Chapter 151: Only Woman!
Lawrence.
The look on Leonard’s face was absolutely priceless. I had never seen him look so stunned, so shaken, and so utterly speechless before.
For a brief moment, I almost wanted to laugh.
Just imagine the audacity he had.
Out of everyone standing here, he was actually the one asking Theresa to choose only one of us.
The irony of it all was almost laughable.
Did he seriously believe she was still hopelessly in love with him?
Did he honestly think that after everything that had happened between them, she would simply point at him without a second thought?
His confidence irritated me more than I cared to admit.
Still, despite the satisfaction that came from seeing his expression, a dull ache settled heavily in my chest.
I couldn’t deny it.
When Theresa refused to choose me, it hurt, much more than I wanted to admit.
There had been a tiny part of me that had hoped she would look past everyone else and call my name.
That she would choose me above all others but she hadn’t. Instead, she had chosen none of us.
Oddly enough...I couldn’t even bring myself to complain.
Because despite the disappointment lingering in my heart, she hadn’t rejected me either.
She hadn’t pushed me away, she hadn’t denied the bond between us and she had accepted all three of us as her mates.
And somehow...that alone was enough to keep the hope inside me alive.
If sharing her with my brothers was the only way I could remain by her side...then so be it.
I could live with that.
As long as she remained in my life.
As long as she continued to smile at me.
As long as she allowed me to stand beside her and receive even a fraction of her attention.
That was enough for now.
Perhaps one day...she would eventually agree to marry all three of us.
The thought stirred something warm deep inside my chest.
For as long as I could remember, I had wanted to experience what it felt like to have a complete family once again.
A real home.
A family filled with laughter instead of loneliness.
But if that dream was ever going to become reality...there was only one woman I wanted standing beside me.
Theresa.
No one else.
Whenever I pictured the life I wanted, the woman standing beside me was always Theresa.
She was the only one I wanted carrying my name.
The only one I wanted walking beside me through every stage of life.
The only woman I could ever picture becoming the mother of my children.
No one else could ever take that place in my heart and no one ever would.
She always had been the one.
She always would be.
The warmth that had settled inside my chest vanished the instant another face flashed across my mind.
Alex.
My jaw immediately tightened until my teeth nearly ground together.
A dark fury surged through my veins in an instant.
Curse that damned bastard.
Just thinking about him was enough to make my blood boil.
Every memory connected to him ignited a fresh wave of anger that I struggled to suppress.
The fact that he had managed to make Theresa the mother of his child burned deeper than I cared to admit.
It was like an open wound that refused to heal.
The more I thought about it, the stronger the rage became.
It spread through every part of me until it became almost impossible to control.
Right now...the only thing I wanted was to make him pay for what he had done.
To make him experience even a fraction of the pain and resentment that consumed me whenever his name crossed my mind.
The mere thought of him standing anywhere near Theresa was enough to awaken every violent instinct I possessed.
Therefore, I want to punish him so severely that he would never even think of touching another woman again.
I wanted to make him impotent for the rest of his miserable life.
What an absolute asshole.
"Theresa, please listen to me," Leonard said, his voice firm as he continued holding her hands tightly. "You can’t be with all three of us. You have to pick one."
The moment those words left Leonard’s mouth, my face darkened.
A surge of irritation rushed through me so suddenly that I had to clench my jaw to keep myself from saying something I would regret.
Without realizing it, my hands curled into tight fists at my sides. My nails dug painfully into my palms, but I barely noticed.
All I could focus on was him.
What the hell was wrong with him?
Had he completely lost his mind?
Didn’t he realize how selfish he sounded?
Wasn’t he the one acting as though only his feelings mattered?
Did he honestly think I was happy about sharing Theresa with either of them?
Did he imagine that I had accepted this situation without struggling?
That I wasn’t hurting just as much as he was?
Of course I wasn’t.
There wasn’t a single part of me that enjoyed the idea of sharing the woman I loved.
The thought alone was enough to make my chest tighten.
If fate had given me another choice, I would have wanted Theresa all to myself.
Just like he did.
Just like any of us did.
But unlike Leonard...I wasn’t trying to force Theresa into making a decision she had already made perfectly clear.
She had refused to choose.
She had already declared that all three of us were her mates.
Whether we liked it or not, that was the reality standing before us.
Leonard, however, seemed completely oblivious to the glare I was directing at him.
It was as though he couldn’t sense the growing frustration radiating from where I stood.
He remained stubbornly focused on Theresa, refusing to let the matter rest. Nothing else around him seemed to exist anymore, as his entire world had narrowed to the woman standing before him.
"Look, Theresa," he began, his voice noticeably softer than before. "I know I was a jerk six years ago when I turned down your love..."
His words trailed off for a brief moment before he continued, his expression filled with regret.
"But that doesn’t mean you should punish me to this extent." He added.
The desperation in his voice was impossible to miss.
He looked at her as though he expected sympathy. As though he hoped she would soften the moment she heard him admit his mistakes.
Theresa simply rolled her eyes. It was a small gesture, simple and effortless.
Yet it carried enough indifference to make Leonard’s confession seem almost meaningless.
Without another word, she gently pulled her hands free from his grasp.
The instant her fingers slipped from his, I unknowingly released the breath I had been holding.
Only then did I realize how tense my entire body had become. My shoulders relaxed slightly, as a quiet wave of relief washed over me.
For a moment, I had genuinely feared she would give in to Leonard.
That she would allow his words to sway her heart.
Thankfully...she hadn’t.
Instead, she calmly looked at him.
"How is this a punishment, Leonard?" she asked, her tone steady, as it was neither angry nor emotional just calm.
Leonard let out a slow breath. "It is, Theresa," he replied after a brief pause, as his eyes never left hers. "Losing you for six years is already the greatest punishment."
His words carried an unmistakable weight.
There was regret...there was pain and perhaps even guilt.
For the briefest moment, silence lingered between them.
Then Theresa spoke again.
"Well..." she said casually, "doesn’t that mean you should make do with what you can get at the moment?"
Leonard stared at her in disbelief, and his brows slowly knitted together.
"Why are you trying to taunt me?" he asked, frustration creeping into his voice. "You really do not want to start thinking of a way to please three at the same time."
Theresa didn’t look offended. If anything, the corners of her lips lifted ever so slightly.
"I’m not," she replied without hesitation, as a playful glint sparkled in her eyes. "Because I’m the one who gets to decide who to favor among the three of you."
She paused deliberately, allowing her words to settle over the room.
Then the smile on her lips became even more mischievous.
"So..." She continued. "If you don’t do well..." She chuckled. "I might not even look your way, darling."
The teasing smile she wore made her words sound even more dangerous.
"Therefore," she continued confidently, "if you don’t like the arrangement..." She took a deep breath. "You can reject me now."
The room instantly fell silent.
I froze where I stood.
My mind went completely blank.
Leonard’s shoulders visibly tensed, every muscle in his body stiffening at her declaration.
As for Lurgard, he didn’t hesitate for even a second, as the moment those words left Theresa’s lips, he immediately walked toward her.
Without saying a single word, he reached for both of her hands and held them firmly in his own.
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