Marked by the Alpha Team (Luna Merrick) novel Chapter 180

9:53 Thu, Jul 30

Chapter 180

Chapter 180

Luna’s POV

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The moment I climbed into the passenger seat of Jace’s SUV, I quietly pulled the door shut behind me before reaching for my seatbelt. The familiar click echoed softly through the vehicle as I fastened it across my chest, and for the first time since leaving the football field, everything became completely quiet. The noise from the players packing up their equipment outside faded into the background, leaving only the silence inside the SUV. I slowly turned my head to look at Jace as he settled into the driver’s seat beside me, and I couldn’t stop myself from replaying the last several minutes in my mind.

Ever since I had announced that I would be riding with him, he had barely spoken to me. The others had reluctantly gone back to packing up after trying very hard to hide their irritation, while Jace had simply looked at me before calmly telling me to come with him once he had gathered his things. After that, we had walked all the way from the football field to the car park without exchanging more than a few words. It wasn’t that I thought he was angry with me because nothing about his expression suggested that. If anything, he had seemed unusually calm. Still, that silence felt strange coming from someone like Jace, who almost always tried to have something clever to say in situations like this.

I wasn’t upset by it because I trusted him enough to believe there had to be a reason, but the longer I thought about it, the more curious I became. Eventually, I decided that instead of making assumptions, I would simply ask him directly.

“Is there a problem?” I asked as I turned my body slightly toward him, making sure my voice stayed calm and free from accusation. I offered him a small smile before continuing, “You haven’t really said much since we left the field, so I was just wondering if something was bothering you.”

Jace had just clipped his seatbelt into place when he heard my question. He immediately lifted his head and looked at me with an expression that was far more surprised than defensive. For several seconds, he simply studied my face as though trying to work out how I had reached that conclusion. There wasn’t the slightest hint of annoyance in his eyes. Instead, he almost looked amused that I had mistaken his silence for something being wrong.

“There’s no problem,” he responded calmly as he rested one hand on the steering wheel. A faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips before he added, “Why would you think there was?”

I couldn’t stop myself from giving him an unimpressed look the moment he finished speaking because I couldn’t believe he was acting as though his attitude just a few seconds ago had been perfectly normal.

“You’ve barely said a full sentence to me since we left the field,” I responded as I folded my arms across my chest and continued looking at him. “So, of course I was going to ask if something was wrong. You were unusually quiet.”

The corners of Jace’s mouth lifted into a slightly wider smile before he let out a quiet chuckle. He shook his head once, almost as though he found the entire misunderstanding amusing, before leaning back comfortably against his seat. The relaxed expression on his face made it obvious that whatever reason he had for staying quiet, it certainly hadn’t been because he was upset with me.

“I didn’t stay quiet because anything was wrong,” he explained patiently as he finally looked directly into my eyes. “I stayed quiet because I didn’t want it to look like I was gloating as we left the field. The others already looked like they were sulking after you chose to ride with me, and I figured rubbing it in would only make

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9:53 Thu, Jul 30

Chapter 180

things worse.”

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The moment he mentioned the others, the image of all four of them standing there trying very hard to pretend they weren’t jealous immediately popped into my head. Theo’s jaw had been so tight that I thought his teeth might crack. Ryder had tried to smile, but the disappointment had still been written all over his face. Orion had remained calm, yet even he hadn’t hidden the stiffness in his posture very well. Knox had stayed farther back with Jace, but I had still noticed the subtle way he straightened the moment I mentioned Jace’s name. Looking back at it now, the whole scene was almost funny. They had all tried so hard to act mature, yet every single one of them had practically been broadcasting their jealousy. A small laugh escaped me before I could stop it.

“Are you always this considerate of other people’s feelings?” I asked curiously as I looked at him with genuine interest. “Because I have to admit, I wasn’t expecting you to stay quiet just to avoid making someone else feel

worse.”

Jace slowly shrugged one shoulder as though the answer were incredibly simple. His relaxed posture never changed, and he spoke with the confidence of someone who had already thought about this long before I asked.

