Resisting the Alpha Triplets by Cara Anderson

Ch. 44 Nothing To Say

Mallory’s POV

I woke to a feeling of blissful serenity the next morning. I immediately realized Colton wasn’t there but one glance at the clock told me where he would be. Part of me wanted to panic that he had changed his mind, regretted what we’d done last night, but I refused to indulge it.

Colton had responsibilities and I should just appreciate that he let me sleep instead of questioning his absence. If I were going to accept the mate bond, I would have to learn to trust the three of them rather than always assuming the worst. If I accepted them. Was I actually considering that possibility?

Something seemed to click into place for me last night when Colton admitted he wanted me, like a missing puzzle piece had been found. A bond that had been fragmented suddenly felt whole. I couldn’t deny the feeling of rightness it gave me to be held in his arms, to be touched and pleasured by him.Original from NôvelDrama.Org.

But there was still Nathan. Adults like to tell their pups stories about the mate bond, making it sound like a fairytale, this all encompassing love that would be immediate and indelible, erasing all others. But that just wasn’t true. I’d loved Nathan for a long time, built something with him that didn’t just vanish when my mate bond snapped in.

“But he’s not ours.” My wolf did not hesitate to remind me. “He belongs to someone else just like we do.”

“I know.” I admitted because no matter how much I hated it, it was true.

Nathan had been my safe place for so long. He gave me strength and comfort in a way no one ever had before. He’d always felt like home. How could I just toss that aside for a mate bond with three men who had never seen me as anything more than an inferior Omega, put here solely to be the object of their sadistic sense of humor?

“They’ve changed.” Raven inserted herself into my thoughts again.

“Have they? Do people really ever change?” I wasn’t sure they did.

Still, I couldn’t deny the pull I felt to them or the excitement that had me jumping out of bed to get ready for training, anxious to see Colton again. I would just have to hope that somehow, this mess would sort itself out. That I could untangle my knotted thoughts and do the right thing for everyone involved.

By the time I’d made it to the training field, the butterflies in my stomach had launched into full flight. I had no idea why I was so nervous. Maybe because Colton had been so reticent from the beginning so him wanting me now felt like a fragile, tenuous thing.

I made my way to the practice field, grinning to myself at what I knew I would find, a certain three Alphas looking sexy as hell in their workout gear. I felt my panties dampen at just the thought of all their delicious muscles on display. Raven was prancing eagerly in my head, purring a litany of “mate, mate, mate” on repeat. It was a wonder I didn’t have a migraine.

So when I looked up to find Colton in Darcy’s embrace, her arms snaked around him like a boa constrictor, to say it caught me off guard would be an understatement. But when she tiptoed up to kiss him on the lips, him leaning into her like it was the most natural thing in the world, like they were as together as they’d always been, I couldn’t stay and watch.

My stomach roiled and I literally felt like I would vomit as I ran back to my car. How could I have been so fucking stupid to have believed him when he said he wanted me and not her? How could I have let him touch me, make me the “other woman?”

Raven whimpered inside me, feeling the loss deeply after finally believing all her mates wanted her. When Colton caught up to me and tried to explain away what I’d seen, she pushed for me to believe him. But I wouldn’t be that gullible.

“What’s wrong, little wolf? What happened?” Clay took one look at me when I walked into his office and instantly knew I’d been crying.

“Hey, I thought I smelled-” Cary came ambling in, drawn by my scent, but stopped short when he saw me. “What the fuck? Why have you been crying?”

Clay looked devastated, like he couldn’t stand the thought of anything hurting me. Cary looked like he was ready to tear the world apart to find the problem and eliminate it. But I couldn’t stomach telling either of them that I’d let their brother play me.

“Could I work with one of you today on our strategy plan? I was supposed to train with Colton but that’s not going to work out.” I said, dodging their questions.

“Why not?” Cary crossed his arms, every ounce the stereotypical stubborn Alpha.

I could tell by the frown on his face that he assumed Colton was the cause of my distress and he was already pissed on my behalf. I dropped exhaustedly onto Clay’s sofa, resigned to my fate. They obviously weren’t going to let it go until I’d regurgitated every last embarrassing detail.

They both came to sit on either side of me, hands rubbing my back in soothing circles and sending me encouragement through our bond. Part of me loathed making myself so vulnerable to these men who’d taken advantage of that same vulnerability in the past and used it against me. But the part that was beholden to the mate bond rejoiced in the knowledge that they wanted to listen, to care for me.

“Colton came by last night.” Both men stiffened, drawing in sharp breaths at that admission.

“What did he want?” Clay asked cautiously.

“Said he needed to see me.” I shrugged nonchalantly. “Climbed in through my window just like the two of you. I’m starting to wonder if you three have some kind of weird door phobia.

“Anyway,” I went on, “He started kissing me but I pushed him away, told him I wouldn’t be the other woman just because his wolf wanted me. Then he dropped the bombshell that he hasn’t been, um, intimate with Darcy since I came home from Luna training. At least that’s what he wanted me to believe.

