Callum

The second that name—Ethan—left her lips, Ace snapped awake. My wolf surged to the surface, hackles raised, rage lacing every nerve like barbed wire.

Who the fuck was Ethan?

And why did my little Luna look like a rabbit trapped in a den of predators, silver hair tumbling forward like it might shield her from us?

I leaned in, slow, measured, controlled the way I always was when Ace wanted blood. My voice came out steady, too steady, a blade honed for the kill.

“Anything you’d like to share, sweetheart?”

She flinched, chin high anyway, arms crossing like that fragile defence was enough to keep us out. Stubborn. Reckless. Braver than she should’ve been.

“Sunshine,” Jax growled, stepping closer until the runes carved in the counters lit from the heat rolling off him. Blaze was in his eyes, black rage pouring through every line of his body. “You’re ours. Don’t lie to us.”

Rory didn’t smirk. Didn’t joke. His fists were curled so tight his knuckles cracked, Lex prowling behind his gaze, restless. And Seth—Scar was alive in him too, but the bastard only leaned against the counter, grinning like this was foreplay. The calm before the fucking storm.

She licked her lips, throat working. “I wasn’t—I didn’t want—”

“You didn’t want what, princess?” Rory cut in, voice sharp enough to bleed. “Didn’t want us to find out? Thought you could hide this? Thought we wouldn’t smell it on you?”

My jaw locked. She wasn’t denying it. She was stalling.

And that? That was dangerous.

“What the fuck?!” she snapped, voice cracking through the tension. Her silver-blue eyes blazed as she glared at us, fire licking at the edges of her fear. “Are you serious right now? You’re acting like I committed a fucking felony!”

Felony. Cute. She had no idea how serious this was.

Seth’s chuckle was low, too casual, his wolf prowling behind his smirk. “Was he the pup in your little group of friends, snowflake? The one freshly mated?” He tilted his head, gaze slicing into her. “Because you weren’t exactly subtle when you kept sneaking glances at his mark.”

Ace roared inside me. I lunged forward, every muscle coiled to strike.

“What?” The word tore from my throat at the same time my brothers roared with me, the sound so violent the runes carved into the kitchen walls flared bright, pulsing like they were bracing for impact.

She jumped back, spoon clattering against the plate, hair spilling forward like a curtain. She looked so fucking small. Too small.

“Why didn’t you tell us sooner?” I snarled, my glare cutting to Seth before snapping back to her.

“And is that why you reeked of another wolf when we picked you up?” Jax demanded, his voice lethal, his fists clenched like he was seconds from tearing something—or someone—apart.

Her mouth opened, but nothing came out.

Enough.

In a blur, we moved. She was pressed back against the granite countertop, caged in on all sides by four bodies, our heat swallowing her, our wolves pressing close enough to break skin. Her scent wrapped around us, sweet and wild, now laced with tension and—fuck—something warmer. Something she couldn’t hide.

“You still smell like him,” Jaxon hissed, nose brushing the slope of her throat. His teeth grazed her skin, just shy of breaking, Blaze howling for blood and a mark. “But I’ll fix that.”

Her pulse thundered against his mouth, and Ace shoved hard against my control.

I fisted her waist, yanking her flush against me. Her gasp was sharp, strangled, but her body softened, betraying her. My lips brushed her ear, my voice low, dangerous, a verdict.

“Do you feel that, little Luna? That’s us. Not him. Not anyone else. Us. Staking what’s already ours.”

Rory’s forehead dropped to her bare throat, his breath jagged, his voice a growl scraping her skin. “No one else gets to touch you. No one. Ever.”

Seth’s chuckle rolled through the heat, dark and taunting. He dipped low, teeth grazing the delicate line of her collarbone as his hand toyed with the hem of her shorts. “You hear that, snowflake? That’s your reality. That’s us. Claiming every inch until you forget his fucking name.”

Her thighs clenched, trembling. Her hands pushed against us, but her scent betrayed her. Sweet arousal bled into the air, thicker by the second, and my wolf bared his teeth in triumph.

But then she snapped.

