His bright blue eyes bored endlessly into mine, and in those moments, time stopped. Kiss him? Kiss him? Now? In front of everyone?“C’mon, Ro,” Eric murmured, sensing my fear. “You promised.”I gulped, unsure of what to say; and at that second, I felt myself being thrust back to our childhood, back to one summer afternoon so many years ago when things were so much different…“Hey, Ro?” “Yeah?”“Do you ever wonder what it would be like if you were born in a different family?”I remembered that day clearly; Eric and I had been laying out in the grass beneath the big oak tree behind our house, watching as the leaves waved back and forth. I was nine, and he was going on twelve. Oddly enough, I remembered exactly what we were wearing: he had on a blue shirt, and I wore a pair of overalls. I think I remembered the shirt because it matched his eyes, and the color
My Brother My Mate #Chapter 102: Her Champion
EricI tightened the cloth wraps around my fists, feeling the familiar ache in my knuckles as I stared across the sandy expanse at Darius. With Adrian and Heather gone, it was just the two of us left.Darius grinned at me, his eyes crinkling at the corners. “Quite a show you and your girl put on back there,” he said, loud enough for just us to hear over the roaring crowd.I allowed myself a slight smirk, although my stomach still twisted painfully when I thought about how close I had just come to losing Rowena forever—all thanks to Adrian and some demented scheme to assassinate the Northern princess.“My girl?” I said, feigning ignorance.Darius smirked at me. “Oh, come on; everyone has suspected that she’s not actually a Griffith for months. And we both know what you two were doing the other day in her office.”The tips of my ears turned pink, but I couldn’t help but shake my head and laugh. Of course everyone had known. I hadn’t exactly put in the greatest effort to hide it since I
My Brother My Mate #Chapter 101: My Hero
RowenaI could only stand there, frozen in place as Heather and Adrian were hauled away by the guards. Their hateful glares burned into me until the very last moment when they disappeared into the tunnels.And then they were gone. It was over… For now, at least.A sudden cacophony of sound slammed back into me all at once—the roaring of the crowd, shouts and exclamations from students and spectators alike. I flinched as hands grabbed at me from all sides, my parents’ frantic faces appearing like a lifeline through the throng of people.“Rowena! Oh god, are you alright?” My mother clutched at me desperately and drew me toward her, tears streaming down her cheeks as she looked me over for injuries. “We were so worried, we thought… We thought…”She trailed off, unable to put her worst fears into words as she smoothed my hair back from my ears, checking me over as if I were made of glass. My father wasn’t much better, one large hand cupping the side of my face while his eyes bored into me
My Brother My Mate #Chapter 100: My Hero
RowenaEverything seemed to move in agonizingly slow motion as Adrian’s arrow sailed straight for my head. Time itself seemed to go still, the crowd’s roar fading into an eerie silence.In that endless moment, a thousand different thoughts raced through my mind. Eric’s handsome face, his last wink burned into my memory. The way his fingers had threaded through my hair just this morning as we had secretly made love under my sheets. My parents’ smiling faces from their seats up in the crowd, now twisted into masks of horror.So this was how it ended, then? Struck down by a coward’s arrow in front of thousands of spectators? My identity revealed to everyone, only for it to be snuffed out before I even had the chance to meet my biological family?There was no time to move, no time to even scream. All I could do was brace myself, my eyes squeezed shut as I awaited the impact. The embrace of death. I hoped it would be quick, if nothing else.But it never came. Instead, a sudden whistle of a
My Brother My Mate #Chapter 99: Sacrifice
RowenaThe roar of the crowd was deafening as Emma and I made our way through the tunnels toward the main arena. I could feel the vibrations of thousands of stomping feet even from here, and it made my heart pound in anticipation.Inside of me, my wolf was practically roiling with excitement; I had grown used to her presence over the passing days, although it felt completely and utterly natural from the beginning.“Are you ready for this?” Emma asked with a grin, giving my arm an excited squeeze.I took a deep breath, squaring my shoulders. “As long as I’ve got you by my side,” I replied.When we finally emerged into the bright stadium lights, I had to blink a few times to adjust. The massive arena stretched out like a desert in front of us, the sandy pit already prepped for the combat rounds. Lining the walls were the colorful pavilions and banners for each warrior and manager pair.My gaze immediately found Eric, standing tall and proud beside his pavilion across the way. He caught
My Brother My Mate #Chapter 98: Marked
RowenaEric and I sprang apart at the sound of the doorknob turning, frantically smoothing our clothes down and covering ourselves just as a group of warriors walked into my office. I felt my cheeks flush hot as the apparent leader flicked on the light, blinking in confusion.“Rowena,” the warrior at the forefront said, glancing back and forth between Eric and me for a moment. “I wasn’t sure if you were in here. Why were the lights out?”Before I could answer, Eric stepped in. “I was just helping her change the lightbulb,” he said, gesturing to the light dangling from the ceiling. “You came just in time.”“Oh.” The warrior seemed to buy that, at least. Thank goodness.“What can I do for you?” I asked in a shockingly confident tone despite myself, tucking a stray lock of hair behind my ear and pushing my glasses up on my nose.“Well, we heard that you both made it on the list and we just wanted to wish you luck,” the lead warrior said easily, shoving his hands into his pockets. “As the
My Brother My Mate #Chapter 97: Finalists
RowenaTaking a deep breath, Eric and I pushed our way through the crowd so we could see the results. As we approached, we received curious looks from the other students—no doubt word of what had happened at the party on Friday, or at least what people thought had happened, had spread like wildfire.Or…As I read the names on the list, I knew now why they were really staring.“Eric,” I gasped, gripping his arm with one hand while I pointed at the list with the other. “It’s you!”I couldn’t help but grin as I looked up at him. Even Eric was beaming from ear to ear; he was at the top of the list of the three warriors who would be competing in the tournament. Of course he was—he was the best warrior at this camp, after all. He had earned it, fair and square.“Congrats, Eric!” a nearby student called out. “I can’t wait to see you fight next week!”Eric’s smile grew. “And I can’t wait to win,” he quipped, eliciting giggles from a nearby gaggle of cheerleaders who were smiling and twirling
