Mia’s POV
I sat stiffly in my father’s study, my heart thudding with frustration as I listened to them talk about my life like I wasn’t even in the room. My father, his expression serious, sat behind his desk, while Lucas stood beside him, arms crossed, his golden eyes watching me closely.
And then there were them.
The four men I had been trying to escape. The same ones who had once ruined me, who now stood like sentinels, their eyes dark, filled with something I couldn’t name.
I exhaled sharply, trying to control my temper. “I don’t need their protection,” I finally bit out, my fingers digging into my thighs. “I’ve survived this long without them.”
My father sighed, his gaze heavy with something that almost looked like guilt. “Mia, this isn’t about what you want. This is about what you are.”
I clenched my jaw, but Lucas stepped forward, his eyes burning into mine. “You’re the white wolf, Mia,” he said firmly. “You don’t get the luxury of ignoring fate.”
A bitter laugh escaped my lips. “Fate? You think it’s fate that I ended up with them?” I shot a glare at the four brothers standing near the wall. “You think the moon goddess decided to make me mated to the people who hurt me the most?”
Nathan flinched, his fists clenching at his sides, while Xavier’s eyes darkened, his jaw tight. Rolex shifted slightly, the usual cocky expression wiped from his face, while Sean stood still, his gaze shadowed, unreadable.
Lucas let out a slow breath, his tone careful, measured. “You don’t have to like it. But you can’t change it.”
I shook my head, my chest tightening. “That’s exactly what I’m trying to do,” I muttered, rubbing my temples. “I want to break the mating bond.”
Silence.
Thick, suffocating silence.
Then my father’s voice, low, edged with something dangerous. “No, you won’t.”
I snapped my head up, my eyes widening. “Excuse me?”
He stood, his expression unreadable. “You are the only one who can save them. And they are the only ones who can protect you.” His voice hardened. “You think the enemies hunting you will stop? You think Keith is the only one? There will be others. They will come for you, Mia. And they will tear this world apart to get your heart.”
A shiver ran down my spine, but I refused to let it show. “I can protect myself.”
Lucas shook his head. “You’re powerful, Mia. But you’re not invincible.”
I looked away, my breath shallow, uneven. I didn’t want to need them. I didn’t want any of this.
But even I knew the truth.
The last attack had been too close. The rogues, the demons-they weren’t just random enemies. They were being sent. And if someone as powerful as Keith was after me, it wouldn’t stop.
Not until they had what they wanted.
No matter how much I fought, no matter how hard I tried to free myself, I was still chained to them.
To them.
The ones who had once broken me, who now stood as my protectors. The irony burned in my chest like a fresh wound.
I wiped at my face, my vision blurring. “So that’s it?” My voice was sharp, bitter. “I have no choice? Either I stay with them, or I die?”
Lucas’s gaze hardened, but there was something almost pained in his expression. “Yes.”
A sharp laugh escaped me, hollow and empty. “Of course.”
Of course the moon goddess would play such a sick joke on me.
I had barely survived them once. And now? I had to trust them? I had to depend on them?
I turned away, my chest heaving, my emotions twisting into something unbearable. Rage. Grief. Frustration. Despair. It all tangled inside me, a storm with no end.
They would never understand. Not the years of loneliness, of pain, of being nothing.
Not the countless nights I cried myself to sleep, wishing for just one person to care.
Not the way their words had once shredded me apart, how their cruelty had carved scars that would never fade.
They had each other. But I? I had no one.
I covered my mouth, my body trembling as the weight of it all came crashing down.
And then-
A thud. I turned sharply, and my breath caught. They were kneeling.
All four of them. On their knees.
Their heads bowed, their hands clenched at their sides, their faces filled with raw desperation.
Xavier was the first to lift his head, his blue eyes burning into mine, filled with something I had never seen before. “Please, Mia.” His voice was low, rough, almost broken. “I know we don’t deserve you. But I swear to you, I would burn the world down if it meant keeping you safe.”
Nathan swallowed hard, his adam’s apple bobbing, his lips parting like he was struggling to find the right words. “You think we don’t know what we did? You think we don’t see the hell we put you through?” His fists tightened, his gaze shining with regret. “I would trade my life a thousand times over if it meant taking back even a second of your pain.”
Rolex let out a breath, his hands shaking, something I had never seen from him before. “I was a coward.” His voice was almost hoarse, his usual playful smirk nowhere to be seen. “I let my hatred blind me, let my own wounds make me turn against the one person I should have protected.” His lips pressed together, his jaw locking. “You don’t owe me anything, Mia. But I swear on my life, if you let me, I will spend the rest of my days making it up to you.”
Sean, the quietest, the most guarded, looked up at me last, his green eyes filled with something raw, something unspoken. “You were always ours,” he murmured. “Even when we were too blind to see it.” His fingers dug into his palms, his breathing uneven. “You can hate us forever, Mia. And we’ll take it. We’ll take whatever you give us, as long as we still get to be near you.”
I hated the way my heart twisted painfully. I hated the way my body shook, how my wolf stirred inside me, longing for them. I hated the way their words cut through my defenses, weaving through my pain like a blade.
But most of all-
I hated that a part of me wanted to believe them.