The Triplet Alphas' Secret Mate

Chapter 14: Their Secrets

​Scarlett’s POV

​My eyes widened in pure terror. My heart, which had only just begun to slow its frantic pace, kicked back into a desperate gallop. I stood there shivering and naked, slick with Leo’s scent and the heat of his release, while another brother stood just inches away on the other side of that thin wooden door.

​Leo stiffened instantly, his hand freezing on the brass knob. His muscles corded with sudden tension, and for a fleeting second, I saw a flash of something akin to panic in his eyes before it was replaced by a gaze of cold, murderous steel. He looked ready to kill Leon if he dared to step through that door.

​But before the handle could click open, a sharp, familiar voice cut through the silence of the hallway.

​"Leon? What the hell are you doing at Scarlett’s door?"

​It was Lana. My heart skipped a beat.

​"Lana, mind your fucking business and get back to the main house," Leon’s voice boomed, thick with a suppressed, guttural growl. He sounded beyond pissed off.

​"No," Lana snapped, her voice rising in defiance. "I know what you three are like. She’s exhausted and she’s had enough for one night. If you don’t leave this hallway this instant, I will scream and alert the entire pack. I’ll make sure Father knows exactly which of his sons is prowling the servants’ quarters like a dog in heat."

silence followed. I held my breath, clutching the edges of my ruined dress against my chest, praying fervently to the Moon Goddess. Finally, there was a low, frustrated growl and the sound of heavy boots retreating down

moment, her voice softening. "Scarlett? Are you okay in

I looked at Leo, my eyes pleading for help. He stared back at me, his expression shifting from that of a

to croak out, my throat feeling raw,

with fear—terrified that she would somehow perceive Leo’s overwhelming presence in my

whispered, her footsteps finally fading into the

a cloak to cover my shame or a single kind word to steady my nerves. He looked at me—at my torn clothes, my wild hair, and the marks he had just branded onto my skin—with a look of total, clinical blankness. There was no warmth left, no trace of the man who had just worshiped my

at me like I was a mistake.

he stated, his voice as flat and sharp as a blade. "This stays

door just a crack, scanned the hall with a soldier’s precision, and vanished into the shadows, leaving me shivering

my situation crashed down upon me. I was a virgin whose first kiss had been stolen by one brother, and whose body had been claimed by the other two. I stayed on the floor for a long

forced myself to stand. I moved like an aged woman, my muscles aching and my core throbbing with a dull, insistent heat. I reached for the washbasin, pouring the remaining cold water over

​I scrubbed.

my breasts where he had marked me, and between my legs where his fingers had stretched my virginal walls. I wanted to wash him away. I wanted to wash Liam away. I wanted to wash Leon away. I wanted to erase the feeling of being a prize they fought over in the dark. But as much as I cleaned my skin, I couldn’t scrub away the memory of