Azrael moved before she could breathe. He grabbed her arms and pulled her flush against him, tightly. His eyes burned red with rage, hurt and jealousy that he didn’t even try to hide.
"Do you think I don’t know?" he demanded.
Her heart slamd violently against her ribs. "I—I don’t know what you’re talking about," she stamred.
He let out a hollow scoff. "Of course you don’t." His grip tightened. "Let remind you."
He dragged her closer and buried his face in the crook of her neck, his breath hot against her skin. His tongue brushed the rune intimately and Athena’s toes curled as she bit down hard on her lip, fighting the moan that threatened to escape.
Azrael pulled back just a little, locking eyes with her. " Sorry... I ssed it up."
He released her and stepped back. " Rember now?"
Her heart dropped straight into her stomach.
"Azrael," she whispered, reaching for him, her voice shaking.
"Don’t." His voice broke the air like a blade. "Don’t touch ."
She stopped. "You were in your right state of mind that night," he continued, voice cracking despite his effort to sound cold. "You weren’t drunk. You weren’t confused. You were sober, Athena."
Tears blurred his vision, but he didn’t wipe them away. "You’re fucking mated to ," he said bitterly. "And you still confessed feelings for another man. My childhood bestfriend."
Tears stread down Athena’s face. She felt sick. Small. Disgusting. Words was not enough to describe how stupid she felt at the mont.
"I didn’t ask," Azrael went on, his voice dropping to sothing sharp and deadly. "I didn’t ask on purpose. Because I didn’t want to."
He laughed once, broken and humorless. "I was willing to forget everything I saw."
Her breath hitched.
"The kiss," he said flatly. "The fact that he put his fingers into my mate’s panties." His jaw clenched hard. "And the worst part, he fucking ate you up. Sothing that even I haven’t done yet."
Athena had never wanted the ground to open more in her life. Sha crushed her chest until she could barely breathe.
A loud, broken sob ripped out of her before she could stop it.
"And now," Azrael continued, pain bleeding through every word, "you want to go back?"
He shook his head slowly. "No. That’s not happening."
He straightened, forcing steel back into his spine. "You’re my mate. And I will never let you go, even if you hate for it. Even if you fight ."
His gaze locked onto hers. "So get used to having around."
Then he turned and walked away. Leaving Athena standing alone.
Athena didn’t know for how long she was standing, but her knees finally gave out, and she sank slowly onto the floor, fingers curling into the fabric of her dress as another sob tore free.
Her chest hurt. No, everything hurt. Her lungs, heart, intestines, kidney, even her head is spinning.
She pressed a hand over her mouth, trying to quiet the sounds spilling out of her, but it was useless. Tears stread down her face, hot, blurring her vision until the room beca nothing but a sar of light and shadows.
"I didn’t an to," she whispered to no one, her voice breaking. "I didn’t... I never ant to hurt you."
His voice echoed in her head, every sharp truths he threw at her were now doing their job.
You were sober. You’re mated to . Each sentence replayed itself rcilessly, twisting deeper into her chest.
She hugged herself tightly, rocking forward as sha crawled over her skin.
≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈
Eryx strolled into the Phantom’s Den, his hands tucked into his pockets as his boots echoed softly against the concrete floor. The room slled faintly of energy drinks as he opened the door to Theo’s gaming room.
A familiar giant screens lit up the space, casting sharp flashes of color across the walls.
Theo sat sprawled on the couch, controller in hand, eyes locked on the screen with intense focus, jaw clenched like his life depended on winning this round.
Eryx leaned against the doorway, watching for a mont. Then he snorted.
"Wow," he said lazily. "Is that Final Siege?" He tilted his head. "Didn’t you lose that sa mission three tis yesterday? Or was it four?"
Theo didn’t even look away. "It was two," he said flatly. "And they were strategic losses."
Eryx laughed. "Strategic my ass. Your character just got sniped again."
On screen, Theo’s avatar collapsed dramatically.
Theo paused the ga. Slowly, he turned his head and looked at Eryx.
"Oh," he said calmly, a dangerous smile tugging at his lips. "You wanna talk about losses?"
Eryx straightened a little. "Hey, I’m just making an observation."
Theo set the controller down and leaned back. "Interesting. Because last I checked, you rage-quit after I wiped the floor with you in Shadow Run."
Eryx scoffed. "That was lag."
Theo raised a brow. "It was your ego."
Eryx clutched his chest dramatically. "Oh—wow. That one hurt. I think you just punctured my heart."
Theo smirked, turning fully toward him. "You should’ve thought carefully before trying to cook , chef."
Eryx clicked his tongue, shaking his head. "You’re getting too confident for soone who just died on level three."
Theo grabbed the controller again, unpausing the ga. "And you’re getting too loud for soone who still owes a rematch."
Eryx grinned, pushing off the wall. "Anyti. Just don’t cry when I humble you."
Theo snorted. "Please. Bring snacks. You’re gonna be here a while."
Eryx laughed, dropping onto the arm of the couch. "I hate that you’re annoying and annoying."
Theo smirked, eyes back on the screen.l as the sound of gunfire filled the air ones again."Thank Moon goddess, I’m doing my job perfectly."
Eryx finally broke the rhythm of gunfire.
"So... did you call Athena?"
Theo didn’t even pause the ga this ti. "Why would I call her?" he said casually. "She’s probably having the best ti of her life with her mate. I’m not about to interfere and get my head bitten off."
Eryx humd, nodding slowly. "Yeah... makes sense." Then his brows furrowed. "I tried calling her several tis though. It didn’t even ring."
Theo glanced sideways, lips twitching. "Maybe she blocked you."
Eryx scoffed loudly. "Athena cannot block . Why would she?" He smirked, then added, lowering his voice with mock arrogance, "Especially when I haven’t even shown her how much I’ve got going on down here." He glanced pointedly at his trousers.
Theo froze.
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