Chapter 5 I'm Not Letting You Go

Silence ruled, immediately Tristan asked Chloe to break up with Ethan or he told him everything.

Chloe felt blood drain from her face.

Even though the threat wasn't loud, Chloe knew Tristan meant every word.

Her fingers trembled.

"Ethan doesn't deserve this."

A shadow crossed Tristan's face.

"No." he said in a quiet voice. "He doesn't."

For the first time that night, genuine guilt flickered across his expression.

Then it vanished.

"But neither did I."

Chloe couldn't say anything because clearly she had no answer for that

Tristan looked at her for several long seconds, as if memorizing every detail of her.

Then he turned toward the hidden passage. But before stepping through the doorway, he stopped and spoke one final sentence without looking back.

"This time, Chloe..."

His voice was low enough to send a shiver through her entire body.

"I'm not letting you disappear."

The hidden door closed softly behind him.

And Chloe stood frozen beside the wall, her heart beating wildly while the silver ring remained locked around her finger.

Outside, the storm continued through the night but inside Blackthorn Manor, a far more dangerous storm had only just begun.

---

The next morning, Chloe walked into the dining room with every part of her body feeling exhausted because she couldn't sleep through the night.

The argument with Tristan, the ring, Ethan's unexpected arrival at her door, and the guilt that had followed her throughout the entire night had left her completely drained.

Unfortunately, breakfast was waiting for her and so were the Adams brothers.

The moment Chloe stepped inside, Ethan immediately stood from his chair.

"Baby."

His face brightened instantly.

"Come sit."

Chloe forced a smile and walked toward him.

The chair beside Ethan had already been pulled out for her.

She sat down carefully while trying not to look toward the other end of the table.

Unfortunately, Tristan was already looking at her.

His gaze swept across her face once before settling briefly on her mouth.

Chloe's stomach dropped as last night's confrontation flashed through her mind immediately.

The pressure of his body against hers, his hand gripping her wrist and the way he had forced the ring back onto her finger.

Heat rushed into her cheeks.

"Baby?"

Ethan's voice snapped her back to reality.

"Hm?"

His brows furrowed slightly.

"What happened to your lips?"

Chloe froze.

She instinctively grabbed her glass of juice.

"My lips?"

Ethan nodded. "They look swollen."

Chloe nearly choked.

Across the table, Tristan calmly lifted his coffee cup and not a single change appeared on his expression.

But Chloe could feel his amusement from where she sat and this made her face become even hotter.

"Uh...yeah. I accidentally bit myself."

The excuse left her mouth before she could stop it.

Ethan blinked.

"While sleeping?"

"Y-yes."

The lie sounded ridiculous even to her own ears.

Ethan looked unconvinced but eventually nodded.

"You should be more careful."

"I will."

Chloe immediately lowered her head and focused on her breakfast.

She prayed the conversation would end there but unfortunately, fate clearly hated her.

Ethan suddenly frowned again.

"Brother, what happened to your neck?"

Chloe's hand tightened around her fork.

Slowly, she lifted her eyes and several faint but fresh scratch marks were visible above Tristan's collar.

They were impossible to miss.

Her soul nearly left her body.

Those marks had not been there yesterday and she knew exactly where they came from.

Last night, when Tristan had trapped her against the wall, she had clawed at him repeatedly while trying to push him away.

Werewolf healing should have erased those scratches hours ago, yet they remained.

As if someone had intentionally left them visible.

Tristan calmly touched his neck and he smiled faintly.

"A wild cat's doings." he said, looking at Chloe before shifting his gaze to Ethan.

Chloe almost dropped her fork.

Ethan laughed.

"A wild cat?"

"They can be surprisingly aggressive."

The corner of Tristan's mouth lifted slightly as his eyes drifted back toward Chloe for a brief second.

"Aren't they?"

Chloe wanted the ground to open and swallow her whole.

Fortunately, Ethan only shook his head.

"You have terrible luck."

"So I've been told."

Tristan took another sip of coffee.

The conversation moved on but Chloe could barely breathe for the rest of breakfast.

Every time she looked up, she found Tristan watching her.

And every time she remembered what had happened inside that room, guilt twisted deeper inside her chest.

By the time breakfast finally ended, Chloe was desperate to leave.

The storm had passed overnight and sunlight now filtered through the tall windows of Blackthorn Manor.

Freedom was only a few minutes away.

"Ready to go?"

Ethan smiled as he picked up the car keys.

Chloe nodded immediately.

"Very."

Ethan laughed.

"You sound like you've been imprisoned."

If only you knew.

Before Chloe could answer, Tristan approached them.

He looked perfectly composed and cold again as if nothing had happened.

"Safe travels."

Ethan grinned.

"Thanks, brother."

Tristan's gaze settled on Chloe.

The silver ring remained hidden beneath the sleeve of her sweater and only the two of them knew it was there.

Something unreadable flashed across his eyes before it disappeared.

"Drive carefully."

