LOGIN"Because we're not trying to make you feel better," Aiden said bluntly. "We're trying to make you understand. If we wanted to lie, we'd tell you the bond makes infidelity impossible. We'd tell you we're biologically incapable of wanting anyone else. But that's not true. The truth is we could, theoretically, be with others. We're choosing not to. Because we don't want to.""Choice." Melina looked at him. "You're saying you're choosing me.""Yes." All three of them said it."Every day," Alaric continued. "Every moment. We're choosing you. Not because we have to. Because we want to.""But Stephanie....""Was convenient," Archer said. "Available. Willing. She served a purpose before we knew what you were to us. The moment we felt the bond, she became irrelevant. They all did.""And you didn't tell me about them.""No." Alaric's jaw tightened. "We didn't. Because we didn't think it mattered. Because they're in the past. Because we were trying to court you....to show you our present and our
"No." All three of them said it simultaneously."You're our mate," Alaric continued. "That's not the same thing. That's permanent. Unchangeable. We're not going to get bored of you. We're not going to want others. The bond won't let us.""The bond." Melina laughed. It sounded broken. "The bond that you just admitted doesn't guarantee fidelity.""In theory it doesn't," Archer said. "In practice...for us...you're all we want. All we can think about. The idea of touching someone else feels physically repulsive now.""Now. But what about later? What about when the newness wears off? What about when I'm not enough anymore?""That won't happen," Aiden said."You can't know that.""Yes we can." Alaric moved closer. "Because the mate bond isn't just attraction. It's recognition. It's finding the person you're meant to be with. We found you. That doesn't change. That doesn't fade.""Stephanie didn't seem to think so.""Stephanie is bitter," Archer said bluntly. "She thought she had a permanent
"Really?" Stephanie tilted her head. "You don't care that I've been in all three of their beds? That I know exactly what they like? How they move? What makes them come?"Something twisted in Melina's chest. Sharp. Painful.Jealousy.The realization hit her like a physical blow.She was jealous."I've been here for years," Stephanie continued. Her voice was soft. Almost kind. "I've been their favorite. Their go-to. And now you show up with your mate bond and your special connection and suddenly I'm...what? Replaced?""I'm not trying to replace anyone....""Aren't you?" Stephanie's eyes were hard now. "You're living in their rooms. Eating with them. Working with them. Helping them through the curse. That's my role, sweetheart. That's what I've been doing for them for years. And now you're here and suddenly I don't get calls anymore. Suddenly I'm not welcome in their beds.""Stephanie." Archer moved forward. "You need to leave. Now.""Why? Because I'm telling her the truth?" Stephanie lo
Melina's POV - AfternoonShe was in the library when it happened.Reading. Actually reading. Not just pretending to research while her mind wandered. She'd found a book about supernatural law...about contracts and bonds and what constituted consent in situations involving power imbalances.Relevant reading.Aiden was across from her. Working quietly. The comfortable silence they'd fallen into over the past few days.Then his phone buzzed.He looked at it. His expression shifted."What's wrong?" Melina asked."Nothing. I just...I need to take this." He stood up. Walked to the far corner of the library. Spoke quietly into his phone.Melina went back to her book.Tried to go back to her book.But she could hear the tension in Aiden's voice. Could see the way his shoulders had gone rigid.He ended the call. Came back to the table."I need to go," he said. "Something's come up. You'll be okay here for a bit?""Yes. What's wrong?""Nothing you need to worry about." But his voice was tight.
"I don't believe in fate.""Maybe you should." Clara's voice was gentle. "You came to that estate desperate. Planning something dangerous. And instead of punishing you or turning you away, they gave you work. Gave you purpose. Gave me the cure. That's not just luck. That's something more."Melina wanted to tell her. Wanted to explain about the mate bond. About the curse. About the full moon and the way her body had responded. About the way the bond pulled at her even now.But how could she explain something she barely understood herself?"They need me there," she said instead. "For specific reasons I can't fully explain. And I don't know if that's enough reason to stay.""Do you want to stay?" Clara asked again. "Forget about what they need. Forget about obligation or debt or any of that. Do you...Melina...want to stay there?"Did she?A week ago the answer would have been a clear no. She'd wanted to escape. Wanted her freedom. Wanted nothing to do with the men who'd trapped her.But
Melina's POVThe car was waiting when she came downstairs, And Aiden was leaning against the hood."Good morning," he said."Morning. I thought I was going alone?""You are. I'm just here to see you off." He opened the back door for her. "Marcus will drive you. He's discreet. Professional. And he knows to give you space with your mother. He'll wait in the car.""You're not coming?""Do you want me to come?"She thought about it. "No. I need to see her alone. Talk to her alone. Without...""Without us watching," he finished. "I understand. That's why we're sending Marcus instead of coming ourselves."She looked at the car. At the freedom it represented."I could just drive away," she said. Testing. "Tell Marcus to keep driving. Never come back.""You could." Aiden's voice was calm. "But you won't.""How do you know?""Because your mother is at St. Catherine's Medical Center receiving treatment that we're providing. Because the Vigil is still watching her. Because leaving would put her
POV: MelinaShe woke up knowing.Not anxious knowing. Not the tight wound feeling she'd carried for three weeks every time a plan fell through. Just a quiet settled certainty that sat in her chest like something that had finally stopped moving.Tonight.She got up. Got dressed. Pinned her hair back
POV: MelinaShe went out at one AM.Not to the greenhouse. Not yet. Just to test it....the ledge, the timing, the distance from the garden wall. She needed to know it held before she committed to it fully and she needed to know it at night, in the dark, under real conditions and not daylight approx
POV: AidenThe delegation briefing ran from seven to nine.Aiden sat at the head of the council table and moved through the agenda with the efficiency of someone who had done this enough times to know exactly where the friction points were and how to get past them before they became problems. The p
POV: MelinaShe sat on her bed with her notebook open and her pen in her hand and for the first time in three weeks the route made sense.Not almost made sense. Not close enough with one problem she hadn't solved yet. Actually made sense, start to finish, every step accounted for.The second floor







