(Lukas & Zois POV)
They should have known. The signs had been there all along. From the moment they first caught her scent at the Mate-finding ceremony, something had changed inside them. It had taken everything in them to remain hidden, to resist the instinctual urge to claim what was theirs. But they had fought it.
Fought it because they weren't sure. Fought it because their parents had refused them every other time.
So why now?
Why had their mother, after years of rejecting their requests, suddenly insisted they attend?
They knew the answer now.
Eila.
She was the reason. Sitting across from her at dinner had been torture. Every breath carried the intoxicating blend of honey and lavender, making their wolves restless, and feral. Lukas had barely touched his food, his hands clenched under the table as he fought the pull. Zois, usually the calmer one, wasn't faring much better.
And now, this walk in the gardens. It was a mistake. The moment they stepped outside, under the full moon's glow, it hit them like a tidal wave.
The pull.
Ten times stronger than before. A force so intense, so absolute, that it shattered every last shred of their restraint.
Lukas staggered, gripping Zois's arm. "I can't—"
Zois knew. He felt it too. His breathing turned shallow as his body responded to her presence. To the bond that was now undeniable.
They were her mates.
And now… she felt it too.
Eila's breath hitched, her pupils dilating as she swayed slightly where she stood. She had been trying to resist. Trying to pretend that she hadn't felt the connection before.
But now, under the moon's pull, there was no hiding. It was inevitable. She was theirs.
Her lips parted, and at the same moment, all three of them whispered the same word.
"Mate."
The air crackled around them. Leonard's growl shook the ground.
Feral. Lethal. Possessive. A warning. But it was too late. Because Lukas and Zois had already moved.
Eila barely had a moment to react before they were on her. Zois's hand tangled in her hair, pulling her closer as Lukas crashed his lips against hers.
A raw, desperate kiss.
The kind that sent a wildfire of sensations surging through her veins. She gasped against his mouth, and Zois took the opportunity to tilt her head to the side, his lips trailing down her neck.
The taste of her skin. The scent of her. It was too much.
Leonard's vision blurred with red. His wolf roared inside him, demanding dominance, demanding vengeance.
They were touching what was his. His mate. His to mark.
Before Eila could catch her breath, Leonard ripped her away from them. She barely had time to process before his mouth descended on hers, claiming her with a bruising intensity that left her shaking.
She whimpered into the kiss as his lips moved to her neck, his fangs grazing the delicate skin.
Then he bit down. A sharp sting. A rush of heat.
Eila's body went taut as his mark burned into her skin, searing their bond into existence.
Claimed.
Right before Lukas and Zois's eyes.