CHAPTER 20

ANDRE POV

Lillian’s mother snored softly on the couch, her silver hair framed across the throw pillow I had tucked behind her. The scent of chocolate tea and old books clung to her, which was so different from Lily’s bergamot and sprinkle of defiance, yet just as comforting.

I checked my phone for the hundredth time. No new alerts from the pack. Just Lucas’s last message…. ‘Drake handled the breach. Lillian is safe.’

Safe.

Not happy. Not yours.

My wolf snarled at the distinction.

The cabin’s floorboards creaked as I paced past the guarded windows. Three hours ago, I had been ready to present Lily as my mate at the tournament. Now? Now I was babysitting her mother while my best friend tasted the lips I had dreamed about for months.

The irony of it all burned like silver.

My head snapped up at the sudden knock of the door, to see Lucas slouched against the frame, his usual smirk absent. “You look like shit.”

“Feel like it.” I stepped outside silently, careful not to wake her, letting the cold air welcome me whole and asked blankly, “Status?”

“Eastern wolves retreated. For now.” He handed me a flask. The whiskey inside tasted like regret.

“We need to talk about Lillian.”

My fingers were knuckle white as it squeezed tightly around the railings. “Nothing to discuss.”

“Bullshit.” Lucas leaned against the porch. His eyes blazing with all seriousness. “You felt it, didn’t you? The bond flaring when she kissed Drake.”

The memory lashed through me like a live wire….white hot pain searing my chest an hour ago, my wolf howling as another male claimed our mate. I had then vomited in the bushes like newborn pup.

“She is mine,” I growled.

“Then fight for her.”

I stared at the treetops lost in thought. Fight Drake meant challenging my Alpha. My brother. The man who had taken a bullet for me during the border war last winter.

Lucas sighed. “You are not gonna, are you?”

The truth tasted bitter on my tongue. “Would you?”

He placed a hand on his jaw and closed his eyes momentarily. “Nah. But I am not the one with a mating bond burning a hole in my chest.”

I rubbed the throbbing ache over my heart. “It’s not just about Drake. Lily’s eyes…when she looks at him…”

“Yeah.” Lucas knocked back more whiskey. “Like he hung the damn moon.”

A rustle in the bushes saved me from responding and two omega emerged, their scent thick with unease.

“Beta,” the taller one panted. “Alpha requests you at the pack house. Tournament preparations.”

The obvious translation…Drake is staking his claim publicly.

Lucas whistled as he stood up and stretched. “Show time.”

The pack house hummed like bees with tournament preparation. Warriors polished blades lying in the courtyard, while the kitchen staff piled platters with enough meat to feed five packs.

And through it all….there was her.

Lillian stood on the balcony with Salome, entranced by the setting sun. The breeze played with her hair, carrying her scent to me like a taunt. Bergamot. Vanilla. And underneath…Drake.

My claws popped up instinctively.

Lucas elbowed me and whispered. “Breathe, brother.”

I forced my fists to unclench. “Where is he?”

“War room. Finalizing security—”

The balcony door opened. Drake stepped into the golden light, his gray eyes locked onto Lily like she was the only thing that mattered.

I knew that look. Had seen it when we were sixteen and he had stared at her across the cafeteria right before making her life hell.

Love disguising as hate.

Salome slipped away as Drake reached out for Lillian. Even from this distance, I saw the way her breath hitched when his thumb brushed her jaw. Saw the pink flush spreading down her neck.

Then he kissed her.

Without warning, the bond screamed.

My vision went pitch black, the pain so sharp that I stumbled. Lucas grabbed my arm, but I shook him off.

“Easy,” he warned.

I couldn’t speak, couldn’t move, couldn’t think past the agony of my wolf tearing itself apart inside me…and the pain so searing that all I saw was white.

On the balcony, Drake pulled back to whisper something that made Lily laugh…that bright, unguarded laugh she had never given me.

My knees gave way and Lucas pulled me behind a pillar before I could hit the ground. “Fuck, Andre. Your eyes—”

White. They had gone full wolf white. A Beta losing control was totally unheard of.

I gasped against the huge stone and pleaded earnestly, “Make it stop. Please.”

“Can’t.” Lucas’s said as he held my arm tightly. “Mating bonds don’t break clean.”

Above us, Drake breathed on Lily’s temple, his lips moving against her skin. Claiming. Promising.

And every word was like a knife.

I found Drake in the war room, poring over maps. He didn’t look up when I entered.

“Security is set. Eastern pack won’t breach again.”

The casual dismissal fueled my rage. “We need to talk.”

Finally, he met my gaze and the smug satisfaction in his scent made my wolf snarl.

“About?”

“Lillian.” Her name tore from me raw and unfiltered. “You knew she was mine. Why are you making moves on her?”

A muscle throbbed in his jaw as he replied blankly, “she was never yours.”

The lie hung heavily between us. He had felt the bond same as I had…the way her presence calmed my wolf, the electric buzz in the air when our skin brushed.

I slammed my palms in the table angrily and looked at him squarely in the eye. “Then why wait until now? Ten fucking years, Drake!”

His eyes flashed. “You think this was easy for me? Watching you touch her? Smelling her in your clothes?”

The admission was so unexpected that it stunned me silent.

Drake exhaled sharply and said, “I tried to walk away. Really tried. But when the Eastern pack took her….” His voice broke. “I nearly tore the world apart.”

The raw pain in his scent stilled my anger. This wasn’t just about claiming territory or dominance.

He loved her.

Like really, truly loved her.

And I…

I was the obstacle.

My wolf howled in protest.

Drake walked round the table until we stood nose to nose. “Challenge me if you want. But ask yourself…does she look at you the way she looks at me?”

The truth was like a punch in the gut.

Lily had never gazed at me in that particular manner. Had never trembled when I entered a room.

But the bond—

“Fuck the bond,” Drake growled, as if reading my mind. “If it was real, she would have chosen you.”

The words shattered something in my chest.

But my wolf refused to accept it. I refused to accept it.

“No Drake. This one is mine. Back off.”