Page 72 of Claimed By My Fiancé's Brother

It wasn’t like I’d wholeheartedly believed Dylan had set that ambush the night before. That was just where all the evidence had pointed.

But if it truly wasn’t him, there was only one person who hated me enough to kill me and had enough power to keep Dylan in the dark.

Micah.

Dylan didn’t try to reach out for me again, but there was a determined set to his jaw.

“I will find the person behind this,” he vowed. “They will pay for trying to hurt you.”

I wondered if he’d have the same conviction if the culprit turned out to be the mother of his unborn child.

I hoped my suspicions were wrong. I really did.

“I can fight for myself. I don’t need or want your help,” I said, turning away from Dylan.

Dylan reached out, his hand encircling my wrist.

“I’m sorry, Eleanor. Truly,” he whispered, and then he was gone.

I barely made it a few steps away when my skin prickled with the awareness of someone’s gaze on me.

I lifted my eyes and met the icy gaze of my mate, who stood several feet away in the tree line and seemed to have watched my entire interaction with Dylan.

I paused, and it wasn’t because Alexander had caught me.

There was something about the predatory look in Alexander’s eyes that sent shivers down my spine—the annoyingly good kind that made me want to press my thighs together.

It was a look of pure, unadulterated possessiveness—as if seeing me with another male was unacceptable.

During our argument earlier he’d called me an “unfortunate responsibility.”

So how could he stare at me like that now?

By the Goddess, Alexander confused me.

And it wasn’t just because he’d rescued me from bleeding out at the border.

Even during the heat, he’d taken care of me without trying to get anything out of it.

I was uncertain if that was because he was being courteous or because he couldn’t stand to touch me. Our kiss in the bathtub seemed to disprove the latter.

There was also the day following our first and only night together, when Alexander had pushed me away, only to show up at my mating ceremony and mark me.

His actions and words simply didn’t match up.

Stop doing this to yourself, Eleanor, I tried to warn myself. Trying to see Alexander as a better man would only lead to devastating consequences.

Squaring my shoulders, I ignored Alexander and headed to the training area where I usually met up with West and Seraphina.

They hadn’t visited me, so I had to assume, like Dylan, they were unaware of my close brush with death. If they were unaware, they would still be waiting for our usual training.

I wondered who’d managed to keep the attack under wraps. Was it Alexander or Micah?

Was I wrong for suspecting Micah without any evidence besides Dylan’s insistence on his innocence?

I was so consumed by my thoughts that I didn’t realize Alexander had crept up on me until he grabbed my arm and forcefully pulled me to a stop.

His icy blue eyes ignited with a cold fire as he leveled a glare at me.

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