Chapter 472-On His Knees

Chapter 472: 472-On His Knees

Verity:

Once Ragnar stepped away, I watched him enter the bedroom, leaving the door slightly ajar, probably so he could hear everything happening out here.

I quickly glanced around the living room to make sure he hadn’t left any of his belongings lying around. Of course he hadn’t.

The bastard had already claimed an entire drawer for himself, practically acting as though we were living together and he had every right to the place.

Just then, the door opened, and standing on the other side was Jaguar.

Of course, Theodore had already shown some reaction to the news, but I should have known Jaguar would come over to make his feelings known, too.

And judging by the fury burning in his bloodshot eyes, he was far from pleased.

He practically charged toward me, forcing me to step aside as he stormed into the room.

I glanced outside, but there was no one accompanying him.

That was strange. I had no idea why Theodore hadn’t come along.

As soon as I shut the door and turned around, I found Jaguar already facing me.

"Why?" he demanded, almost breathless.

"I’m not sure," I replied softly, trying to keep my voice gentle.

"Why?" he roared this time, slamming his palm against the wall beside my head.

I turned my face away and squeezed my eyes shut.

"Please, calm down," I pleaded.

"Calm down? You want me to calm down?" he muttered through clenched teeth, his jaw tightening so fiercely that I feared he might grind his teeth to pieces.

"I could at least understand what happened with Theodore. You felt the urge because of the mate bond. But what about Ragnar?"

He gestured toward the bedroom door without thinking, and my heart sank at the possibility of Ragnar coming out at any moment and making everything worse.

The only reason I believed he would stay inside was that he loved his brothers far too much to make things even more difficult between them.

"But it wasn’t like that with Ragnar, was it? You didn’t suddenly feel the mate bond with him, did you?" Jaguar demanded.

"No." I immediately shook my head.

"Then why?" he yelled. "Or is this just the kind of person you are? Huh? Isn’t one man enough to satisfy you? Is that why you’ve been blessed with so much beauty? Are your body’s desires never satisfied?"

Jaguar was lashing out in anger, and his words cut deeper than I wanted to admit.

But the truth was, when I put myself in his shoes, I could understand why he was furious. I really had fucked up.

If I had been an ordinary mate to them, someone who had never intended to make their lives miserable, I would have been entirely in the wrong.

There would have been no excuse for what I’d done, and I would have been the guiltiest person of all.

"Jaguar, nothing happened the way you’re imagining. We didn’t go that far," I finally spoke up, feeling the need to defend myself.

I mean, why did I even want to explain myself to him?

Watching them suffer was exactly what I’d been planning all along.

So why the hell did it hurt so much to see Jaguar tearing up?

Well, I blamed the Moon Goddess for that.

It was downright cruel of her to put me through so much hatred and suffering, only to turn around and make those very men my fated mates.

Bullshit.

"If you haven’t done anything wrong, then what the fuck am I hearing?" he screamed, grabbing me by the arms and slamming me against the wall.

"Ow!" I cried out as my elbow struck the wall, sending a sharp pain through my arm.

"Jaguar, what the fuck are you doing?" I yelled back, rubbing my aching elbow.

The anger on his face began to fade, his expression softening as he swallowed hard.

"I didn’t mean to," he uttered, his voice suddenly quieter. "God, I’m losing my mind."

His voice cracked slightly as he ran his hands through his hair.

"Jaguar, just calm down and think about this. I haven’t –gone that far. Fine, I made a little mistake, but that’s about it. We didn’t..."

I paused, biting my bottom lip as I remembered Ragnar was in the bedroom, listening to everything.

Knowing him and the way his attitude had changed, I wouldn’t have been surprised if he had his ear pressed against the door, trying to catch every word of our conversation.

"We didn’t go all the way, Jaguar. It was just a moment of weakness, and that’s it. Your brother was unusually emotional for some reason," I added in a whisper, hoping Ragnar wouldn’t overhear that last part.

Jaguar shook his head, struggling to come to terms with what I’d told him.

"He’s my brother. He’s my everything. He’s been like a father to me. Everything."

This time, tears began spilling down Jaguar’s cheeks. He placed a hand over his chest and continued in a broken voice.

"You’ve only just come into our lives. We’ve been part of each other’s lives for as long as I can remember."

He sniffled, struggling to hold himself together.

"To think that not only Theodore got involved with you, but Ragnar too. I feel so betrayed by my own brothers. It’s like our brotherhood was never real to begin with, like the blood we share has somehow been tainted."

As Jaguar poured his heart out, he staggered backward until his back met the wall, then slowly slid down to the floor, running his hands through his hair.

I turned toward the bedroom, my gaze settling on the shadow beneath the door.

Ragnar was listening.

I closed my eyes for a moment, and when I opened them again, I found myself remembering Justin sitting on the floor, crying to his sister about how the Alpha King had stolen his mate and how they wouldn’t even let him approach her to ask why she’d done that to him.

And just like that, all the hurt and anguish I’d been feeling while watching my mate suffer vanished.

At the same time, Jaguar seemed ready to ask the next question, one I had been dreading.

He raised his tear-filled eyes to mine and whispered, "Do you like Ragnar?"

The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end.

That one question had the power to change everything for everyone under my roof.