A Rogue For The Quadruplet Alpha's. Chapter 50: OUR TERRITORY

Aidan.

I woke to a familiar scent beneath my nose, warm and soothing, the kind my wolf recognized instantly. My arms were already wrapped carefully around her waist, holding her close as if my body had done it on instinct long before my mind caught up. I inhaled slowly, letting her scent fill my chest, grounding in the quiet of the morning.

I should have felt peace.

I should have felt whole.

I finally had her by my side.

Vanessa—soft, warm, real, and ours.

But instead of calm, there was a dull, persistent ache sitting heavy in my chest. A restlessness that refused to settle no matter how tightly I held her. My wolf shifted uneasily beneath my skin, not aggressive, not angry, just unsettled. As though sothing was missing. As though sothing wasn’t right.

I told myself I loved Vanessa. I repeated it like a vow, like a truth I needed to reinforce. I wanted no one else. I chose her. I wanted this. And yet, even with her body pressed against mine, my thoughts betrayed .

Maria.

The na surfaced without warning, slipping into my mind as easily as breath. Her face. Her voice. The way her presence lingered even when she wasn’t near. I tried to push the thought away, but it clung stubbornly, weaving itself into the quiet monts between heartbeats.

"Hey, good morning," Vanessa said softly, turning in my arms until she was facing .

Her eyes were bright despite the early hour, her lips curved into a gentle smile that should have been enough to chase every other thought away.

"What are you thinking about this early?" she asked.

Her question pulled back sharply, like a hand snapping in front of my face. I blinked, forcing myself to focus on her, on the warmth of her skin beneath my hands. I smoothed my expression into sothing lighter, sothing believable, and plastered a smile onto my face.

"I was thinking about how beautiful you are," I said, the words coming easily even if they didn’t carry the weight they should have. "I was thinking about how I’d like to have you in my arms every day."

Vanessa’s cheeks flushed instantly, pink spreading across her face as she laughed softly. She lifted a hand and tapped my chest, not hard enough to hurt, just enough to tease.

"Co on, Aidan, stop it," she said, clearly pleased.

Her fingers lingered for a mont, light against my skin, and despite everything, a quiet chuckle slipped from my throat. The sound felt automatic, almost reflexive.

"Alright, darling," I said, before thinking too deeply about it. "I’ll walk you back to your room."

The words were barely out before I noticed the subtle change in her expression. Just a flicker—easy to miss—but it was there. Sothing unreadable passed through her eyes before she smiled again, masking whatever had stirred beneath the surface.

"Alright," she replied, pushing herself up from the bed.

I rose beside her, the morning air cool against my skin as we moved toward the door. Neither of us spoke as we stepped into the corridor, our footsteps echoing softly in the quiet halls. I walked her all the way to her room, my hand occasionally brushing hers, my mind strangely distant despite my body being present.

When we reached her door, she paused, turning back to give another smile before slipping inside.

I watched the door close behind her, the click of it sounding louder than it should have.

And as I stood there alone, the silence settled once more, the restlessness returned, stronger now, more insistent, whispering a na I wasn’t ready to confront.

And without thinking, my legs moved.

The decision wasn’t ford in my mind. There was no careful reasoning, no pause to weigh consequences. My body simply reacted, surging forward as though pulled by sothing stronger than logic. Faster than I thought possible, I found myself striding through the corridor, my steps long and urgent, my heart pounding hard against my ribs as I headed straight toward her room.

Halfway there, I tried to stop.

I told myself to turn back. To slow down. To pretend I hadn’t felt that pull tightening in my chest the mont I left Vanessa behind. I told myself this was reckless, that my brothers would see this as weakness if they knew. They wouldn’t understand why the thought of Maria could unsettle so deeply, why she had this power over my instincts, over my wolf.

But no matter how many tis I tried to reason with myself, my feet refused to obey. I kept moving. Straight ahead. Toward her.

I hadn’t even reached her door when the sight ahead of brought to an abrupt halt.

There, just a few steps away, stood Noah.

My vision narrowed instantly, my focus locking onto the way his hand rested on Maria’s shoulder. Not rough. Not possessive. Gentle. Familiar. He was patting her shoulder lightly, as though offering comfort, as though he had every right to touch her that way.

Sothing ugly twisted in my chest.

My blood boiled so fast it felt like it scorched through my veins. My wolf surged forward, snarling low in my head, and for a split second I had the overwhelming urge to cross the distance between us and rip his hand away from her. To make it clear, brutally clear, that she was not soone he should be touching.

But I didn’t move.

I forced myself to stay rooted where I was, my fists clenched so tightly my nails bit into my palms. Noah wasn’t just anyone. He was family. More than that, he was practically my brother. Soon enough, he would be my brother-in-law. His engagent to Anabel was only a matter of ti; we were just waiting for the right mont, the right arrangent to make it official.

I trusted Noah.

That trust was the only thing keeping still.

But questions flooded my mind, sharp and relentless. How did he know Maria? When did they get close enough for her to stand there so calmly with him? Why didn’t she pull away? Why did she look... comfortable?

The thought made my jaw tighten.

I shook my head slightly, forcing the questions away. Noah wouldn’t compete with . Not for anything. That much I was sure of. He knew better. He respected boundaries. Whatever this was, it had to be harmless. It had to be.

I stood there longer than I realized, watching them from a distance. Their voices were low, carried away by the corridor before they could reach . I couldn’t make out their words, but I watched the subtle movents, the way Maria’s head tilted slightly as if listening, the way Noah leaned just a fraction closer, his posture protective.

It took everything in not to step forward right then.

Finally, Noah straightened. He said sothing that made Maria look down briefly before nodding. Then he stepped back, gave her one last look, and turned away.

The mont he disappeared down the corridor, sothing inside snapped.

I didn’t wait. I didn’t hesitate. The restraint I had been clinging to shattered completely.

I closed the distance between us in seconds, my strides sharp and purposeful. Maria barely had ti to react before I reached her. My hand shot out on instinct, wrapping firmly around her arm.

"Maria," I said, my voice low and tight as I stopped her in place.

The heat of my grip contrasted sharply with the cold fury simring just beneath my skin.

Her scent hit all at once, sharp and confusing. It wasn’t pure. It was tainted, threaded unmistakably with Noah’s presence. I didn’t know when it happened or how it lingered so strongly on her skin, but the realization stirred sothing dark and possessive in . Before I could stop myself, my hand lifted, brushing over her shoulder as though I needed to confirm she was real, that she was still here.

There were other traces too. Adrien’s scent clung faintly to her, familiar and irritating, yet I found I didn’t care about that one. Not the way I cared about Noah’s. My jaw tightened as my thumb grazed her collarbone, my wolf restless beneath my skin, pacing, growling, demanding.

I didn’t give myself ti to think.

The mont stretched thin, fragile, and then I closed the distance between us and claid her lips in a kiss. It wasn’t gentle. It wasn’t hesitant, it was driven by a single, overwhelming thought that drowned out everything else.

She belongs to us.

The kiss deepened as I pulled her closer, my grip firm, unyielding. This wasn’t about tenderness or comfort, it was about certainty. About making a statent without words. I poured every unspoken warning into that kiss, every boundary drawn in invisible lines.

No one else was allowed here.

My lips moved against hers with deliberate intent, marking what was ours, reinforcing what should never be questioned. The world narrowed to the heat between us, to the way my heartbeat thundered in my ears, to the silent vow burning in my chest.

She was our territory and she is under our claim.

And no one, no matter how close, no matter how familiar, was permitted to cross that line.