Fated To My Lycan Stepbrothers
Chapter 40

Zeke's POV

"Whoever she is, she is lucky."

I heard Naya say it with an edge to her tone. She was jealous; I could feel it under the facade. I wondered why. My sides hurt. It hurt so bad that I couldn't breathe the other night. I woke up imagining I spoke with her until I felt her warmth on my chest. She had probably dozed off on my chest.

I loved having her close to me. The fact I did so made me start blabbering nonsense to her. Her surprised looks and time told me she wasn't pleased with what I was saying but rather had to put up with it. I wasn't sorry. The only thing I forgot to add was that she wasn't just my subject. She was one of my most treasured subjects.

Yesterday, I couldn't bear the glares Kyle gave me as I fought. I didn't want to see his angry yet amused eyes. They were empty. Of course, we had both been the next in line for the Alpha title, but Kyle was required to help me from the side. He wasn't doing much to help me, and that offended me. You can't possibly imagine my happiness when Naya came to watch me fight. I felt like I had something to hope for and live for.

I felt I could be vulnerable with her without feeling ashamed. Naya made me feel that way, and no matter how hard I tried to deny it, I failed woefully. She had me on a leash and didn't know it.

She cleaned my wound and cradled me like a baby, but I tried to f**k her with my pain. Her moans and twisting made Flame exceptionally happy. So happy that he wanted to come and play with her. It made me wonder if she was his mate or if he was just messing around with her. Knowing Flame, he wasn't messing around with Naya. Flame wasn't a play-wolf-like shadow. If he liked you, he would make sure to get you under me with my c**k drilling into your hole.

"Alright flame. You can stop it now. Stop putting these dangerous thoughts in my head." I tried to stop Flame from putting these crazy thoughts into my head. I knew he was the one doing it.

"What do you mean? Don't you want Naya?" Flame asked the morning after Naya purposely sneaked out of my room. I thought I heard Kyle in the corridor. He better not chide her after abandoning me on the field. He was supposed to f*****g help me! The door opened a bit, and Kyle walked in after whispering something probably hurtful to Naya because she didn't turn to look at me again.

He sauntered into my room like he owned it. He knew how much I loved my space, yet he pretended to own it. "What are you doing here?" I asked, trying to get up from the bed.

He grinned. "Is that the way to greet your brother after a victorious fight?"

He was patronizing me, and I hated it. "Don't get smart with me, Kyle. You have been off ever since our father died." That changed his facial expression.

"Don't. Don't talk about him now."

I rolled my eyes. "Why shouldn't I? After all, you were acting like he was only your father. You disgust me, Kyle. Get out of my room."

Kyle perched his b**t on my bed. "Don't be such an old, fussy lady. I have gotten over it."

"I guess the sight of me in pain got you thinking, huh? What the f**k were you doing when you were supposed to fight by my side?" I spat in anger. Flame was coming to the surface now. This was why I didn't want my wolves to become actively involved in my business. He was going to ruin things if I didn't intervene. He was probably not in the mood to see Shadow have a smart mouth.

"Come on, Zeke. Don't bring that up now," Kyle said, his face tense. "I was just caught up in my own grief, but I'm here now. I watched you fight yesterday, and you did well." With the way his voice came out, it must have been hard for him to say it. Kyle hardly apologized for his misdeeds. Never to Brooke, and never to anyone.

"Well, you could have been there to support me. I needed you by my side, not just sitting on the sidelines," I replied, frustration evident in my voice. Naya was the only one who was worried for my sake. The rest of the wolves, including the elders, seemed excited about my defeat. Crazy bitches.

"Naya was there, wasn't she? She seemed pretty interested in watching you fight," Kyle said with a hint of jealousy. That was what I was looking for. He spoke badly to her just now. It's going to be tough getting back to her. I have tried to preserve our relationship by not giving her much and not taking too much. Kyle was certainly here to jeopardize it. It amused me.

"Wait, are you jealous of my relationship with Naya?" I chuckled. "She's just my subject, Kyle, nothing more." Hopefully, Naya wasn't at the door listening to our conversation. She would go ballistic. However, I also needed to preserve my relationship with my brother. It wasn't like I was going to totally ignore her existence again. I would try harder to get close to her, but that was it.

He shrugged nonchalantly, but I could tell he was bothered. "I just don't want you getting distracted from your responsibilities as the Alpha. We have a pack to lead, Zeke." Typical Kyle.

"And what is with your tone? You haven't been behaving Alphaly recently." I said, bringing up the last time he went crazy because of our father's death.

"Leave the murder of Dad to me to solve." He suddenly said, "Marley seemed to know something. She has been acting on edge recently, minus the fact that you are f*****g her."

I blew out an air of frustration. Did he think I stuck my d**k into any hole, like him? My brother doesn't understand, doesn't he? "You are sick, Kyle. Fine. Focus on Dad's murder and the attack. Also, do not forget that you need to replace a mate. We both need to replace mates. For now, be nice to the elders." I sighed. "I know, and I take my duties seriously. But having friends and connections outside of our pack is essential too," I reasoned.

Kyle sighed, looking away for a moment. "You're right. I just don't want to see you hurt, especially if Elder Freya's attention is on you. On both of us."

"You don't have to worry about that," I assured him. "I have a feeling that I and Elder Freya will be good friends. Don't speak badly about Marley or Naya; they are both trying their best, and I'm grateful for Naya's support during the fight. It's not like that between us." Okay, I lied. I lied multiple times, but I need to get Kyle's head on the right path.

Kyle nodded slowly, seemingly relieved, which was weird. He knew we hadn't been kind to either Naya or Marley. "Alright, just be careful, Zeke. You know how people can be around those in power."

"I appreciate your concern, but you should trust me to make the right decisions," I replied, trying to ease his worries.

He smiled faintly. "I do trust you, Zeke. You're my brother, after all. I just... I don't want to lose you too." Oh, that was what all this was about. He was scared of losing me, too. Yet he left me to fight alone. I needed to stop thinking this way, or we would never work together.

I softened, understanding his feelings. "You won't lose me, Kyle. We're family, and that bond is unbreakable."

He nodded again, and I could sense a weight lifting off his shoulders. "Thanks, Zeke. I guess I needed to hear that."

"Anytime, Kyle," I said, reaching out to pat his shoulder reassuringly. "Now, let's focus on leading our pack together and making sure they obey."

Kyle smiled genuinely this time. "Yeah, that's what we should be doing. Together."

Now, I faced Naya, who was staring at the lake. I had recently found out she was coming here. She had been avoiding me plenty of times, and I don't like it. Coupled with some special agreement she had with Kyle, I haven't been able to smell her. It was infuriating. "Have you been using that bottle again?" I asked out of the blue. My dear was confirmed when she gasped; her face and eyes were seemingly innocent, but they were filled with much attractive fetish, as I came to understand the other day. "What bottle?"

I scoffed. "You have been avoiding me. Why?"

"I am your loyal subject." She simply said. She was purposely trying to make me angry.