5. The Ashcroft Quadruplets

~ ALEXANDER ~

As soon as Mother mentioned that this year's mating ball would be hosted by the Silvercrest pack, I won't lie, I felt a little bit of hope. It's been six years.

Six years of silence, heartbreak, and rejection. Six years of not knowing whether fate had chosen her for us. Six years without her, Guinevere, my little Pixie.

The four of us talked, argued, fought, and in the end we made a decision. The plan was simple.

First, we would get to Silvercrest before the veil was raised. If fate decided we belonged together, then we would try to fix the divide between us.

But if fate was not on our side, then we would confront her and convince her to release the blood oath. Then we could move on from her.

I was determined that this would work. It had to. Part of me was filled with hope, the part that still loved her. But the part of me that still felt broken and destroyed just wanted it to end and move on.

When we arrived, I wasn't prepared for the overwhelming storm of conflicted feelings when I saw her at the top of the steps. She was even more enchanting than I remembered.

The way my nephew Darren ran up to her, full of joy, tore something inside me. He knew her, but how? My older brother Emmett never said anything about seeing her all these years. Even his mate, Allison, greeted her with knowing affection.

My parents embraced her as if no time had passed. I could have sworn my father said something to her. Emmett also spoke with her like she was one of his allies. And she smiled at all of them.

When I saw the two girls her brothers were holding, I almost collapsed. Their hair and eyes were slightly different. But their faces stirred memories of the little girl we grew up with.

I almost crumpled as soon as I heard the little girl in the pink dress call her "Mommy." It was our children who should have been calling my Pixie "Mommy."

But I'm Alexander Ashcroft. Nothing could make me lose my composure. I command an empire and nothing makes me lose control. Or so I thought.

I felt the first crack when we drew closer and I couldn't sense the mate bond with her. The second came with her icy greeting, barely acknowledging me. What almost broke me was her refusal to take my hand.

I just wanted to touch her. I needed to know she was real. I didn't even realize I was shaking until I pulled my hand back. I almost collapsed completely and threw myself at her feet to beg.

But I didn't.

This was going to be harder than I thought because more and more of me no longer wanted to release her from the oath.

* * *

~ REID ~

I knew the plan, and I had agreed to it. I even told myself I would remain neutral. Especially since I hadn't scented her as our fated mate.

But as soon as I stood in front of her, all of that went out the window. I just wanted everything to be the way it was again. I almost called her “Monkey.”

I caught myself as soon as I remembered how she had just greeted Alex. Like him, I wanted to reach out to her. But obviously it wasn't what she wanted.

I even wanted to say more to her. But the words eluded me. What could I possibly say? Especially in front of both of our families. So I held it back.

I refused to believe it was because she hated us. It had to be because she had someone else and she didn't want to upset them. The little clone who called her “Mommy” was proof that she was mated.

So why can't I give her up?

I barely remembered greeting anyone else. I didn't even know how long Mom had been holding my arm as if she was trying to soothe me.

It wasn't until Rowan placed his hand on my shoulder that I snapped out of my daze. When our matching eyes met, we both knew.

Alex's plan wasn't going to work.

* * *

~ ROWAN ~

I had never agreed to the plan, but my brothers didn't need to know that. I had my own plan. I wasn't going to allow the oath to be discharged.

I just needed to act like my usual playful self. As long as I could make her genuinely smile and laugh, we could go back to the way things used to be. And then we could move forward.

I'll admit, when I saw the little girls I thought my Gigi could be their mother. But only for a moment. I could see the mate marks on her brothers and Charlie.

They have to be their parents. Yes, they look a lot like Genny. But it's possible for nieces to look like their aunt. Especially when said aunt is part of multiples.

I'm positive the little girl in the pink dress was referring to Charlie when she called out, “Mommy.” She was standing in front of both Charlie and my Monkey, so it would be easy to misunderstand.

What I didn't expect was for Genny to pull away from me. She always loved my hugs. I figured if I got close enough, she would smile proclaiming she was joking, and then wrap her arms around me.

Every fiber of my being is crying out to feel her voluptuous breasts against my chest. To run my fingers through her silky black cherry hair once again. I've dreamed for too long about having her in my arms again.

She was so close to me, but felt far beyond my reach.

I can't let this stop me. I need her, and I can see that Reid and Alex need her just as much. Screw Alex's plan. We're going to get her back.

"What the fuck are those leeches doing here?" Alex's cold voice demanded in my mind.

That's when I noticed them. The Bitch Brigade: Crystal, April, Sally, and Estelle. Only we were supposed to get here early, not anyone else.

