The moment didn’t end.

It snapped forcefully. Someone had reached into the room and ripped it apart.

Aire barely had time to breathe before it happened.

The door burst open, unannounced. The shift in the air was immediate, heavy, and dangerous.

Alaric stood at the entrance.

His eyes were already locked on Xanden, on the way he was too close, and on the way Aire’s fingers were still curled into his shirt.

His jaw tightened.

He moved fastly towards them. Too fast for Aire to react as she had only had time to forcefully part the kiss.

Xanden barely turned fully before Alaric’s hand caught his collar, and forcefully dragged him back.

The force of it broke whatever fragile thing had been holding the moment together.

Aire gasped at the sudden loss of warmth, and closeness. It had hit her harder than she expected.

Her body reacted before her mind could.

She took in a small, involuntary inhale. Like she had just been dropped from somewhere high without her permission.

Alaric held Xanden’s gaze, visible angry. "Have you lost your mind?" he questioned, grunting and breathing hard as he tried to control himself before Aire.

Xanden steadied himself almost immediately, his expression darkening as he yanked his collar free.

"Let go," he said, almost warning.

Alaric didn’t.

Rather, their eyes locked and for a second, it felt like the room wasn’t big enough for both of them.

Aire swallowed.

The tension was suffocating.

Her fingers curled against the sheets again, grounding herself as she tried to steady her breathing.

"Alaric—"

"Don’t." He cut her off, without looking at her.

Xanden exhaled sharply, rolling his shoulder like he was shaking off the grip.

"You don’t get to walk in here and—"

"I smelled you," Alaric cut in. "I smelled you on her."

Aire’s breath hitched.

Xanden went still.

Alaric’s gaze shifted then, and finally rested on Aire. His expression changed from anger to disbelief.

"You let him?" he asked.

The question wasn’t loud, but it pressed against her, demanding a reply.

Aire’s throat tightened.

"I..." She started, but her voice failed her.

The answer wasn’t simple. She hadn’t stopped him because she hadn’t wanted to. Also, she couldn’t understand why she needed to explain herself.

A slow exhale left Alaric. A restrained exhale.

The door opened again.

Nate walked in like he already knew what he would find. The tension in the air had been calling him down the hallway.

His gaze moved once across the room, taking everything in.

Aire on the bed, flushed, and unsteady.

Xanden standing too close.

Alaric already halfway to violence.

Nate sighed, almost dramatically. "Really?" he muttered.

"Perfect," Nate added, rubbing a hand over his face. He turned to Alaric. "I leave for ten minutes and you decide to start a war in her room."

"No one is starting anything," Xanden said.

Alaric let out a quiet, humorless scoff. "No?" he replied. "Because it smells like you already did."

Aire closed her eyes for half a second. This was spiraling, and confusing.

What the hell is wrong with them? One minite, they don’t want her, and the next minute, they’re about to tear themselves over her.

Nate stepped further into the room, shutting the door behind him with a soft click.

To Aire, the sound felt louder than it should have. She would have preferred an open door for whatever this is.

His gaze flicked to Aire again. His gaze lingered on her, and his brow lifted slightly seeing her flushed face.

"Well," he said slowly, "that explains a lot."

Aire’s cheeks burned.

She hated that.

"Explain what?" Xanden snapped, already defending her.

Nate glanced at him, then back at Aire. For some reasons, his gaze returned Xanden again.

His lips twitched. "You," he said simply, visibly amused.

Alaric didn’t find it amusing. "You think this is funny?"

"I think," Nate replied calmly, "that if you don’t unclench your jaw, you might actually bite him." He paused, and carefully brought out a lollipop from his pant pocket. About to unwrap it, he paised, and added. "Which, for the record, I’d like to see. But maybe not today."

Aire looked between them. This was ridiculous in all sense. One minute, she was having her first kiss. The next minute, all three of her mates are before her.

Worse case scenario, they’re all drop dead hot.

"Stay out of it, Nate," Alaric snapped.

"I am in it," Nate replied easily. "You dragged me into it the moment you decided to redecorate the hallway down to my room with your temper." 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

Xanden stepped forward again. He was not backing down either. "She’s not yours to control. What happens between the both of us only matters to the both of us."

Alaric’s gaze snapped back to him. "I’m not controlling her." His claws appeared, and disappeared, as he tried to stay sane.

"No?" Xanden challenged, pushing him. "Because it looks like you’re trying."

Alaric’s claws appeared again. His eyes glowed fully red, and one could tell that one more word from Xanden, the room would be a bloody zone.

Nate exhaled slowly. He sucked on his lolipop. "Here we go."

Aire pushed herself up from the bed.

The movement drew all their attention instantly.

Her heart was still racing. Her body still aware of what had just happened, and of what had been interrupted.

She was also aware of what would happen if she just watch them.

"Stop," she said softly, with her eyes going back and forth between Xanden and Alaric. "This isn’t..." she trailed off, swallowing. "This isn’t something you get to fight over like... like territory."

Her gaze moved between them again, lingering on each one.

"I’m not..." She atarted, then stopped. The words wouldn’t come out right. She didn’t even know what she was to them.

At least, not yet.

Silence stretched between them after her words. It was obvious they had listened to her. Alaric, thought still raging took in slow breaths.

Then Nate... Of course Nate, broke the silence.

"So," he said, glancing between Xanden and Alaric, "are we going to pretend this didn’t happen, or are we all just going to take turns losing our minds?"

Aire let out a breath she didn’t realize she was holding. A small, disbelieving sound almost escaped her.

She turned to Alaric, and rested her gaze on him. Her gaze was tender. So tender that Alaric’s eyes fully turned to normal.

She smiled at him, taking note of his submission.

He didn’t smile back, but his expression shifted, almost soft again.

Xanden ran a hand through his hair, frustration clear in the movement. "This isn’t a joke." He said, reffering to Xanden.

"I know," Nate said. "That’s why I’m making one." He sounded sarcastic.

Nate looked at Aire again. His expression changed from carefree to suspicion. "You feel it, don’t you?"

Aire didn’t answer. They all already knew. She could bet they already smelled her heat, and that was the real problem.

A wolfless girl, in heat?