Fated To Three, Betrayed By All… Until She Rose. Chapter 108: A drunken confession

Leilani.

"Kael...?" I seethed, taking a step back when his fingers brushed against my face again, and I watched silently, stewing in rage when he tilted his head to the side, his eyes shining with drunken glee as he slurred;

"Yes, mate?"

That word. That stupid word stirred sothing in , but pushing it down, I drawled; "Why are you here?"

That seed to montarily snap him out of his daze. He flashed a grin— one that I found too genuine to belong to soone as terrible as him— and stumbled backwards to lean against my wall. "I ca to see you." He said, crossing his arms over his chest whilst watching intensely.

The way his eyes travelled along my body felt strange. It put on edge and made feel things that were too stupid to na.

My eye snagged on his face one more ti, and after reminding myself that this was Kael... Kael Stormborn the dunce, I shook my head. "And you’ve said that before..." I pointed out, scrunching up my nose in disgust when he hiccuped.

He pushed himself slowly off the wall, smiled at again when he almost fell, and muttered; "It’s important."

And hey guyssss, I know a majority of you would hate for saying this, but looking at him like this, with this carefree expression on his face, and with all traces of his signature arrogance gone, he looked innocent and handso.

Very handso.

He looked like the boy I had developed a crush on at age twelve. Like the lanky teenager with gleaming dark hair and beautiful eyes who always made my traitorous heart flutter.

But he was no longer that boy.

And with that thought hamring at the back of my skull, I glanced away, blinked away the sudden tears now pooling at the corners of my eyes and muttered; "You can’t talk to like this. You’re drunk."

"I can."

"Kael, I need you to call your brothers. I need you to leave—" I began to say but stopped when he suddenly grabbed my shoulders with so much force, I nearly stumbled.

Sothing akin to regret flashed across his features for a very brief mont before he sunk his head into the crook of my neck.

And goddess, I shouldn’t react to that. My body shouldn’t respond to sothing as stupid as that.

But guess what? It did.

And it did so freaking badly.

Heat rushed to my face when his warm breath tickled my neck, and his lips, warm and soft pressed against the spot between my neck and shoulder.

Like this, I vaguely rembered that that was the spot he would’ve marked if we had ever accepted each other as mates, and that thought in itself made my cheeks flare with more heat.

I coughed loudly.

"Kael..."

"Mhmn?"

"You need to go ho. You stink and you’re drunk and I do not wish to talk to you right now."

At the sound of my voice, he pushed away from and looked down at with eyes so pure and so intense that my knees buckled. His eyes ran down the length of my body, and I do not know how he managed to notice the bruises around my wrist because next thing I know, he was grabbing at my wrist like it was sothing vile, his face twisting into an ugly emotion as he spat;

"Who did this to you?"

And that... that snapped out of whatever jazz he’d done to . That forced my brain back into my skull because it seed like I was already losing it only monts ago.

My eyes followed his to peek at the so-called bruise he was yapping about, and rage so intense imdiately coursed through my veins when I realized what it was.

I plucked my hands out of his hold and seethed; "It’s none of your business."

"It is my business, Leilani."

"It’s not!"

"Why?"

"Because you did that to ! Because you and your brothers get off from inflicting with so much pain— and I an that quite literally."

He frowned, his brows furrowing as he glared between my face and my wrist. "I don’t understand what you an!"

"Oh, co on now, Chelsea! Co the fucking on!" I growled, turning away from him to plant my hands on my head. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, whilst hoping that by the ti I opened my eyes, he would be far from here... that he would be gone.

But when I opened my eyes, the bitch was still here. He was still watching closely... he still had that confused expression on his face and that angered .

I scread; "Because you guys fucked soone last night, and I am sure as hell that it is Chalice!"

At that, he blanched. He paused to stare at like I’d just sprouted a second head, his eyebrows twitching with confusion... and was that mortification?

He murmured; "We didn’t..."

"Oh, just stop that shit! Stop trying to lie to . I have bruises all over my body to back up my claim."

"But we really didn’t!" He snapped, now looking more frustrated than confused.

So if you guys didn’t do it, how co I’m this battered? How co I woke up this morning completely covered in bruises?" I seethed, and I hate that my voice shook when I said that. I hate that my emotions made my tone co off as hurt and sad... not angry.

And I hate that he was looking at with regret... with pity. And those were two emotions I hated more than them.

He shook his head slowly and whispered; "I don’t know."

I hissed. Because tell what else was there to do besides hiss at the absurdity of it all.

I rolled my eyes, berating myself for thinking I could have a conversation with a drunk and spat; "So why are you here? What’s so important that you had to co here to talk to about it?"

Kael froze for a mont but quickly shook himself free from whatever trance he’d fallen into. I watched with thinned eyes as he slapped his body as if looking for sothing hiding sowhere in his suit.

When he still wouldn’t talk or show whatever he was looking for, I rolled my eyes again, turned to pick up my bag, and was just about to walk into the house when he called out excitedly;

"I found it!"

I stopped, turned around and nearly froze when I saw him clutching a red envelope in his hands. It was just dium sized and was intricately designed with curly golden lines tracing its edges... and overall, it looked beautiful.

I sighed. "So what’s that now, Kael?"

"It’s an invitation!" He answered cheekily, his lips curled into a smile but his eyes told a different tale. It looked dark... lost. Scared.

That bothered .

"An invitation to what?"

"My wedding," he drawled, then shaking his head, he corrected; "...our wedding. Our wedding with Chalice."

Ladies and gentlen, I’d long waited for this day to co. I’d told myself I was fully prepared for the day that this would happen, and I knew that it was inevitable ever since the engagent party four years ago.

So tell why it still hurts?

Tell why it felt as though my heart was being ripped into shreds as soon as I heard him say that?

My eyes darted from his face to the card, and I realized then and there that he was being serious. That they were indeed getting married to Chalice. That it was real.

—And that this so-called good news was probably why I was covered in bruises right now.

My chest felt heavy. Even breathing felt like one of the toughest sports at the Olympics. My eyes stung too but refusing to let my tears fall, I smiled at him and muttered;

"Congratulations."

"Don’t congratulate !" He snapped, causing to frown.

"Why?"

"Because I don’t want to get married. I don’t want to do this. Because I want you."

I froze.