Rejected by Her Mate Claimed by Four Alphas novel Chapter 212

CHAPTER 197-2

“She’s my mate,” I said through gritted teeth.

“Definitely your chosen mate,” Lucien corrected, and there was something almost pitying in his voice. “Not your true mate. There’s a difference, you know.”

“That’s where you get it wrong. She’s my true mate. The bond between us is real.”

“I’m sure it is. But it’s not the only bond she can form, is it?” His dark eyes met mine, and I could see the challenge there. “The Red Moon bloodline calls to its own, Darius. What Clara and I have goes deeper than what the goddes blesses you with. It goes to the very core of what we are. We’re one and then we were blessed by the goddess as mates. I get 2 trump cards over you.”

“You’re talking about bloodlines and destiny like they matter more important than what she wants.”

“What she wants?” Lucien laughed, and the sound was like nails on glass. “Did you see the way she responded to me? Did you hear the sounds she made when I touched her? When I had my hands on her

body?”

Rage exploded through me like a bomb going off. I launched myself at him, but he was ready this time. We crashed into the bookshelf, sending more volumes tumbling to the floor as we grappled. He was strong, stronger than I’d given him credit for, his lean frame hiding more power than I’d expected.

We broke apart after a moment, both breathing hard. There was a scratch on his cheek where my claws had caught him, but he was smiling like he’d won something.

“Violence won’t change what happened,” he said, straightening his jacket with infuriating calm. “It won’t change the fact that she felt something for me. Something real.”

“She felt your manipulation.”

“Did she? Or did she feel recognition? Connection? The pull of power calling to power?” He stepped closer, and I could smell Clara’s scent still clinging to his clothes. It made my wolf howl with rage. “You can

r pretend all you want, Darius, but we both know what really happened in that garden.”

I wanted to hit him again, wanted to keep hitting him until that smug smile was wiped off his face permanently. But his next words stopped me cold.

“If you’re so confident in your bond with her,” he said, his voice soft and challenging, “then let her choose.”

“What?”

“Let her choose between us. No pressure, no manipulation, and no claims of ownership. Just let her decide who she wants to be with.” His smile turned predatory. “Unless, of course, you’re afraid of what she might choose.”

His suggestion made me feel like a bucket of ice water was dounced on me, washing away some of my rage and replacing it with something worse. Fear. Cold, gut-wrenching fear.

“You’re insane.”

“Am I? Or are you afraid she might choose me?”

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“She won’t.” But even as I said it, I could hear the doubt in my own voice. Clara had kissed him back. She’d felt something for him that she couldn’t control or explain.

“Then you have nothing to worry about. His smile was sharp, knowing. “Unless, of course, you’re not as confident as you claim to be.”

I stared at him, hatred and fear warring in my chest. Because the truth was, I, the mighty dreaded warload wasn’t confident. Not anymore. Clara had responded to his advances. She’d kissed him back, had let him touch her, and he was somewhat right. No woman of the Red Moon bloodline was ever mated to an outsider.

What if there really was something deeper between them? What if this bloodline connection he kept talking about was real? What if everything I thought I knew about mate bonds and destiny was wrong?

“She’s not some prize to be won,” I said finally, the words tasting bitter in my mouth.

“No,” Lucien agreed, and for the first time, his expression grew serious. “She’s a woman who deserves to make her own choices. The question is, are you secure enough in your relationship to let her make them?”

The words cut deep because they held a truth I didn’t want to acknowledge. Clara was strong, independent, capable of making her own decisions. She always had been. And if I tried to control her, tried to keep her from this choice, I’d be no better than Jaden. I’d be just another Alpha trying to own her

instead of love her.

But that didn’t mean I was going to make it easy for him.

“Fine,” I said, my voice cold as winter steel. “She can choose. But understand this, Lucien. It will be me or no one. If you think you can waltz in here and steal what’s mine, you’re wrong.”

“We’ll see about that.”

I turned to leave, my heart hammering against my ribs like it was trying to escape. Had I just agreed to let

r another man compete for my mate? Had I lost my mind?

But as I reached the doorway, I paused. “And Lucien? Stay away from her until she’s ready to make that choice. No more midnight visits, no more manipulation. Let her come to you if that’s what she wants.” “Of course,” he said smoothly, settling back into his chair like nothing had happened. “Though I have a feeling she won’t be able to stay away for long.”

I left him there with his smug confidence, my mind reeling. The corridors felt endless as I walked back through them, each step echoing my doubts and fears.

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