Ch. 5 Choices

Carrington’s POV

Colton sank into dad’s chair, dropping his head into his hands as soon as our parents left the room.

“Well, that was . . . unexpected.” I quipped.

Colt looked up to shoot me a death glare, apparently not appreciating my comment.

“Geez, sorry.” I huffed under my breath. “I guess we know how Colt feels. What about you Clay?’

Clay took a deep breath and blew it out, looking up at the ceiling. I could’ve sworn I saw his cheeks turn pink, before he finally looked us in the eyes.

“If I’m being honest, I kind of had a thing for her before she left. But now, fuck, I’m not sure I could stay away from her if I tried.” He confessed. “And the way Gunner flipped out when he smelled her, I would’ve sworn she was our mate even though I knew she didn’t have her wolf yet.”

“I already told you Roan went crazy too. And we all know how Kai reacted. It couldn’t have been more fucking obvious so don’t even try to deny it, Colt.” I stopped him before he even opened his mouth. “And I was actually a little sad when she left for the academy too. I was always drawn to her but just too stupid to realize how I felt before

it was too late to tell her.”

“You are both full of shit!” Colt called us out, turning the tables on us. “If you were so enamored with Mallory, then why the fuck were you sticking your dicks in every pussy you could sweet talk your way into. And for someone who was supposedly so heartbroken when she left, Cary, you certainly weren’t home sulking about it. I would know since I was the one dragging your ass home in the middle of the night from one party after another!”  

“What are you trying to say, Colt?” I growled at him. “Do you think you’re so much better because you're in a committed relationship with some girl who isn’t your mate? Maybe we fucked around because we couldn’t have the girl we really wanted, but at least we didn’t settle and we certainly never made false promises to anyone. If you really believe Darcy is anything more than just a placeholder in your life, you are the one who’s full of shit. If you’re honest with yourself, you’ll admit she’ll never be enough for you because she isn’t her! So don’t you fucking judge us for how we chose to cope. At least we didn’t pick one woman and use her as our personal whore!”

Colt came at me with fire in his eyes, leaping over the desk to get to me. I knew my accusation would piss him off but I couldn’t give a fuck! I was so tired of his holier than thou attitude. I was no saint but I never led anyone on and neither had Clay. He might be telling himself a different story but he was only fooling himself. And it was high time he got the fuck over it!

Clay jumped between us, grabbing Colt’s fist as it flew at my face. I just stared him down, stone-faced, as he snarled at us. 

“Calm the fuck down! Both of you!” Clay growled at us. “We might not agree with each other’s choices right now but this isn’t how we solve it. Someday very soon we are going to be running this pack together and when that day comes, we are going to have to be on the same page, or at least figure out how to get there without killing each other!”

Colt shook out of Clay’s hold, still furious but no longer threatening violence. Clay came to stand beside me, both of us watching him carefully, waiting for his next move.

“I think we all need to sleep on this. We can talk tomorrow when we’ve all had a chance to cool off. Meanwhile, I’m going to go spend some time with the woman I love.” Colt bit out angrily, then stormed off in a rage.

“Colton,” I called out before he could open the door. He stopped but didn’t turn around. “Darcy will never be our Luna. Clay and I will never accept her. That only leaves you two options. Find a way to fix your mistake and let her go or continue being stubborn and give up the Alpha role so you can be with a woman who will never truly make you happy. The choice is yours.” 

He didn’t speak, though I knew he heard every word I said. He just walked out and closed the door behind him. I didn’t relish threatening my brother but it needed to be said. Of the three of us, I never shied away from a fight and I wasn’t about to start now. Not with our entire future on the line.

“Talk about a shit-show!” Clay blew out a whistle. 

“Fuck! What are we going to do?” I scrubbed my hands over my face in frustration. “Colt is stubborn as hell. Sometimes I think he’d rather die than admit he’s wrong. And as much as I am not a fan of Darcy, the longer he drags things out with her, the more she is going to be hurt. I wouldn’t wish that on anybody.”

“I know you already have a plan so just tell me already!” Clay’s twisted grin told me he knew exactly what I was going to say.

“We show him what he’s missing!” I returned his smirk.

