Betrayed By One. Bound To Three Chapter 12: First Kiss

Selena.

I woke up to the sweet, smoky aroma of roasted at.

For a mont, I’m not sure if I’m still dreaming, you know that soft, foggy space where your body is awake but your mind hasn’t caught up yet.

My stomach rumbled suddenly, making it clear I was awake and hungry.

When I opened my eyes, I realized I was alone.

Outside, I hear voices. Low and familiar. The crackle of fire. I sit up slowly, then push myself to my feet and step outside.

They are already there. My mates.

A small fire burns in the clearing, steady and controlled. at roasts over it on a simple spit. The sll makes my mouth water instantly.

Ronan stands by the fire, turning the at with slow, careful movents. Kael crouches beside him, poking at the flas with a stick like a bored child. Edris sits on a log a few steps away, sharpening a blade, his posture alert even in stillness.

Sothing tightens in my chest when I see them.

It feels like ho.

Not ho.

But sothing close enough to confuse the two.

Kael looks up first. His face breaks into a grin.

"Good morning, sleeping beauty."

Ronan glances at and smiles softly.

"You are awake."

Edris lifts his eyes briefly, just enough to acknowledge , then returns to his blade.

"Breakfast," Kael says proudly. "Fresh hunt. Sorry if it doesn’t et your royal taste, princess."

I snort. "I never knew there was sothing called royal taste."

He laughs. "You will understand later."

Ronan cuts a piece of at and hands it to on a flat piece of bark.

"Eat. You will need strength today."

I hesitate for a second, then take it.

It is warm. Juicy. Rich with flavor.

Nothing like the stupid green tea and bread i was used to.

"This is really good." I complinted.

Kael beams. "See? We take care of our mate."

Sothing warm settles in my chest at the word.

Mate.

Edris watches quietly, his expression unreadable.

We eat in silence for a few minutes. Not awkward. Just calm. The forest breathes around us. Birds move through the trees. Wind brushes the leaves. For the first ti in days, the world feels far away from fear and politics and blood.

Then Ronan stands.

"Today is training."

My stomach flips. "Training?"

"Defense," he says simply. "Control. Preparation."

"And pain tolerance," Kael adds cheerfully.

I stare at him. "That does not sound comforting."

"It is not ant to be," Edris says calmly.

"Ready?" Kael asks with a grin.

I hesitate. Then I nod. "Yeah, I guess."

Ronan steps forward. "Today is not about fighting. It is about learning your body.

Learning your limits. Learning how to protect yourself."

"And how to take a hit," Kael adds lightly.

I swallow. "That sounds reassuring."

He laughs. "You will survive."

We move deeper into the forest, into a small clearing ringed by trees and thick roots. The ground is soft with moss and dirt. The air slls like earth and rain.

"This is a safe place," Ronan says. "No predators. No outsiders. Just us."

Edris finally speaks. "If you panic, you breathe. If you fall, you get up. If you hurt, you do not stop."

His voice is calm, but there is sothing hard beneath it. Sothing unbreakable.

Training begins slowly.

Ronan teaches how to stand. How to balance my weight. How to keep my center steady. He moves with patience, correcting my posture gently, his hands firm but careful on my shoulders.

"Your strength is not in your arms," he says. "It is in your core. Your legs. Your grounding."

Kael teaches how to strike. Not hard. Not fast. Controlled. Precise.

"Do not swing wildly," he says. "Aim. Commit. Do not hesitate."

He demonstrates, then lets try. I miss. A lot.

I huff in frustration. "I am terrible at this."

He steps closer, his voice soft. "No. You are new. There is a difference."

Sothing in his tone makes my chest warm. My wolf stirs, curious and alert.

Edris watches from the side.

Silent. Observing. Studying.

When he steps in, the energy shifts.

"Again," he says simply.

I try again. My body feels heavy. Worn out.

He circles slowly. "You think too much. You hesitate. Pain will not ask permission. Neither will danger."

I et his eyes. Sothing soft passes between us.

"Do it again," he says.

I strike. Harder this ti.

My knuckles sting. My breath catches.

"Good," he says quietly.

They teach how to fall without breaking. How to brace myself. How to breathe through impact. How to take pressure without panic.

Ronan shows how to roll when I hit the ground.

Kael pushes , not hard, but enough to knock off balance.

