Page 101 of Claiming Pretty

Ciaran’s grip on me tightened. “We need to get you home,” he said softly, as if I were made of glass.

“She’s not a child who needs to be tucked in,” Ty argued from behind me, his tone sharper than usual.

“Enough,” I said, trying to steady myself, but neither of them listened.

Their bickering rose like a tide, grating on my raw nerves. Every word felt like a splinter under my skin. Iturned, glaring at them as their voices overlapped, both trying to outshout the other.

Ciaran and Ty were supposed to be the answer. Together, we were supposed to take the Sochai down. But the only thing falling apart wasus.

“Enough, both of you!” I screamed, cutting them off mid-sentence. My voice echoed through the ruins, fierce and unrelenting, the words tearing from me like a primal roar.

Both of them fell silent, staring at me.

My chest heaved with the effort of containing my fury, my fists vibrating at my sides.

I felt like I was standing on a knife’s edge, every breath threatening to send me plummeting into chaos. My heart hammered painfully, caught between two opposing forces—two people who each held a piece of it.

“You have to stop doing this,” I said, my voice cracking. “Both of you.”

“Doing what?” Ciaran asked, his tone sharper than I’d expected.

“Fighting. Over me. Over everything. Like it’s a competition. Like I’m a piece of fucking meat.” I gripped the edge of the nearest crumbling wall, needing something solid to anchor myself. “It’skillingme.”

“That’s rich,” Ciaran said bitterly, his voice low. “You think this is easy for us? Watching you… wondering what you want, who you—”

“Who Iwhat, Ciaran?” My voice rose, and I stepped toward him, heat flushing my skin. “You think this is easy for me? Being torn between two brothers that I—”

The words caught in my throat, snagged by the weight of what I was about to admit.

Ciaran’s eyes widened, and Ty took a slow step forward, his gaze narrowing as if he knew what was coming.

I could feel the confession clawing its way out, impossible to keep locked away any longer. My fists clenched at my sides as I took a shaky breath.

“I—” My voice broke and I clutched at my heart. “I can’t stop it, okay? I’ve tried. God, I’vetried. But I can’t, because—” My chest heaved, and the words finally spilled out, unrestrained and raw. “Because I love you both.”

The weight in my chest lightened, but only for a moment. As soon as the words settled in the air between us, I regretted them.

Ciaran’s face crumpled, like my words were a physical blow. His sapphire eyes burned with disbelief and something sharper—hurt. For a moment, he looked like he didn’t know whether to run or fight, torn between his anger and his vulnerability.

“What?” he said, his voice cracking under the weight of the single word.

My stomach twisted painfully. “Ciaran—”

“No,” he interrupted, shaking his head like he could shake the truth away. “No, you don’t mean that. Youcan’tmean that.” His hands balled into fists at his sides, his knuckles whitening. “You love me, Ava. Not him. Nothim.”

“I’m sorry,” I said, dragging a hand through my hair. My voice softened, guilt thickening every word. “I tried to stop it from happening, but I couldn’t. I—”

My gaze fell on Ciaran as I spoke, my words for him. “I’msorry.”

I tried to reach for him, my hand hovering between us, but he flinched back like I’d burned him.

“Youhaveto choose,” he said, his voice dropping into something raw and guttural. His jaw clenched, and his gaze flicked to Ty, then back to me.

I shook my head, tears squeezing from my eyes as my heart shattered in my chest, my voice coming out as a broken whisper. “I’m sorry.”

“Say it, Ava.” Ciaran advanced on me as I cowered away from him. “Say you lovememore.”

“Ciaran, stop,” Ty said, his voice calm but commanding, stepping forward to block his path.

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