Chapter 249

I opened my mouth to begin to explain, but the truth seemed worse than even Dylan’s worst assumptions.

No, Asher isn’t the father of my baby. The father is actually a terrible person who is now in prison.

But Dylan wasn’t waiting for me to figure out a softer way to explain, and Asher was no help. He was ready to accept all responsibility, it seemed, even against his best friend and my brother.

“I can’t believe you got my baby sister pregnant, you absolute asshole. I thought we were friends!” The betrayal burned in Dylan’s eyes.

“Now, wait a minute,” I said stepping forward.

Dylan carefully moved me to the side. “Stay out of this, Cynthia.”

“But –”

“You were supposed to be watching her! Protecting her!” Dylan continued to shout.

Asher crossed his arms and accepted the verbal lashing without response.

“Instead you were… you were… Ug! I can’t even think about this! She’s my sister, man. Not some one-night stand or, or whatever else you are used to! You can’t just do this!”

Dylan stopped to catch his breath. It seemed a little bit like he was hyperventilating.

He had caught the attention of the rest of the room now, and everyone turned to listen to him with keen interest.

I simultaneously wanted to hide my head in shame and also drag Dylan out of this room by his ear.

“Dylan,” I hissed. “You really need to listen to me.”

“There’s nothing anyone can say,” Dylan said. “I can see with my own eyes what’s happening here.”

Asher lifted his chin, defiant. “Are you done?”

Dylan huffed through his nose, his rage returning in an instant. “I’ll be done after I pummel you in the ring.”

“A challenge?” Asher said.

“No!” I tried to step between them. They both held up their hands, stopping me.

“Yes,” Dylan snarled. “And none of this waiting bullshit. I want a fight right now, out in the parking lot.”

Asher narrowed his eyes. “That sounds fine. I accept.”

I tried once more. “Now wait one minute!”

“There’s a challenge!” someone shouted. The words echoed through the entire room – until one of the chaperone’s barreled forward.

“Take it outside you two!”

“We’re headed there anyway,” Dylan said in response. “Come on, asshole.”

Dylan turned toward the exit. Not only Asher followed him but everyone else too. The party was quickly moving outside.

In the shuffle, I slipped away from Dylan’s side to approach Asher. He seemed utterly unbothered by what was happening. Confidence or arrogance, I couldn’t tell. One thing I knew, Joseph wasn’t much of a contender, but Dylan was a trained warrior. He wouldn’t just give up.

“Asher, you can’t do this…”

Asher wrapped his arm around me, bringing me closer to the safe shell of his body. Even now, he was protecting me from the jostle of the crowd.

The terms of the challenge had yet to be set, but Dylan’s intentions were clear. He wanted Asher out of my life. What terms would Asher set? Would he demand the same from Dylan?

“I can’t lose either of you,” I said.

Asher turned his face toward me and pressed a kiss to my temple.

“It won’t come to that,” he said.

“I’ve never seen Dylan this angry. He’s out for blood.”

Asher shrugged.

“Asher!”

He kissed me again. “Dylan is my best friend. I understand how his brain works. He thinks I betrayed him and you, and he won’t listen to either of our explanations otherwise. So we have to make him listen.”

“I can talk to him. I can make him see reason.”

Asher shook his head. “He’s beyond that point. The only way he will listen now is through fighting. He has to throw a punch. He has to take a few hits. Then, when it’s through his system, he might be pliant enough to hear us out.”

“’Might?’”

He squeezed me gently. “It will be fine. Trust me.”

I did trust him, with my life and more. But… this was my brother.

My brother and the love of my life were about to fight a challenge with yet unknown terms that would undoubtedly involve me and my baby.

I couldn’t help but be a ball of nerves.

We went through the exit and pushed out into the parking lot. There, the crowd was forming a wide ring. A faculty advisor was inside the empty circle, standing beside Dylan. Dylan was speaking. He was still furious, gesturing wildly with his hands.

“Asher, please. I would just feel so much better if this was called off.”

“Can’t call it off now, or it will be a forfeit, remember?”

I hadn’t forgotten but… still, I worried.

Asher placed a hand to my cheek. He tilted my face upwards so that I was looking at him. Then he leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to my lips.

“Give me twenty minutes. If I get in that ring and twenty minutes goes by and I haven’t convinced him, I will defer to whatever you want to do, okay?” Asher said. “But give me those twenty minutes to try it my way.”

A lot could happen in twenty minutes. But… Dylan, even angry, wouldn’t want to kill his friend. One or both of them was sure to get hurt, which I hated, but… I had to trust both of them that they wouldn’t want to permanently maim each other.

At least, not if I made them promise not to.

“Don’t hurt him too badly,” I said. “He’s still my brother.”

“And he’s my best friend.” Another kiss, softer. “No serious harm, I promise.”

That made me feel slightly better.

Until Dylan’s growl grew so loudly that I could hear it from across the parking lot. I turned toward him and saw him glaring. He pointed at me, then at the empty spot beside him.

“Good luck getting the same promise out of him,” Asher said.

“I’ve got to try.”

With regret, I stepped away from Asher. I hated leaving his side during a challenge but I needed to speak with Dylan first. If I could get him to agree, as Asher had, that no serious bodily harm was going to come to pass, then maybe I could relax for a minute.

Yet as soon as I reached Dylan’s side, he opened his mouth and said, “I’m going to kill that motherfucker.”

“Dylan, you can’t.” I touched his arm in urgency, and felt the coiled muscle underneath. Months of strict and severe training had given him muscles of stone.

Asher could hold his own in a fight, I knew that. But now I had just made him promise to hold back against a trained warrior who wanted to kill him.

What had I done?

“Dylan, please don’t hurt him.”

“He’ll pay for what he’s done to you, Cynthia.”

“He hasn’t done anything to me!”

“Miss,” said the faculty advisor. “If you will please move outside of the ring. It is dangerous here.”

“But --!!”

“Do as she says, Cynthia,” Dylan snapped. He was using his Alpha voice, I was compelled to comply.

I fought against the urge as much as I could, but… the faculty advisor had been truthful. I would get hurt if I stayed. For my baby’s sake, I needed as much distance between myself and the fighting as I could manage.

I moved just outside the ring, but refused to go farther.

I loved both of these men. One, my brother. The other, my lover and fated mate.

The faced off. Dylan growled and snarled. Asher stood stoic.

“Prepare to fight!” called the faculty advisor. She raised her arm. She lowered it. “Begin!”