The Alpha’s Demand

Sleep didn’t come easily.

Even after the pain in my neck faded, my mind refused to quiet. Every time my eyes closed, memories forced their way back in. The courtyard. Xander’s voice rejecting me in front of everyone. The cold look in his eyes the morning after the Blood Moon.

Then Tristan’s teeth sinking into my neck.

Then the doctor’s words.

Pregnant.

The word still felt unreal inside my head.

I lay on the bed staring at the ceiling while the candles burned lower along the stone walls. The room had grown quiet, but it wasn’t peaceful quiet.

It was the kind of silence that came from two predators trying very hard not to attack each other.

Tristan remained seated near the bed, his arms folded loosely across his chest. His posture looked relaxed, but the tension in his shoulders betrayed him.

Across the room, Xander stood with his back against the wall, watching everything.

Watching Tristan.

Watching me.

Watching the space between us.

No one had spoken for nearly an hour.

I finally couldn’t stand it anymore.

“You’re both staring like statues,” I muttered. “It’s unsettling.”

Tristan huffed a quiet laugh.

Xander didn’t react at all.

I sat up slowly, careful not to aggravate the marks on my neck. The movement immediately drew both their attention.

“Easy,” Tristan said.

“I’m not made of glass.”

“You nearly died an hour ago.”

I opened my mouth to argue, then closed it again.

Fair point.

Still, I hated feeling fragile.

My feet touched the cold stone floor, and for a moment the room tilted slightly. Tristan immediately stood, but I raised a hand.

“I’m fine.”

I wasn’t completely fine, but pride had always been one of the few things the pack hadn’t managed to beat out of me.

I walked toward the window slowly.

The night air drifting through the bars felt cool against my face. From this height I could see most of the courtyard below.

It looked like a battlefield.

Broken stone.

Dark patches of blood.

Scattered weapons abandoned during the fight.

My stomach twisted.

“This is my fault,” I whispered.

Behind me, Tristan’s voice came immediately.

“No.”

“You fought because of me.”

“Xander and I would have fought eventually,” Tristan said calmly.

“True,” Xander added.

I glanced back at him.

His expression was still unreadable, but his voice had lost some of its earlier hostility.

“That fight was years overdue,” he said.

“Comforting,” I muttered.

Another silence followed.

Then Tristan finally straightened and ran a hand through his dark hair.

“We need to talk.”

Xander’s eyes narrowed.

“About what?”

“About her.”

The way he said it made something in my chest tighten.

Like I was suddenly a territory map instead of a person.

Tristan continued.

“She can’t stay here.”

Xander’s gaze hardened instantly.

“She’s not leaving.”

Tristan let out a slow breath.

“You’re not thinking clearly.”

“And you are?”

“Yes.”

Xander pushed away from the wall.

The temperature in the room seemed to drop immediately.

“You broke into my territory, attacked my warriors, and now you’re standing in my tower telling me what to do.”

Tristan didn’t back down.

“She’s safer in Shadow territory.”

I blinked.

“Wait—”

Both of them ignored me.

“Safe?” Xander scoffed. “You marked her without permission.”

“She was dying alone in a bar.”

“That didn’t give you the right to claim her.”

Tristan’s jaw tightened.

“I wasn’t asking for your permission.”

The air in the room thickened with tension again.

I stepped forward quickly.

“Enough.”

To my surprise, they both stopped talking.

“Has anyone considered asking me what I want?” I said.

Neither Alpha spoke immediately.

Which was answer enough.

“I’m not a prize you can pass between packs,” I continued.

Tristan looked slightly uncomfortable.

Xander looked annoyed.

Progress, I supposed.

Tristan spoke first.

“You’re right.”

Xander remained silent.

That irritated me.

“Xander.”

His eyes flicked toward me.

“You don’t get to pretend I don’t exist after what you did.”

Something dark moved behind his expression.

“I’m not pretending.”

“You rejected me in front of the entire pack.”

“I rejected the title.”

“You humiliated me.”

His jaw clenched.

“That wasn’t my intention.”

I stared at him.

“You called me a stain on your soul.”

The words hung in the room like smoke.

For a moment, Xander didn’t answer.

Then he said quietly, “You were supposed to hate me.”

That confused me more than anything else he’d said tonight.

“What?”

“You were supposed to hate me,” he repeated.

Tristan frowned slightly.

“Explain that.”

But Xander shook his head.

“Not now.”

“That’s convenient,” I said bitterly.

His gaze softened for a fraction of a second.

Then it hardened again.

“This conversation doesn’t change the fact that she isn’t leaving Blood Moon territory.”

Tristan crossed his arms.

“Then we’re back where we started.”

“Exactly.”

“And what happens when the Mark War starts again?”

Xander didn’t answer immediately.

He glanced toward my neck.

Even from across the room he could see the faint purple glow beneath the skin.

His expression darkened.

“That won’t happen,” he said.

Tristan laughed softly.

“That’s wishful thinking.”

He stepped closer to the bed again.

“The doctor already explained the situation.”

“Doctors exaggerate.”

“No,” Tristan said quietly.

“They don’t.”

Silence fell again.

This time heavier than before.

Because deep down, all three of us knew Tristan was right.

Finally he said the words none of us wanted to hear.

“If she stays here, war will follow.”

Xander’s eyes narrowed.

“Are you threatening me?”

“I’m warning you.”

The two Alphas stared at each other.

And suddenly I understood.

Tristan wasn’t just worried about me.

He was worried about the packs.

Two territories already hated each other.

A pregnant, double-marked mate caught between their Alphas could ignite something far worse.

My stomach twisted again.

“I don’t want a war,” I whispered.

Neither Alpha looked away from the other.

But both of them heard me.

And for the first time that night, uncertainty crept into the room.

Because whatever decision came next…

It would change everything.

And none of us were ready for it.