“The guys and I have known each other for almost two decades,” he replied evenly as he glanced briefly through the windscreen before looking back at me. “So yes, when it comes to them, there are times I’m considerate because we’ve been through a lot together.” A faint grin then appeared on his face before he continued, “When it comes to girls, though, I’m honestly not like that at all. I don’t usually think twice about whether something I say might bruise someone’s ego.”

His honesty made me smile because it sounded exactly like something a guy like Jace would admit without the slightest embarrassment. There was something refreshing about how direct he could be. Before I had the chance to tease him about his admission, however, he continued speaking, and his playful expression gradually became more serious.

“The only reason I made an exception today,” he continued as he rested both hands loosely on the steering wheel, “is because I already know what you’re planning to tell them. I figured the least I could do was keep the peace for as long as possible before the chaos that will definitely happen later.”

The smile on my face slowly disappeared as soon as he mentioned the word “chaos.” Hearing it spoken aloud made everything suddenly feel far more real. Up until now, I had been focused on getting everyone into the same room so I could explain the plan. I hadn’t really allowed myself to think about how they would actually react once they heard it. Now that Jace had said it out loud, I could already imagine the arguments that might follow. No matter how reasonable my explanation was, I couldn’t honestly expect four Alphas to happily accept the idea of watching the entire university believe that I belonged to another one of them.

Noticing the thoughtful look on my face, Jace continued before I even had the chance to respond. His expression remained calm, and it was obvious he had been thinking about this problem far longer than I had.

“I also didn’t want my other teammates noticing the tension between us,” he explained as he adjusted his grip on the steering wheel. “None of them can know that all five of us have the same mate. If we’d started arguing or acting strangely in front of everyone, people would’ve started asking questions we can’t answer. So I thought it was better to stay quiet, even if it made me seem a little too nonchalant.”

I slowly nodded while thinking over everything he had just said. The more I looked back on what had happened at the field, the more I realized he had been right. Everyone was already watching the five of them closely and wondering what the relationship between them and me was. If they had openly argued over me in

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9:53 Thu, Jul 30

Chapter 180

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front of the team, rumors would have spread across campus before sunset. We were already dealing with enough attention without accidentally creating even more. Letting out a sigh, I rested my head against the seat for a moment, feeling the weight of the conversation waiting for us at the house.

“Do you really think it’s going to be that bad?” I asked quietly as I turned my head to face him again. “I mean… do you honestly think everything is going to turn into complete chaos once I tell them?”

Jace remained silent for several seconds before answering. He didn’t look uncomfortable, but I could tell he was carefully choosing his words instead of giving me an answer simply because I wanted reassurance. That alone told me he was about to be completely honest, even if the truth wasn’t what I wanted to hear.

“No one wants to hear that their mate is about to be publicly claimed by another man,” he responded honestly as he finally met my eyes again. “So yes, I definitely think things are going to get chaotic.” His expression softened slightly before he continued in a reassuring voice. “But you don’t have to worry about any of that because I’ll handle it.”

His answer immediately made me furrow my brows. While hearing him promise to handle everything was comforting, it also left me wondering exactly how he planned to accomplish something that sounded almost impossible. I knew all four of the others well enough by now to understand that none of them would quietly accept this news without strong emotions getting involved.

“How exactly are you planning to handle it?” I asked curiously as I tilted my head slightly toward him. “Because I honestly can’t imagine the others simply sitting there calmly after hearing what I have to say.”

Instead of giving me the detailed explanation I expected, Jace simply looked at me with that familiar confident expression that seemed to appear whenever he already had something on his mind. A slow smirk spread across his face, and despite my curiosity, it became immediately obvious that he wasn’t about to reveal whatever was going on inside his head.

“Just trust me,” he responded confidently as he started the engine, his smirk never leaving his face. “I’ll make sure every single one of them stays in check. I won’t let any of them act out, at least not while you’re there.”

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