Reid's panicked voice rang through our minds, "Damien, what the hell did you do?!"

* * *

~ DAMIEN ~

"I didn't do shit, Reid," I replied in the mind-link.

"Then why the hell are those four sluts here, Damien?" Rowan's anger bled into each of us. And an angry Rowan was never good.

I needed to calm him. "I don't know why they're here. My best guess is that Jared told his sister I was coming to Silvercrest early."

"This was not part of the plan, Dame," Alex scolded, his voice full of ice.

"I know, Alex. I told the shop in Silverstone I might drop in since we were coming to Silvercrest early. Jared probably told April, and she told her friends. You know how much that kid worships his older sister. If he wasn't so damn good at his job, I'd fire his ass.

"But look at it this way, Rowan: we can use them. You'll get to see if your precious Gigi gets jealous with them around. If she is, then she cares. If she isn't, then we know she's moved on."

"Or she sees us hanging around them and thinks we've moved on and wants nothing to do with us. Gods, where the hell do they even find those outfits?" Reid asked.

"I would say stripper hand-me-downs, but that would be an insult to strippers," Rowan joked.

The four of us chuckled aloud as the four most annoying she-wolves in existence waved at us.

"Aunty, Mommy, I'm sleepy!" The sound of the little girl in blue overalls made us snap our heads toward Genny and Charlie.

My brothers may suspect that those girls belong to Genny, but I don't. I was pretty positive that she wasn't their mother.

Reid's pained whisper slipped back into our four-way mind link, "Genny is a mother. Who do you guys think is her mate?"

"Nah, I don't think she's their mother. I think Charlie is their mother and the trips are their fathers." Okay, Rowan, the group jester, being sensible was completely unexpected.

"The girl, Aribella, called her 'Mommy.' I don't think there could be any doubt about it, Rowan." Damn Alex and his emotionless logic.

"I'm with Rowan on this. The kid said that in a way that she could have been addressing either Genny or Charlie. Besides, Genny doesn't have a mate." I might not have seen a mark, but I was pretty sure about this.

"Okay, smart-ass. How can you be so sure? The collar on her shirt was high and closed, so it could have been hiding a mate mark," Alex asked.

I smirked at his comment before turning to face them all. "You guys didn't notice? Her scent is still the same. If she had been mated, it would have changed."

"Okay, so maybe she isn't mated. Then maybe it was an unexpected pregnancy," Rowan suggested.

"Rowan, I'm going to pretend you didn't just say that. You know how much Genny respected the mate bond and saving herself." With that, I cut the link and stalked inside.

My brothers followed me to the bar in the common room. I poured each of us two fingers of Scotch and handed out the drinks. Then we spread out on the sofas.

Our parents and Aunt Celeste headed straight to the east wing, probably eager to get to their suite. Uncle Steven said something to Gideon, Malcolm, and Theodore before heading to his office. The three identical brothers looked at us for a moment, shook their heads, and made their way to the east wing as well.

Emmett walked over and stood with his arms folded across his chest. He slowly looked at each of us before saying, "You guys look like shit. I don't know what you're up to with those succubi, but you'd better hope it doesn't end up biting you in the ass."

With that he turned and headed to the east wing, likely to find Ally.

As soon as I heard the shrieks, I regretted sitting in the common area. We should have gone to the lounge on our floor. But I knew if we did, Mom would have some choice words for us.

Crystal practically ran in her six-inch stilettos and latched onto my arm. With every bounce, her barely-there fabric revealed more of her fake-tanned skin, making me nauseous. Then there was her perfume. Gods, I wanted to puke.

I could tell my brothers felt the same way about whoever was hanging off them.

"We have to be polite. As much as we hate them, they are still daughters of Alphas. Disrespecting them could be disastrous for pack relations, and Emmett would be pissed." Alex said, playing politics in our mind-link.

But seeing Genny walk past us so dismissively made me burn inside. When her emerald-green eyes locked on mine earlier, I wanted to drown in them, despite the frost they contained. I would allow myself to freeze to death in the iciest depths if it meant being able to kiss those plump lips just one more time.

The thought still didn't cool the anger I held for her. She has tortured me for almost a year. My brothers don't know, and I can't tell them yet. They'll be pissed when they find out, but they will still forgive her. They always do.

I yearned to feel how well that juicy ass of hers fit into my hands.

I saw her roll her eyes before she walked away.

Go ahead and roll your eyes, my Angel. One day, I'll make you roll your eyes for another reason. When you're mine again.