CHAPTER 214: DON’T TELL ME

As they lay entangled in each other’s arms, Emira smiled faintly and traced small circles on his chest with her finger. This quiet after everything felt warm and peaceful.

She had thought that being with only one of them would feel strange... like something would be missing. But lying here now, feeling Zen’s steady breathing and the relaxed weight of his arm around her, she realised she was content like this too. She wanted all three of them, yes, but it didn’t always have to be together.

She could want them in different ways. She could want this closeness with each of them separately. Just like she had fallen asleep with Lance and Kael on each side of her earlier.

She tilted her head up to look at his face. The relaxed smile on his lips made her smile too, and somehow that gave her the courage to ask what had been sitting heavy in her mind.

"Zen," she whispered.

"Hm?" he murmured without opening his eyes, sounding too lazy and too satisfied to move.

"Something is different," she said slowly, thinking through her words one by one.

That got his attention. He opened his eyes and looked down at her. "What is different?" Zen asked her, still calm, still half-drowsy.

She hesitated. Her finger paused on his chest. "Your attitudes," she said finally.

"Attitudes?" he repeated.

"The first time you and Kael were with me," she explained, "you were careful. Very careful. And even though you were... aroused... both of you held back. Like it was only about responsibility."

Zen listened quietly, waiting.

"And the second time, it was the same with Lance," she continued. "He was gentle. Controlling things but keeping a distance. Even though he wanted me physically, he kept himself... contained."

She took a breath and looked away, her cheeks warming. "But this time... all three of you... you weren’t like that. You didn’t hold back."

Zen’s hand slid up her back,

Emira swallowed. "So I was wondering... is it because we’re going to be mated soon? And this was like a..." She stopped, shaking her head. "I don’t know. A step before something big? Or some kind of... last hoorah....

She groaned softly and hid her face against his shoulder. Why did she have to ask this right now? Right after they had all just been together? She felt ridiculous, like she was ruining the calm moment. But despite telling herself repeatedly to not bother and simply enjoy everything, a part of her wanted answers. Though she had no idea why.

Earlier, even though she had felt jealous over their closeness to Ramona, now, the thought of them being with her, made her feel nauseous.

Zen’s hold tightened around her and she watched the smile disappear from his face.

She peeked up at him. "Forget I asked," she muttered quickly.

"No," he said, lifting her chin with his fingers. "You asked. So you get an answer. Though I am not sure you might like the answer.

He brushed her hair from her face and said quietly, "We weren’t careful this time because you didn’t need us to be. You weren’t scared. You weren’t unsure. You wanted us. Fully. And you trusted us. So we didn’t hold back. Not because of the mating. Because of you."

At this point, Zen wanted to tell her that she was their mate. And they would not be mating with Ramona. But he held back, not daring to... However, as he thought about it, he realized that even if he could not tell her about her being their mate, he could tell her about Ramona NOT being their mate.

So, he started," Regarding the mating and Ramona... There was a future vision that said that Ramona and us... we might not mate."

Even as he said the words, he felt that they were not right. It would be better to explain that she had used dark magic... But before he could say more, he felt her stiffen and push herself away from him again. He frowned as she started to shiver and she jumped off the bed... grabbing the robe he had place nearby.

He jumped up," Emira? What happened?"

Zen froze, watching her retreat from him as if he had struck her instead of offering an explanation. Emira’s breathing had gone uneven, sharp, almost panicked. He took a step forward, but she moved back again, clutching the robe tightly around herself.

"Emira?"

She shook her head quickly, as if trying to push away both him and whatever thought had hit her. "Nothing. Just—just go. I need to be alone for now."

"Go?" Zen repeated, stunned. "Why would I go?"

She tried to walk past him, but he reached out and caught her wrist, "Emira, talk to me. What happened?"

But she yanked her hand away like his touch burned her, turning to face him with wide, angry eyes.

"What happened?" she repeated, voice shaking. "What happened is that you should go. Now."

"Why?" Zen asked, confused and growing frustrated over the sudden change in her attitude. "Tell me what you’re thinking."

"Don’t," she snapped, stepping away again. "Just don’t."

He didn’t move and instead raised his hands in surrender. "Just talk to me.

"She stared at him, breathing hard, then asked in a low, trembling voice, "Please don’t tell me that the three of you felt at ease to be with me because someone foresaw that Ramona is not your mate."

Zen’s eyes widened slightly. "That’s not—"

"Isn’t it?" she cut him off before he could even say a full sentence. Her voice cracked. "Isn’t it?"

Zen frowned deeply. It was partly true—he had seen that Ramona wasn’t their mate.

But that wasn’t why... not why they had touched her like that, not why they had let go of their restraint, not why he felt the need to keep her close even now. But before he could gather the right words, before he could explain even a little, she let out a broken sound and grabbed the glass from the table.

"Emira, wait-"

She hurled it. The glass hit the wall with a sharp crack, shattering into pieces that scattered across the floor.

"Damn it!" she screamed, her voice raw. "I hate people who can see the future! I absolutely hate them!"