“Yes!” he replied enthusiastically, pumping his fist in the air.

As we passed through the living room, heading toward the front door, Colt was sitting on the couch facing Darcy, holding her hand. They seemed to be in deep conversation and Darcy’s eyes were red like she’d been crying. When we walked by, Colt’s head snapped up to look at us.

“Where the fuck are you two going?” He demanded to know like the babysitter he thought he was. He took the ‘oldest triplet’ thing a little too far sometimes if you asked me.

“Out.” Was all I said, and kept walking.

His chest rumbled in a low growl. Whether at my blatant disrespect or the fact he already guessed where we were going, I wasn’t sure. Even though I hadn’t answered him, our wolves talked almost constantly. He knew exactly where we were headed. Hopefully it would eat at him that we were with her and he wasn’t.  

Five minutes later we were almost to Mallory’s house. As we rounded the corner, my wolf started getting agitated, pacing in my head. I looked at Clay who was gritting his teeth and his legs were bouncing in his seat.

“Is Gunner losing his shit too?” I asked him, worried by our wolves’ behavior. 

“Yeah but he won’t say why. How about Roan?” 

“He is fucking pissed, like he wants to rip someone apart. Stay alert!” I cautioned.

But as we pulled up to the curb along her front yard, it was clear there was no danger. Well, not for anyone besides Nathan Richardson. Two angry growls ripped through the car as we took in the sight that greeted us. Nathan had Mallory pinned to the side of his car, hands on her hips with one leg wedged between thighs, and he was kissing her like his life depended on it.

“I’m going to fucking kill him!” Clay snarled. 

I put my hand on his shoulder to still him. As much as I agreed with him, murdering her boyfriend probably wouldn’t earn us any brownie points with her. 

“When is her birthday? When does she get her wolf?” I gritted out between clenched teeth.

“Four weeks.” Clay answered.

“She has to be ours. Maybe our wolves can feel it since her birthday is so close. That’s the only reason I can think of for them to act this way.” I offered the only explanation that made sense to me. Or maybe it was wishful thinking.

“Or maybe there is something off with Alpha Richardson and our wolves can sense it. Maybe they are just protecting a pack member.” Clay offered another possibility, raining on my parade. “I’m not trying to be an ass, but she is an omega. They usually aren’t mated to Alphas.”

He had a point, but I wasn’t ready to write off the possibility. Usually didn’t necessarily mean never.  

“Well, either way, let’s go ruin his night!” I snarled, jumping out of the car. 

Clay and I both slammed the car doors closed at the same time, enjoying the way Nathan flinched then took a step back to look around. 

“Clay? Cary? What are you two doing here so late?” Mallory asked when she spotted us, the cutest little wrinkle forming between her eyes as she frowned at us.

“We just wanted to make sure you were settling in okay/” Clay covered quickly. “It could be hard to adjust after being gone so long. We were worried about you.”

“You were worried? About me?” Mal looked incredulous, like she was struggling to reconcile our newfound concern with the way we used to treat her. Not that I blamed her. We had a lot to make up for.

“I should probably get going, anyway.” Nathan announced, taking Mal’s hand and kissing it, irritating the hell out of me.

“But, I don’t want you to go yet.” Mal whined, making my wolf snarl.

“I know. Me either. But you’re right, it’s getting late and I have an early day tomorrow. See you tomorrow?” Nathan negotiated in an attempt to pacify her.

“Yeah, okay.” She pouted. 

“Idiot!” Clay linked me. “No way I’d leave my girl alone with two other Alphas so easily.” 

“Me either.” I linked back. “But since him being an idiot actually works in our favor, I’m not going to complain.”

“Goodnight, sweetheart.” Nathan pecked her cheek, then got in his car and drove away.

As soon as he was out of the driveway, Mallory turned to us with fire in her eyes. The starburst around her pupil actually looked like a swirling flame, she was so angry. A happy Mallory was gorgeous but a furious Mallory was a fucking goddess. I could feel my dick twitch in my pants, watching her prepare for battle. I was going to enjoy pushing her buttons!

“Alright. Now that you’ve ruined my night, what the fuck do the two of you really want?”