Chapter 399: Suggestion.
Maria.
I really don’t understand what’s going on anymore; my head was spinning, completely unable to process the relentless chaotic storm of emotions tearing through me.
The quadruplets always manage to get me both confused and angry, effortlessly driving me to the absolute edge of my sanity with their conflicting motives, secret glances, and maddening presence.
And Aidan—how could he suddenly be so persistent?
How could he stand there, looking at me with those pleading emerald eyes, acting as if he could simply erase the past and force his way back into my broken heart?
I stepped out of the bathroom after a while, taking a slow, shaky step into the room, only to meet a pair of deep, piercing ocean-blue eyes staring right back at me.
"You two—" he paused, his gaze shifting suspiciously between the empty bathroom doorway and my drenched, tense frame. "What’s going on?" He asked in curiosity, his brow furrowing as he tried to piece together the electric tension hanging heavy in the atmosphere.
I rolled my eyes, totally ignoring him and his suffocating scrutiny. I didn’t have the energy, nor the patience, to entertain his questions or fall into another exhausting confrontation.
"Can any of you tell me exactly where Noah is?" I asked, my voice sharp and demanding as I sought the only person who seemed to offer a path out of this nightmare.
"I actually have no idea, but..." Damien paused, shifting his weight slightly as he weighed his words carefully before continuing. "...he asked me to meet with you instead." He stepped forward, bridging the physical distance between us with a calm, calculated intent. "We are to discuss the escape plan." He added, his tone surprisingly serious.
I immediately pressed my hands on my forehead, squeezing my temples tightly as a throbbing headache began to bloom behind my eyes.
How do I believe that he wasn’t just trying to buy time to talk to me?
How could I trust that this wasn’t just another orchestrated lie, another subtle trap cooked up by them to keep me cornered and defenseless?
"Look here, Damien, I am not in the mood for all this drama," I said, as I stared at him, letting my exhausted frustration bleed into every single word. "You both don’t have to bother; I will find Noah myself." I added, rejecting his offer completely.
And with that, I turned to walk out of the door, desperate to put space between myself and the brothers, but then I stopped dead in my tracks, as firm, unyielding hands suddenly held me in place.
"I’m telling the truth, Maria!" Damien said, his grip steady yet gentle as he slowly turned me around to face him directly, forcing me to look at him. "Noah did mind-link me." He added, his ocean-blue eyes locking onto mine.
I raised my brows in confusion, a cold wave of suspicion washing over me.
Why would Noah mind-link him and not me?
If Noah needed to get a message to me, why go through Damien instead of reaching out to me directly?
Is there something wrong with him?
Oh no! Could Vincent have found him?
My heart did a violent leap into my throat at the terrifying thought.
No way! Vincent followed after me immediately, so it really couldn’t be that. Vincent hadn’t had the time or the opportunity to intercept him.
I stared at Damien one more time, studying the sharp lines of his face, searching for any subtle twitch, any flicker of deceit. But after a closer look, I could tell he wasn’t lying. The genuine worry etched into his gaze was undeniably real.
I relaxed my tense shoulders, forcing the rigid tightness to melt out of my frame, and gently removed Damien’s hand from my arm before turning on my heel and walking back into the room.
"So, any suggestions on how I could leave here quietly?" I asked, keeping my tone flat and cold as I walked, without bothering to look at any of them.
Damien cleared his throat dramatically, the subtle sound cutting through the quiet room as he prepared to address me.
"Yes Maria, I do have a suggestion," he said, his smooth voice echoing slightly as he took a deliberate step towards me.
"Spill it!" I said casually, crossing my arms and keeping my demeanor as unbothered as humanly possible to hide my underlying exhaustion.
Damien finally closed the remaining distance between us, stepping deep into my personal space until I could feel the sheer heat radiating off him.
He leaned down slowly, his movements agonizingly calculated, before reaching out a hand and brushing a stray strand of my hair backwards behind my ear.
I froze immediately under his touch. My entire body went completely rigid, and my heart instantly began thudding frantically against my ribs, racing just like it had with Aidan moments ago. A sudden, terrifying wave of electricity shot through my veins, catching me completely off guard.
He brought his lips impossibly close to my ear, hovering just bare millimeters away, and whispered softly.
"I can’t say it out loud, Maria," he paused, his hot breath fanning across my sensitive skin and sending a violent shudder straight down my spine. "But I can tell you this way," he added, his voice dropping to a low, velvety murmur.
I immediately swallowed hard, a dry lump forming in my throat. I instantly clutched my hands tightly together in front of me, squeezing my fingers until my knuckles turned white as I desperately tried to hide the undeniable fact that I was so heavily affected by his proximity and presence.
Something was definitely wrong with today.
Why were my body and my wolf reacting so intensely to every single touch, every breath, and every gaze from them?
"Fine!" I said, forcing the word past my lips and trying my absolute best to sound calm and indifferent, despite the chaos raging inside my chest. "Say the suggestion you have, and just pray it’s actually a good one," I added, attempting to erect my broken walls back up.
Instead of answering right away, Damien bent lower against me. He slowly used his nose to softly graze the bare skin of my neck, inhaling deeply.
The warm, intimate sensation caused me to shiver uncontrollably, goosebumps erupting across my skin.
And at this point, I really couldn’t wait for him to just speak and get it over with, as I was painfully aware that there was still another pair of eyes staring at me intensely from across the room—burning into my skin as though he could eat me alive.