Mated to Three princes: And I hate it

I'm stealing from the Crown Prince when the mate bond hits.Not my smartest move. But I'm starving, he's rich, and his tent at the hunting festival is full of food nobody's eating. So here I am, shoving bread into my bag, when three men walk in.I freeze.They freeze.Then everything goes sideways.Something punches through my chest and I can't breathe. It's everywhere at once, burning under my skin, coiling in my stomach, and my wolf is howling in my head for the first time in five years.MATE.No. Not mate.MATES.All three of them.The tall one with the scar moves first. His pale eyes find me. "Don't move."I move.Out the back of the tent, bag clutched to my chest, running for my life. Because that's exactly what this is."Caius, she's running!"Footsteps behind me. Fast. Getting closer.I shift mid-stride. My wolf is small, weak from not shifting in years, but she's AWAKE now. We're dodging tents, jumping over a fire pit, heading for the trees.Almost there.Something hits me fro

I wake up in Damon's bed.Not where I fell asleep. I was against the wall. Now I'm under silk sheets that smell like him, and he's nowhere in sight.The connecting door opens. Kieran walks in carrying coffee, sees me, and grins."Morning, beautiful. Sleep well?"I sit up fast. "Why am I in his bed?""Because Damon carried you there around four. Said you looked uncomfortable on the floor." He hands me the coffee. "Don't worry. He slept in the chair like a gentleman.""Where is he?""Training yard. He always trains at dawn." Kieran sits on the edge of the bed. Too close. "You should see him fight. It's impressive.""I'm not interested.""Liar. The bond makes you interested in everything we do." His smile turns knowing. "I bet you're curious about all of us. What we're like. What we want.""I'm curious about how to break this bond.""Can't be done. True mate bonds are permanent." He reaches out, tucks hair behind my ear. The touch sends sparks across my skin. "But you could learn to enjo

I wake up screaming.Can't help it. The dream's still there, clawing at my brain. Fire everywhere. People running. And a banner hanging from the trees, red and gold, watching while everyone died."Sage." Damon's suddenly there, hands on my shoulders. "Hey. You're okay."I'm not okay. I'm shaking so hard my teeth are chattering."Nightmare," I get out."Yeah, I felt it." He's crouched in front of me. Shirtless. Hair messed up from sleep. "What was it?""Nothing. Just a dream.""That wasn't nothing. Your fear woke me up from across the hall."Great. So they get front row seats to my trauma now."I'm fine." I shove his hands away. "Go back to bed.""It's almost dawn anyway. Get dressed, training starts soon."He leaves. I sit there for a minute trying to breathe normal again.That banner keeps sticking in my head. Red and gold. Why do I know it?Training is hell.Kieran goes easy on me at first. Then he stops going easy and I spend an hour eating dirt."You're dropping your guard," he sa

I wake up burning. Not sick burning. Something else. Something that makes my skin feel too tight and my wolf is going crazy inside my head. No. No no no. This can't be happening. I stumble to the bathroom. Splash cold water on my face. It doesn't help. The heat is everywhere, crawling under my skin, pooling low in my stomach. I haven't had a heat in five years. Not since my wolf went dormant. Of course it comes back now. There's a knock on my door. "Sage?" Kieran's voice. "You okay? The bond feels weird." "Don't come in." "What's wrong?" "Nothing. Just go away." The door opens anyway. He takes one look at me and freezes. "Oh hell." "Get out." "You're in heat." He's not moving. Just staring. His eyes are getting darker. "When did it start?" "Just now. Leave. Please." "I can't." His voice sounds strained. "The bond won't let me. Not when you're like this." "Kieran, I'm serious. Get out before something bad happens." "Something bad already happened."

Being queen to three kings is exactly as complicated as it sounds.It's been a week since the coronation. A week of nobles staring, servants whispering, and me trying to figure out what the hell I'm doing."You're doing it wrong," Damon says.I look up from the document I'm reading. We're in the council room. All four of us. Because apparently that's how we do things now."What am I doing wrong?""The trade agreement. You're giving them too much." He leans over, points at a clause. "See? They want exclusive rights to our northern ports. That's half our shipping income.""I thought we were being generous.""Generous gets you poor." He takes the document, makes notes. "Counter with shared access. Sixty-forty split in our favor.""That seems harsh.""That's politics." Kieran's sprawled in his chair across from me. "Nobody respects nice. They respect strong.""I'm not trying to be strong. I'm trying to be fair.""Fair doesn't keep kingdoms running," Damon says, still writing. "But I'm not