Chloe expected him to stop her or threaten her again.

She expected another confrontation or attempt to keep her here but he simply just stepped aside, allowing them to leave.

The lack of resistance felt strangely unsettling.

Minutes later, the car disappeared down the mountain road.

Tristan remained standing beside the manor entrance long after it was gone.

Only when the vehicle vanished completely did he turn around.

"Find everything."

His assistant immediately straightened.

"Sir?"

"Everything she has done during the last seven years."

The assistant hesitated.

"Miss Chloe?"

Tristan's expression remained unreadable.

"I want every detail."

"Understood."

Several hours later, a thick report landed on Tristan's desk.

The assistant stood quietly nearby.

Tristan opened the file and as he read, the muscles in his jaw tightened little by little.

Chloe literally had no social or fun life. She didn't attend parties, no luxurious vacations or social circle. No wealthy lovers also and no exciting adventures.

Only work upon work.

She lived in small apartments and spent long hours on freelance projects.

She had professional certifications and temporary contracts.

Majorly, she was lonely.

The report revealed a woman who seemed to have spent seven years simply surviving.

Tristan turned another page, then another and nothing changed.

She had very few friends and almost no family contact.

Until Ethan, she had no serious relationships.

His expression grew heavier. For seven years he had imagined countless possibilities.

He had imagined Chloe forgetting him, moving on and living happily somewhere far away.

Instead, she had been alone.

Something painful settled heavily inside his chest.

"Sir?"

The assistant carefully broke the silence.

"There is something else."

Tristan looked up.

"The corporation is currently selecting designers for the Horizon redevelopment project."

"What about it?"

"Miss Chloe's company submitted an application."

Tristan stared at the document for several seconds, then he closed the file.

A decision had already formed inside his mind.

"Move her company into the final review stage."

The assistant blinked.

"Sir?"

"Personally assign Chloe as lead designer."

The assistant immediately understood.

"Yes, sir."

After he left, Tristan remained alone in the office and his gaze drifted toward the mountains outside.

Most wolves could survive separation from ordinary partners but a fated mate was different.

The bond only grew stronger over time and ignoring it came with consequences.

His wolf had already become unstable.

Seven years apart from Chloe had proven that.

Now that Chloe had returned, allowing her to disappear again was no longer an option.

Not for him and certainly not for his wolf.

---

Meanwhile, Chloe sat quietly in Ethan's front passenger seat.

The city skyline slowly appeared in the distance.

The drive should have felt comforting, instead, every mile seemed to increase the weight inside her chest.

Ethan was talking about something.

Work, probably.

She wasn't listening as her thoughts kept drifting elsewhere.

Back to the manor and to Tristan.

Back to the painful truth she had spent seven years avoiding.

"Baby?"

Chloe blinked.

"Hm?"

Ethan laughed softly.

"You haven't heard a single thing I've said."

"Sorry."

"Are you okay? You look tired."

"I am quite tired."

Ethan reached across the center console and squeezed her hand.

The familiar gesture should have comforted her but it only made matters worse as guilt pierced straight through her chest.

Because suddenly she remembered another hand, voice and another man.

Tristan used to do the same thing whenever she felt anxious or overwhelmed and needed reassurance.

Chloe looked out the window quickly.

The realization unsettled her.

Then another memory surfaced.

Ethan constantly worried about her just like Tristan used to.

Ethan always remembered her favorite food just like Tristan.

Ethan always placed her safety before everything else and Tristan also did.

One memory after another surfaced relentlessly, until Chloe finally understood something she had been refusing to see.

It had never been intentional.

She had never started dating Ethan because he resembled Tristan.

At least she didn't think she had. But somewhere deep inside herself, she had recognized something familiar and safe.

Something she had spent years missing and that familiarity had drawn her toward him.

The realization made her feel sick because she knew Ethan genuinely loved her.

Yet part of her heart had been chasing someone else all along.

Someone she had never truly forgotten or stopped loving.

Tears threatened to spill from her eyes, but she used all her remaining strength to blink them back.

"Baby?" Ethan's voice softened.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Chloe answered automatically.

The lie felt terrible and she knew Ethan deserved honesty.

He deserved someone who loved him completely, not someone whose heart still belonged to his brother.

The closer they got to the city, the clearer everything became.

She could no longer pretend or hide behind confusion.

Seeing Tristan again had shattered every illusion she had built over the last seven years.

The feelings she thought were dead had never disappeared, they had only been buried.

And now they were impossible to ignore.

Ethan deserved better than this.

Far better.

The city finally came into view and traffic began filling the roads.

Ethan reached for her hand again.

This time Chloe let him hold it for several seconds before gently withdrawing her fingers.

A faint crease appeared between his brows but he said nothing.

Chloe lowered her eyes.

Her decision had already been made, though the guilt was becoming unbearable but she could not keep lying to Ethan.

She could not continue punishing all three of them.

Before they reached home, Chloe already knew what she had to do.

She was going to break up with Ethan.