Marked by the Alpha Team (Luna Merrick) novel Chapter 66

Chapter 66

Third–person POV

After locking Luna in his office, the first thing Jace did was mind link the rest of the guys. His jaw was right, and his chest was still rising and falling a little faster than normal, but his voice in their heads was steady and serious and left no room for questions. “Living room. Now,”

That was all he said, and he didn’t wait for any response before cutting the link. A few seconds later, he felt their replies come in one after the other, short confirmations that they had heard him and that they were on their way.

Jace didn’t waste any time. He turned away from the office door, forcing himself not to look back at it, even though every instinct in him was screaming at him to go back, to unlock it, and to check on her. Instead, he walked down the hallway and took the stairs to the living room, his steps quick and heavy, like he was trying to outrun something that was stuck inside him. When he got to the living room, he didn’t sit down. He couldn’t. He started pacing immediately, moving back and forth across the space like a man who had too much on his mind and no way to slow it down.

Inside him, his wolf was restless. Ace was not happy, and Jace could feel it clearly, like a constant pressure pushing against his control. The feeling of having locked Luna in that office, of walking away from her when she was clearly not in control of herself, was not sitting well with his wolf at all.

‘You shouldn’t have left her, Ace growled inside his head, the voice low and filled with frustration. She needed us.

“I know.” Jace muttered under his breath, running a hand through his hair as he kept pacing. “I know, but that wasn’t her. She wasn’t thinking straight, and we couldn’t afford to let her get too close.”

“She is still ours, Ace pushed back immediately. And you made her think we don’t want her.’

Jace stopped for a second, his chest tightening at that, before he started pacing again, faster this time. “I didn’t have a choice,” he said quietly. “If I stayed, something would have happened.“.

And that was the truth. He knew it, and Ace knew it too, even if he didn’t want to admit it. The way Luna had been looking at him, the way her scent had filled the room, the way his own control had started slipping without him even realizing it… it was dangerous. If he had stayed any longer, if he had let himself get any closer, he might have done something he wouldn’t be able to take back.

That thought alone made his chest tighten again, this time with something darker, something he didn’t want to name.

He forced himself to focus. Tonight was going to be worse, so much worse.

The full moon was coming, and that meant everything they were feeling right now was only going to get stronger. The pull toward Luna. the need to be near her, to touch her, to claim her, all of it would become almost impossible to ignore, and it wouldn’t just be him. It would be all of them.

All five of them.

Jace stopped pacing for a moment, pressing his lips together as he thought about it. Tonight, none of them would be thinking clearly. Their wolves would be louder, stronger, and more demanding, and Luna… Luna would be in even worse shape. She didn’t even understand what was happening to her yet, and already she was losing control like this. When the moon rose, it would be ten times worse.

They would all want her.

That thought hit him harder than he expected, and he clenched his fists at his sides, trying to push it away, but it didn’t go anywhere. It stayed there, sitting heavy in his chest. They would all want her, and the worst part was that they wouldn’t be able to leave. They couldn’t walk away, couldn’t put distance between themselves and her, because she would need them. She would be in pain, more pain than she had ever felt before, and the only way to ease that pain was to stay close to her, to help her through it.

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Chapter 60

Which meant they would all be stuck in the same place, fighting their own instincts while trying to help her.

Jace let out a slow breath, shaking his head slightly. “This is going to be a mess.” he muttered to himself, already knowing that it was an understatement.

Just then, he heard footsteps approaching, and he turned his head toward the sound. Theo was the first to walk into the living room, his expression already annoyed, like he had been interrupted from something important.

He stopped a few steps away from Jace and frowned slightly. “What the hell is going on?” he asked, his tone sharp. “Why did you call all of us down here like this?”

Jace didn’t answer right away. Instead, he studied Theo for a moment, his eyes narrowing just a little, like he was trying to read something from his face. Then, without warning, he asked, “Have you seen Luna today besides this morning when we all spoke to her?”

Theo blinked, clearly not expecting that question. For a brief second, something flickered in his expression, something close to surprise, but it was gone almost as quickly as it appeared. He shifted his weight slightly and let out a small, forced chuckle. “Why?” he asked, trying to sound casual. “Did she go missing or something?”

Jace didn’t react to the sarcasm. His expression stayed serious, and his eyes stayed locked on Theo’s face. “Just answer the question,” he said, his voice calm but firm. “And don’t lie to me.”

Theo’s smile faded a little at that, and he let out a quiet sigh, running a hand through his hair before finally answering. “Yeah.” he said. “I saw her.” He paused for a second, then added, “She came to my room earlier.”

Jace’s eyes narrowed further, and there was something sharper in his gaze now, something more suspicious. “And?” he asked, taking a step closer. “Did anything happen between you and her?”

Theo didn’t answer immediately, and that silence was enough to make Jace’s jaw tighten.

“What did you do?” Jace asked, his voice dropping slightly, the calm from before now replaced with something colder.

Theo scoffed, clearly not liking the tone. “I didn’t do anything.” he said quickly, but the way he avoided Jace’s eyes made the answer feel weak.

Jace let out a short, disbelieving laugh, shaking his head. “Don’t play games with me, Theo,” he said. “You think I can’t tell when you’re lying?”

Theo’s expression hardened at that, and he crossed his arms over his chest, his annoyance now clear. “I’m not lying.” he said, but there was less confidence in his voice this time.

Jace stepped closer again, his gaze sharp. “Then explain,” he said. “Because the way you’re acting right now is not helping your case.”

Theo hesitated again, and this time, it lasted a little longer. His jaw tightened, and he looked away for a second, like he was debating whether to say anything at all.

Jace scoffed, shaking his head again. “Are you serious right now?” he said, his frustration starting to show. “You really let something happen with her?”

Theo’s head snapped back toward him at that, his eyes flashing with irritation. “I didn’t let anything happen,” he shot back defensively. “It just… happened.”

Jace stared at him for a second, disbelief written all over his face. “You’ve got to be kidding me.” he muttered, running a hand over his face. “You knew she wasn’t in control of herself.”

And you think I was Theo snapped back, his voice rising slightly. “She came to me, Jace, not the other way around. She walked up to me like…” He stopped himself for a second, then let out a frustrated breath. “Like she couldn’t stay away.”

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