Chapter 363: You Fucked Me, Now You Want Her Too?

Rebecca’s POV

​I pulled away from Melvin, stepping back so we were no longer touching. He looked down at me, his sea-blue eyes full of concern as he searched my face.

​"Are you okay, Rebecca?" Melvin asked, his hands lingering near my arms. "Really?"

​"Yes," I lied smoothly, forcing a steady smile onto my face. "I’m fine, Melvin. Thank you. Now, let’s train."

​I turned my back on the balcony and completely ignored Kaden’s gaze from above. Or at least, I tried to. I focused on the dirt field in front of me, blocking out the memory of last night.

​A little while later, Kaden walked down to the courtyard himself, fully dressed in his training clothes. He didn’t say a word to me, and I made sure not to look at him for longer than necessary. Whatever had happened between us last night had no place here. On this field, he was my supreme commander, and I was one of the forty-two people he needed ready for war.

​The training that followed was brutal. With only three days left before we crossed into Tiger territory, nobody was holding back. We pushed ourselves through hand-to-hand combat, magical attacks, barrier testing, and defensive drills. Rola practiced weakening supernatural abilities while I worked on controlling my teleportation under pressure, and the others tested different combinations of their powers to see what might give us an advantage against the Dark Fire.

​By the time the noon sun reached its peak, sweat was dripping down my back and almost every muscle in my body hurt. When Kaden finally called for a lunch break, everyone scattered toward the shaded areas and water barrels. I leaned against a wooden pillar and took a long drink from my canteen, grateful for the chance to catch my breath.

​As I lowered it, my eyes wandered across the yard and landed on Kaden. Rola had walked over to him near the weapons rack. He was standing with his hands on his hips, his damp hair falling over his forehead after hours of training. I couldn’t hear what they were talking about from where I stood, but Rola was smiling as she spoke to him.

​Then she reached up and gently brushed a strand of his sweaty hair away from his face. Kaden didn’t pull away. Instead, he looked down at her, and a small smile touched his lips.

​My fingers tightened around the canteen, and I immediately looked away. No. Absolutely not. I was not going to stand there and get jealous because Rola touched her own boyfriend. She was allowed to touch his hair. She was allowed to hold his hand, hug him, kiss him, and do whatever else people in relationships did. I was the one who had crossed the line, not her.

​Knowing that didn’t stop the uncomfortable feeling twisting inside my chest, though. Apparently, jealousy didn’t care about logic.

​When the break ended, I threw myself back into training. If Kaden noticed that I was suddenly hitting harder and moving faster, he didn’t comment on it. I concentrated on every instruction, every opponent, and every use of my magic until I was too exhausted to think about anything else.

​By the time training finally ended that evening, my entire body felt heavy. Rola and I walked back to our shared room together, neither of us speaking much on the way because we were both exhausted.

​The moment we got inside, I dropped onto the edge of my bed and started untying my combat boots while Rola pulled her silver-blonde hair free from its ponytail.

​For a few moments, the room remained quiet. Then Rola suddenly smiled.

​"Kaden asked that we go on a date," she announced.

​My fingers froze around my shoelace. I kept my head lowered for a second before slowly looking up at her. "Really?" I asked.

​Rola smiled as she ran her fingers through her hair. "Well, technically, we’re already dating, so I guess he didn’t exactly ask me out," she explained. "But he said after the war, when all of this is over, we should go somewhere together. Just the two of us."

​Something tightened painfully inside my chest. We had sex last night and now he was making plans to take Rola somewhere.

​"So Kaden asked you?" I questioned, trying to keep my voice casual. "It was his idea?"

​"Yes," Rola replied happily. "That’s why I was surprised. Usually, I’m the one trying to make plans for us."

​I swallowed hard and returned my attention to my boots. So Kaden had woken me with kisses that morning. He had looked me straight in the eyes and told me we needed to talk after the war. Then sometime during the same day, he had apparently decided to start making plans for his future with Rola.