“Hold up!” Her voice cracked like a whip, slicing through the storm. She shoved at our grips, fury sparking in her eyes. “First of all—back the fuck off. And second—he didn’t touch me the way you’re all thinking. He’s my friend. And in case your pea-sized brains forgot, he’s already mated. All he gave me was a hug. A. Hug.”

Ace snarled, furious at the word, at the thought of another male’s hands on her.

“You let another male put his hands on you?” Jax hissed, eyes burning with feral disbelief.

Her glare hit like fire. “Are you fucking kidding me? You’re acting like I broke a sacred wolf law! Meanwhile, your track records are legendary.”

That cut deep.

And Lila—still leaning against the fridge like the smug little traitor she was—crossed her arms and piled on. “She’s right. Don’t even try to deny it. Half the Packhouse remembers what you four were like before she showed up. Maybe don’t throw stones when you’re living in a glass house.”

I growled low, Ace bristling, but she didn’t flinch. Neither did little Luna.

“Because from where I’m standing?” She snapped, voice sharp, trembling with tears she didn’t bother to hide. “Everything she said was true. You want to accuse me of something? Fine. But look in the fucking mirror first. You’re scared of a hug? Please. Half this pack still whispers about your little omega escapades. So who should really be scared in this so-called bond?”

Her words hit like claws. Jax flinched, Rory dropped his gaze, Seth’s smirk vanished.

And me? I couldn’t breathe.

She wasn’t finished.

“And that,” she said, her voice breaking even as her eyes blazed, “is why I’m scared to be mated to you four. How do I know you won’t cheat? How do I know you won’t toss me aside the second I don’t measure up?”

The tears finally fell, streaking down her cheeks. Not hidden. Not swallowed. She made us see them.

“Princess—” Rory started, voice rough, but she cut him dead with a shake of her head.

“I’m done. Just leave me alone.”

Her whisper was softer than a breath. But it split the kitchen in half.

For the first time in my life, I had no command, no control, no answer.

Lila’s POV

The silence Rhee left behind was brutal. Heavy. It pressed against the walls, against the glowing silver runes humming faintly in warning.

The four of them stood there like statues, every ounce of their Alpha presence stripped raw.

Good.

They deserved to feel gutted.

I crossed my arms, staring them down like the idiots they were. “Do you even realize what you just did?”

Callum exhaled sharply, dragging a hand through his dark hair, frustration cracking through the mask he usually wore like armour. “We didn’t mean to—”

“Oh, spare me.” I cut him off, stepping right up into his space, toe-to-toe with the eldest who thought he was untouchable. “You humiliated her. She was already scared to trust you, and what do you do? You prove her right.”

Rory cursed, dragging a hand over his face. His easy grin was nowhere to be found. “We weren’t thinking—”

I snapped forward, jabbing a finger right into Rory’s chest. “Fucking right you weren’t.”

Then I shoved him. Hard enough to make his giant alpha ass stumble a whole inch.

Oh wow. You go, girl.

And the best part? He didn’t push back. Didn’t snarl. Didn’t even glare. Just stood there, shoulders hunched, taking it like he knew damn well he’d earned every ounce of my fury.

“Exactly,” I said, leaning in, my voice sharp enough to slice. “You four strut around like gods, but when it comes to actually treating someone right? Pathetic.”

Jaxon stayed silent, his jaw locked so tight it looked like it might shatter. His fists gripped the edge of the counter, knuckles bone-white, shoulders coiled like if he moved wrong, Blaze would rip through his skin.

And Seth—cocky, always-laughing Seth—wasn’t smirking. His fingers twitched restlessly at his sides, like he couldn’t decide whether to punch a wall or himself.

“Why didn’t she tell us?” Callum muttered, voice low, strained, guilty.

I let out a laugh, sharp and bitter. “Tell you? You think she was going to volunteer that information after the way you’ve treated her? The first time she saw you, you reeked of other women. Then you shoved rules down her throat and staked your claim like she was property. And the second another guy’s name slipped out, you went feral. Yeah. I wonder fucking why she didn’t tell you.”

The flinch that rippled through all four of them was satisfying, but it wasn’t nearly enough.

