Xander couldn’t sleep after the hall. Especially not after he saw Aire leaving the hall with Nate.

His wolf would not settle.

Not even for a second.

The bond between mates was not something that could simply be silenced. It lingered constantly beneath the skin like another heartbeat.

Usually, Xander had control over his instincts.

Tonight, he did not.

He stood near the balcony of his chambers with one hand braced against the stone railing while cold wind swept through the open doors behind him.

His head hurt.

It felt like something was splitting him apart from the inside.

Xander’s breathing roughened slightly as another wave slammed into him unexpectedly with pain.

The pain was sharp and deep behind his eyes.

His hand tightened violently against the railing until the stone cracked faintly beneath his grip.

"What the hell..." he muttered.

His wolf snarled violently beneath his skin.

Possessiveness surged through him so suddenly it nearly staggered him backward.

’Mine.’ His wolf growled in his head.

The instinct did not even sound like his own thoughts anymore.

Xander shut his eyes hard.

Something was wrong. Hold on. Something had changed.

Immediately, he straightened.

His pulse began beating harder beneath his skin. The feeling spreading through him now was unfamiliar and unbearable all at once.

A bond. He felt a mating bond happening with his mate, but the bond was not his.

His stomach twisted violently. The realization hit him slowly first, then all at once.

Xander’s eyes snapped open.

His wolf surged so hard beneath his skin that claws threatened to split from his fingers. He knew that feeling.

Aire.

The headache intensified so brutally that Xander nearly dropped to one knee. A broken sound escaped his throat as another pulse of instinct ripped through him.

He felt a pure and animalistic jealousy surging through him. It came so suddenly he almost hated himself for it.

His wolf did not care about logic right now.

It only knew another male had touched what belonged to them.

Xander dragged a harsh breath into his lungs, then another. His healing abilities should have dulled the pain already, but it didn’t.

This was no physical pain. His mate was being claimed elsewhere.

The chamber doors opened suddenly behind him.

Alaric stepped inside immediately.

One look at Xander’s face and his expression darkened at once. He understood instantly.

Xander slowly raised his eyes toward him.

Alaric met his gaze, and a look of recognition, rage, and pain passed silently between them.

Neither of them spoke for several seconds.

Alaric exhaled once through his nose, and broke the silence, fury breaking out of him. "He marked her."

Xander laughed bitterly. He clenchedbthe left side of his chest to calm down. "You feel it too."

Alaric’s jaw flexed sharply.

His wolf had been tearing through him for the last several minutes. Possessiveness clawed at him violently.

Every instinct inside him demanded movement, action, and her.

Alaric dragged a hand down his face slowly before looking away briefly. "I should kill him."

The words came out calm, but it didn’t dull the venom slipping put of him, and ready for blood shed.

Xander looked back toward the balcony sharply. "You think I haven’t thought of that already?"

Neither of them had fully anticipated how this would feel.

They had known Aire was also Nate’s mate.

Logically, they understood it.

Instinctively? Their wolves rejected it entirely.

Alaric moved further into the room slowly. "How long has this been going on?"

Xander shut his eyes briefly again.

His head still pounded. "Almost immediately after they left the hall." The answer tasted poisonous in his mouth.

Another pulse tore through him immediately afterward. He could feel it now if he focused hard enough.

Aire felt warm and safe, wrapped in another male’s scent.

Xander’s wolf snarled violently. The sound almost escaped him physically, but it didn’t, as he tried to calm his wolf for Aire’s sake.

Alaric heard it anyway.

His own eyes darkened faintly.

Neither man liked how strongly their wolves were reacting. It was irrational. Dangerously irrational but Aire was their mate too.

Wolves were possessive creatures by nature. Sharing a mate was already difficult enough.

Feeling another mating bond lock into place?

It felt almost unbearable.

Xander laughed once again under his breath before dragging both hands through his hair roughly.

"I swear to the gods," he muttered, "if he hurts her again after this..."

Alaric’s expression darkened instantly. "Then I will personally remove his spine."

Xander moved away from the balcony finally. Restlessness consumed him. He could not stay still.

His wolf wanted proximity to her immediately. He’s wolf needed visual confirmation she was alright, and her scent.

Alaric watched him pace once before speaking quietly. "She chose him first." he cursed beneath his breath afterwards.

Xander stopped moving.

Aire had accepted the bond. She had accepted Nate, when all he had been to her was a cruel scumbag.

Xander looked away sharply.

His chest tightened painfully at the realization. Jealousy tasted ugly in him. Especially because part of him hated himself for feeling it tonight of all nights.

After everything Aire had suffered, the dungeon, the chains, and the fear in her eyes, she deserved comfort.

She deserved love.

Alaric leaned against the wall finally.

His own control was hanging by threads now. "She’s happy."

Xander looked at him sharply.

Alaric’s gaze lowered briefly. "I can feel it through the bond." He added, dejected.

Beneath the possessiveness and pain and jealousy, there was warmth.

Aire’s emotions felt softer tonight.

Xander swallowed harshly. His wolf still paced violently inside him even after confirming she felt safe through the bond.

Alaric shut his eyes briefly.

He hated how much relief accompanied the jealousy.

Aire did not feel afraid.

The realization settled heavily between them.

Xander finally sat heavily against the edge of the table nearby. His headache had dulled slightly now, though tension still carved sharply through him.

"She let him mark her," he said quietly.

Alaric remained silent.

Xander laughed bitterly under his breath again. "Nate isn’t even worth it." He groaned under his breath.

Alaric looked toward him. His voice lowered further. "Our wolves do not care about fairness."

Both of their wolves were deeply unsettled by another male securing part of the bond first, even if logically they understood Nate had every right to.

Xander looked toward the door finally.

"We’re going to her."

Alaric did not argue. He already intended the same thing. Servants lowered their eyes immediately as Xander and Alaric passed.

Neither acknowledged any of them.

Their combined presence tonight felt dangerous, heavy, and predatory. Both men walked with the restless energy of wolves struggling beneath human skin.

Xander’s jaw remained clenched almost the entire way. Possessiveness surged through both of them, and nearly altered the air itself.

Xander cursed under his breath. "This is going to become unbearable."

They descended another corridor, then another, moving toward the private chamber of Aire’s wing.

The same wing Nate had refused to leave tonight.

Xander’s expression darkened further at that realization.

No male wolf would willingly leave his newly marked mate immediately afterward.

Especially not after everything that happened.

Alaric’s eyes narrowed faintly. His instincts were becoming more volatile the closer they got.

Aire’s scent lingered stronger here, and beneath it was Nate.

The combined scent nearly made his wolf surface aggressively.

Xander noticed the shift in him immediately. "You’re losing patience."

Alaric’s gaze stayed forward. "I was patient enough to let him live through the dungeon incident."

Xander finally stopped directly before the chamber doors. Alaric halted beside him.

Xander stared at the door for a long second, then another.

His wolf paced violently beneath his skin. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Alaric slowly lifted his hand toward the wood.