​Was last night just something he had needed to get out of his system? Three years of unresolved feelings and attraction finally exploding, and now that it had happened, he could simply return to his relationship? The thought hurt more than it should have.

​"That’s good," I managed, finally pulling off my boot. "I’m happy for you."

​"Thank you," Rola replied, completely unaware of the mess going on inside my head.

​She grabbed some clean clothes and went to take a bath. By the time she returned, she was exhausted enough to fall onto her bed and close her eyes almost immediately. I took my own bath afterward, letting the warm water wash the sweat and dirt from my body, but it did absolutely nothing for my mood.

​When I returned to the bedroom in clean, comfortable clothes, Rola was already asleep. I climbed into my own bed and tried to do the same, but it didn’t work. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Rola brushing Kaden’s hair away from his forehead while he smiled down at her. Then I remembered waking up in his arms that morning, his kisses against my face, and the way he had told me we needed to talk.

​I turned onto my other side, then onto my back, only to roll over again a few minutes later. This was ridiculous. I was exhausted enough that my entire body hurt, yet my mind refused to shut down.

​Rebecca, Laura finally called quietly inside my head.

​Don’t, I warned her.

​Laura fell silent, probably realizing that anything she said right now would only make things worse.

​After another few minutes, I threw the blanket off and sat up. There was no point pretending I was going to sleep because clearly my brain had other plans for tonight. I walked over to Rola’s bed and gently shook her shoulder until her eyes opened.

​"Hey," I whispered. "I’m going to see Lord Melvin for a bit."

​Rola blinked sleepily before a small smirk appeared on her face. "Have fun," she murmured.

​"It’s not like that," I whispered quickly.

​"Mhm," Rola replied, already turning onto her side again.

​I stared at her for a second before shaking my head and leaving the room. I didn’t head toward Melvin’s quarters. Instead, my feet carried me straight toward the main mansion.

​With every step, I told myself this was a terrible idea. Kaden and Rola were dating. Of course he could ask his girlfriend on a date. I had absolutely no right to march into his room demanding answers. That was the reasonable part of my brain talking. Unfortunately, she had lost control of my legs somewhere around the second hallway.

​The guards and servants inside the main mansion recognized me immediately. Nobody questioned where I was going or tried to stop me. They simply greeted me respectfully and moved aside as I climbed the stairs toward Kaden’s private quarters. By the time I reached his door, my chest was tight with a mixture of anger, jealousy, hurt, and something else I didn’t want to name.

​I knocked firmly, and a few moments later, the lock clicked and the door opened. Kaden stood on the other side wearing black sweatpants, his chest bare and his tattooed skin still slightly damp from a shower. His hair was wet too, and surprise crossed his face the second he saw me.

​"Rebecca?" Kaden called. "What are you doing here?"

​I didn’t answer. I walked straight past him into the room, grabbed the door, and shut it behind me before locking it. Kaden slowly turned around to face me, his brows pulling together as he took in my expression.

​"What’s wrong?" he asked.

​"Did you ask Rola on a date?" I demanded.

​Kaden stared at me without answering immediately, and somehow, his silence only made my anger worse.

​"Well?" I pressed, taking a step toward him. "Did you?"

​"Yes," Kaden answered carefully. "I did."

​A bitter laugh escaped me before I could stop it. "Wow."

​His frown deepened. "Rebecca, calm down."

​"Calm down?" I repeated, staring at him in disbelief. "You slept with me last night, Kaden."

​His expression changed immediately, but I stepped closer before he could respond. Everything I had spent the entire day trying not to feel was finally coming out, and I couldn’t seem to stop it now.

​"You woke me up with kisses this morning," I continued, my voice rising. "You told me that after the war, we needed to talk. Then you went downstairs and asked Rola on a date after that same war."

​"Rebecca," Kaden called firmly.

​"No," I snapped, shaking my head as hurt and jealousy finally won over whatever common sense I had left. I took another step toward him and stared directly into his eyes. "What? You’ve fucked me, and now you wanna fuck her too?"