“You didn’t earn her trust,” I pressed, my voice hard. “She had no reason to believe you’d protect her heart. A mate bond isn’t some magic wand that erases a lifetime of pain. She’s spent her whole damn life being left behind. And tonight? You just proved her fears weren’t crazy.”

Seth swore under his breath, dragging both hands down his face like he could scrub the truth away.

Jaxon turned his back, palms braced against the counter, head bowed like he was trying to cage the storm inside him.

Rory glanced at Callum, but the eldest’s face had gone blank, carved from stone—except for the faint twitch of his jaw, the storm brewing behind the silence.

“You know how she ended up here in the first place?” I asked, softer now, but every word still sharp.

Their gazes snapped back to me.

“We figured she was another stray Dad took in,” Callum said quietly, shoulders tight. “Like any other orphan.”

“She wasn’t just any orphan.” My throat tightened, but I forced the words out. “She was left to die in the woods. Her parents—her real parents—abandoned her with nothing but a stitched blanket and a birthdate. Dad found her. He brought her in until someone would take her. Put her in the academy. Protected her, sure—but don’t you dare mistake that for her ever feeling like she belonged.”

The silence that followed was explosive.

Jaxon swore violently, shoving away from the counter like the words had hit him in the gut.

Rory’s hands clenched into fists again, his jaw tight, his wolf bleeding through the cracks.

Seth froze, no humour left in him at all, his usual mask stripped bare.

And Callum? Callum’s chest heaved, his nostrils flaring, Ace pushing dangerously close to the surface.

“She thought Ethan was her mate,” I went on, pushing the knife deeper. “Her best friend. For years, she believed it. And you know how she found out she wasn’t?”

No one breathed.

“The night before his birthday, Nora, her closest friend, told her. Told her she was the one fated to Ethan.”

Jaxon’s growl tore through the room, guttural and violent, rattling the glass in the cupboards.

“She didn’t scream. Didn’t beg,” I said, voice breaking despite myself. “She just looked him in the eye, wished him well, and walked away. Then she went to the pub, got wasted, and still managed to take care of everyone else. She doesn’t let herself fall apart. She doesn’t believe she’s allowed to.”

Rory sank into a chair, pressing his palms against his forehead, like the weight of it all was finally crushing him.

Jaxon’s hands shook where they hung at his sides, Blaze’s fury radiating from him like a storm.

Seth muttered another curse, dragging a hand through his messy hair.

And Callum turned away, his shoulders rigid, his wolf raging just beneath his skin.

“She never thought she was enough,” I whispered. “Not for her real parents. Not for Ethan. Not for the Moon Goddess. And then you four showed up, reeking of sex and arrogance, claiming her like she was just another thing you could have.”

That landed like a blade between the ribs.

“You made her feel like a choice,” I said, voice shaking now. “Like she was replaceable. And the worst part? You proved it.”

Their silence was deafening.

Jaxon’s breath hitched. Rory looked at me with raw guilt. Seth’s smirk was long gone, replaced with something grim. Callum’s chest rose and fell heavily, his jaw tight, eyes shadowed.

“What do we do?” Jaxon asked finally, his voice hoarse, stripped of its usual venom.

I studied them. My brothers. My blood. Four ruthless Alphas who could tear a pack apart with a look—and right now, they looked like lost boys.

“You fix it,” I said simply.

“How?” Rory asked, voice cracked, raw.

“You show her,” I said, voice firm. “That she’s enough. That she’s worth everything. That you choose her—not because some Goddess said so, but because you can’t breathe without her. Because you don’t want anyone else.”

They didn’t argue. Didn’t move. Just stood there, their guilt thick in the air, choking.

“Because right now,” I added, “she feels the bond too. Maybe not as strong, maybe not enough to admit it, but it’s there. She’s just too scared. And the way you acted tonight? You made it worse.”

Callum inhaled sharply, hands curling into fists. His voice was low, but steady when he finally spoke.

“We’ll fix this.”

I stared at him for a long beat. At all of them.

“You’d better,” I said. “Because if you break her, I’ll burn this entire fucking house down myself.”