Chapter 397: Emptiness.
Aidan.
I really couldn’t bring myself to believe it—my own mate wasn’t even the slightest bit moved by me. The realization stung with a sharp, cold clarity, leaving me to bitterly question what I had even been expecting in the first place. Hope, perhaps? A spark of recognition? Anything would have been better than this painful indifference.
It was painfully clear that Noah had completely clouded her mind. Every thought she had, every ounce of her focus, was entirely consumed by him. Right now, in this very moment, she wasn’t even looking at me; she was asking about him, desperate for his whereabouts.
A desperate selfishness took hold of me. I couldn’t bear the thought of her turning around and walking out of the room just yet. I craved more time—just a few precious moments alone with her, no matter how fragile or artificial they were. Because of that overwhelming desire, lying to her didn’t even weigh on my conscience.
"In the bathroom," I said without a single second of hesitation.
The lie slipped off my tongue smoothly, and of course, I wasn’t even surprised by her reaction. The thought of seeing Noah naked in the bathroom didn’t faze her in the slightest. She didn’t pause, didn’t question it, and didn’t show a hint of reluctance.
She hurriedly walked toward the bathroom door, driven by her eagerness to reach him. The moment she reached out and opened it, impulse took over. Just before she could take a single step inside, I stepped up behind her, pushed her firmly into the space, and slammed the door shut behind us, trapping us together.
"What are you doing!" she asked, her voice sharp with instant panic as she whirled around.
Right? What was I doing?
The question echoed wildly in my own head, but my body moved on instinct, stripped of logic or restraint.
Driven by raw desperation, I immediately reached out, grabbed Maria’s hand, and pressed her palm flat against my bare chest, right over the frantic beat of my heart.
"Maria, please... can you come back to us?" I asked, completely stripped of pride, pleading with no shame left to hold me back. "We all need you!" I added, my voice tight with an ache I could no longer conceal.
I swallowed hard, the lump in my throat almost choking me. Slowly, deliberately, I brought her hand down away from my chest. My fingers trembled slightly as I guided her palm down, placing it directly over my hard cock.
"He needs you more!" I said softly, my voice dropping to a low, breathless whisper as I laid my entire vulnerability bare before her.
Maria let out a bitter chuckle, a sound utterly devoid of warmth or amusement. It wasn’t the kind of laugh born from joy. It was hollow, brittle, and edged with disappointment so deep it made my chest tighten.
The faint, humorless sound lingered in the air between us like shattered glass.
"It seems you are just looking for someone to satisfy your needs..." she said quietly.
She paused, allowing the weight of those words to settle over us before slowly lifting her gaze to meet mine. Her eyes locked onto mine with a piercing glare, so cold and unwavering that I felt as though she could see straight through me. There wasn’t the slightest hint of softness in them anymore. The warmth I had once known had long since disappeared, replaced by wounded pride and quiet resentment.
"Why don’t you look for a random omega and get it done with?" she asked coldly.
The words struck me with brutal force.
Before I could even gather myself enough to respond, she immediately yanked her hand away from my touch. Her fingers slipped free from mine with a sharp, decisive motion, severing the last fragile thread of contact that still connected us.
My body went instantly cold.
The warmth of her skin vanished so suddenly that the empty space where her hand had rested seemed to burn with its absence. The loss of that simple touch sent an icy wave crashing through my entire body, leaving me frozen where I stood.
A sharp, violent ache seized my heart.
It twisted mercilessly inside my chest, squeezing until it became difficult to breathe. The pain wasn’t physical alone—it was something far deeper, something that clawed at every part of me. I could only stare at her in sheer disbelief, my thoughts scattering into complete chaos.
How could she possibly think that of me?
How could my own mate—the woman destined for me, the one person whose soul was forever intertwined with mine—believe that I wanted someone else?
And worse...how could she suggest that I seek comfort in another woman?
The mere thought felt revolting.
It was insane.
Every single word she had spoken drove another invisible blade deeper into my chest, tearing through whatever composure I had left. The pain became almost unbearable, threatening to consume me whole.
"Maria, listen to me!" I pleaded, unable to stop the desperation creeping into my voice.
Without thinking, I stepped forward, closing the distance between us before she could move farther away. My hands instinctively reached for her shoulders, gently but firmly gripping them in a desperate attempt to keep her attention fixed on me.
"I don’t just want you because of what you’re thinking!"
The words rushed out faster than I intended.
I swallowed hard.
A painful knot tightened around my throat, making it almost impossible to force out what I truly wanted to say. My chest rose and fell unevenly as I searched desperately for the right words, the honest words—the ones I had failed to say when they mattered most.
"The truth is..." I began, my voice faltering, and for a brief second, I shut my eyes before forcing myself to look directly at her again. "I feel empty without you."
The confession came out raw and unguarded, as it wasn’t rehearsed nor was it meant to manipulate her.
It was simply the truth.
The emptiness had followed me everywhere. It lingered in every silent moment, haunted every restless night, and hollowed out every breath I took whenever she wasn’t beside me.
Maria responded with a harsh, lifeless laugh.
The sound sliced cleanly through every ounce of hope I had been desperately clinging to.
"No, you don’t, Aidan!" she snapped firmly, as her voice rang with unwavering certainty, leaving no room for doubt.
Her eyes burned fiercely as they bore into mine, filled with a conviction so absolute that it shook me.
"You just feel that way because you think things didn’t go as planned, the way you wanted!"
Her accusation echoed inside my mind.
Each word landed with crushing force, stripping away my ability to answer.
Frustration surged violently through me, rising so fast it became impossible to contain. It churned inside my chest alongside helplessness and guilt, the conflicting emotions threatening to overwhelm me.
Unable to endure the suffocating pressure any longer, I dragged a trembling hand through my hair.
My fingers buried themselves in the strands before tightening into a firm grip, tugging just enough to ground myself against the storm raging inside me.
I stood there in silence, breathing unevenly, desperately trying to steady my racing thoughts while watching the woman I loved become convinced that the truth in my heart was nothing more than another lie.
"Why do you always have a counter for everything I say, Maria?" I demanded, the confusion and despair thick in my voice. "Can’t you just look beyond all these reasons and see the sincerity of my heart?"
"Sincerity?" Maria repeated, her brows shooting up in deep skepticism. Her voice dripping with bitter mock surprise, she pressed on, "When it comes to you and your brothers, there is no such thing. It’s just ego and pride."
A breathless, incredulous laugh burst from my chest.
It was almost comical—and deeply terrifying—that this was how she truly viewed me. A monster driven only by arrogance. The realization crushed me, leaving a single, desperate question echoing through my mind: *How on earth do I change her narrative of me?*
Without giving her time to retreat further, I stepped directly into her personal space. Surprised by the sudden pressure, Maria instinctively took a step backward, but there was nowhere left to go; her back hit the cold wall of the shower. I instantly moved in, locking her in place by slamming my hands against the wall on either side of her head, trapping her completely within my frame.
Without breaking eye contact, I reached out and slowly turned the shower knob.
"Tell me..." I said, my voice dropping to a low, dangerously calm pitch as the overhead spray burst forth, heavy streams of water cascading down over my head and shoulders. "What can I do to set things right?"
I stared at her with a desperate curiosity, watching as the deluge quickly soaked her hair, causing wet strands to cling softly to her face and framing her features in a way that was agonizingly tempting. Wet-drenched and cornered, she was all I could see.