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Mallory’s POV I woke up the next morning to the sound of water tinkling from the rainfall showerhead in the attached bathroom. Whoever was showering had left the door open just a crack. I threw my legs over the side of the bed and padded to the door only to stop dead in my tracks. Because damn! The sight that greeted me was mouthwatering. Cary stood under the water, suds sliding down his body as he rinsed his shoulder-length blond curls. The man was ripped in all the right places, slab upon slab of solid muscle. I sunk my teeth into my bottom lip, biting back an appreciative moan as my eyes followed the arrow of his v-line all the way to the impressive member between his powerful thighs. “Fuck.” I groaned to myself, my core aching with the memory of his thick length inside me. “Are you going to stand there and drool or are you going to join me?” Cary’s deep voice made me jump and he chuckled at me. “I wasn’t drooling!” I was totally drooling. But despite my aggravation at
Mallory’s POV “You can do this Mallory. All you have to do is be honest. And don’t cry! No matter what he says, don’t cry! He’ll only feel guilty and you’re the only one who gets to feel guilty in this scenario.” I talked myself up while wearing a path on Clay’s bedroom floor. I could almost hear my wolf’s eyes rattling as they rolled back in her head. She found it utterly ridiculous that I would be so concerned about the feelings of a man who wasn’t our mate. From the moment she entered my life, the triplets were the only men who mattered in her mind and she refused to even acknowledge my feelings for Nathan. That was all well and good for her. But part of me was still human, with human weaknesses and human emotions. And when I had to look in Nathan’s eyes and see the heartache and sorrow I caused him, I would have the same reaction any human with a conscience would have. A stifling sense of shame and regret. Not that I didn’t deserve it. “Might as well get it over with. Gue
Cary’s POV “What do you mean Colton’s no longer my mate?” Mallory demanded. “We haven’t rejected each other so how is that possible?” She was close to hyperventilating, her panic rising, and Clay was looking at her with a befuddled expression. I doubted he meant it in the literal sense. It was much easier to close the door on a familial bond, no formal rejection or magic required, though it didn’t have to be permanent. The door could always be reopened. But the fact Mal hadn’t felt any further betrayal did have me curious. I couldn’t think of a single instance of mated triplets where one was shut out so I had absolutely no reference for how his decision would affect Mallory or their mate bond. I could only hope her reprieve from the agony he put her through earlier was the result of Colton’s own choices and Not Clay’s. “Our triplet bond is broken. I pushed him out.” He confessed to her. “I was trying to protect you. I thought you’d be happy to be rid of him after what he did.”
Colton’s POV The last few hours had been pure fucking misery. I couldn’t feel my brothers through our bond anymore. An empty, hollow feeling sat where the connection to their souls had always been. A source of strength and comfort I’d taken for granted for a lifetime ripped away in a fraction of a second. I’d always thought of myself as selfless, the triplet most willing to sacrifice for the good of others. This whole ordeal put paid to that delusion. I was a fucking selfish bastard. That’s all there was to it. Foolishly, I’d hoped that once I’d vanquished her enemies like the knight on the white horse I saw myself as, Mallory and I could find our way back to each other. Maybe, just maybe, she’d let me fix what I’d done, make up for all the pain I’d caused her in the name of protecting her. Clay’s beat down had forced me to see the truth of the situation. I’d expected Cary, the hot-headed triplet, to rain hell down on me. But when my even-keeled, not easily riled middle brothe
Clay’s POV A tenuous peace settled over us for the next few weeks. Cary and I went to work during the day, though less of our time was spent on actual pack duties in favor of discussing our future and how to move forward without Colton. Our parents thought he was away gathering intel on Alpha Quade and none of us disabused them of that notion. Mallory spent most of her days with our mother, determined to perfect her future role as Luna by absorbing every detail the current Black Moon Luna had to impart. The three of us spent our nights together, Cary and I wrapped around our mate. And from the outside, it would appear that we’d never been happier. But despite her best efforts to hide it, and our best efforts to reassure her, a tinge of self-loathing permeated Mallory's otherwise vibrant scent. Others might miss it, but as her mates who lived just to breathe her in, it was unmistakable. “It’s killing me to watch her beat herself up this way.” Cary mentioned for the hundredth
Colton’s POV I let Kai run for hours that night after turning my back on Darcy and letting Alpha Quade walk away with her. Every instinct screamed at me to find Mallory, explain the truth behind my actions and beg her forgiveness. But I’d needed time to think before facing her, so I gave my wolf free reign while I considered my next move. In the end, I’d decided maybe time was my best ally. I’d come running to her with assurances that I was over Darcy twice before and as far as she knew, I’d lied both times. After betraying our bond, the only way she might believe me was if some time passed without me hurting her again, Kai in no way approved of that plan, harassing me daily to go see our mate. And every time, I would talk him down, explaining that we needed to put her needs first and what she needed was space. But like every other day, he wasn’t having it. “Raven needs me!” He insisted, demanding to see Mallory’s wolf. “Just a little more time, Kai!” I countered. “No!” H
Mallory’s POV “Oh, and never seat Alpha Craig near Alpha Layton at dinner parties. Craig used to date Layton’s Luna and now they hate each other.” Luna Erika instructed. We were in the ballroom reviewing the intricacies of hosting successful inter-pack gatherings, one of my duties as future Luna. But I couldn’t focus on the lesson. I was too busy trying to keep my breakfast in my stomach where it belonged. For the past couple of weeks, I’d been exhausted, even sneaking away in the middle of the day to take a much needed cat nap. Then, for the past three days in a row, my stomach felt like it was doing cartwheels most of the time. I could barely look at food, and days like today when my mates practically force fed me, it refused to stay down. But I absolutely could not be coming down with something! We’d worked so hard to perfect our strategy for deposing Alpha Quade and we were about to act on it. My mates would never let me go if they thought I was ill and I wouldn’t want to j
Cary’s POV I was worried about Mallory. Really fucking worried. She hadn’t been herself for a couple weeks now. She didn’t think I noticed but I did. I noticed everything about her, right down to the minutest detail. Even Clay mentioned she looked tired before he’d left on his scouting mission almost a week ago. Fuck, I wished he was here. He may have gone off the deep end a bit where our older brother was concerned, but when it came to our mate, he always seemed to know exactly what she needed. He always had this calming way about him where I charged in like a raging bull. But he wasn’t here. He was out gathering the last bits of intel we needed to put our plan for Alpha Quade into action. And that fact only added to my worry. Until two weeks ago, Mallory had spent every waking breath on preparing for this mission. Plans for Hazelwood pack after Quade’s rein of terror ended was all she ever talked about. Then suddenly, she was excusing herself in the middle of a planning s