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Chapter 320
~Valerie’s POV~
The words weren’t shouted so much as roared, vibrating in the air like a command the soul couldn’t disobey.
I froze completely. I never expected what I heard to be true, let alone...
"Riven?" I called softly, but his rising and falling chest was every indication he was too gone.
My gaze flicked to Solstice. Her head was slightly lowered, avoiding my eyes.
How had I been so blind? I’d noticed her subtle change in attitude, but not enough to realise my baby cousin had found her mate.
I should’ve been thrilled, but she clearly wasn’t. And I knew why.
Riven had shown interest in ... and now fate had bound him to soone else.
My heart ached for Solstice, but before I could fully process it, a gasp from the side cut through my thoughts before I saw who it was, followed by words that shattered whatever hold I had left.
"No way. If she’s his mate, and she’s betrothed to you..."
"What?" Dristan’s voice was sharp, coming from my left.
"She is, Dristan," Xade said bluntly. "Your dad told you you’re betrothed to the Gold heiress, Aura Gold."
"Shh! You’re not supposed to ntion that," Kai hissed.
Dristan’s eyes went wide. He wasn’t slow. He put it together instantly. Solstice’s real na was Solstice Aura Gold.
My mind tried to process everything. Dristan was betrothed to my cousin.
But that was the least of my worries. The realisation that Dristan knew he was betrothed slamd into .
What’s more, they all knew. And not one of them thought to tell .
Just then, Dristan lifted his head and locked eyes with .
His eyes went wide when he saw the hurt in my eyes. I did not wait to see how things would end, and I imdiately turned.
"Fuck."
His reaction alone proved I was right about sothing going on, and they were keeping it from .
I walked away from the cafeteria as quickly as my feet could take when I heard Dristan’s voice call my na.
I didn’t make it more than ten steps out of the cafeteria before I heard my na—sharp, desperate—cutting through the hallway.
"Valerie!"
I ignored him, my feet carrying faster, but the thud of boots closed in. Then, suddenly, a tall, warm wall was in front of when I took the next bend heading to the West wing. Dristan. His arm shot out to the side, blocking the corridor.
"Move," I snapped, my voice low but shaking.
"Not until you let explain." His breathing was heavier than usual, eyes searching mine like he could will to stay.
"How long have you known?" My voice cracked despite how much I wanted it steady.
Dristan’s jaw tightened. "Since the day of the Alpha Summit."
My brows drew together. "The Summit?" I repeated slowly, not catching on.
He nodded once. "The day we ca back and... kissed you."
My stomach twisted, an ugly, bitter laugh spilling out before I could stop it. "Of course. Of course, it was that day."
"Val—"
"I knew sothing was off. I felt it. And the fact that all of you hid it from ..." My throat burned, eyes stinging. "You made feel like a fool."
"Valerie, it wasn’t—"
"Val!" Kai’s voice cut in from down the hall. He jogged up but slowed a few steps away, eyes darting between us.
I turned sharply toward him. "Was that why you rejected being intimate with ?"
Kai froze, and his gaze flicked away. He didn’t answer.
My chest constricted. And then the pieces clicked. "Wait—why would it even matter to you if Dristan was betrothed to Solstice unless..." My breath caught. "You were betrothed too."
I looked between him and Dristan, but neither said a word.
My lips curled into sothing that wasn’t quite a smile. "Just what more lies are you keeping from ?"
Footsteps approached, and Xade erged from the cafeteria, coming to stand near Dristan. His expression was tight, almost guilty.
"I’m sorry," Xade said quietly. "We were all ambushed with the betrothal announcent."
The hallway seed to shrink around . My heart thudded so hard it made it difficult to breathe. "Ambushed?" I repeated, my voice almost a whisper.
"But we rejected it," Dristan said quickly, stepping forward.
"Yes," Xade added. "We got our dads to back off. Our mothers quieted the situation and—"
"I can’t be here right now," I cut him off, taking a step back. "I need to leave."
Dristan’s hand caught mine before I could turn. "Valerie—"
I t his eyes, and for a mont, he saw everything—the hurt, the betrayal, the exhaustion. "I wish you had told ."
Then I pulled my hand free and walked away before either of them could stop .
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~Solstice’s POV~
I’d barely been back at school for an hour and already my na was being tossed around like wildfire.
It was ridiculous — I hadn’t even made it through my first two classes, and yet sohow, this was .
I could feel the stares burning into my back every ti I passed a group of students, could hear the whispers just loud enough to sting, never loud enough to call out.
Earlier, after Riven’s unplanned announcent at the cafeteria, I caught sight of Valerie storming off.
Instinct made follow, though I slowed when the heirs started trailing after her.
First Dristan, moving with that sharp, controlled stride of his. Then Kai slipped away a mont later.
Xade and Axel went next, and I hung back at the bend near the West Wing, just outside the cafeteria doors.
I told myself I was just curious about my cousin, but the truth was, I had a bad feeling.
I shadowed them at a careful distance until Valerie’s voice cut through the air, sharper than I’d ever heard it.
"Wait—why would it even matter to you if Dristan was betrothed to Solstice unless..."
The rest of her sentence seed to echo inside my head, pounding with a familiarity I didn’t want to acknowledge. My heart gave a strange, heavy thud.
I didn’t wait to hear more. I turned on my heel, walking fast until the voices faded behind .
By the ti I reached the rooftop stairwell, my hands were already trembling as my thoughts swirled.
I was betrothed to my cousin’s mate.
The fuck!
I yanked out my phone, my thumb hovering over my father’s na. If anyone would know the truth, it was him. He did this.
But just before I hit "call," my stomach knotted tighter. No. Not him.
I scrolled down instead, stopping at "Mum."
It only rang once before she picked up, her warm voice spilling through the line.
"Solstice, sweetheart—"
"Mum," I cut in, my throat tight, "did Dad betroth to Dristan Alexander?"
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