Edris teaches how to stand through pain.

"Pain is normal," he says. "But how you react to it is what counts,"

My body burns. My muscles shake. Sweat clings to my skin.

At one point, I dropped to my knees, breath ragged. "I cannot," I whisper.

Ronan kneels in front of . "You can. You just have not yet."

Kael crouches beside . "Look at , Selena. You are doing better than you think."

Edris does not touch . He just speaks.

"Your first shift will hurt," he says. "Your bones will feel like they are breaking. Your skin will feel like it is tearing. Your wolf will panic. You will want to stop."

My stomach tightens.

"But you will not die," he continues. "You will breathe. You will endure. And you will survive it."

Sothing in his voice steadies .

I stand again.

We train until my body feels like fire.

Hours pass without noticing.

At different monts, I find myself alone with each of them.

With Ronan, it is quiet. He gives water. Wraps a cloth around my scraped palm. His presence feels safe. Solid. Steady.

With Kael, it is laughter and teasing. He makes jokes when I stumble. Makes smile when I want to cry. His energy keeps moving.

With Edris, it is silence and tension.

We stand near the tree line while the others gather water.

"You are stronger than you believe," he says quietly.

I look at him. "You do not act like you believe that."

His jaw tightens. "I act like soone who does not want to lose his brothers."

The words hit deeper than I expected.

"You think I am a threat to them?" I say.

He studies . "I think you are dangerous."

My chest tightens. "Because I am a princess?"

"No," he says. "Because you have everything, but I am the only one they’ve got."

My heart raced, not exactly sure why he would think I was so sort of danger to them.

"I never asked for this bond," I whisper.

"Neither did we," he replies.

Silence stretches between us.

My wolf stirs.

His gaze drops to my lips for half a second,

then back to my eyes.

Neither of us moves.

"Let’s go back to training," he says and we did.

The afternoon sun shines through the trees, scorching on my back, making every muscle in my body ache. I drop to my knees, catching my breath, sweat stinging my eyes.

"I can’t do this anymore," I gasp, voice sharp with exhaustion. "I... I need a break."

Edris stands over , arms crossed, jaw tight, expression unreadable. "You can," he says flatly. "You will. Complaining won’t make you stronger."

I look up at him, heat rising in more ways than one. "Do you even hear yourself? I’ve been running drills all morning. My arms are shaking, my legs are like jelly, and you just expect to keep going?"

"You are stronger than you think," he says, stepping closer, his shadow falling over . "And you will push through. That is what being mated to us ans. You do not get to quit."

"Do not get to quit?" I snap, my patience fraying. "And what about you, huh? You think I enjoy being shouted at like I’m so... so child? You are ridiculous!"

His eyes darken, stormy, but there’s a flicker behind them I can’t quite place. He tilts his head, watching , and my chest tightens. The forest feels smaller sohow, the world narrowing down to just the two of us.

"You... you really think I would let you talk to like that?" he mutters.

"I—" I start, voice trembling from anger and fatigue, "I am not... I am tired, Edris. I’ve been giving everything, and you..."

Before I can finish, his hand cups my face, firm and commanding. His thumb brushes over my cheek, stopping my words mid-air. His lips press to mine in a kiss that is sudden, strong, and impossibly close.

Shock pins . My hands fly up, but he holds in place, eyes closing briefly, forehead resting against mine as he deepens the kiss just enough to make forget how angry I was.

When he finally pulls back, his gaze locks with mine. "Shut up," he says quietly. "You talk too much."

My pulse races, confusion and heat blending into a ssy whirlpool in my chest. I want to shout, I want to protest, but the words die on my lips.

The tension between us crackles, heavier than anything the training threw at today.

"Well you don’t talk enough, " I replied, "you do like , don’t you?"

"This changes nothing," he whispers.

"But it changes everything," I breathe.

For a mont, I don’t move. I just stare at him, my wolf whining softly inside , all sharp edges and questions, all agreent and curiosity.

"I... I—" I start again, but he shakes his head, expression softer now, almost tender.

"Later," he says, voice low. "Now... rest."

I nod, shivering, caught sowhere between anger, awe, and a strange, thrilling sense of belonging I didn’t know I could feel.

We hear movent coming our way, and Edris imdiately steps back, his expression hardening, as if the kiss never happened.