“He swore he wanted me, that he was done with Darcy. Then we did… things, and he spent the night. I was actually excited to see him this morning, was actually stupid enough to think maybe this bond could work. But when I showed up to training, Darcy was all over him and he did not look the least bit sad about it.”

“That fucker!” Cary growled. “I’m gonna fucking murder him myself!

“I’m so sorry, little wolf.” Clay murmured, pulling me onto his lap and holding my head to his chest.

“It’s okay.” I sniffled. “No need to commit fratricide on my account. I think my gut was telling me the whole time that it wasn’t real but I wanted it to be so I chose to ignore it. That’s no one’s fault but mine.”

“Did you talk to him? Maybe there was a legitimate explanation.” Clay offered, optimistically.

“He did try to tell me that he just hadn’t had a chance to talk to her yet but that’s just an excuse. I reminded him he’s had plenty of chances, starting when he realized I was your mate. It’s just not meant to be.”

I pushed off of Clay’s lap, putting some much needed distance between us. His scent was overpowering my common sense, making me want to strip him down and ride him like a pony. But I knew if I let that happen, I would never be able to walk away. I was letting myself get in too deep with these men as it was.

“He’ll come around, darling.” Cary stood up and grabbed my hand, imploring me with his eyes to be patient with them. “They’ve been together a long time. I know it’s hard for him to cause her pain.”

“Really?” I scoffed at him. “This coming from the brother who threatened homicide moments ago? What about Nathan? Do you think it’s easy for me to hurt him? But still you expect me to do it without a second thought so I can accept our bond.”

“That’s not fair, Mal.” Clay chastised me. “We want you, love. But none of us relished the idea of causing you or anyone else pain. It was just a necessary evil. One we wanted over and done with sooner than later.”

“Right.” I blew out a frustrated breath, unsure what to believe. “Well, I think it’s best if we all just focus on the plan for now. The complexities of our relationship will just get in the way.”

“What complexities?” The impatient, easily irritated Cary was back. “It’s pretty simple the way I see it. You’re our mate, darling. You belong with us. End of story.”

“It’s that simple, is it?” I snarked back. “There are three of you, in case you forgot. One of you doesn’t want me. What happens to our bond if he rejects me? What happens if the three of us mark each other? Does Colton lose his free will? Will he be forced to give up Darcy and be with me because he’s bonded by association? Because we took his choice from him?’

The two of them stared back at me blank-faced. It was clear neither of them had spent much time considering the finer details of our situation. What a fucking mess!

“Like I said… complexities.” I couldn’t restrain my ‘I told you so’ attitude. “Now can we please get to work?”,

Clay was the best with schematics so it was agreed he would help me memorize landmarks within Hazelwood territory so I could move through the pack confidently, like I belonged there. He’d managed to find an old blueprint of the grounds and though we couldn’t be sure nothing had changed, it was a starting point.

We spent the rest of the day working on learning the layout, with Clay quizzing me while Cary hovered nearby, unwilling to get too far away for any length of time. It was good to focus my attention on something other than what an idiot I’d been to trust Colton. For someone who’d insisted for so long that I’d never accept them, his betrayal stung far worse than I would have expected.

I’d been concentrating so deeply on the task at hand that I hadn’t noticed when the man himself joined us. He was standing in the doorway of Clay’s office, watching me intently, but it wasn’t until he cleared his throat that I looked up to find him there. His brothers were hovering so close that even his scent hadn’t alerted me.

“Sorry to interrupt.” He started, his face flushing with what I could only assume was guilt. “Could I speak to Mal for a minute?”

His brothers leapt from their seats to stand in front of me, forming a snarling, growling wall of muscle between Colton and I.

“I’m pretty sure you lost that privilege, brother.” Clay scowled.

“Look, I know I fucked up. I just want a chance to explain.” Colton petitioned.

“The three of you can stand here and stonewall each other as long as you like.” I announced, standing up and walking around my bodyguards. “But it’s been a long day. I’m tired. And I really don’t think I have another conversation left in me for today. Especially not one full of more bullshit excuses meant to make me look stupid.”

“Damn it, Mal! That’s not what this is. It’s not bullshit!” He reached out to me but I put my hands up and took a step back.

“So you broke up with Darcy?” I questioned.

His face turned bright red and he hung his head to the floor, effectively answering that query.

I kissed Clay and Cary both on the cheek and thanked them for their help, then walked over and stood toe to toe with Colton, looking deep into his eyes so he would know I meant business.

“I’ll say it one more time. I won’t be your side piece. Don’t come running to me because the mate bond compels you to when Darcy is the one you really want.

“If you were being honest with me that you’re ready to move on, you wouldn’t keep her around as your back up plan in case we don’t work out. When things are truly over between the two of you and you are sure about what you want, then we can talk. Until then, there is nothing to say.”

I didn’t wait for a response. I didn’t give him the chance to beg me to hear his side or lie to me again. I just pushed past him and walked out the door with my head held high.