He Wouldn’t Marry a ‘Widow’ So I Left Him and His Brother Both Chapter 03

He Wouldn’t Marry a ‘Widow’ So I Left Him and His Brother Both Chapter 03

We were leaving that night.

Rory said she wanted to say goodbye to Toby next door, while I quietly began packing.

There was not much in the house that truly belonged to us. After searching through everything, I found only a few changes of clothes.

The two male shifters had brought everything else into the house little by little. Neither of them had ever intended to take me as his bonded mate, yet they kept bringing me things one by one.

A bitter smile touched my lips.

My gaze settled on Rory’s treasure box on the table. It was packed with smooth, brightly colored stones, a little doll stitched from soft hide, and several beautiful feathers.

Ronan and Callum had brought them home now and then to make Rory happy.

Before she left, Rory hugged the box and told me solemnly, “Mama, I don’t want this anymore. Please give it back to Ronan. He’s bad!”

Then she darted away as fast as she could, as though she were afraid she might change her mind.

I knew she did not really want to part with it.

Every item in that box had been precious to her for a long time. She would get upset if anyone so much as touched them.

I lowered my head, folded our clothes, and tucked them into my bundle.

The door suddenly opened behind me.

Assuming Rory had returned, I did not turn around.

“Rory, check whether you’ve forgotten anything…”

Before I could finish, an arm locked around my waist and yanked me against a warm chest.

Before I could react, his mouth came down on mine in an urgent kiss. His lips pressed hard against the corner of my mouth before trailing lower.

I went rigid for a heartbeat, then fought desperately to shove him away.

“What are you doing?”

I planted a hand against Ronan’s jaw and forced him back.

His dark feline eyes glared at me in annoyance, and he leaned in as though he intended to kiss me again.

I slapped him.

Ronan touched his burning cheek, and his expression darkened at once.

“What the hell is wrong with you today? I only kissed you.”

“If you didn’t want me to, you could’ve said so. Did you really have to hit me?”

I lowered my gaze and said nothing. I only clenched my trembling hand into a fist.

Ronan did not dwell on it. Instead, he looked around the room.

When he noticed the bundle on my bed, his brows drew together.

“What are you doing? Cleaning up?”

“I told you I’d renovate the place in a couple of days. Why bother tidying it now?”

He picked up the clay jar on the wooden table and gave it a shake. He clicked his tongue, curled his lip in disgust, and muttered, “What is this thing Callum gave you behind my back?”

I watched him in silence and suddenly found the whole thing ridiculous.

“You were just here this morning. Why are you back again?”

Ronan stared at me blankly.

“When was I…”

He stopped halfway through the question.

His feline eyes narrowed as his gaze slowly traveled over me.

A second later, he strode toward me and reached to pull open my neckline.

Unsure what he meant to do, I recoiled in alarm.

“Why are you backing away?”

He seized both my wrists and held them tightly together.

The pupils in his eyes sharpened into narrow vertical slits.

“What? You let me touch you this morning, but now I can’t this afternoon?”

“We’ve slept together so many times. Anyone who didn’t know better would think a widowed female like you had suddenly decided to start acting like a virgin.”

I froze, my face burning hot.

Humiliation and fury surged through me.

Ronan acted as though he did not care. He leaned closer and stared at my face, gradually becoming lost in thought.

Then, as though the words had slipped out before he could stop them, he said, “Winter, actually, I…”

“Get out.”

He froze. “What?”

While he was distracted, I grabbed the clay jar from the table and hurled it at his face.

Ronan reacted quickly and twisted aside.

The jar grazed his ear before smashing against the wall and shattering across the floor.

“Are you out of your mind?”

He stared at me in disbelief, his face twisted with anger.

My eyes burned as I glared back at him.

“Get out of my house!”

Neither of us backed down as we glared at each other. Ronan gritted his teeth.

“Fine, Winter. Your three years are almost up, aren’t they?”

“I’ll leave. Just don’t regret it.”

He paused and scoffed.

“Every widowed female in this clan scrambles to win the favor of the male shifters. But you? Who do you think you’re giving that attitude to?”

“I must be out of my mind. Why am I wasting my time on someone past her prime who’s already been used by another male when I could be with a younger female?”

With that, he turned and strode out, slamming the door behind him.

The slam made me flinch.

Then I slowly slid down against the edge of the table to the floor.